1634 shows
Clear filtersSuzanne, raised by circus director Malicorne, escapes his abuse with her friends and falls in love with officer André. At his uncle’s castle, a song Suzanne learned in childhood reveals she is the count’s long-lost daughter, allowing her and André to marry. She is saddened to leave her circus companions.
This synopsis reflects the final, New York version. Act I Lestat leaves his mother Gabrielle to go to Paris to live with his boyfriend Nicolas ("My Beautiful Boy"). He finds Nicolas working as an actor in a small theater, happy with his life ("In Paris"). They go to Nicolas' flat and it becomes clear they're in love with each other ("The Bugs and the Bears"). A vampire called Magnus attacks Lestat and turns him into a vampire ("The Thirst"). He struggles with this, and hides from his mother when she comes looking for him ("Right Before My Eyes"). Eventually he finds her and makes her a vampire to save her life, as she is sick ("Make Me As You Are"). They meet a vampire named Armand, who leads a group of satanist vampires. He denounces them as blasphemers, but Lestat reveals to his followers that they do not actually serve the Devil ("The Dark Laws / To Live Like This"). They decide to become a troupe of actors. Nicolas is discovered among them, and Lestat eventually transforms him too. The troupe's first play tells the story of Armand and Marius, his maker ("Morality Play"). Nicolas is in a catatonic state after his transformation, and Lestat decides to find Marius to heal him. Ten years pass. Gabrielle decides to leave Lestat and see the world ("Crimson Kiss"). Nicolas speaks for the first time, asking to be released. Lestat lights a fire to kill him, and scatters the ashes ("Right Before My Eyes" (reprise)) as Marius appears. Act II Marius claims that he could not have saved Nicolas. He encourages Lestat to go to America. Once there, he meets and falls for a young self-destructive Creole, Louis ("Welcome to The New World"). Louis agrees to let Lestat make him a vampire. They live together for a time, but Louis becomes dissatisfied with the vampiric life ("Embrace It"). Lestat transforms Claudia, an orphan girl, which horrifies Louis, who nevertheless agrees to help raise her. Time passes. Claudia has a greater craving for blood, having been transformed at a young age ("I Want More"). She mourns the fact that she will stay a child forever ("I'll Never Have That Chance"). Lestat apologizes, and she tries to kill him. Louis burns down the house. Later, on a ship, Lestat is wounded and thinks of what his life has become ("Sail Me Away"). He returns to Armand and the theater, where he discovers Louis and Claudia as members of the troupe. Armand and the others kill Claudia for trying to kill Lestat despite his protests ("To Kill Your Kind"). Louis leaves ("Embrace It" (reprise)). Armand mocks Lestat when he asks why he killed Claudia ("After All This Time"). They argue about what Marius said, and Lestat is thrown from the roof, breaking his legs. He prepares to die in the coming sunlight ("Sail Me Away" (reprise)), but Marius and Gabrielle arrive and convince him to save himself ("Crimson Kiss" (reprise)). The light goes off. Lestat appears, dressed in modern clothes, and says "I am the Vampire Lestat, and I will live forever."
President Wintergreen is up for reelection, but due to the continuing Great Depression, loses in a landslide to John P. Tweedledee. Wintergreen makes an unsuccessful appeal to the Supreme Court to overturn the election results. It is also revealed that Diana Deveraux divorced Throttlebottom to marry the French Ambassador. After the end of his term, Wintergreen, Throttlebottom, and their associates start a business selling his wife Mary's blue shirts on "Union Square." At Union Square, Kruger, an agitator, is proclaiming his doctrine "Down with Everything That's Up." After talking with Kruger, Wintergreen decides that to increase shirt sales they should promise a revolution or their money back, citing the European Brown Shirts and Black Shirts. With business now booming ("Shirts by Millions"), Mary appeals to the women to join the New Blue D.A.R. ("Climb up the Social Ladder") to increase female shirt sales. Wintergreen now needs the support of the Union League Club, because General Snookfield is a member. Throttlebottom persuades them by saying that the British are attacking Bunker Hill ("Comes the Revolution Reprise"). Having secured the Union League Club support, The Blue Shirts meet with Snookfield to plan the overthrow of the government ("On and On and On"). At nine o'clock on July 4, when the Blue Shirts arrive, Snookfield will give the signal for his soldiers to seize Tweedledee. On the Fourth, at the White House grounds, Tweedledee is giving a speech, when Snookfield leaves with Trixie for a party. The Blue Shirts arrive only to find the general is missing and the soldiers don't know what to do. Tweedledee promises the army a "dollar a day which (he) may not pay." Wintergreen promises the army the war debts owed by the League of Nations, which the soldiers accept. Tweedledee is deposed, and Wintergreen declares that "the land of freedom is free once more" ("Let 'Em Eat Cake"). The White House is being painted "Blue, Blue, Blue." The Supreme Court, now in chains, are brought before Wintergreen. He decides to show leniency because the Court officiated his marriage ceremony. The Court is reorganized into a baseball team. When the League of Nations arrives to discuss repayment of the war debts, they "No Comprenez, No Capish, No Versteh" when the issue is raised; only Finland repays their debt. Kruger, now head of the army following Snookfield's disgrace, is also putting pressure on Wintergreen to remember his promise. Wintergreen offers a solution where the debts will be settled by a baseball game for double or nothing. If the League loses, they will have another conference to discuss it. Kruger accepts the League's offer of Finland's money as a side bet. Throttlebottom hesitatingly accepts an offer to be the game's umpire. On the date of the ballgame the Supreme Ball Players, the League, and Kruger's army try to influence Throttlebottom to bend the rules their way. The United States loses the game after a controversial call by umpire Throttlebottom. The soldiers want someone to be held to account for the loss, over Wintergreen and his associates' objections ("Oyez, Oyez, Oyez"). In the "Trial of Throttlebottom" a military tribunal is underway. Kruger, the Army, and the Ball Players call for Throttlebottom's execution claiming he conspired with the enemy. Wintergreen and his associates object, until the army levels the guns at them. Kruger and the army want to know when they are going be paid ("A Hell of a Hole"). After Wintergreen offers them a share of the shirt business, the army is going to take it all (Down With Everything That's Up—Reprise). Despite pleading he tried his best to get the money ("It Isn't What You Did"), Kruger sentences Wintergreen and his cronies to death by beheading. Mary and the condemned's wives enter and proclaim they are pregnant. Kruger says this may have worked four years ago during Wintergreen's impeachment hearings, but it doesn't work with the army. Trixie, who controls the Navy, arrives and joins forces with Kruger ("First Lady and First Gent"). Kruger proclaims "Let 'em Eat Caviar." Execution day arrives, and in their jail cell Wintergreen, Throttlebotton, and the Committee discuss how they ended up in this situation. Next, the crowds gather to watch the executions ("Hanging Throttlebottom in the Morning"). A guillotine bought from France is unveiled, and Snookfield is shown to be the executioner. Since Throttlebottom is not married, he will be executed first. After a series of mishaps with the guillotine, Mary interrupts the proceedings. She presents a "Fashion Show" with dresses that arrived on the boat that brought the guillotine. After being reminded that the color of the revolution is blue, and they cannot wear the new fashions, the women revolt. Kruger objects, but the soldiers seize him after Trixie reminds them of an upcoming party. Wintergreen tells the soldiers to shoot Kruger. When Kruger reveals he used to be in the dress making business, Wintergreen decides to go into business with him. Wintergreen decides to leave the revolution business and restores the republic and the Supreme Court. Tweedledee shows up and Wintergreen gives his vice-president, Throttlebottom, to him, since he can't remember his. Tweedledee declines the Presidency, since he is going to be President of Cuba. Throttlebottom is now the President. After Wintergreen promised the people cake and Kruger promised them caviar, Throttlebottom promises them pistachio ice cream, which he formerly detested.
Let It Ride is a Broadway musical based on the 1935 Broadway farce Three Men on a Horse by George Abbott and John Cecil Holm. The musical, with book by Abram S.
Let My People Come is a musical with book and music by Earl Wilson, Jr. and lyrics by Wilson and Phil Oesterman. Subtitled "A Sexual Musical", the sexually-explicit show originally ran from 1974 to 1976 at The Village Gate Theater in Greenwich Village, New York City. It began previews on Broadway on July 7, 1976, and closed on October 2, 1976, after 108 preview performances, technically never 'officially' opening for regular Broadway performances. The score includes songs such as "I'm Gay", "Come in My Mouth", "Fellatio 101" and "The Cunnilingus Champion of Company C", and features on-stage nudity. The show was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1975 for Best Original Cast Album. The title of the 1976 softcore pornographic comedy film Let My Puppets Come, written and directed by Gerard Damiano, was a parody of Let My People Come.
Let's Face It! is a musical with music and lyrics by Cole Porter. The book by Herbert and Dorothy Fields is based on the 1925 play The Cradle Snatchers by Russell Medcraft and Norma Mitchell. The 1941 Broadway and 1942 West End productions were successful, and a film version was released in 1943.
Letter to Harvey Milk is a musical composed by Laura l. Kramer, lyrics by Ellen M. Schwartz, book by Jerry James; it is based on Lesléa Newman's short story of the same name. It won the Richard Rodgers Award in 2012.
Richard Greenblatt’s experiences as a performer and political observer are woven through the life and satirical songs of Tom Lehrer. Personal memories frame musical attacks on social hypocrisy, public morality, and political complacency.
Li'l Abner is a 1956 musical with a book by Norman Panama and Melvin Frank, music by Gene De Paul, and lyrics by Johnny Mercer. Based on the comic strip Li'l Abner by Al Capp, the show is, on the surface, a broad spoof of hillbillies, but it is also a pointed satire on other topics, ranging from American politics and incompetence in the United States federal government to propriety and gender roles.
After her self-help-author father dies in a car accident, sixteen-year-old Alice searches for an explanation. Conversations and imagined encounters reveal a more complicated man while her family struggles to understand its loss.
Lifting the Lid is a musical in four scenes with music by Jean Schwartz, lyrics by William Jerome, and a book by John J. McNally. The musical was a spoof of New York City politics of the early 20th century, and included impersonations of both political figures and other personalities of the period. The Manhattan district attorney William Travers Jerome was particularly lampooned as the musical's central character, district attorney William T. G. Rome, was a send up of Jerome and performed in an uncanny impersonation by the actor Julius Tannen.
Friends Mandy and Dee move through job interviews, romances, losses, and other milestones, each connected to a little black dress. Songs and audience-driven improvisation trace the changing demands of friendship and adulthood.
A two-act burlesque opera set in Cádiz and at the Chicago Exhibition, with Little Christopher as the central role.
