When Thomas Schumacher speaks of theater, his passion is effusive and undeniable. And he’s always talking about it. Thankfully, for a young generation of theatergoers, he has gotten around to writing about it.
His new book “How Does The Show Go On? An Introduction To The Theater” will be hardcover heaven for anyone wanting to learn details – big and small - from the front of the house to the back of the stage. Children may be the intended audience for this book but make no mistake, even veteran theatergoers will find the comprehensive contents engaging and fun.
“It is literally the book I wish I had when I was a kid,” Schumacher says. “The things that are inside, the supplemental things, the artifacts, if you will, whether it’s a flip-out of what someone looks like with or without their wig or pull-out pages of a script, the make-up or a magic section, these are things I was curious about.”
As President of Disney Theatrical, Schumacher oversees the development and production of Disney’s live theatre events around the world. He was a Tony Award-winning producer of THE LION KING and is responsible for bringing numerous other Disney properties to the stage including Elton John & Tim Rice’s AIDA, TARZAN, MARY POPPINS and THE LITTLE MERMAID, the latest Broadway offering. Having direct access to these different productions put Schumacher in a unique position to write an introduction-to-theater book. Furthermore, it’s no accident that virtually every image within its 128 pages is related to Disney musicals.
“The reason it’s all Disney, of course, is because I could control the artwork that was inside it,” Schumacher says. “Specifically, you could never afford to make this book if you had to pay for the rights to all those photographs. You just couldn’t do it. That’s one of the reasons this book is so cheap and that’s a real benefit. We cannot be charging an arm and a leg for it. To make that happen we exclusively photographed it. We had to pay the Equity actors that we photographed but we didn’t have to pay for usage of all that show material.”
Schumacher feels that Disney has a natural platform here because their shows are so popular on a global stage. He notes that 44 million people have seen THE LION KING and says “It’s Broadway that they might be able to relate to. I’m not writing about shows that frankly they shouldn’t see or that they wouldn’t understand.”
The idea for the book began long ago but Schumacher finally began writing this, his first book, in earnest back in 2003 with the help of Jeff Kurtti, a Disney historian and author. Since the book’s release in November 2007, it has captured a lot of attention. Schumacher believes that much of the interest stems from the book’s easy-to-read presentation and tactile approach.
“In this age of new media, to go see a real play and then actually touch a book, a book that wants to be touched - it says ‘Touch me, open me, fold me, pull the flap,’ - it’s a great way to be able to connect [with readers].”
As his title might suggest and his interests most certainly indicate, he’s an extremely busy man. So where did Schumacher find the time to create this playful publication? In his sleep? Not quite.
“I work seven days a week, at my own delight, but I’m also on airplanes all the time,” Schumacher says. “So when you’re flying to China, what else are you going to do? You’re flying from Amsterdam to Johannesburg three times, what else are you going to do? I’m in tech rehearsals all the time. I’m in foreign hotel rooms all the time. It became a great project and I had to carry this huge bag around that had all the book materials in it and it just kept going from one place to the next.”
Now that “How Does The Show Go On?” has moved from the development phase to the retail marketplace, Schumacher has already begun working on a follow-up book. He appears to be on some sort of a personal mission. His desire to share his theatrical knowledge and experiences with kids is rooted in his own youth and upbringing.
“My mother was a teacher,” Schumacher says. “For me the idea of teaching and learning are constantly ongoing and I want to be taught stuff. I love learning something and then teaching that very same thing to somebody else.”
Buried deep in the back of “How Does The Show Go On?”, in the Afterword section, Schumacher imparts sentimental advice that sums it all up: If you have great teachers, listen to them. If you have a chance to be a teacher to someone, somewhere, somehow, be one. And in the theater, never forget that you will always be a student.
More information on the book available online at www.HowDoesTheShowGoOn.com.
By: Kirk Wingerson
