Line #10 Main/SetSwitchSong


1	A {{Theatre}} trope. Basically a song to distract the audience while there is a scene or set change. Usually a blackout/whiteout is used for these but sometimes this does not give the crew enough time to move everything. The songs are rarely memorable or particularly plot-driving. Often similar to a BigLippedAlligatorMoment in relevance to the overall plot but not in scale as that type of song usually requires a set and a big chorus of its own.
2
3	Compare {{Intermission}}.
4
5	----
6	!!Examples:
7
8	* "Dear Old Shiz" from ''Theatre/{{Wicked}}''.
9	* "Boy for Sale" from ''Theatre/{{Oliver}}'': Mr. Bumble and Oliver tend to walk downstage with the curtain down while the Workhouse Parlour set is taken out and the Undertaker's Shop is brought in.
10	* "A Diva's Lament": from ''Theatre/{{Spamalot}}''. It doesn't even ''try'' to be relevant to the plot; the premise is that [[BreakingTheFourthWall the actress is whining about her lack of involvement in early Act II]], and the [[WhoWritesThisCrap ridiculous plot elements that have cropped up that don't involve her]]. It also interrupts two scenes that are strongly related to one another. And, oddly, in many ways, it's SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic.
11	* "Love Is Sweeping The Country" in ''Theatre/OfTheeISing'' covers the transition from the Atlantic City scene to the Madison Square Garden scene, and wasn't even printed in the play's first published edition. It's a good song, though.
12	* ''The Secret Garden'' has several of these, especially in the second act. Each of the groups of Dreamers gets a small bit, and even Dr. Craven gets a small solo. And the kicker is that the titles in the score include "-Transition."
13	* They're usually [[Main/{{Scatting}} Scatting]] in them, but many Creator/CirqueDuSoleil shows have songs and dances used solely for transitions between acts, especially if setpieces and/or equipment need to be moved on and/or off. Examples: "Egypte" and "Gambade" (''Mystere''), "Marelle" (''Quidam''), "Pokinoi"(''Theatre/{{Saltimbanco}}'', [[DeletedScene after retiring the Vertical Rope]]), and "Africa" (''Theatre/{{O}}'').
14	* "Frank Mills" in the musical ''Hair'' is a sweet little solo love song that's sole purpose is to allow the cast time to run backstage and change for the next set.
15	* "I Sing Of Love" in ''Theatre/KissMeKate''. The published text even says the song "gives us time to change to the next scene."
16	** Also "Brush Up Your Shakespeare" from the same show, where two bad guys are PushedInFrontOfTheAudience and extemporaneously sing while a set change goes on behind the curtain. Before the two gunmen sing the song, they try to figure out why they're in front of a safety curtain; they fail.
17	* "More I Cannot Wish You" in ''Theatre/GuysAndDolls'' is sung during the changeover to the AbsurdlySpaciousSewer set.
18	* "Very Soft Shoes" from ''Theatre/OnceUponAMattress''.
19	* "On the Street Where You Live" from ''Theatre/MyFairLady'' covers the big set change from Ascot back to Henry Higgins' house.
20	* "Her Is" from ''The Pajama Game'' does it twice, as the set is changed before and after the company picnic scene.
21	* "The Highest Judge Of All" from ''Theatre/{{Carousel}}''. The 1994 Broadway revival cut the song because a) they felt it stopped the plot, and b) they were able to make the set change fast enough without it.
22	* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fPM5z5dU0rQ "Open Up Your Mind"]] from the original [=TheatreWorks=] production of ''Vanities: The Musical'', was sung by Mary [[BreakingTheFourthWall to the audience]] during the {{intermission}}, which was omitted from later productions.
23	* In the ScreenToStageAdaptation of ''Theatre/{{Aladdin}}'', reprises of "Arabian Nights" are used for this.
24	* ''Theatre/AnythingGoes'', at least the original production, used "Bon Voyage" and "Sailor's Chantey" to cover set changes.
25	* ''Theatre/{{Pippin}}'': Lampshaded in "Simple Joys" with the line "We all could use a change of scene."
26	* "Invitation to the Concert" in ''Theatre/LoveNeverDies''.
27	* In ''Theatre/KnickerbockerHoliday'', Creator/WashingtonIrving sings a reprise of "There's Nowhere To Go But Up" to cover a scene change in the second act.
28	* ''Theatre/TheUnsinkableMollyBrown'' has "The Denver Police," an ensemble song and dance designed to cover the transition to Mrs. [=McGlone=]'s mansion in Denver.
29	* ''Theatre/AYearWithFrogAndToad'' uses ballet sequences to achieve the same effect, and sometimes "The Letter" as the scene cuts to Snail.
30

Context Main / SetSwitchSong