Lesson 16 1776 Sherman Edwards & Peter Stone

1. Lesson 16 1776 Sherman Edwards &Peter Stone

2. Objectives of teaching • get familiar with the background of the author; • get familiar with the main characters in the play • try to appreciate the language of the play

3. I. About the play • 1776 is a musical comedy, but it breaks the unwritten rule that musical comedies aim at providing light entertainment with a full treatment of the revolution for independence and the founding of the United States. It has a noble theme and a noble set of characters. When on stage, the play makes the audience feel breathlessly involved. The power of this play comes both from the forceful drama of history and from its interesting insights into the interplay of human nature and political destiny at a moment of historic significance. The show provides America with an interesting history lesson. Here is how the republic was made.

4. II. About the authors • The idea of 1776 came to its composer lyricist Sherman Edwards, who worked on it for nearly a decade before bringing it to Peter Stone who was to become the librettist. • Peter Stone(1930- ) studied at Bard and Yale, and wrote in France for 12 years. Later he won an Oscar for the film script of Father Goose. After the success of 1776 on Broadway, he wrote the script for its filmed version. • Sherman Edwards(1919- ) was educated at New York University and Cornell where he majored in history. A song writer and occasional actor, it was history that gave him the idea for 1776. In this paly, the misty figures who influenced American history, such as John Adams and Benjamin Franklin, together with their faces and hearts, were worked out. The authors somehow make dry-as-dust history come alive and succeed in captivating and fascinating the reader.

5. III. About thecharacters in the play • John Hancock (1737-1793): political leader in the American Revolution, signer of the Declaration of Independence. So the term “John Hancock” is often used to mean a signiture. Governor of Massachusettes, he opposed to the Stamp Act. • 2. John Adams (1735-1826): second President of the United States(1797-1801), an opponent of the Stamp Act.

6. III. About thecharacters in the play 3. Stephen Hopkins (1707-1785): colonial governor of Rhode Island and political leader in the American Revolution. An early and strenuous defender of colonial rights. 4. Roger Sherman (1721-1793): American political leader. He helped to draft and signed the Declaration of Independence. He was one of the strongest proponents of the new Constitution and was prominent in Connecticut colonial and state politics.

7. III. About thecharacters in the play 5. Lewis Morris (1726-1798): American political leader, signer of the Declaration of Independence. He was a wealthy landowner in New York state. He was prominent among the opponents of British politics and was influential in the Continental Congress. 6. Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790): American statesman, scientist and writer. 7.Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826): third President of the U. S. (1801-1809), author of the Declaration of Independence.

8. IV. Question for discussion • What are the respective positions of John Adams and Franklin?