2.3 Camelot & Gigi!

The Gospel of Musical Theatre

We're talking about two of Lerner & Loewe's most problematic and legendary (wait for it...) shows - the 1958 film Gigi and the 1960 Broadway musical Camelot!

We talk about:

- Pedophilia: Gigi’s origin in the short stories of the French writer Colette (1873-1953) and the film's lurking pedophilia

- Feminism (and Lack Thereof): The nature of women’s roles (in 19th-century Paris, 1950s America, and today), and the development of cultural norms around gender, marriage and sexuality.

- The Marriage Fantasy: Traditional marriage and the degree to which Christianity has upheld and supported it – and how both Gigi and Camelot explore conventions around heterosexual marriage.

- Threesomes: The relationship between Camelot's Arthur, Guinevere and Lancelot as an echo of Higgins, Eliza and Pickering's relationship in My Fair Lady.

- JFK: How Camelot relates to the Kennedy presidency and 1960s America

- Power and Corruption: The show's central theological questions: can there be power that is wielded for good - and is the realization of the Beloved Community possible in this life?

You’ll hear:

- Maurice Chevalier singing “Thank Heaven For Little Girls” from the 1958 Gigi film soundtrack.

- Richard Burton singing the title song and Julie Andrews &Richard Burton singing "What Do the Simple Folk Do?" from the 1960 Broadway Cast Recording of Camelot

- Our Beloved Julie Andrews singing “The Lusty Month of May” from the 1960 Camelot Broadway Cast Recording

Continue the conversation with Peter (@pgeinvan) and Nathan (@nathan_lerud) on Twitter, and follow the Gospel of Musical Theatre on Instagram or Twitter @gospelofmt.