ALL THAT JAZZ, MURDER AND CORRUPTION THAT INSPIRED A BROADWAY SENSATION

CHICAGO

In the beginning…

Once upon a time there was a play called Chicago written as a class project by then Yale student Maurine Dallas Watkins. Though not adapted as a musical in her lifetime, her play revolved around real life murderers Beulah Annan and Belva Gaertner, which she renamed Roxie Hart and Velma Kelly. The play is based on articles she wrote for the Chicago Tribune covering these 1924 murder trials!3

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Movie Before Musical

The success of the play led to the 1942 movie Roxie Hart staring the legendary Ginger Rogers in the title role. Though many of the elements of what would become the story for the musical, there are glaring differences between the two. Most notably that the character of Velma Kelly is nowhere to be found in this adaptation.

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The Legal Cultural of Chicago

Justice seemed to be for sale in Chicago in the 1920s. W.W. O’Brien, the real life counterpart to Billy Flynn, seemed to be as outlandish as Billy Flynn was in the play and subsequent musical. In fact, some of Billy Flynn’s dialogue is taken from actual quotes of Mr. O’Brien’s courtroom tactics during the actual trials. 6

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The Legal System of Chicago

Though some claim little has changed, the city of Chicago is legendary for the corruption in it’s political and legal system. In what would eventually become the musical Chicago, it showcases the circus-like atmosphere that was created by the participants and the media that fueled the public’s fascination with otherwise deplorable acts of murder. 8 9

The Story

A collaborative effort between John Kander, Fred Ebb, and Bob Fosse, the musical’s story revolves around would-be cabaret performer Roxie Hart, who murders her boyfriend Fred Casely. It just so happens that Roxie is married, to her sad-sack husband Amos. She convinces Amos that Fred was a burglar and that he should take the blame for the murder since he would most likely get off with a self-defense plea.

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The police find out that Roxie is the real killer and off to jail she goes. There she meets jazz slayer Velma Kelly who is a media sensation for the double murder of her sister and husband. At first Roxie tries to be friendly with Velma. When that does not work out, Roxie hires Velma’s lawyer, Billy Flynn, to help her get off for the murder. Billy is more than happy to help, for the right price. Amos comes up with the money to hire Billy to help his dear wife Roxie be set free. When Velma realizes that Roxie is stealing her press, she tries to make friends with Roxie. Not surprisingly, Velma gets a taste of her own medicine. However, there is a new murderess in the Cook County jail. Not to be out done, Roxie concocts a fake pregnancy to gain sympathy from the media and the public at large. It works! In the end Roxie and Velma are both released from prison. Now that the public has lost interest in them and their story, they team up for their own musical act and become media sensations once again. 10

The real life ending…

Though things seem to turn out well for Roxie and Velma, the same cannot be said for their real-life counterparts. Beulah Annan had divorced her first husband only to marry again to a man that already had a wife. This led to a snapping of her nerves. Her life ended in 1928 from unknown causes. As for Belva Gaertner little is known of what happened after her release. These two never teamed up for a musical act.1413

All That Jazz

The song we chose to prepare for performance is the opening number, All That Jazz. Contextually, it sets up the premise for the show. It gives insight into the Jazz lifestyle of the roaring ‘20s in Chicago through its lyrical description of this bootleg era as well as the jazzy tempo of the music. It is also pivotal in that Roxie murders Fred during this song. 15

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Resources1. Picture of Belva Gaertner:

https://www.awesomestories.com/asset/view/Belva-Gaertner 2. Picture of Beulah Annan:

https://frayeddustjackets.wordpress.com/tag/belva-gaertner/ 3. Info on slide 2:

http://www.literalmedia.com/index.php?view=article&catid=38%3Awatkins&id=74%3Amaurine-dallas-watkins-biography&option=com_content&Itemid=58

4. Roxie Hart Picture: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roxie_Hart_%28film%29

5. Slide 3 info: http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/88706/Roxie-Hart/full-synopsis.html

6. Slide 4 info.: http://www.douglasperry.net/qa.html7. Slide 4 Picture:

https://www.awesomestories.com/images/user/73ca2051cd.jpg

Recources8. Info on slide 5: Douglas Perry, The Girls of Murder City: Fame, Lust, and the Beautiful

Killers Who Inspired Chicago (New York: Penguin, 2010), 210-211.9. Picture on Slide 5: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGRMgGQkzwQ 10. Summary of slides 6-7: http://www.stageagent.com/Shows/View/84511. Image on slide 6:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Chicago-Musical-1996-Cast-CD-Bebe-Neuwirth-Joel-Grey-Ann-Reinking-Marcia-Lewis-/270952449683

12. Image on slide 6: http://www.amazon.co.jp/Chicago-Musical-Vaudeville-Original-Broadway/dp/B000002VSP

13. Slide 8 info.: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2003/03/0321_030321_oscars_chicago_2.html

14. Picture on slide 8: ahaplayhouse.blogspot.com/2011/09/murder-corruption-and-all-that-jazz.html

15. Info. On slide 9: http://movieclips.com/HyZR6-chicago-movie-all-that-jazz/ 16. Picture on slide 9: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078754/