Sams' Theory of The Second Act Dream Ballet

Last week The Sound of Music Tour reached Southampton.

Some time ago I actually heard the director, Jeremy Sams, discussing this show and the structure of musicals. His Big Idea was that, structurally speaking, all two-act musicals have a problem. The problem can be stated thus:

1. Act I is longer than Act II. Act I is normally around 1 hour 15 minutes and Act II around 30-40 minutes.

2. During Act I we get introduced to all the main characters, shown the main relationships and conflicts and reach a partial resolution for a suitably climactic finale. All well and good. But, says Sams, this means that...

3. Act II has 30-4o minutes to fill and not much story left to tell.

His solution is The Second Act Dream Ballet. This is the idea that every Act II requires a Dream Ballet. Not a literal Dream Ballet (although it could be) but some kind of biq sequence that doesn't further the plot much but does serve to run down the clock; a time-filling bit of theatrical padding. In his production of The Sound of Music, the Second Act Dream Ballet is the wedding sequence. In terms of plot, this sequence is telling us nothing more than that Maria and Captain von Trapp get married. But fill it up with singing nuns, processional children, vows, rings and a big white dress and, bingo, you've got ten minutes' worth of stage time.

Other examples might be (and these are my own random thoughts, not Sams'):

Carousel - a literal Dream Ballet sequence
The King and I - the Uncle Tom's Cabin sequence
Guys and Dolls - the Luck Be a Lady number
My Fair Lady - the Embassy Ball sequence
Hello Dolly - the Hello Dolly number
The Producers - the Springtime for Hitler sequence

I'm not sure it works for every show (I can't see where it fits in Oklahoma or Cabaret) and in some ways it sounds similar to the traditional "11 '0' clock number" (as in Hello Dolly) but there does seem to be a basic truth to it. Of course, all this theatrical padding still needs to be integrated. It should still be consistent with character, themes, comedy, emotion and so on. But (and this is the important bit) it should do little or nothing to further the plot in any way, shape or form.

So, in summation:

Sams' Theory of The Second Act Dream Ballet = more nuns.