"Geniuses of American Musical Theatre" available in October

Geniuses of American Musical Theatre: The Composers and Lyricists
by Herb Keyser
Foreword by Ted Chapin
October 2009 / ISBN: 978-1-4234-6275-0$29.99 / 320 pages / Hardcover / Full-color throughout
Published by Applause Books, an imprint of Hal Leonard http://www.applausepub.com/itemDetail.jsp?itemid=332775

For all who love theatre and popular music, this gorgeous new hardcover book collects intimate details about the greatest songwriters and lyricists in Broadway history.

Geniuses of the American Musical Theatre collects, for the first time, biographies of twenty-eight of the greatest songwriters and lyricists of Broadway musicals, including Irving Berlin, Leonard Bernstein, George Gershwin, Jerry Herman, Johnny Mercer, Cole Porter, Rodgers and Hammerstein, Stephen Sondheim, and many more. Longtime theatre-lover and stage veteran Herbert Keyser takes us on a personal journey through the music that made these great artists so much a part of our history and our lives, giving readers their stories from a well-informed, witty, and warmhearted new perspective.

As Ted Chapin points out in his foreword, collecting all of these life stories into one book highlights the amazing accomplishments of Broadway’s golden age, when many of these geniuses were at the peak of their careers. As some have suggested, perhaps many of these songwriters achieved such brilliant heights of creativity and inspiration because they had the good fortune to work in a world filled with so many other talented contemporaries. Keyser’s book allows us to appreciate these geniuses, not only on their own, but also within the context of American musical theatre history.

Published by Applause Theatre & Cinema Books, an imprint of Hal Leonard, this beautiful full-color hardcover volume is a loving celebration of the lives and artistry of our greatest songwriters.

Herbert Keyser has enjoyed a passionate love affair with the American musical theatre for over half a century. Growing up in a loving family with two deaf parents, he embarked on a career in show business as a senior in high school, a path later derailed by his acceptance into medical school. Keyser is the author of four previous books and has appeared on Nightline, The Regis Philbin Show, HBO, and CNN.