In the present time, Charlotte, in her early 30s, lives in New York and is a short-story writer. She has given up smoking cigarettes, but without them she sees herself clearly, and believes that it is not an attractive picture. She is frightened by her new-found reality, thus her friends Marco and Kathy suggest various activities, such as collecting dolls or a new drug. However, she opts for what is presumably the least silly; swimming. Charlotte thinks back to 1993, when she lived in Buffalo with her lover Robert, in his 40s, and she studied English Literature with him. She reflects on her childhood heroine, Anne Frank, who warns her about flotsam: emotional "debris" that blocks the flow of life. As Charlotte sees that she has been addicted not only to cigarettes but "fleeing", she is able to connect with her friends and her writing. Don Shewey noted that the musical "departs from any kind of traditional book musical structure. Charlotte's tale emerges in vignettes that flicker and flash, zooming back and forth in time, held together by a narrative thread as tenuous as her nonsmoking sanity." Further, the music is "eclectic" and includes "Latin, jazz, rock, there's pure urban noise."
Little Hans Andersen is a musical fairy pantomime in two acts and seven scenes for children with lyrics by Basil Hood and music by Walter Slaughter. It was a revised version of Hood and Slaughter's pantomime Hans Andersen's Fairytales, based on the fairy tales of Hans Christian Andersen which had opened at Terry's Theatre in December 1897. After the last performance of the Savoy Opera A Princess of Kensington, produced by William Greet, the cast of the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company dispersed and many of them moved to the Adelphi Theatre to appear in the new musical comedy The Earl and the Girl (1903), also produced by Greet; there they next appeared in Little Hans Andersen from 23 December 1903 to 16 January 1904 for 23 matinee performances. Greet followed this with other productions at the Adelphi in which many of the same cast members appeared.
The Ingalls family moves west in search of a secure home and a future for their children. Laura grows toward adulthood as the family faces harsh weather, financial uncertainty, and the demands of life on the prairie.
Settings: Act I - Courtyard of Cecil Hotel, London; Act II - American Line dock at Southampton; Act III - Chinatown, San Francisco A brash, patriotic American jockey, Johnny Jones, goes to England to ride his horse, Yankee Doodle, in the English Derby. Jones falls in love with Goldie Gates, a San Francisco copper heiress, who follows him to Britain, disguising herself as a man to discover if Jones really loves her. Anthony Anstey, an American who runs a Chinese gambling establishment in San Francisco, offers Jones a bribe to lose the race deliberately, but he refuses. After Jones loses, Anstey spreads rumors that he threw the race intentionally. Jones' detective, pretending to be a drunkard, searches for evidence to clear Johnny's name and finds out that it was Anstey that framed Jones. Jones tells his friends who are returning to America, "Give My Regards to Broadway," but he stays in London to try to regain his reputation. Jones returns to America with his name cleared, eager to propose marriage to Goldie, but he finds that Anstey has kidnapped her. He and his detective search for her in San Francisco's Chinatown, eventually finding her.
Time: Early in "this" century i.e., the 20th century; Place: The Colorado Inn (shades of the White Horse Inn), high in the Rocky Mountains (standing in for the Tyrol) Act I Little Mary Sunshine, foster daughter of Chief Brown Bear of the Kadota tribe, is in trouble. The government is threatening to foreclose the mortgage on her Colorado Inn, located on land that is subject to a dispute between Brown Bear and Uncle Sam. On Mary's advice Brown Bear is engaged in peaceful legal proceedings rather than warfare to establish his rights. Captain Jim and his Forest Rangers arrive. They are searching for the disruptive Indian Yellow Feather. Yellow Feather's "crimes" are actually not murder and pillage but indiscriminate hunting and irresponsible use of fire in the forest, but he is nonetheless a villain of the deepest dye, who has threatened to "have his way" with Mary. Jim woos Mary, after which the two get well-sung advice from Mary's opera star guest Mme. Ernestine Liebedich. Some young ladies from the Eastchester Finishing School (implicitly in New York or Pennsylvania, which have Westchesters) are also Inn guests. While they entertain themselves playing croquet and swinging on swings, the Rangers come upon them. The Rangers' flirting elicits an immediate enthusiastic response, and love blooms once more as they joyfully sing together. Later, the young ranger Billy and his girlfriend Nancy squabble about Nancy's appetite for other men. Jim and Mary return to the spotlight. Mary reveals her "Little Buttercup" secret: Yellow Feather is really Brown Bear's son, long believed dead. As the first act ends, Jim and his aged Indian guide Fleet Foot set off to capture Yellow Feather. Act II Mary holds a garden party featuring the Eastchester ladies and the Rangers. Retired General Oscar Fairfax shows up, bringing a box of gifts for the ladies. Taking command of the Rangers in Jim's absence, he directs the Rangers to depart, find Jim, and bring him back. Fairfax now has the ladies to himself. But his interest shifts to Mme. Ernestine when he meets her and learns they have something in common: in their youth, both spent happy days in Vienna. Mary goes to her garden. Yellow Feather sneaks in, finds her there, ties her to a tree, and threatens to debase her. Jim returns just in time and wrests a knife from the villain. The Rangers, who have surrounded the Inn, capture Yellow Feather as he tries to escape. The rest of the cast then emerges. Fairfax has good news: the courts have upheld Brown Bear's claim to the disputed land, a mere one-fourth of Colorado. The chief gives Mary the Inn's land and dedicates the rest for a national park, a place the Rangers can call home. In the finale, a miraculously reformed Yellow Feather reappears, waving a large American flag. Jim and Mary, Billy and Nancy, Oscar and Ernestine, and several Ranger-Eastchester couples seem headed for the altar.
Little Me is a musical written by Neil Simon, with music by Cy Coleman and lyrics by Carolyn Leigh. The original 1962 Broadway production featured Sid Caesar in multiple roles with multiple stage accents, playing all of the heroine's husbands and lovers. One of the better-known songs from the musical is "I've Got Your Number".
Nellie Kelly is the daughter of a New York City Irish-American police officer, Captain John Kelly. After taking a job in DeVere's Department Store, she is seen and admired by the young millionaire and man-about-town Jack Lloyd. However, she is already loved by Jerry Conroy, a laborer who like her is Irish. When she refuses Lloyd's request for a date, he invites all the store's employees to a party at a house on Fifth Avenue belonging to his aunt, the redoubtable Mrs. Chesterfield Langford, with a view to getting to know Nellie better, and Conroy attends the party uninvited. During the evening, a valuable string of pearls belonging to Mrs. Langford is stolen, and suspicion falls on Conroy, while Lloyd pursues Nellie. In the end Conroy's name is cleared and the course of true love leads Nellie to refuse Lloyd and fall into the arms of Conroy.
Little Red Riding Hood is a musical in two acts with lyrics by Harrison Ward and music by composers Edward E. Rice, Fred J. Eustis, Charles Dennée, T. W. Connor, and B. Gilbert. The musical's book was authored by playwright George T. Richardson and was loosely modeled after British pantomime versions of the classic European fairy tale of the same name. It also included characters from other classic fairy tales. and then ran for further performances in Boston in January 1900 at the Hollis Street Theatre before transferring to Broadway. Little Red Riding Hood premiered on Broadway at the Casino Theatre on January 8, 1900. It closed on January 20, 1900, after 24 performances. The production starred Ethel Jackson in the title role and Madge Lessing as Little Boy Blue among others. The production was produced and directed by Edward E. Rice.
A trio of 1960s street urchins named Crystal, Ronnette and Chiffon set the scene ("Little Shop of Horrors") and comment on the action throughout the show. Seymour Krelborn is a poor young man, an orphan living in an urban skid row. Audrey is a pretty blonde with a fashion sense that leans towards tackiness. They lament their stations in life and the urban blight in their neighborhood ("Skid Row (Downtown)"). They are co-workers at a run-down flower shop owned and operated by the cranky Mr. Mushnik. After a sudden eclipse of the sun, Seymour finds a mysterious plant that looks like a large Venus flytrap ("Da-Doo"). Seymour, who is secretly in love with Audrey, names the plant Audrey II in her honor. The plant does not thrive in its new environment and appears to be dying, though Seymour takes very good care of it. He accidentally pricks his finger on a rose thorn, which draws blood, and Audrey II's pod opens thirstily. Seymour realizes that Audrey II requires blood to survive and allows the plant to suckle from his finger ("Grow For Me"). As Audrey II grows, it becomes an attraction at the flower shop and starts generating brisk business for Mushnik. As the caretaker of the plant, the timid Seymour is suddenly regarded as a hero ("Ya Never Know"), while Audrey secretly longs to leave her abusive boyfriend. Her dream is to lead an ideal suburban life with Seymour, complete with a tract home, frozen dinners and plastic on the furniture ("Somewhere That's Green"). Meanwhile, the employees at Mushnik's are sprucing up the flower shop because of the popularity of the rapidly growing Audrey II and the revenue that it is bringing in ("Closed for Renovation"). Audrey's abusive boyfriend, Orin Scrivello, a sadistic dentist ("Dentist!"), encourages Seymour to take the plant and get out of Skid Row. Realizing that his store's sudden profitability is completely dependent on the plant (and therefore on Seymour), Mushnik takes advantage of Seymour's innocence by offering to adopt him and make him a full partner in the business ("Mushnik and Son"). Seymour accepts, even though Mushnik treats him poorly ("Sudden Changes"). When Seymour, running out of blood, stops feeding the plant, Audrey II demands blood and promises that, if fed, it will make sure that all of Seymour's dreams come true ("Feed Me (Git It)"). Seymour sets up a late-night appointment with Orin, intending to kill him for his cruel treatment of Audrey. However, Seymour loses his nerve and decides not to commit the crime. Unfortunately for Orin, who is getting high on nitrous oxide, the gas device is stuck in the "on" position, and he suffocates while asking Seymour to save him. Though Seymour cannot bring himself to shoot Orin, he lets him die of asphyxiation ("Now (It's Just The Gas)"). Seymour feeds Orin's body to the now huge Audrey II, and the plant consumes it with ravenous glee ("Act I Finale"). The flower shop is much busier, and Seymour and Audrey have trouble keeping up with the onslaught of orders ("Call Back in the Morning"). Audrey confides to Seymour that she feels guilty about Orin's disappearance, because secretly she wished it. The two admit their feelings for one another, and Seymour promises that he will protect and care for Audrey from now on ("Suddenly, Seymour"). Before they can go, Mushnik confronts Seymour about Orin's death. Seymour denies killing Orin, but Mushnik wants him to give a statement to the police, who have begun investigating. Audrey II tells Seymour that he has to be rid of Mushnik or he will lose everything, including Audrey. Seymour tells Mushnik that he put the days' receipts inside Audrey II for safekeeping. Mushnik climbs inside the plant's gaping maw to search for the money and screams as he is devoured ("Suppertime"). Seymour now runs the flower shop, and reporters, salesmen, lawyers and agents approach him, promising him fame and fortune. Seymour realizes that it is only a matter of time before Audrey II will kill again and that he is morally responsible, but he does nothing over fear that Audrey will no longer love him if he is not successful ("The Meek Shall Inherit"). As Seymour works on his speech for a lecture tour, Audrey II again squalls for blood. Seymour threatens to kill it just as Audrey walks in asking when Mushnik will return from "visiting his sick sister". Seymour learns that Audrey would still love him without the fame and resolves that following an upcoming LIFE magazine interview at the shop, Audrey II must die. Audrey is confused and frightened by Seymour's ramblings, but she runs home by his order. That night, unable to sleep and distressed by Seymour's strange behavior, Audrey goes to the flower shop to talk with him. He is not there, and Audrey II begs her to water it. Not sensing the danger, she approaches to water it, and a vine pulls her into the plant's gaping maw ("Sominex/Suppertime II"). Seymour arrives and pulls her out, but Audrey is mortally wounded. Her dying wish is for Seymour to feed her to the plant after she dies so that they can always be together. She dies in his arms, and he reluctantly honors her request ("Somewhere That's Green" (reprise)). The next day, Patrick Martin from the World Botanical Enterprises tells Seymour that his company wishes to sell leaf cuttings of Audrey II in florist shops across America. Seymour realizes the plant's evil plan: world conquest. He tries shooting, cutting, and poisoning the plant, but it has grown too hardy to kill. Seymour, in desperation, runs into its open jaws with a machete planning to kill it from the inside, but he is quickly eaten ("Bigger Than Hula-hoops"). Patrick, Crystal, Ronnette and Chiffon search for Seymour. Not finding him, Patrick tells the girls to take the cuttings. Crystal, Ronnette and Chiffon relate that, following these events, other plants appeared across America, tricking innocent people into feeding them blood in exchange for fame and fortune. Audrey II, bigger than ever, appears with opened new flowers revealing the faces of Seymour, Audrey, Mushnik and Orin, who beg that the plants must not be fed ("Finale Ultimo: Don't Feed the Plants"). Audrey II slithers towards the audience threateningly.
