📄 Abstract
Contemporary Broadway musicals have emerged as important cultural spaces where queer identities are represented and celebrated through theatrical spectacle and camp aesthetics. Earlier theatrical traditions often relied on coded representation and stereotypical characterization because open LGBTQ+ visibility was socially restricted. However, modern Broadway productions increasingly foreground queer experiences through emotional storytelling, stylized choreography, visual glamour, music, and theatrical excess. This paper examines queer visibility and camp aesthetics in selected Broadway musicals including Rent, Fun Home, Kinky Boots, Chicago, The Prom, and Moulin Rouge! through the frameworks of Queer Theory, Gender Performativity Theory, Camp Theory, and Performance Studies. The study analyzes how costume design, choreography, lighting, body performance, and emotional spectacle contribute to the construction of queer identities on stage. The paper argues that camp aesthetics function as performative strategies that normalize queer visibility while simultaneously transforming queer identity into commercially consumable theatrical spectacle within mainstream entertainment culture.
🏷️ Keywords
📚 How to Cite:
Smita Mohanty , QUEER VISIBILITY AND CAMP AESTHETICS IN CONTEMPORARY BROADWAY MUSICALS THROUGH PERFORMANCE IDENTITY AND THEATRICAL SPECTACLE , Volume 12 , Issue 5, May 2026, EPRA International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research (IJMR) , DOI: https://doi.org/10.36713/epra27925