Diegesis

Some of the most interesting musical theater does its work by playing with the blurred boundary between diegetic music -- music that actually exists within the world of the show -- and non-diegetic -- the imaginary, elevated emotional music that defines the art form in our imagination. (Sweeney Todd isn't singing in his universe; the Michael Jackson of MJ is.) That's one of the reasons why musical theater is preoccupied with performance. Examining why tells us a lot about the capital-T Theater as a liminal between-space.SONGS FEATURED:"Wig in a Box" from Hedwig and the Angry Inch"Masquerade" from Stereophonic"Another Day of Sun" from La La Land"Beggin'" from Jersey Boys"Bright (Take 22)" from Stereophonic"On Broadway" from Beautiful: The Carole King Musical"Entr'acte" from Cabaret"If You Could See Her" from Cabaret"I Don't Care Much" from Cabaret"Cabaret" from Cabaret"Wicked Little Town" from Hedwig and the Angry Inch"Rose's Turn" from Gypsy"Prologue" from Follies"Who's That Woman" from Follies"Nowadays" from Chicago