ABSTRACT
As had been the case in the 1960s, the 1970s witnessed several new young composers whose careers both peaked and declined in the same decade. Several women enjoyed the theatrical limelight in the 1970s, although, like their male counterparts, they often found it difficult to sustain their careers. African American composers also contributed book musicals to the Great White Way, but it was seldom that an individual made significant contributions more than once or twice. One of the first musicals to have been prerecorded as a concept album was Shinbone Alley, which had only a short run in 1957. The theatrical world is very superstitious, full of rituals and prohibitions. Bennett saw great potential in the gypsies' stories. He presented the idea for a concept musical showcasing those tales to Joseph Papp, whose New York Shakespeare Festival had supported many experimental shows.
