New York Theater: The president of the United States puts a fifty percent tariff on all imported cheese, which leads to war…with Switzerland. That’s the premise of “Strike Up the Band,” the first of a trio of Broadway musicals in the early 1930s with songs by George and Ira Gershwin that were intended as lighthearted political satires.
4 comments:
I think it is interesting how often, as shown in this article, the topic of taxes show up in recent theatrical productions. I was only aware of a few of these references, and even shows like Hamilton where I know the topic of taxes was central to the revolution in the beginning of the musical had more instances than I originally thought. The relatability of tax grief is highlighted well by Usnavi in In the Heights, and it felt like a very organic thing to say, like the kind of remark your family member, neighbor, or friend might make about winning the lottery. I think that taxes come up so much in these productions because of the cultural value that has been attached to it, with the phrase “death and taxes” being a good example of its relevance and relatability. It is an easy way to get the audience involved emotionally and sympathize with the characters in the story.
Theater and subtle ways of speaking about the current world on stage. It’s amazing how we as citizens will just tolerate being taken advantage of. Currently we pay more taxes now than previously in history. Mind we expect a lot more from our government and we see new roads, schools and community centers. So it’s different then paying for tea that you could grow for a small percentage of the tax and price. But I do wonder why America is struggling with healthcare, retirement, fair affordable housing. But we still manage to produce a multi billion dollar fighter jet every 5-15 years. I know that theatre is poking at the fact that we are getting some crazy taxes but the benefits are not directly seen or benefit the citizens directly in ways that would make the average American more stable and sure of their circumstances and situation. This article pulls so many examples of this in a way that is detached from the actual reality we live but close enough for it to feel adjacent to it.
I really thought this article was going to be about how tariffs are going to impact broadway. I have to say that I was quite happy to see that is not what the article is about. Also, I forgot to do my taxes. Well, I didn’t forget, I just put it off until it seemed pointless to try to get my shit together. Don’t worry there is not even enough money in my bank account for a standard deduction. Anyway it certainly is interesting how much taxes show up in musical theatre. I guess they’re a political talking point that has been a constant throughout all of American history.
One of the most unfortunate things I’ve seen happen because of the new tariffs is that they’re having a real impact on a lot of the small business owners I follow online. Artists not based in America are losing a big part of their income, and those who are based in America but who get materials or do manufacturing abroad (esp. in China) are getting hit hard too. Certainly the stock market is suffering but ultimately I feel like most large corporations can take the hit; for small business owners they might have to change their whole lives around if things don’t work out financially.
This is so funny. There are two things that are certain in life, death and taxes, and it seems people are incredible at finding ways to make fun of both. I fully thought this was going to be an article about how tariffs are already affecting Broadway, but this was delightful. After weeks of reading about how tariffs have been affecting the things I enjoy (the HAAS F1 team have already released statements about it), it is refreshing to remember that taxes have been messing with people for hundreds of years, and we already have the comedic infrastructure to cope with this attack. The Hamilton line i think is my favorite, mostly because of the delivery, but I think modern political commentators need to start taking notes on all of these approaches and make better late night jokes on the topic. It is time we start laughing at our situation more, because thats the only way we're gonna make it out of this with our sanity.
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