revue

revue, light form of theatrical entertainment consisting of unrelated acts (songs, dances, skits, and monologues) that portray and sometimes satirize contemporary persons and events.

Originally derived from the French street fairs of the Middle Ages, at which events of the year were passed in comic review, French revue in its present form dates from the early 19th century. It was first developed at the Théâtre de la Porte-Saint-Martin in Paris by C.-T. and J.-H. Cogniard with their Folies Marigny; later at the Folies-Bergère and other places of entertainment the revue was the vehicle of such stars as Yvette Guilbert and Maurice Chevalier.

The English revue developed on one hand into a costume display and spectacle with little topical material, reaching its peak in the Court Theatre productions of the 1890s. On the other hand, the André Charlot Revues of the 1920s, the handsome shows at the London Hippodrome, and especially the performances at Sir Charles Cochran’s Ambassadors’ Theatre were more intimate and emphasized clever repartee and topicality. Revues of the intimate club type, such as those at the Gate Theatre and the famous Revuedeville of the Windmill Theatre, played an important part in keeping up the morale of Londoners during the German bombings of 1940.

In the United States, The Passing Show, first produced in New York in 1894, inspired the producer Florenz Ziegfeld in 1907 to initiate the 24 annual Ziegfeld Follies, usually built around a star personality. George White and his annual Scandals put more emphasis on comedians and girls and less on spectacle for its own sake. More modest revues were the Music Box Revues; the Little Shows of Dwight Wiman; The Garrick Gaities; The Chocolate Dandies of Noble Sissle and Eubie Blake; the Depression Pins and Needles of 1937, produced by the International Ladies Garment Workers Union with a cast of union members; Hellzapoppin (1938); and the post-World War II show staged by returning soldiers, Call Me Mister.

Revues commanded enthusiastic support until the mid-20th century, when the competition of radio, motion pictures, and television consigned the topical wit, sketches, and monologues of revue primarily to small nightclubs and improvisational theatres.