The Music Man

Extras & Insights

Seventy-Six Trombones hit the counterpoint,
While a hundred and ten cornets blazed away.
To the rhythm of Harch! Harch! Harch!
All the kids began to March,
And they’re marching still – right today!
– “76 Trombones,” The Music Man

From the Wings

“And There Was Music”: A Songwriter’s Journey through Familiar and Unfamiliar Territory
Dramaturg Amrita Ramanan uncovers Meredith Willson’s inspiration for his seminal musical

Six Years, 40-Odd Drafts and a Few Good Laughs: Meredith Willson's Struggle to Write The Music Man
Chart the process of getting The Music Man from the page to the stage

In Rehearsal

Becoming Winthrop: A Young Actor’s Journey to “River Thity”
Go behind the scenes with actor Ian Berlin

Spotlight On…

It’s a what? It’s a what?: The Music Man Glossary
Learn more about the slang and turn-of-the-century references in The Music Man

Iowa Stubborn: The History of Mason City

Immerse yourself in the history and culture of the original River City

Just Hanging On: Arts Education in America Today
Explore the state of arts education in America today

And the Bands Played On: An Interview with Mason City’s “Music Men"
An interview with Mason City historians Terry Harrison and Art Fischbeck on marching bands, Meredith Willson and the continued influence of music in Mason City.

A Grip, A Sample Case, and A Train Ticket: A Brief History of the American Traveling Salesman
Journey through the life and times of Traveling Salesmen in the early 20th Century.

CHAUCER! RABELAIS! BALZAC!: Dirty Books and the Librarian’s Fight against Censorship
Delve into a brief history of literary censorship in America.

Encore

Obsolete, Obsolete, Obsolete?: The Continuing Influence of The Music Man
A brief look at some of the pop culture appropriations of The Music Man throughout time

Extras & Insights is funded, in part, by a grant from the National Endowment of the Humanities.