CHICAGO
ALL THAT JAZZ, MURDER AND CORRUPTION
THAT INSPIRED A BROADWAY SENSATION
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In the beginning…
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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
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
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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
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tactics during the actual trials.
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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
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deplorable acts of murder.
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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.
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
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musical act. 13
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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Resources
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Picture of Belva Gaertner:
https://www.awesomestories.com/asset/view/Belva-Gaertner
Picture of Beulah Annan:
https://frayeddustjackets.wordpress.com/tag/belva-gaertner/
Info on slide 2:
http://www.literalmedia.com/index.php?view=article&catid=38%3Awat
kins&id=74%3Amaurine-dallas-watkinsbiography&option=com_content&Itemid=58
Roxie Hart Picture:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roxie_Hart_%28film%29
Slide 3 info: http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/88706/Roxie-Hart/fullsynopsis.html
Slide 4 info.: http://www.douglasperry.net/qa.html
Slide 4 Picture:
https://www.awesomestories.com/images/user/73ca2051cd.jpg
Recources
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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.
Picture on Slide 5: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGRMgGQkzwQ
Summary of slides 6-7: http://www.stageagent.com/Shows/View/845
Image on slide 6: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Chicago-Musical-1996-Cast-CDBebe-Neuwirth-Joel-Grey-Ann-Reinking-Marcia-Lewis-/270952449683
Image on slide 6: http://www.amazon.co.jp/Chicago-Musical-VaudevilleOriginal-Broadway/dp/B000002VSP
Slide 8 info.:
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2003/03/0321_030321_oscars_chica
go_2.html
Picture on slide 8: ahaplayhouse.blogspot.com/2011/09/murder-corruptionand-all-that-jazz.html
Info. On slide 9: http://movieclips.com/HyZR6-chicago-movie-all-that-jazz/
Picture on slide 9: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078754/