The composer Jerome Kern was so amazed by woman writer Edna Ferber’s novel Show Boat, and decided this was the very story he needed for a successful musical show. On hearing the news that Kern would like to adapt Show Boat into a musical play, Ferber’s reaction was rather indifferent for she though that musical was too frivolous and superficial for her serious novel. Yet Kern turned out to be successful in presenting the panoramic view of American culture on the stage, just as much as Ferber did in her novel. 1920 to 1929, also known as "Roaring twenties" or the "Jazz Age", has a series of cultural and social labels, including prohibition of alcohol, gambling, progress, jazz, independence and racialism, etc. All of these labels are embodied in Ferber’s panoramic novel; as a result, Kern’s musical version of Show Boat was also branded with the contemporary American culture, concerning the topics such as racialism, alcoholism, gambling, and broken marriage. It is not until then that American musicals began to shift towards a serious and respectable genre.
Known as "Jazz Age" or "Roaring twenties", the American 1920s was a period of profound growth and changes in social, cultural history, as well as in economic and technological development. Inspired by such improvements and changes, artists make a panoramic presentation of the contemporary American society in the musical Show Boat. The credible story line, integration of existing musical forms and involvement with serious social issues, won Show Boat the important position as the foundation of modern American musical.
by Li Jing
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