There were many characters in the story of Show Boat. At the start we met Captain Andy Hawks and his wife Parthy Anne. Andy was the legend of Cotton Blossom. They had a daughter and her name was Magnolia. Andy and Parthy Anne's goal is to add comedy and conflict to the story. They argued a lot and it was very humorous, and it seemed like they were both standing on opposite sides when it came to raising their daughter. Magnolia was probably the star of the musical. She was related to almost everyone in the story. Magnolia later married Gaylord Rayenal. He is playful and gives Magnolia a good life for a while. His goal in the story was to add romance, but also conflict. They eventually have a daughter named Kim. Early on, we also met a girl named Julie LaVerne. She was married to a man named Steve Baker. Julie was also Magnolia's piano teacher. We also met a “friend” of Julie’s named Pete Gavin. Pete had obviously had a (probably not romantic) relationship with Julie before Show Boat started. The goal of these two was to chronicle the racial issues of that era. There were also two characters in the beginning named Frank Shultz and Ellie May Chipley. They were the actors on board. They were there mainly for the comedy…. and also irony. They were the ones who met Magnolia in Chicago. It was also very ironic how they eventually married and adopted a son who turned out to be very talented. Joe and Queenie were two of the black people on the boat. They were married. I think the reason they were there was to show the segregation between whites and blacks at that time. Joe also sang a song called "Old Man River" which represented the passage of time..