Hollywood's conversion to sound in the 1920s created an early peak in the film musical, following the immense success of
The Jazz Singer
. The opportunity to synchronize moving pictures with a soundtrack suited the musical in particular, since the heightened experience of song and dance drew attention to the novelty of the technological development. Until the near-collapse of the genre in the 1960s, the film musical enjoyed around thirty years of development, as landmarks such as
The Wizard of Oz, Meet Me in St Louis, Singin' in the Rain
, and
Gigi
showed the exciting possibilities of putting musicals on the silver screen.
The Oxford Handbook of Musical Theatre Screen Adaptations
traces how the genre of the stage-to-screen musical has evolved, starting with screen adaptations of operettas such as
The Desert Song
and
Rio Rita
, and looks at how the Hollywood studios in the 1930s exploited the publication of sheet music as part of their income. Numerous chapters examine specific screen adaptations in depth, including not only favorites such as
Annie
Kiss Me, Kate
but also some of the lesser-known titles like
Li'l Abner
Roberta
and problematic adaptations such as
Carousel
Paint Your Wagon
. Together, the chapters incite lively debates about the process of adapting Broadway for the big screen and provide models for future studies.