This book presents biographies of 100 of the most influential entertainers of all time. It includes the best-known actors, comedians, directors, and musicians who have kept audiences tuned in and have constantly pushed the limits of entertainment.
This book presents biographies of 100 religious leaders who have had the greatest impact on their respective followers, nations, regions, and the world at large. Young readers not only learn about notable leaders of the various strands of Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism, but also read about the contributions of offshoot sects and more obscure religions.
This book presents biographies of 100 individuals in the medical field responsible for everything from vaccinations to gene therapy. It allows readers to understand how each pioneer built on the work of his or her peers and predecessors and how concepts relate to each other.
This book presents biographies of 100 military leaders, both good and evil, who represent nations throughout the world and the most significant wars in history. Each entry includes information about childhood influences, education, career highlights, post-military life, and legacy as it relates to military history.
This book presents biographies of 100 innovators of technology who have affected nearly every facet of life, from transportation and communication to science and entertainment. Their names range from the familiar, such as Thomas Edison, to the more obscure, such as Henrietta Swan Leavitt, but their contributions to today's world are all vital.
Presented here are two celebrities who have climbed the ladder of success to become one of the most renowned and influential power couples in the world. Beyonce, with her chart-topping singles and multiple Grammy awards, is one of the most compelling singers and pop culture icons today. Jay-Z has earned his fame as one of the most illustrious rappers of all time, and is a sharp-minded businessman. He has also worked to shed light on the injustice of the American prison system. This revealing narrative chronicles their early lives with big dreams to global domination as a billionaire power couple.
George Clooney grabbed public attention in the hit show ER and went on to establish a successful film career. Amal Alamuddin fled war-torn Lebanon with her family as a young child and settled in London, England, eventually qualifying as a barrister. She distinguished herself in cases involving international law and human rights. They might seem an unlikely pair, but George Clooney has long been passionate about humanitarian activism, and Amal Clooney, with her adventurous sense of style, shines whether she's arguing in a courtroom or attending a gala. Together, the Clooneys make a glamorous power couple advocating for worthy causes. This biography takes a deep dive into this stellar couple's story.
The first-ever book to tell the stories of over 300 inspiring women who wrote Broadway and Off-Broadway musicals that Publishers Weekly calls "an exhaustive tribute to women whose contributions to Broadway musical history have often been overlooked." Library Journal praises the book, saying, "Tepper has fashioned a winning book on the unsung heroines of Broadway musicals that will be appreciated by readers of women’s studies and theater lore." Kirkus Reviews says it's an "encyclopedic reference" and a "long-overdue tribute to female lyricists and composers." From the composers who pounded the pavement selling their music in Tin Pan Alley at the turn of the twentieth century; to the lyricists who broke new ground writing shows during the Great Depression; to the book writers who penned protest musicals fighting for social justice during the 1970s; to those who are revitalizing the landscape of American theatre today, Women Writing Musicals tells the stories of over 300 inspiring women who wrote Broadway and Off-Broadway musicals. Jennifer Ashley Tepper's definitive book covers prolific and celebrated Broadway writers like Betty Comden and Jeanine Tesori, women who have written musicals but gained fame elsewhere like Dolly Parton and Sara Bareilles, and dramatists you’ve never heard of—but definitely should have. Among the gems shared here are the stories of Clara Driscoll, who saved the Alamo and also wrote a Broadway musical; Micki Grant, whose mega-hit musical about the Black experience made her the first woman to write book, music, and lyrics for a Broadway show; María Grever, who made her Broadway debut at age 56 and who was the first Mexican female composer to achieve international success; and the first all-female writing team for a Broadway musical, in 1922: Annelu Burns, Anna Wynne O’Ryan, Madelyn Sheppard, and Helen S. Woodruff. This book is a treasure trove for theatre-loving readers that Tony and Emmy Award-winning actor and singer Kristin Chenoweth praises as "a wonderful resource for actors, and an important read for anyone interested in theatre."
Through the ages women have had to fight to be taken seriously, have their work accepted, and be considered the equal of men intellectually and creatively. This book tips its hat to women such as Cleopatra, Joan of Arc, Sojourner Truth, and Princess Diana, who have made their mark and forever changed the world with their contributions.
The volume is a collection of scholarly essays and personal responses that contextualizes Hamilton: An American Musical in various frameworks: hip-hop theatre and history, American history, musicals, contemporary politics, queer theory, feminism, and more. Hamilton is arguably the most important piece of American theatre in 25 years in terms of both national impact and shaping influence on American theatre. It is part of a larger history of American theatre that reframes the United States and shows the nation its face in a manner not before seen but that is resolutely true. With essays from a number of scholars, artists, political scientists, and historians, the book engages with generational differences in response to the play, transformations of the perception of the musical between the Obama and Trump administrations, youth culture, color-conscious casting, feminist critiques, comparisons with black-ish, The Mountaintop, Assassins, and In the Heights, as well as Hamilton's place in hip hop theatre.