In 1865, Josephine March (Jo) receives a notice of rejection from a publisher; it is her twenty-second rejection. Jo asks Professor Bhaer, another boarder at Mrs. Kirk's boarding house, his opinion on her story ("An Operatic Tragedy"). The professor is not impressed by her story, telling her that he thinks that she can write something better. Jo, taken aback and angry at Bhaer's reaction, asks him what he knows to give him the right to criticize her and insults him by calling him old. He reacts by saying that he is stating his opinion and leaves. Jo, left alone, wonders what could be better than the story she has written, then muses that perhaps her writing was better when she was at home in Concord, Massachusetts ("Better"). Two years earlier in her attic studio, Jo assembles her sisters, Meg, Beth, and Amy, to tell them that she will be putting on a show of her own called the "Operatic Tragedy". The sisters beg Jo to not make the show but Jo convinces them that this play will be a hit and will make for the best Christmas ever ("Our Finest Dreams"). Marmee, their mother, comes in with a letter from their father, who is away as a Union army chaplain in the American Civil War. As Marmee writes a response, she reflects on how hard it is to be the pillar of strength in the March home ("Here Alone"). Aunt March, the sisters' wealthy aunt, asks Jo to change from being a tomboy to a model lady of society. She tells Jo she is considering bringing her along to Europe. Jo begs to go with her, but Aunt March says that she will take her only if she changes. Jo, who has always dreamed of seeing Europe, agrees ("Could You?"). Meanwhile, Meg has one of her own dreams realized: she and Jo are invited to Annie Moffat's Valentine's Day Ball. On the day of the ball, while the two sisters are getting ready, Meg decides that she cannot go. She asks Marmee what she should say when one of her potential suitors asks her to dance. Marmee tells Meg to just smile and say "I'd be delighted" ("Delighted"). Amy, who cares about society life more than Jo, rushes down in Jo's old ball gown to join them in going to the ball, but Jo stops her as she is not invited. Spiteful, Amy burns Jo's manuscript in the fireplace. At the ball, Jo accidentally sits on Laurie, who is a neighbor of the Marches' along with his grumpy grandfather, Mr. Laurence. Laurie's tutor, Mr. Brooke, comes in and scolds Laurie for not meeting important people, which will make Mr. Laurence angry. Mr. Brooke accidentally takes Meg's dance card; when he returns it, he sees how beautiful she is, asks her to dance, and Meg agrees. Meg and Mr. Brooke are smitten with each other at first sight. Laurie confesses to Jo his need for friends and asks Jo to dance with him. Jo replies that she doesn't dance but Laurie keeps trying ("Take A Chance On Me"). Back at the Marches' after the ball, Jo and Amy have a confrontation after Jo discovers what Amy has done to her manuscript. Marmee sends Amy to bed and apologizes to Jo, but tells her that Amy is just a child and wants to be like Jo. Jo rushes up to the attic to rewrite her story ("Better (Reprise)"). Laurie invites Jo to a skating race, which she at first refuses but eventually agrees to. Amy wants to go with them but has already outgrown her skates. Beth, who intends to stay home, offers Amy her old skates. Beth is sitting at the family's old piano when Mr. Laurence comes in looking for Laurie. Mr. Laurence discovers Beth's talent at the piano and they sing a duet ("Off to Massachusetts"). Jo and Laurie come in from the skating race with Laurie carrying Amy because she fell through the ice while skating. Jo and Amy reconcile, and Jo makes Laurie an honorary member of the March family ("Five Forever"). Marmee receives a letter informing her that her husband has contracted pneumonia and she must go to Washington to be with him. As Marmee prepares to leave and Amy packs her things to stay with Aunt March, Jo returns with money for Marmee to travel, but confesses that she did not go to Aunt March; she tried to sell her stories in the town common, but ended up cutting and selling her hair. When Aunt March arrives to pick up Amy, she sees Jo and is furious. Jo has a confrontation with Aunt March, ending with Aunt March deciding not to take Jo to Europe after all. Aunt March then turns her focus to Amy, intending to mold her into the society life that she envisioned for Jo. Mr. Brooke tells Meg of his enlistment in the Union army. He then asks Meg for her hand in marriage, and she accepts ("More Than I Am"). Months later, Laurie returns to Concord and visits Jo, who is happy to see him. Laurie tells her that his grandfather has enrolled him in college and that he will be leaving in time for the summer session. Laurie begins to confess his feelings for Jo and kisses her ("Take A Chance On Me (Reprise)"). He put out a ring and tells Jo he loves her. Jo does not accept his marriage proposal and is upset by his words. He tells her that she will marry eventually, but Jo tells him that she will not; Laurie says she will, but not to him. Jo ponders her future, vowing to find another way to achieve her dreams ("Astonishing"). At Mrs. Kirk's boarding house in New York City, she is holding a telegram for Jo from Mrs. March. Jo runs in, looking for Professor Bhaer and finding him right in front of her. She has news of her first sale as an author ("The Weekly Volcano Press"). She tells them the story of the sale as well; following Professor Bhaer's advice, she embellished the story. When Jo reads the telegram, she is notified that Beth contracted scarlet fever and immediately packs her bags to return to Concord. Jo, after a few days, sends a letter to Professor Bhaer, asking him what's new in New York. The professor struggles to write a decent response ("How I Am"). With her new earnings, Jo takes Marmee and Beth to Cape Cod. When Marmee leaves to write to her husband, Beth and Jo put together a kite that Jo got for Beth and they fly it in the air. Beth tells Jo that she is not afraid to die, but says that the hardest part is leaving Jo ("Some Things Are Meant To Be"). Beth dies soon after. Amy and Aunt March return home from Europe. Laurie also returns home from Europe and sees Jo for the first time in a long time. Jo tells Laurie that she has missed him and that she sold a story; Laurie tells her that she was always meant to "fly on golden wings," and that he was not. Amy comes to them and Amy and Laurie struggle to tell Jo of their impending marriage because they do not wish for Jo to be upset ("The Most Amazing Thing"). Jo, grieving Beth's death, finds herself unable to write another story. Marmee tells Jo of how she copes with Beth's death, telling Jo that she must move forward for Beth's sake ("Days of Plenty"). Jo reminisces about her sisters. Her thoughts of her family and friends inspire her to write her novel, "Little Women" ("The Fire Within Me"). On the day of Laurie and Amy's wedding, Professor Bhaer comes to Concord to see Jo and she is surprised to see him. He tells Jo of his feelings for her ("Small Umbrella In The Rain"). He proposes to her and Jo accepts his proposal. He tells Jo that he sent the manuscript of her novel to Henry Dashwood, the editor of The Weekly Volcano Press. He tells Jo that the publisher agreed to publish it, and Jo proclaims her happiness. As Marmee comes outside and brings Professor Bhaer in, Jo takes a moment to reflect on her life ("Volcano (Reprise)"). Professor Bhaer then comes back out and tells Jo they're all waiting for her inside. Jo goes to Bhaer, takes his hand, and goes inside the house.
Little by Little: A Musical About Friendship, Hormones...and Popcorn is a 1999 off-Broadway musical produced by The York Theater Company. The book was written by Annette Jolles and Ellen Greenfield, the music by Brad Ross with lyrics by Ellen Greenfield and Hal Hackady. The cast recording was released on the Varèse Sarabande label. The show is licensed by Samuel French.
Lizard Boy: The Musical is a Drama Desk-nominated indie-rock musical with book, lyrics and music by Justin Huertas. The musical follows the story of Trevor, a young man who has lizard scales for skin as he embarks on his first date in a year but winds up finding out he has superpowers and in a fight for his life. Lizard Boy was originally commissioned by Jerry Manning the then artistic director of Seattle Repertory Theatre in 2012 and premiered there in 2015. Its Original Cast Album was recorded in one day in 2015 in Seattle. The musical was inspired by works such as X-Men, Spider-Man and the 2006 musical Spring Awakening.
Lola from Berlin is a musical in three acts with music by Jean Schwartz, lyrics by William Jerome, and a book by John J. McNally. The musical was created as a starring vehicle for actress Lulu Glaser who portrayed the title role in the original production. The work is about the German girl Lotchen von Breckenhaussett, aka "Lola", who travels from Berlin to New York City to collect an unexpected inheritance from a distant American relation.
Lollipop is a musical comedy in three acts with book by Zelda Sears, lyrics by Sears and Walter De Leon, and music by Vincent Youmans. The show was produced by Henry W. Savage at the Knickerbocker Theatre, and opened January 21, 1924. It was first tried out in 1923 as The Leftover before being revised and retitled Lollipop.
Residents of an Ipswich street describe the disruption caused by a series of murders and the efforts to rebuild community life. Their recorded speech is transformed into music that preserves its rhythms, repetitions, and hesitations.
Lone Star Love, or, The Merry Wives of Windsor, Texas is a musical based on Shakespeare's The Merry Wives of Windsor. The score is by Jack Herrick (of the Red Clay Ramblers), and the book is by John L. Haber and Robert Horn. The setting of the piece has been moved to the Wild West shortly after the American Civil War, and the musical features country and bluegrass music.
