Believe it or not, the "razzle dazzle" started in a courtroom. If you've ever hummed along to "All That Jazz," you might think you're just hearing a catchy tune. You aren't. You’re hearing a cynical, brilliant, and surprisingly old critique of how we turn criminals into celebrities. When people ask who wrote Chicago the musical, they usually look for one name. They want a single genius. But the truth is way more cluttered than that. It’s a messy, decades-long collaboration involving a bored reporter, a legendary songwriting duo, and a director who was obsessed with the dark side of show business.
The DNA of Chicago actually goes back to the 1920s. Long before the sequins. Long before Bob Fosse. It started with a woman named Maurine Dallas Watkins. She was a reporter for the Chicago Tribune. In 1924, she was assigned to cover the trials of Beulah Annan and Belva Gaertner. These weren't just any trials. These women were accused of murder, and the city was obsessed. Watkins noticed something weird: the more the press treated these women like stars, the less the jury cared about the evidence. She took those notes and turned them into a play. That play, originally titled Chicago, is the bedrock. Without Watkins’ cynical eye for the "celebrity criminal," the musical we know today wouldn't exist. She basically wrote the blueprint for Roxie Hart and Velma Kelly while sitting in a smoky press box.
The Powerhouse Duo: Kander and Ebb
Fast forward to the 1960s. Gwen Verdon—a Broadway legend—read Watkins' play and saw a musical. She begged her husband, Bob Fosse, to adapt it. Fosse tried to get the rights, but Watkins, who had become a born-again Christian, refused. She thought her old play glamorized sin. It wasn't until she died in 1969 that Fosse finally got his hands on the property. This is where the music comes in.
John Kander and Fred Ebb are the answer to who wrote Chicago the musical in terms of its iconic sound. Kander composed the music; Ebb wrote the lyrics. They were already famous for Cabaret, so they knew how to handle "seedy." But Chicago was different. They decided to write it as a series of vaudeville acts. Think about it. Every song is an introduction to a performer. "All That Jazz" is a classic opening number. "Cell Block Tango" is a specialty act. "Mister Cellophane" is a tribute to the old tramp clown Bert Williams. By using vaudeville, Kander and Ebb weren't just writing songs; they were making a point. They were saying that the legal system is just a cheap variety show.
The lyrics are biting. Take "Razzle Dazzle." It’s literally a song about how to lie to a jury. Ebb’s lyrics are sharp because they don't pretend to be "nice." They are honest about how dishonest people are. Kander’s music mimics the brassy, upbeat sound of the 1920s, but there’s an edge to it. It’s "dirty" jazz. It feels like it was written in a basement with a flask of bathtub gin.
Bob Fosse’s Dark Thumbprint
You can't talk about who wrote the show without talking about the book. The "book" of a musical is the script—the dialogue and the structure. Bob Fosse co-wrote the book with Fred Ebb. Fosse was also the director and choreographer, which means he controlled the vibe. Fosse was going through a lot in the mid-70s. He was dealing with health issues, relationship drama, and a massive amount of cynicism about the world. He leaned into the darkness.
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If Watkins provided the story and Kander/Ebb provided the songs, Fosse provided the soul. Or the lack of one. He pushed the idea that no one in the story is a "good guy." Even the "heroine," Roxie, is a cold-blooded opportunist. In the original 1975 production, this actually turned audiences off. They weren't used to seeing a musical where everyone was a villain. People wanted The Sound of Music, and Fosse gave them a middle finger wrapped in fishnets. It’s ironic, really. The very thing that made it struggle in 1975 is exactly why it became a massive hit when it was revived in 1996. By then, after the O.J. Simpson trial, the world finally "got" what Fosse was saying.
Why the Credits Are Complicated
Usually, a show has one writer. Chicago has a lineage. If you’re looking at a Playbill today, the credits usually look like this:
- Music: John Kander
- Lyrics: Fred Ebb
- Book: Fred Ebb and Bob Fosse
- Original Play: Maurine Dallas Watkins
It’s a four-way split of creative DNA. But if we’re being honest, the 1996 revival team deserves some credit for the version we see now. Walter Bobbie (director) and Ann Reinking (choreographer) stripped away the big sets and costumes of the 70s. They made it minimalist. Just black clothes, a band on stage, and raw talent. This "concert style" version is the one that has been running on Broadway for over 25 years. It’s the version that inspired the 2002 movie.
There’s also the matter of the orchestrations. Ralph Burns was the guy who took Kander’s piano tunes and turned them into that big, brassy sound. Without that specific 14-piece band arrangement, the show loses its punch. It’s one of the few musicals where the band is actually a character on stage.
