The Musical Theatre of Charles Dibdin (1st edition)

The notion of an "integrated musical," traditionally believed to be a twentieth-century development, actually emerged in the second half of the eighteenth century through the work of Charles Dibdin (1745-1814).

Dibdin wrote the music, book, and lyrics, as well as the dance music, vocal arrangements, and orchestrations for a series of popular, and innovative British musicals, in which he often performed.

The conception of an integrated musical theatre is the subject of this book, and the study of how Dibdin blended musical devices from Italian opera, eighteenth-century galant theories, and English ballads with a keen perception of the dramatic to create an organic musical theatre that paved the way for the integrated musical in the twentieth century.

A study of Dibdin's musical theatre will enhance our understanding and appreciation not only of the eighteenth-century musical, but also of the musical theatre today.