Lonesome Town is a musical in two acts with music by J. A. Raynes and both book and lyrics by Judson D. Brusie. Set in the fictional boomtown of Watts, California in 1902, the musical's comedy of errors plot centered around competing claimants to valuable real estate in the city.
Look to the Lilies is a stage musical with a book by Leonard Spigelgass, lyrics by Sammy Cahn, and music by Jule Styne. Based on both the 1962 novel and film versions of Lilies of the Field, it tells the story of a group of German nuns, headed by a determined, dauntless Mother Superior, who manage to get an African American itinerant handyman/jack-of-all-trades named Homer Smith to build a chapel for the New Mexico community in which they live, despite not having money to pay him.
"Lily Malloy, a brewery heiress, becomes the angel of a travelling ballet company and finally takes it over from its conservative Russian impresario. Both the company and the repertoire liven up."
Subtitled Gentlemen Still Prefer Blondes, it opens with the title character, a heavily-bejeweled, very wealthy widow, about to set sail on the SS Ile de France. The moment reminds her of a past voyage she took with her best friend and fellow showgirl Dorothy Shaw, and in a flashback we relive their madcap adventures after Lorelei's plans to marry Gus Esmond are derailed by his father and the two women sail from New York City to Paris and settle in at the Hôtel Ritz.
ACT 1 In 1971, at technology company Arch Industries, high school student Michael Dork is mopping the corridors of the building. As Michael sneaks his way into the firm's computer room, he communicates with his best friend and accomplice Lucas Lloyd, who brings him a storage device, onto which Michael transfers the project he has been working on to develop a digital language that would allow computers to communicate with each other. However, the security alarm sounds before completion and Lucas and Michael attempt to escape the premises ("Living In The Future Now"). The next day, Michael and Lucas await the delivery of two brand-new teletype computers to their school, while friends Marvin and Francis are hard at work building the cardboard Star Trek starship they believe will earn them first prize at the annual sci-fi competition: the opportunity to meet the esteemed crew of the real Starship Enterprise, of which Uhura is of particular interest to the group. Michael's friends begin to tease him about the hostility shown towards Michael by Eddie Arch, son of the Head of Arch Industries, to which Michael responds that the opportunity to create his computer communication coding makes it all worthwhile. As Michael attempts to download his project onto the new equipment, however, the computer unexpectedly wipes all of Michael's work, so Lucas, Marvin and Francis rally around Michael in a unified attempt to reassure him ("Don't Let 'Em Bring You Down"). Elsewhere, Holly Manson is undergoing somewhat of a self-transformation ("Little Things - Pre-Reprise") and is excited about her realisation of her identity as a proud feminist, with ambitions of being the first female astronaut, which has so far eluded her owing to her "Brains And Looks" and so has decided she needs to be less attractive to be taken seriously. Eddie, meanwhile, thinks the opposite of himself and his girlfriend Leia feels the same. She has plans for the future for Eddie and herself, which she firmly believes are a certainty owing to the duo's exceedingly good looks. The principal of the school interrupts the daydreaming with the announcement that Michael's activity at Arch Industries the previous evening has earned him a ban from the school's computer lab. Later, during class, the principal introduces Holly to her new classmates, who mock her for her appearance, and matters are made worse when Holly announces her aspirations of going into space and her computing interests. Michael, however, realises that Holly might be his ticket to continuing his computer project, but is soon taunted by his classmates ("Slacker"), although the comments ultimately fail to distract Michael from his work. He and Lucas search for Holly after class and propose their plan to her, to which she agrees, much to the delight of the boys. Leia's friend Samantha is then seen to make allusions to her own brainy persona ("Brains and Looks - Reprise"). Some weeks later, Michael and Holly's work is advancing much slower than anticipated, while Arch Industries seem to be making a breakthrough with their own network coding project. Michael and Lucas admit their individual feelings for Holly while Eddie attempts to find out from his father which section of Arch Industries he will lead after graduation ("Little Things"). It is decided between Michael's group of friends that they will back Michael up as he asks Holly out ("Don't Let 'Em Bring You Down - Reprise"). Leia, meanwhile, is unimpressed that Eddie is being sent to military school rather than an executive position at Arch Industries and turns her back on him ("Slacker - Reprise"). At The Planetarium, a nervous Michael meets Holly and after an ineffective attempt to deliver the terrible lines fed to him by Lucas via an earpiece, Michael instead decides to speak from the heart, before illuminating the stars of the Planetarium in a romantic gesture ("We're Not Alone"). Elsewhere, a dejected Eddie discovers Holly's previous persona by way of photographs shown to him by his friend Wayne and plans his next move. The schoolkids go on to imagine how they are going to change their lives ("Ticket Outta Loserville"). ACT 2 The sci-fi convention is underway ("We're Not Alone - Reprise"), where Francis and Marvin's model starship takes second place, edged out of the top spot by Samantha's flying saucer entry, and the boys congratulate her, particularly a smitten Marvin. Later, in the computer lab, a frustrated Michael and Holly turn down Lucas and Marvin's invitation to socialise but soon change their minds after deciding they are overworked. As Michael and Holly leave the lab, Lucas spots them and his envy towards Michael gets the better of him ("Holly, I'm The One). Eddie appears and makes a proposal to Lucas: he will present Lucas' book to the publishing department at Arch Industries if Lucas steals Michael and Holly's work. Lucas accepts the deal. As the group try to steal the disks on which the project is held, they are caught by Holly. Eddie suspects he has an advantage over Holly and warns her that with his newly acquired photo evidence he will expose her past and ruin her ambitions of space travel if she does not agree to work with him. Holly gives in to Eddie's demands after careful consideration ("Long Run"). Meanwhile, the kids at Samantha's victory party ponder "What's So Weird About Me?" Michael turns up searching for Holly and eventually sees her in an embrace with Eddie, which unbeknownst to Michael is only because Eddie has told Holly to seal her loyalty to him with a kiss. As Michael attempts to intervene, he is brushed off by Eddie and left all alone ("Holly, I'm The One - Reprise"). Holly is not making the progress that Eddie expects of her and she is chastised by him, before being left to contemplate her frustrations towards Eddie ("Sick"). Lucas also has his own issues with Eddie as he finds out Eddie has not upheld his end of their bargain and confesses to Michael his part in Eddie's plot to tarnish Michael's work. Some time later, Holly has an idea about the missing component in the coding project so Eddie calls a press conference. Lucas, meanwhile, shows Michael the letter Holly wrote explaining her circumstances and tells Michael that Holly has informed him of the missing component: the address of the recipient, which was not taken into account by the work she had done alongside Michael. Lucas suggests that Michael demonstrates the breakthrough at the Arch Industries press conference in order to humiliate Eddie ("Genius"). At the conference, Michael sends the message as planned. Eddie's plan is foiled and Michael later reconciles with Holly ("We're Not Alone - Reprise"). As the students gather in the computer lab, Leia approaches Lucas and tells him how much she loved his book. Holly and Michael are cheered upon their entrance and the students erupt in celebration over their technological invention ("Ticket Outta Loserville").
In August 1949, in the South African village of Ndotsheni (The song "The Hills of Ixopo" is sung at this point.), the black Anglican priest of St. Mark's Church, the Rev. Stephen Kumalo, learns from a letter from his brother (John Kumalo, who lives in Johannesburg) that their sister is in trouble. Stephen decides to travel to Johannesburg to help his sister; he will also seek his son, Absalom, who works in the mines ("Thousands of Miles"). In Johannesburg, Stephen learns that his sister will not leave but she asks him to take care of her young son, Alex. He finally locates his son Absalom, who had been in jail. Absalom now plans with his friends to steal, so they can get enough money to avoid a life in the gold mines. Absalom's pregnant girlfriend Irina tries to convince him not to take part, but he goes ahead with his plan ("Trouble Man"). During the robbery, Absalom kills Arthur Jarvis, a white friend of his father, Stephen. As Absalom is jailed, Stephen wonders how to tell his wife, Grace, and he realizes he is facing a crisis of faith ("Lost in the Stars"). Stephen knows that his son could either tell a lie and live or tell the truth and die. He prays for guidance ("O Tixo, Tixo, Help Me"). At the trial, Absalom's two friends lie to the court and are freed, but Absalom, truly repentant, tells the truth and is sentenced to hang ("Cry, the Beloved Country"). Stephen performs a wedding between Absalom and Irina in prison and then returns home to Ndotsheni with Irina and Alex. Alex and the child of Arthur Jarvis meet and start to become friends ("Big Mole"). Stephen tells his flock he can no longer be their minister, and their faith is now also shaken ("A Bird of Passage"). On the still-dark morning of the execution, Stephen waits alone for the clock to strike ("Four O'Clock"). Unexpectedly, the father of the murdered man pays him a visit. He tells Stephen that he has realized that they have both lost sons. Out of recognition of their mutual sorrow, and despite their different races, he offers his friendship, and Stephen accepts.
Lost, Strayed or Stolen is a musical comedy in four acts with music by Woolson Morse and words by J. Cheever Goodwin, adapted from the French farce Le baptême du petit Oscar by Eugène Grangé and Victor Bernard. The story concerns a missing child and its nursemaid, three competing potential godfathers and an opera diva. It was produced at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York City on September 16, 1896, and ran with success. It was directed by Ben Teal, the musical director was John McGhie and dances in act 4 were arranged by Rose Becket. The show was made into a 1908 film of the same name.
Louisiana Purchase is a musical with music and lyrics by Irving Berlin and book by Morrie Ryskind based on a story by B. G. DeSylva. Set in New Orleans, the musical lightly satirises Louisiana Governor Huey Long and his control over Louisiana politics. An honest U.S.
Love Birds is a musical in two acts with music by Sigmund Romberg, lyrics by Ballard MacDonald, and a book by Edgar Allan Woolf. The work premiered at Broadway's Apollo Theatre on March 15, 1921. In ran there for 103 performances, closing on June 11, 1921. It was produced by Alfred Maria Willner and Romberg and co-directed by Edgar MacGregor, Julian Alfred and Frank Smithson. The musical starred Pat Rooney as Pat, Marion Bent as Mamie O'Grady, Elizabeth Hines as Allene Charteris, Barrett Greenwood as Hal Sterling, and Evelyn Cavanaugh as Violet Morely among others.
Love Life is a musical written by Kurt Weill (music) and Alan Jay Lerner (book and lyrics). The musical opened at the 46th Street Theatre on Broadway (now the Richard Rodgers) on October 7, 1948, and closed on May 14, 1949, after having played 252 performances. The original production starred Ray Middleton and Nanette Fabray, was directed by Elia Kazan, and choreographed by Michael Kidd. Fabray won the Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical for her performance.
