oriental musicals

[Birgit Kellner]

Alex wrote:
> 
>My present research is on Oriental
>musicals with particular emphasis on Japanese productions of the 1950's
>and 1960's. I've just accepted this unenviable offer, and hope to find
>some productions from the period that reflect the aesthetics of the
>classical American "song and dance" musical of the day, but oriental...
>I guess my first contribution to this list therefore has to be a
>question: Are there any?

If the focus lies on "Oriental" musicals as a general background, then
there is surely no way past popular Indian cinema. If my memory serves
me correctly (due to limited access to library resources, I'm currently
not capable of keeping up to date with research on Indian cinema), there
is quite a bit of literature on comparing the way in which music/dance
scenes are embedded into the dramatic/narrative of popular Indian cinema
with that of classical American musicals. And if my harddisk is still
what it used to be, then I might be able to supply some references if
needed.

Though the contribution of popular Indian patterns to Japanese
productions might be negligible in a strictly historical sense (or
not?), it might still be worthwhile comparing the aesthetics as such.
Especially if the adjective "Oriental" lurks around in the background as
a general theme ...

-- 
birgit kellner
department for indian philosophy
hiroshima university