I've got backup!!!

So I took a film class during my undergrad. We talked about westerns, romantic comedies, film noirs, and a few different Hitchcock films. If you talk to my roommates from that year, I'm not very much fun to watch movies with because I get a little too excited when it comes to analysis. Luckily, I went on the mission soon thereafter and quit watching movies altogether. I kind of broke myself of the habit. A few years ago I decided to watch SOUTH PACIFIC over the Christmas break. I had an enlightening experience. I vaguely remembered a 15 minute blurb on musicals during my film class. We talked about how they use bright colors and music to give a happy-go-lucky impression. I dismissed the thought until I watched SOUTH PACIFIC. Talk about mega-issues: race, prejudice, war, relationships, etc. Oh boy. I decided that the purpose of the musical was to take bright colors and music and major issues and diffuse them into a happy-go-lucky experience. Since the experience, I think my ideas have adapted a bit too. Now, it's more of the canvas to paint the issues in a way that the general public can see them (maybe even with rose-colored glasses), but they are still there. My uncle has a PhD in Theater. Currently he's teaching a 19th Century Irish Lit class, but as I talked to him about the class they are looking at Irish theater as well...the stock melodrama character (as displayed through Lucky Charms, Notre Dame, and Finian's Rainbow). The conversation turned to contributions of different locations to theatrical community. America's original contribution to theater? The American Musical: taking issues, making them pretty and giving them to the public. HA! I do still have intelligent thoughts.