Love Never Dies is a musical with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, lyrics by Glenn Slater, and a book by Lloyd Webber, Ben Elton, Frederick Forsyth, and Slater. It is a sequel to the long-running 1986 musical The Phantom of the Opera and was loosely adapted from Forsyth's 1999 novel The Phantom of Manhattan. The plot is not based on the storyline in the original 1910 novel by Gaston Leroux. Lloyd Webber stated, "I don't regard this as a sequel—it's a stand-alone piece." He later clarified, "Clearly, it is a sequel, but I really do not believe that you have to have seen Phantom of the Opera to understand Love Never Dies." Glenn Slater subsequently explained that Lloyd Webber "didn’t view it as a sequel as much as 'a second story with these characters'". The musical is set in 1907, which Lloyd Webber states is "ten years roughly after the end of the original Phantom", although the events of the original actually took place in 1881. In the show, Christine Daaé is invited by Oscar Hammerstein I for her American debut, until an anonymous impresario under the pseudonym of Mr. Y contracts her to perform at Phantasma, a new attraction on Coney Island. With her husband Raoul and son Gustave in tow, she journeys to Brooklyn, apparently unaware it is actually the Phantom who has arranged her appearance in the popular beach resort. Although Lloyd Webber began working on Love Never Dies in 1990, it was not until 2007 that he began writing the music. The show opened at the Adelphi Theatre in London's West End on 9 March 2010, with previews from 22 February 2010. It was originally directed by Jack O'Brien and choreographed by Jerry Mitchell, starring Ramin Karimloo and Sierra Boggess. However, the show closed for four days in November 2010 for substantial re-writes, which were overseen by Lloyd Webber, and it re-opened with new direction from Bill Kenwright. Set and costume designs were by Bob Crowley. The original London production received mostly negative reviews. A planned Broadway production, which was to have opened simultaneously with the West End run, was cancelled, the amount of negative press having deterred potential backers. In 2023, the revised Australian version of the show made its West End premiere in a concert run starring Norm Lewis and Celinde Schoenmaker.
Love O' Mike is a musical comedy in two acts and a prologue with book by Thomas Sydney, lyrics by Harry B. Smith, and music by Jerome Kern. The show, produced by Elisabeth Marbury and Lee Shubert, had performances in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Detroit before heading to New York's Shubert…
At Jenny's funeral, her family and friends flashback ("What can you say about a girl?") about her life. Oliver is a rich young man who meets a spirited young woman, Jenny. She is poor and of Italian heritage, but has attended Radcliffe College and plays the piano. They fall in love and marry, against his family's wishes. Oliver, disinherited, attends law school, while Jenny works to support them. However, she contracts a fatal illness, leukemia, and dies.
Jerusha "Judy" Abbott, an orphan living in New England. One day, a visiting trustee becomes interested in Judy and decides to give her a chance and send her to a college. He only requests that she send him a letter once a month keeping him updated on her studies and life. As she does not know his identity, she decides to name him "Daddy long-legs." Over the course of her years in college, she begins to fall in love with her mysterious benefactor and he returns her feelings.
Rosetta runs away to avoid marrying a man she has never met and becomes a chambermaid in Justice Woodcock’s home. Thomas, son of Sir William Meadows, likewise disguises himself as a gardener to avoid an arranged marriage. The two meet and fall in love, but their families insist on their intended matches. Sir William finally reveals that Rosetta and Thomas have been betrothed to each other all along.
Love, Janis is a musical stage show about the life and music of rock and roll singer Janis Joplin. It was conceived, adapted and directed by Randal Myler (Hank Williams: Lost Highway, It Ain't Nothin' But The Blues). It debuted Off-Broadway in 2001 at the Village Theater (formerly the famed Village Gate) with musical direction by former Big Brother And The Holding Company band member Sam Andrew. The show had a long and healthy run, garnering over 700 performances.
LoveMusik is a musical written by Alfred Uhry, using a selection of music by Kurt Weill. The story explores the romance and lives of Kurt Weill and Lotte Lenya, based on Speak Low (When You Speak Love): The Letters of Kurt Weill and Lotte Lenya, edited and translated by Lys Symonette and Kim H. Kowalke. Harold Prince had read Speak Low and suggested the idea for a musical to Uhry. Uhry and Prince worked on LoveMusik for four years to develop it into a stage work. The story spans over 25 years, from the first meeting of Lenya and Weill as struggling young artists, to their popularity in Europe and America, to Weill's death from a heart attack at age 50.
Lovely Ladies, Kind Gentlemen is a musical with a book by John Patrick and music and lyrics by Stan Freeman and Franklin Underwood.
Lucky Guy is a musical comedy written and directed by Willard Beckham. The piece tells the story of Billy Ray Jackson, a young musician from Oklahoma who wins a songwriting contest and is invited to Nashville to record his song. He becomes the target of the used-car dealer Big Al Wright and the fading star Miss Jeannie Jeannine (the "Queen of Country Music"), who want to steal Billy Ray's song and use it to revitalize Jeannie's career. The show premiered on May 19, 2011, Off-Broadway at the Little Shubert Theatre, for a planned run through July 24 but closed after just ten days. The cast included Kyle Dean Massey (as Billy Ray Jackson), Leslie Jordan (Big Al Wright), Varla Jean Merman (Miss Jeannie Jeannine), Jenn Colella (Chicky Lay), Jim Newman (G. C. Wright), and Savannah Wise (Wanda Clark). A new production of the show was put on by the Center For Theater Arts, a performing arts school in the Pittsburgh, PA area in 2020. Willard Beckham worked with the executive director of the school, Billy Hartung, to make the show more suitable for a very large high-school age cast.
Lucky Sambo was a 1925 musical comedy staged on Broadway. It originally toured as Aces and Queens in 1923 and 1924. It was by Porter Grainger and Freddy Johnson. It played at the Colonial Theatre (New York City). Time magazine described it as an imitator of Shuffle Along. A June 8, 1925 New York Times write-up for it at the Colonial Theatre called it an amusing and "agile entertainment". A 1925 advertisement ran for it at the New Hyperion theater. The ad touted it as "The Black Streak of Lightning" and "The World's Fastest Show". It starred Billy Higgins and Joe Byrd. They were also together in Midnight Steppers in 1927. Ernest Whitman appeared in a touring version of the show.
Ten characters in a quasi–Greek chorus inform the audience of the zany plot twists to come. One of them, a man wearing dark glasses and silk pyjamas, is murdered ("Something Funny's Going On"). English shoe salesman Harry Witherspoon spends his Friday night taking inventory in a shoe shop, dreaming of a better life. Arriving at his shabby apartment, run by a mean-spirited landlady, he receives a telegram summoning him to a solicitor's office ("Mr. Witherspoon's Friday Night"). There, Harry learns that Anthony Hendon, an American uncle that he never met, has left him six million dollars. However, to receive the estate, Harry must take the corpse of his Uncle Anthony on an all-expenses paid "vacation" to Monte Carlo. Uncle Anthony's embalmed body is in a wheelchair and has been dressed to appear alive. Harry must fulfill the tasks specified by his uncle's will, or the money will go to his uncle's favorite charity, the Universal Dog Home of Brooklyn. Harry reluctantly accepts the terms of the will. He travels to Monte Carlo with the cassette tape that contains his instructions, a mysterious heart-shaped box, and his uncle's corpse in the wheelchair. Meanwhile, in Atlantic City, optometrist Vinnie DiRuzzio is suddenly visited by his distressed, legally blind sister Rita LaPorta. She shows him a news article: "English shoe salesman has inherited six million dollars from his casino manager uncle." Rita tells Vinnie that due to her poor eyesight she accidentally shot her lover Tony. Tony was the manager of her husband Nicky's casino, and she had suspected that Tony was cheating on her. Rita explains that, with the help of Tony, she embezzled six million dollars' worth of diamonds from her husband. The heart-shaped box that contained the diamonds has disappeared. She also confesses that she has blamed this embezzlement on Vinnie, and so her husband Nicky has placed a contract on Vinnie's life. They fly to France to find Harry and retrieve the diamonds before Rita's husband kills Vinnie ("Rita's Confession"). On the train to Monte Carlo, Harry meets Luigi Gaudi, a flashy Italian, who offers to be his tour guide. Harry notices that a mysterious young woman is glaring at him and diligently taking notes ("Good to Be Alive"). He arrives in Monte Carlo with his uncle. Although frustrated that he must fulfill many painstakingly specific tasks to gain his inheritance, he ultimately reasons that he is "lucky" to be there ("Lucky"). When he sees the young woman from the train following him, he confronts her. Her name is Annabel Glick, a representative of the Universal Dog Home of Brooklyn, and she earnestly attempts to convince Harry to donate his uncle's money to the Dog Home. Harry hates dogs, due to his scarring experiences with his landlady's vicious dogs, and flatly refuses. Annabel notes that Harry must finish every task required by the will and that she is recording his every move to make sure that he executes flawlessly all of the conditions. Harry knows that if he makes one mistake, she will take charge of his uncle, finish the trip, and claim the estate. Harry vows to persevere ("Dogs vs. You"). Vinnie and Rita arrive in Nice, France. While Rita telephones hotels in Monte Carlo to find where Harry is staying, Vinnie telephones his wife. Vinnie informs her that he will not be home for dinner because he has been forced to travel to Monte Carlo to save his life; she angrily hangs up ("The Phone Call"). Rita finds Harry's hotel and books two rooms down the hall from his. Meanwhile, Harry and his uncle, doggedly pursued by Annabel, spend the day traveling around Monte Carlo doing what is required in the will, buying new clothes, gambling, visiting museums, skydiving, fishing and scuba diving ("A Day Around Town (Dance)"). That night Harry, Annabel and Luigi go to a glamorous nightclub where the glitzy Emcee declares Monte Carlo a place for "lovers in love". He mistakes Harry and Annabel for a couple on their honeymoon ("Monte Carlo!"). The Emcee then introduces the voluptuous singer and dancer Dominique du Monaco to the crowd. She sings a flamboyant cabaret number and has everybody in the nightclub bumping ("Speaking French"). After her performance Dominique speaks to Harry and tells him that his uncle has arranged for the two them to spend many hours together that night. Dominique sits next to Harry and teaches him a continental toast. Annabel, thoroughly out of her element in the nightclub, recalls the comfort that only a dog can bring ("Times Like This"). Dominique exits the nightclub with Harry; Annabel follows. The Emcee lauds the romantic merits of Monte Carlo ("Monte Carlo!" (reprise)). While Harry is having fun in the casino, Rita, now disguised as a maid, searches Harry's hotel room for the diamonds. Vinnie is nervous and soon leaves. Harry returns to the hotel room with Uncle Anthony; Rita hides in the closet. Harry leaves the corpse in the room and returns to the casino to continue gambling, closely followed by Annabel. Rita, squinting from the closet, can barely make out the shape of the man in the wheelchair. She steps out to face who she believes to be her still-living lover, Tony. After begging his forgiveness and declaring her continued love for him, she