The Maurine Dallas Watkins Connection
Let’s go back to Watkins for a second, because she’s the most underrated part of the puzzle. She was a "stunt reporter." That was a real thing back then. Young women would go into dangerous or "male" environments to get a scoop. When she covered the trials of Beulah (Roxie) and Belva (Velma), she wasn't just reporting facts. She was writing satire.
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She noticed that Beulah Annan changed her story every time a photographer walked in. She noticed that the jury was mostly men who were easily swayed by a pretty face and a sob story. Watkins’ original play was actually quite bitter. When she later refused to sell the rights to Fosse, it wasn't because she didn't like him—she just hated the "fluff" of the theater. She felt her work was a serious warning about the decay of American justice.
It’s kind of funny. The person who originally wrote Chicago the musical's source material would probably hate the fact that it’s now a glamorous global phenomenon. She wanted people to be disgusted by Roxie Hart. Instead, we buy t-shirts with her name on them.
The Vaudeville Structure: A Stroke of Genius
When Kander and Ebb sat down to write, they faced a problem. How do you make a story about two murderers likable? You don't. You make them entertaining.
They decided to model every character after a real-life vaudeville star.
- Velma Kelly was based on Texas Guinan, a famous prohibition-era hostess.
- Billy Flynn (the lawyer) was based on silver-tongued orators and suave crooners like Jack Buchanan.
- Matron "Mama" Morton was a nod to Sophie Tucker, the "Last of the Red Hot Mamas."
This wasn't just a stylistic choice. It was a narrative engine. By framing the trial as a series of acts, they proved Billy Flynn’s point: "It's all a show, kid." This structure is why the show feels so fast-paced. You aren't just watching a plot; you're watching a "Greatest Hits" of 1920s stagecraft.
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Most people don't realize that Fred Ebb was the primary architect of this "concept musical" approach. He and Fosse fought constantly during rehearsals. Fosse wanted more dance; Ebb wanted more story. That tension—the pull between the music and the movement—is what gives the show its vibrating energy. You can feel the friction in the songs.
Misconceptions About the Author
A common mistake is thinking that the movie’s screenwriter, Bill Condon, "wrote" the musical. He didn't. He adapted it for the screen in 2002. While he did a great job (it won Best Picture, after all), he mostly moved things around to make them work for film. For instance, in the movie, the musical numbers take place in Roxie’s head. In the stage show, they just happen.
Another misconception? That it’s a "jazz" musical. While the name is Chicago and there’s plenty of brass, Kander actually drew more from traditional musical hall and ragtime. Real 1920s Chicago jazz was a bit different, but Kander knew that Broadway audiences needed something a bit more melodic. He "theatricalized" the era. He made it sound like what we think the 20s sounded like.
Actionable Takeaways for Theater Fans
If you're looking to dive deeper into the history of who wrote this masterpiece, don't just stop at a Wikipedia page. The layers of Chicago are what make it last.
- Read the Original Play: You can still find Maurine Dallas Watkins’ 1926 play Chicago. Reading it without the music is a trip. It’s much darker and lacks the "fun" of the musical, which makes you appreciate what Kander and Ebb added.
- Listen to the 1975 vs. 1996 Cast Recordings: The original 1975 cast (with Gwen Verdon and Chita Rivera) is much slower and more "burlesque." The 1996 revival (with Ann Reinking and Bebe Neuwirth) is sharper and more cynical. Comparing them shows how much "writing" happens during the production phase.
- Watch "All That Jazz" (the movie): This isn't the musical Chicago, but it’s a semi-autobiographical film by Bob Fosse. It shows his mindset while he was working on Chicago. It explains why the show is so obsessed with death and showmanship.
- Look for "The Girls of Murder City": This is a fantastic book by Douglas Perry. It tells the real-life story of the 1924 murders and Maurine Watkins’ reporting. If you want the "true crime" version of the musical, this is it.
The genius of Chicago isn't that one person had a great idea. It’s that a reporter’s disgust, a lyricist’s wit, a composer’s melodies, and a director’s darkness all collided at the exact right moment. It took seventy years to get the formula right. From a 1924 courtroom to the 1975 Broadway stage, and finally to the 1996 global explosion, the writing of Chicago never really stopped. It just kept evolving until the world was cynical enough to finally appreciate it.
The next time you hear that opening drum roll, remember: you're not just listening to a song. You're listening to a century of American obsession with fame, crime, and the "razzle dazzle" that ties it all together.
To truly understand the show's impact, your best bet is to catch a live performance. The minimalist "Encores!" style production that still tours today is the purest distillation of the writing. Look for local touring companies or the long-running Broadway production at the Ambassador Theatre. Pay close attention to the lyrics—they tell a much more complex story than the flashy dancing suggests. Explore the work of Kander and Ebb beyond this show, specifically Cabaret and The Scottsdale, to see how they mastered the art of the "dark" musical. Observing their patterns helps clarify why Chicago stands as their most enduring achievement.