Marc Courtade, lecturer and performer On Wednesday, November 4th, the Community Club of Garden City and Hempstead, Inc. presented a lecture by Marc Courtade entitled, “The Ethnic Musicals: Assimilation and Integration.” In his presentation, Mr. Courtade discussed how the melting pot of America was reflected in the Broadway musicals.

Using a combination of slides and recordings from the musicals, Mr. Courtade showed how early Broadway composers, like Irving Berlin, hid their immigrant roots and attempted to incorporate their native musical colorings into the popular American culture. In the 1960’s, second and third generation Americans explored “ethnic” musicals. By playing songs from each of the shows, Mr. Courtade examined how these musicals reflected the eras and cultures being represented.

The ethnical musicals of the 1960’s and 1970’s featured many contrasting ethnic groups and the composers wove them into the fabric of the American musical, some successfully, others less so. He asked us to consider if such shows as “Milk and Honey” (1961), “Fiddler on the Roof” (1964), “Hallelujah, Baby” (1967), “The Wiz” (1975), and “Pacific Overtures” (1976) convey the mood of the modern American exprience and hold up over time. He left us to form our own opinions of how successful each set of creators was. A lively question and answer period followed Mr. Courtade’s entertaining lecture.

Marc Courtade with General Program Chairman Kathy McCormick and Ruth La Bosco and Club President Emily Sair Marc Courtade is business manager for the Tilles Center for the Performing Arts and Long Island University, and producer and artistic director of Performance Plus! A Performance Lecture Series. He is also a frequent lecturer for The Hutton House lectures, specializing in music and opera courses, and adjunct professor in the arts management curriculum. An avid performer, Marc Courtade has appeared in numerous productions throughout Long Island.

Mary-Alice Smith (R) introduced our guest Marc Courtade (L) This program, which was free and open to the public, was made possible through the support of The New York Council for the Humanities, a state affiliate of The National Endowment for the Humanities.

Prior to the program, a business meeting was conducted by President Emily Sair who thanked everyone who worked on the 90th anniversary party for making it such a success. The treasurers report was read by Office Manager Willa Warn, in the absence of Treasurer Carolyn Kaiser. According to tradition, November is the month when we honor Past Presidents and each in attendance was presented with a beautiful seasonal corsage made by Past President Muriel Urban. Members and guests were greeted at the door by Lee Amrheim, Jennie Catania and Jo Krawczyk; decorations were by Terry Ferrari, Veronica Witt took care of general arrangements, and Phylis Dima and the Hospitality Committee provided the delicious refreshments served at the tea hour. The General Program Committee is chaired by Kathy Mc Cormack and Ruth La Bosco.

Don’t forget to mark your calendar for Tuesday, Decemeber 1st, when the music department will be presenting its annual “Christmas Hour of Music” at 2pm at the Cathedral of the Incarnation. This hour of traditional Christmas music is free and open to the public. So plan to join us to enjoy beautiful music at the Cathedral and delicious seasonal refreshments at the Garden City Casino. For more information, please call our office at 516-746-0488 between the hours of 9:30am and 12:30pm on Tuesdays, Wednesdays or Thursdays.