kisses his cold hand and discovers that he is dead ("Fancy Meeting You Here"). Harry is on a winning streak at the casino due to Tony's friend's infallible system for winning at roulette. Rita, now livid, arrives at the casino armed with a gun and Tony's corpse. She threatens to kill Harry unless he hands over the diamonds ("Act I Finale: Good to Be Alive"). The cast as a Greek chorus briefly reminds the audience of where they left off ("Something Funny's Going On" (reprise)) Annabel and Harry, with Uncle Anthony in tow, escape from Rita. In the ensuing fracas, Rita's gun accidentally goes off as her brother tries to restrain her. Rita turns the crowd on Vinnie and pursues Harry. Chaos ensues as Harry and Annabel try to hide from Rita and protect Uncle Anthony. A drunken maid mistakes Uncle Anthony for a pile of laundry and wheels him away. Annabel, Harry, Rita and Vinnie then frantically attempt to locate one another, the heart-shaped box, and the missing corpse. During Vinnie's search, he encounters the shapely Dominique du Monaco. She is most interested in his search for the diamonds ("Him, Them, It, Her"). Unable to locate Uncle Anthony, Annabel and Harry return to Harry's room. Several people attempt to earn a cash reward by bringing people in wheelchairs into the room. None is Uncle Anthony. Giving up the search, Harry and Annabel open a bottle of Anthony's Dom Perignon and let down their guard. Annabel makes a toast to Harry and herself, saying that it was "nice" suffering through the week with him. Their relationship mellows as they finish the bottle ("Nice"). That night in bed, Harry has a terrible nightmare. Everyone is half dog and half human... his landlady maliciously welcomes him back to his depressing life as a shoe salesman... Rita threatens him with a machine gun... Luigi and Annabel taunt him for his failure to fulfill the terms of the will. Harry's dead uncle gets out of his wheelchair and tap dances while everyone else forms a ghastly kickline ("Welcome Back, Mr. Witherspoon"). Harry wakes up horrified to find Annabel in bed next to him. They are both shocked to find themselves together in a state of undress. Miraculously, the drunken maid enters the bedroom with Uncle Anthony. Harry and Annabel exchange a quick moment of joy before becoming embarrassed again. Annabel, now antagonistic towards Harry, goes to the bathroom to get dressed, and Harry mulls over the situation ("A Woman in My Bathroom"). As Annabel is about to leave, Rita bursts into the room, gun in hand. She is now wearing her glasses and realizes that the corpse is not her lover Tony, but a dead stranger; she then demands the heart-shaped box from Harry and Annabel. They refuse to give in to her demands. With nowhere to hide, Harry and Annabel huddle together in fear, expecting to be shot dead ("Nice" (reprise)). Luigi Gaudi enters the room and proclaims that he is the real Uncle Anthony. He explains that his best friend (the dead man in the chair and the real Luigi Gaudi) was murdered by Rita and that he sent Harry to Monte Carlo in order to give his dead friend one last chance to experience Monte Carlo, in accordance with Luigi's dying wishes ("Confession #2" (reprise)). Anthony reveals that the six million dollars in diamonds is actually sewn inside the corpse. The heart-shaped box contains only the heart of the dead Luigi. Vinnie and Dominique du Monaco burst into the room dressed as maids. Brandishing a gun at everyone, Vinnie tells the group that he plans to start a new life in Europe with Dominique. He demands the diamonds. Rita gladly hands him the heart-shaped box; Vinnie and Dominique exit. Tony gives Annabel Luigi's life savings in the form of a $10,000 cheque made out to the Universal Dog Home of Brooklyn. Tony gives Harry $500 and reminds him that he still has the rest of the week in Monte Carlo; he says the week is prepaid and that Harry has Luigi's infallible roulette system at his disposal. Rita points the gun at Harry and Annabel and backs them into a closet. Rita apologizes to Tony for everything, and Tony forgives her (at gunpoint). Rita and Anthony take the diamond-laden corpse and depart ("Fancy Meeting You Here" (reprise)). Harry and Annabel are left alone with each other. Harry locks the door of the hotel room to protect them from any more unwelcome intruders and persuades her to stay with him in Monte Carlo. Harry and Annabel kiss ("Act II Finale: Good to Be Alive").
A three-act romantic zarzuela in Spanish.
The plot focuses on Tsai-Yong (Cai Yong), a young student who leaves his wife Tchao-Ou-Niang and parents to make a name for himself. He becomes a notable magistrate, but when he marries Princess Nieou-Chi, he is forbidden by her father to contact his family. His impoverished parents die of starvation during a famine, and Tchao-Ou-Niang is forced to sell her hair to pay for their funeral. She ultimately is reunited with her husband by Nieou-Chi, and is welcomed to the palace as his #1 wife. Unlike the original work, Tsai-Yong has to decide between love and filial piety. Ultimately Tsai-Yong and Tchao-Ou-Niang are united.
Lysistrata Jones is a musical comedy adaptation of Aristophanes' comedy Lysistrata. The book is by Douglas Carter Beane and the score is by Lewis Flinn. the show opened on Broadway in December 2011 and closed in January 2012. The show tells the tale of the men on a losing college basketball team whose cheerleader girlfriends refuse to have sex with them until they win a game.
Thief Rıza is mistakenly taken for a wealthy namesake from Zonguldak at a ball. The operetta satirizes the new rich of 1930s Turkey and their indifference to society’s economic problems.
French officer Hector marries Delphine and is immediately posted to Egypt. Wounded in Cairo, he is nursed by Djemileh, whose uncle and fiancé interrupt their flirtation. Delphine arrives, suspects her husband of infidelity, then relents when his innocence is established; the French capture Aboukir.
In June 1992, the cast members are preparing for rehearsals for Jackson's upcoming Dangerous World Tour; the first show, in Munich, is in two days. Rob, their manager, tells them to get into their places and warm up. Jackson arrives and watches the process, which leads to the opening number ("Beat It"). As Jackson shares his newest ideas with Rob, Rachel arrives with her cameraman, Alejandro, in hopes of getting an interview with Jackson. He sits with Rachel and recounts some of the terrors he suffered as a child and some of the memorable times when Berry Gordy played his family's hits on his Motown label. Jackson also discusses his collaboration with Quincy Jones and recording his albums Off the Wall, Thriller and Bad with Jones. Rob and Nick escort Jackson to the press conference at Radio City Music Hall, where he presents his tour and hopes to raise $100 million for the Heal the World Foundation by Christmas 1993 ("Earth Song" / "They Don't Care About Us"). Jackson proposes new ideas for the tour ("Billie Jean"/"Smooth Criminal"), which Rob and Dave tell him are impractical and that they cannot afford it. Jackson recounts the horrific accident in 1984 when a spark ignited his hair in the making of an advertisement for Pepsi. After listening to Rob's negative feedback, Jackson reminds him of something Quincy said to him, "Keep the faith. Don't let nobody take you down". As the rehearsal continues, Jackson tells Rachel how the songs open up to him. During a break, a commotion breaks out. Rob tries to keep Rachel away from Jackson and doesn't want her near him, but Jackson manages to find her by disguising himself as a cleaner. He explains to her that the disguise is the only way he can be seen in public, which leads to him singing "Human Nature". After the rehearsal, Jackson explains to Rachel how emotional he feels about being loved by fans and about being teased in the newspapers. As Rob comes to check up on him, Jackson recalls when he played at the Apollo Theater with the Jackson 5 and how he wasn't nervous. Rob tells Jackson that everything they created would be remembered for decades, but Jackson replies by asking: "Is it perfect?" ("Man in the Mirror"). Jackson appears on stage, prepared to start the first show of the Dangerous Tour ("Jam (Reprise)", "Black or White" / "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' (Reprise)".
Mack & Mabel is a musical with a book by Michael Stewart and music and lyrics by Jerry Herman. The plot involves the tumultuous romantic relationship between Hollywood director Mack Sennett and Mabel Normand (transformed from an artist's model to a waitress from Flatbush, Brooklyn, for the musical), who became one of his biggest stars.
Madame Aphrodite is a musical with a book by Tad Mosel and music and lyrics by Jerry Herman. It is based on Mosel's play of the same name that was broadcast on television in 1953. The original off-Broadway production was short-lived and only ran for 13 performances in 1961. It is notable as the only stage musical in the entire Jerry Herman canon (which includes smash hits such as Hello Dolly!, Mame and La Cage aux Folles as well as less successful but highly respected flops like Dear World, Mack & Mabel and The Grand Tour) that never spawned an original cast album, and has never been performed since its original production.
During Carnival in Paris, married Count René meets Madame de Pompadour and is arrested. She secures his release on condition that he become her bodyguard and that his friend Josef write a birthday play. René’s wife arrives searching for him while Louis XV tries to catch Pompadour with her lover; Pompadour evades discovery by presenting the wife as her sister.
This two-act folk operetta includes musical numbers such as “The Seed of God,” “The Emerald,” and “The River Song.”
Maggie is a musical with book, music and lyrics by Michael Wild based on J.M. Barrie's play What Every Woman Knows. After a premiere at the Forum Theatre in Billingham, the West End production opened at the Shaftesbury Theatre on 12 October 1977 and played for 42 performances. The West End production featured Anna Neagle, Peter Gale, and Anna Sharkey as Maggie. Sharkey received an Olivier Award for Best Performance in a Musical for the title role.
Maggie Flynn is a 1968 musical with a book by Morton DaCosta and music and lyrics by Hugo Peretti, Luigi Creatore, and George David Weiss. Based on an idea by John Flaxman, it was inspired by a true story set in the New York City draft riots of 1863. The title character, an Irish woman providing asylum for orphaned children of refugee slaves, is on the verge of marrying a Union Army colonel. Her vagabond husband Phineas Flynn (who abandoned her to pursue a theatrical career and whom she had presumed was dead) returns to the scene. The cast of characters includes Confederate insurgents, prostitutes and drunks, bigoted socialites, circus performers, and some African-American children endangered by the draft riots.
Maggie May is a musical with a book by Alun Owen and music and lyrics by Lionel Bart. Based on "Maggie May", a traditional ballad about a Liverpool prostitute, it deals with trade union ethics and disputes among Irish-Catholic dockers in Liverpool, centring on the life of streetwalker Margaret Mary Duffy and her sweetheart, a freewheeling sailor. The show includes bittersweet ballads, robust chorus numbers, and even some rock 'n' roll, making it one of the most musically diverse British scores of the 1960s. Steven Suskin, in reviewing a newly released CD, wrote: the show begins with a "rather weird folk-ballad", and has "a couple of gentle lullaby-like ballads...raucous production numbers... a tongue-twister, set to an almost violent waltz", along with a distinctive version of the title song "which mixes a sailor's chanty with — what, Dixieland?".
Make a Wish is a musical with a book by Preston Sturges and Abe Burrows, who was not credited, and music and lyrics by Hugh Martin. Based on Sturges' screenplay for the 1935 film The Good Fairy, which in turn is based on the 1930 play of the same name by Ferenc Molnár as translated by Jane Hinton…
Mama, I Want to Sing! is a 1983 musical based on the life and times of African-American singer Doris Troy.
Mame is a musical with a book by Jerome Lawrence and Robert Edwin Lee and music and lyrics by Jerry Herman. Originally titled My Best Girl, it is based on the 1955 novel Auntie Mame by Patrick Dennis and the 1956 Broadway play of the same name by Lawrence and Lee.
Before the curtain rises, the orchestra starts playing the overture, which is a montage of instrumental versions of some of ABBA's hit songs. On the fictional Greek island of Kalokairi, 20-year-old Sophie is preparing to marry her fiancé, Sky. She wants her father to walk her down the aisle but does not know his identity ("Prologue"). She discovers her mother Donna's diary and finds old entries that describe dates with three possible fathers: an American architect named Sam Carmichael, an Australian writer and adventurer named Bill Austin, and a British banker named Harry Bright. She sends each an invitation to her wedding without telling Donna. All three men accept ("Honey, Honey"). Donna reunites with her long-time best friends, Tanya, a rich woman who has been married and divorced thrice, and Rosie, an unmarried and carefree woman, at her taverna. The trio used to comprise a girl group called "Donna and the Dynamos". Donna laments about the struggles of running the taverna singlehandedly ("Money, Money, Money"). Later that day, Sam, Bill, and Harry arrive at the island. They meet Sophie who convinces them not to tell Donna that she had invited them ("Thank You for the Music"). Donna is astonished to see her ex-lovers and runs off in tears ("Mamma Mia"). Tanya and Rosie attempt to comfort Donna ("Chiquitita"), and convince her that she can still be the girl she once was ("Dancing Queen"). Sophie tells Sky about her confusion regarding her father's real identity, but still does not reveal that she had invited them. Sky assures her he will be the only man she ever needs, right before his buddies take him to his bachelor party ("Lay All Your Love on Me"). At Sophie's bachelorette party, Donna and the Dynamos don their old costumes and perform a song ("Super Trouper"). Sam, Bill, and Harry accidentally walk in on the party, and the guests persuade them to stay ("Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)"). Sophie is unable to find any concrete answers from talking to either Sam or Harry, however she learns from Bill that he has an aunt Sophia who once lived with Donna and funded the taverna's construction. This leads both to believe Bill is Sophie's father and he reluctantly agrees to walk her down the aisle ("The Name of the Game"). The bachelor and bachelorette parties converge, where both Sam and Harry respectively tell Sophie they believe they're her father and promise to walk her down the aisle the next day. Hopelessly confused, Sophie leaves the party, unsure whom to believe ("Voulez-Vous"). (Entr'acte) Sophie has a nightmare, involving her three possible fathers all fighting for the right to walk her down the aisle and wakes up distressed ("Under Attack"). Donna is confused as to why Sophie is so upset on her wedding day, while Sophie emotionally blames Donna for raising her without a father. Donna is left to reminisce on her past relationships ("One of Us"). She gets into an argument with Sam; despite their conflict, Donna and Sam still love one another and wish their relationship had worked out differently ("SOS"). At the beach, a worker at Donna's taverna named Pepper makes advances to Tanya, but she rebuffs him ("Does Your Mother Know"). Sky figures out Sophie's plan and feels betrayed that she kept it a secret from him. Sam tries to give Sophie some fatherly advice by describing his own failed marriage ("Knowing Me, Knowing You"), but Sophie is not consoled. Harry offers Donna to pay for the wedding, and they reminisce about their fling ("Our Last Summer"). Donna helps Sophie get dressed for the wedding, in disbelief that her daughter is going to be a bride ("Slipping Through My Fingers"). They reconcile and Sophie asks Donna to walk her down the aisle, since she's the most active parental figure in her life. Sam tries speaking to Donna again, and a bitter confrontation ensues as Donna tells Sam that he broke her heart ("The Winner Takes It All"). Rosie is making final wedding preparations when Bill expresses disappointment that Donna has been selected to walk Sophie down the aisle. Bill reaffirms his commitment to single life, but Rosie confesses she has grown attracted to him, and urges him to reconsider ("Take a Chance on Me"). They become intimate just before getting interrupted by the arrival of guests, leaving Rosie quite stunned. The wedding begins, with Donna walking Sophie down the aisle. Donna interrupts the ceremony and acknowledges to everyone that Sophie's father is present. Sophie finally tells her mother that she had secretly invited the three men, and Donna reveals she is also unsure which one is her father. Everyone involved agrees that the identity of Sophie's biological father does not matter, and all three are happy to be "one-third of a father" and a part of her life at last. During this discussion, Harry reveals he's in a committed gay relationship. Just as the wedding is about to resume, Sophie calls a halt to the proceedings and Sky agrees they are not ready to get married yet. Sam seizes his chance and proposes to Donna to prevent the wedding preparations from going to waste. He explains that he always loved her, and years ago had ended his own engagement and returned to the island only to find Donna had gone off with another man (Bill). Donna accepts and the two marry spontaneously ("I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do"). At the end of the night, Sophie and Sky depart Kalokairi to tour the world together ("I Have a Dream"). After their final bows to the audience, the ensemble performs a reprise of "Mamma Mia". A reprise of "Dancing Queen" follows, during which Donna, Tanya and Rosie are revealed wearing brightly colored ABBA inspired costumes. The cast ends the finale with "Waterloo", during which Sam, Bill, and Harry join the rest of the cast onstage in brightly colored costumes that match the leading ladies. The Dynamos and the dads often invite the audience to clap, dance, and sing along during the finale.
Man on the Moon is a 1975 musical written by John Phillips of the Mamas & The Papas and directed by Paul Morrissey. It was produced by Andy Warhol with Richard Turley. The production opened at the Little Theatre in New York City on January 29, 1975, following an extended preview run, and closed after two performances. The musical follows an American astronaut who leads a mission of interplanetary dignitaries to prevent the destruction of the universe by a bomb planted on the Moon by an evil scientist. In 2009, a cast album was released through Varèse Sarabande.
In the late sixteenth century, failed author-soldier-actor and tax collector Miguel de Cervantes has been thrown into a dungeon by the Spanish Inquisition, along with his manservant. They have been charged with foreclosing on a monastery. Their fellow prisoners attack them, eager to steal the contents of the large trunk Cervantes has brought with him. However, a sympathetic criminal known as "the Governor" suggests setting up a mock trial instead. Only if Cervantes is found guilty will he have to hand over his possessions. A cynical prisoner, known as "the Duke," charges Cervantes with being an idealist and a bad poet. Cervantes pleads guilty, but then asks if he may offer a defense, in the form of a play, acted out by him and all the prisoners. The "Governor" agrees. Cervantes takes out a makeup kit and costume from his trunk, and transforms himself into Alonso Quijano, an old gentleman who has read so many books of chivalry and thought so much about injustice that he has lost his mind and set out as a knight-errant. Quijano renames himself Don Quixote de La Mancha, and goes off to find adventures with his "squire", Sancho Panza. ("Man of La Mancha (I, Don Quixote)") Don Quixote warns Sancho that they are always in danger of being attacked by Quixote's mortal enemy, an evil magician known as the Enchanter. Suddenly he spots a windmill, mistakes it for a four-armed giant, attacks it, and receives a beating from the encounter. Quixote decides that he lost the battle because he was never properly knighted. He then mistakes a rundown inn for a castle and orders Sancho to announce their arrival by blowing his bugle. Cervantes talks some prisoners into assuming the roles of the inn's serving wench and part-time prostitute Aldonza, and a group of muleteers who are propositioning her. Aldonza fends them off sarcastically ("It's All The Same"), but eventually deigns to accept their leader, Pedro, who pays in advance. Don Quixote enters with Sancho, asking for the lord of the castle. The Innkeeper (played by The Governor) humors Don Quixote as best he can. Quixote sees Aldonza and declares that she is his lady, Dulcinea, to whom he has sworn eternal loyalty ("Dulcinea"). Aldonza, used to rough treatment, is first flabbergasted and then annoyed at Quixote's kindness, and is further aggravated when the Muleteers turn Quixote's tender ballad into a mocking serenade. Meanwhile, Antonia, Don Quixote's niece, has gone with Quixote's housekeeper to seek advice from the local priest, who realizes that the two women are more concerned with the embarrassment Quixote's madness may bring them than with his actual welfare ("I'm Only Thinking of Him"). Cervantes chooses "the Duke" to play Dr. Sanson Carrasco, Antonia's fiancé, a man just as cynical and self-centered as the prisoner who is playing him. Carrasco is upset at the idea of marrying into the family of a madman, but the priest convinces Carrasco that it would be a worthy challenge to use his abilities to cure his prospective uncle-in-law. Carrasco and the priest set out to bring Don Quixote back home ("I'm Only Thinking of Him [Reprise]"). Back at the inn, Sancho delivers a missive from Don Quixote to Aldonza courting her favor and asking for a token of her esteem. Aldonza provides the requested token: an old dishrag. She asks Sancho why he follows Quixote, but he can come up with no explanation other than "I Really Like Him". Alone, Aldonza ponders Quixote's behavior and her inability to laugh at him ("What Do You Want of Me?"). In the courtyard, the muleteers once again taunt Aldonza with a suggestive song ("Little Bird, Little Bird"). Pedro makes arrangements with her for an assignation later. The priest and Dr. Carrasco arrive, but cannot reason with Don Quixote. Quixote becomes distracted by a barber who passes by the inn, wearing his shaving basin on his head to ward off the sun's heat ("The Barber's Song"). Quixote threatens the barber with a sword and snatches the basin, declaring it is the "Golden Helmet of Mambrino", which makes its wearer invulnerable. Dr. Carrasco and the priest leave, with the priest impressed by Don Quixote's view of life and wondering if curing him is really worthwhile ("To Each His Dulcinea"). Quixote still wishes to be officially dubbed a knight: he plans to stand vigil all night over his armor in the inn's courtyard, and then have the Innkeeper (whom he mistakes for a nobleman) grant him knighthood the following morning. Aldonza encounters Quixote in the courtyard and confronts him; Quixote does his best to explain the ideals he follows and the quest he is on ("The Impossible Dream"). Pedro enters, furious at being kept waiting, and slaps Aldonza. Enraged, Don Quixote takes him and all the other muleteers on in a fight ("The Combat"). Don Quixote has no martial skill, but by luck and determination – and with the help of Aldonza and Sancho – he prevails, and the muleteers are all knocked unconscious. But the noise attracts the attention of the Innkeeper, who tells Quixote that he must leave. Quixote apologizes for the trouble but reminds the Innkeeper of his promise to dub him knight. The Innkeeper does so ("Knight of the Woeful Countenance"). Quixote then declares that he must comfort the wounded muleteers, because chivalry requires kindness to one's enemies. Aldonza, impressed, says that she will help the muleteers instead. But when she comes to them with bandages, they beat her, rape her, and carry her off ("The Abduction"). Quixote, unaware of this, contemplates his recent victory and new knighthood ("The Impossible Dream" – first reprise). At this point, the Don Quixote play is brutally interrupted when the Inquisition enters the dungeon and drags off an unwilling prisoner to be tried. The Duke taunts Cervantes for his look of fear, and accuses him of not facing reality. This prompts Cervantes to passionately defend his idealism. The Don Quixote play resumes ("Man of La Mancha" – first reprise). Quixote and Sancho have left the inn and encounter a band of Gypsies ("Moorish Dance") who take advantage of Quixote's naiveté and steal everything they own, including Quixote's horse Rocinante and Sancho's donkey Dapple. Quixote and Sancho are forced to return to the inn. Aldonza also shows up at the inn, bruised and ashamed. Quixote swears to avenge her, but she tells him off, flinging her real, pitiful history in his face and blaming him for allowing her a glimpse of a life she can never have. She begs him to see her as she really is but Quixote can only see her as his Dulcinea ("Aldonza"). Suddenly, another knight enters. He announces himself as Don Quixote's mortal enemy, the Enchanter, in the form of the "Knight of the Mirrors". He insults Aldonza, so Quixote challenges him to combat. The Knight of the Mirrors and his attendants bear huge mirrored shields, and as they swing them at Quixote ("Knight of the Mirrors"), the glare blinds him. The Knight taunts Quixote, forcing him to see himself as the world sees him: a fool and a madman. Don Quixote collapses, weeping. The Knight of the Mirrors removes his helmet – he is really Dr. Carrasco, returned with his latest plan to cure Quixote. Cervantes announces that the story is finished, but the prisoners are dissatisfied with the ending. They prepare to burn his manuscript when he asks for the chance to present one last scene. The governor agrees. Quixote is back at home, and has fallen into a coma. Sancho tries to cheer him up ("A Little Gossip"), and Alonso opens his eyes. He is now sane: he gives his name as Alonso Quijano and thinks his knightly career was just a dream. However, he feels close to death, and asks the priest to help him make out his will. Aldonza suddenly forces her way into the room. She has come to visit Quixote because she can no longer bear to be anyone but Dulcinea. When he does not recognize her, she sings a reprise of "Dulcinea" and tries to help him remember the words of "The Impossible Dream." Suddenly, he remembers everything and rises from his bed, calling for his armor and sword so that he may set out again ("Man of La Mancha" – second reprise). But it is too late – in mid-song, he cries out and falls dead. The priest sings "The Psalm" (Psalm 130 in Latin) for the dead. Sancho is distraught at his friend's death. Aldonza tries to comfort him, saying that Alonso Quijano may be dead but Don Quixote lives on. When Sancho addresses her as Aldonza, she replies, "My name is Dulcinea." The Inquisition enters to take Cervantes to his trial, and the prisoners, finding him not guilty, return his manuscript. It is his (as yet) unfinished novel, Don Quixote. As Cervantes and his servant mount the staircase to go to their impending trial, the prisoners, led by the girl who played Dulcinea, sing "The Impossible Dream" in chorus.
Man with a Load of Mischief is a musical, with a book by Ben Tarver, music by John Clifton, and lyrics by Clifton and Tarver. It is based on the play by Ashley Dukes.
It's 1979 in New York City. Marvin, his son Jason, his psychiatrist Mendel and his male lover Whizzer introduce themselves, along with Marvin's ex-wife, Trina ("Four Jews in a Room Bitching"). Marvin steps forward to explain his situation: he has left his wife, Trina, for Whizzer, but explains that he wants to and is attempting to forge a new family situation with the addition of Whizzer. Trina, on Marvin's recommendation, pays a visit to Mendel, where she wearily wonders how her life has turned out this way. Mendel, who is instantly attracted to her, tries to console her ("Tight-Knit Family/Love is Blind"). Meanwhile, Marvin and Whizzer comment on their relationship: the two have very little in common, apart from the fact that they both love fighting and are insanely attracted to each other ("The Thrill of First Love"). The cast presents an interlude of Marvin at his psychiatry appointment with Mendel. In Part One, Mendel asks Marvin about his relationship with Whizzer and Marvin weighs the pros and cons of the relationship, ultimately concluding that he does love Whizzer. In Part Two, Mendel shifts the topic to Trina, and the session becomes one where Mendel, obviously aroused, interrogates Marvin about his ex-wife's bedroom habits. In Part Three, Marvin and Jason provide counterpoint on their strained relationship ("Marvin at the Psychiatrist, a Three-Part Mini-Opera"). Jason, who is 10, is very worried that, because his father is gay, he will turn out similarly. He begins to act up. His parents try to convince him to see Mendel for a therapy session and fail; however, Whizzer convinces him and he agrees to see Mendel ("My Father's a Homo/Everyone tells Jason to See a Psychiatrist"). Meanwhile, Marvin is trying to pigeon-hole Whizzer into the role of homemaker, and they fight. Trina complains to Mendel how her role in the family dynamic is being phased out as Whizzer becomes increasingly prominent in Marvin and Jason's lives. Marvin, being blamed for the family's strife by both Whizzer and Trina, continues to insist that all participants get along together as one extended family ("This Had Better Come To A Stop"). Jason is acting up again, and Trina phones Mendel frantically to come for dinner and therapy. Mendel arrives and immediately charms Trina. ("Please Come To My House") He and Jason settle down for a therapy session in which Jason frets about his future and his similarities to his father. Mendel encourages him to simply relax and enjoy life. After several such dinners and therapy sessions, Jason asks Mendel what his romantic intentions are towards Trina, and Mendel makes a marriage proposal to Trina, which she accepts ("A Marriage Proposal"). Marvin feels defensive over losing his family to his psychiatrist, and he and Mendel argue. ("Tight-Knit Family (Reprise)"). Trina reflects on her situation: she is tired of the man's world she lives in, and even though she knows that Mendel is the same kind of man Marvin is, slightly childish and neurotic, she recognizes he loves her, and she could do a lot worse. The four men of the show suddenly appear, singing a hymn to masculinity in all its aspects, the three adults singing in a falsetto to match Jason's unbroken voice. Once they exit, Trina returns, deciding to enjoy her life for what it is and be happy. ("Trina's Song/March of the Falsettos/Trina's Song (Reprise)") Marvin tries to teach Whizzer to play chess. Whizzer convinces Marvin to let him win, which he agrees to, but bitterness and ill feelings boil over once he does, and the two break up ("The Chess Game"). Meanwhile, Trina and Mendel move in together and start their life as an engaged couple, feeling unsure of where they stand, while Whizzer is forced to leave his and Marvin's apartment ("Making A Home"). As he packs, Whizzer reflects on himself and his past relationships, and comes to the conclusion that he does not love Marvin ("The Games I Play"). Marvin receives Trina and Mendel's wedding invitation, sending him into a rage. Confronting Trina in front of Mendel and Jason, he accuses her of trying to ruin his life, before he impulsively slaps her ("Marvin Hits Trina"). Shocked by Marvin's outburst, the characters all reflect on the events leading up to it. ("I Never Wanted to Love You"). Although Marvin has broken up with Whizzer and ruined his relationship with Trina, he attempts salvage his relationship with Jason, who, to his immense relief, has just discovered women. Marvin sits Jason down, telling him that he loves him and no matter what kind of man Jason turns out to be, Marvin will always be there for him. ("Father to Son")
Marguerite is a musical with a book by Alain Boublil, Claude-Michel Schönberg and Jonathan Kent, lyrics by Alain Boublil and Herbert Kretzmer, and music by Michel Legrand, with original French lyrics by Boublil. Based on the romantic novel La Dame aux Camélias by Alexandre Dumas, fils, the musical updates the story to 1940s German-occupied Paris. It tells the tale of a 40-year-old ex-singer and her affair with a young musician who is mixed up with the French Resistance, whilst she is the mistress of a Nazi officer.
Marie Christine is a musical with music, lyrics, and book by Michael John LaChiusa. It opened on Broadway in 1999.
Marilyn: An American Fable is a musical based on a book by Patricia Michaels with music and lyrics by Jeanne Napoli, Doug Frank, Gary Portnoy, Beth Lawrence, and Norman Thalheimer.
Marilyn! the Musical is a musical written by Mort Garson about Marilyn Monroe that was originally produced in London in 1983 as a vehicle for Stephanie Lawrence. The show's book and lyrics were by Jacques Wilson and it opened at the Adelphi Theatre on 17 March 1983 where it ran for 156 performances. Directed by Larry Fuller, with whom Lawrence had worked on Evita, the principal cast also included John Christie, John Bennett, David Firth, Bruce Barry and Judith Bruce.
The plot, set in Vienna, Mayerling, and Budapest, with a prologue and epilogue in an open air movie theatre in Connecticut, was a retelling of the story of the Mayerling Incident. In the prologue, youngsters at a movie palace watch a film about the Mayerling story and feel that it is too tragic. Their cab driver, the son of Rudolph's coachman, has his own version of the story.
The show is set in Paris, 1969 and follows Dietrich as she prepares for a performance.
Marlowe is a 1981 musical with a book by Leo Rost, lyrics by Rost and Jimmy Horowitz, and music by Horowitz. Despite a claim in the Playbill that "the story of this drama is essentially true and accurate," much of it is a fictionalized account of the life of Elizabethan playwright Christopher Marlowe.
Marriage a la Carte is a three-act Broadway musical comedy composed and written by C. M. S. McLellan and scored by Ivan Caryll. The play was staged by Austen Hurgon with musical direction provided by J. Sebastian Hiller and Carl H. Engel. Marriage a la Carte opened on January 2, 1911 at the Casino Theatre and had a run of 64 performances.
Loosely based on the real-life historical figure Martin Guerre and the 1982 film The Return of Martin Guerre he inspired, the story is set in early modern France in the anti-Protestant town of Artigat, where young Martin Guerre is forced into an arranged marriage with Bertrande de Rols in order to produce a Catholic heir. Martin is unsatisfied with the marriage, complicated by the fact that a childhood friend, Guillaume, is secretly in love with Bertrande. Beaten by the priests due to his failure to consummate the union, Martin abandons his home and Bertrande to fight the Protestant Huguenots, and it is during the skirmishes that he befriends Arnaud du Thil with whom he shares his history, beginning the story at this point, seven years later, in medias res. When Martin appears to die in battle, Arnaud goes to his village to inform Bertrande of her husband's death but, mistaken for the deceased soldier by the residents, he decides to play along with their error and becomes involved with Bertrande. Aware of Arnaud's deception, Bertrande decides to keep his secret and the two discover a mutual romantic attraction while Arnaud takes the name "Martin Guerre" for himself. Guillaume, who had until now hoped for a chance with Bertrande romantically, becomes envious of the supposedly returned soldier. As Bertrande, secretly converted to Protestantism, also turns Arnaud to her faith, Guillaume uncovers their beliefs and so they are assaulted by a roused mob. Before Arnaud is killed, however, Benoit, the knowing village idiot, reveals that he is not truly Martin Guerre, but rather, an imposter. The authorities arrest Arnaud—still claiming that he is Martin—under charges of deception and at the end of the trial, Martin Guerre himself, having apparently survived the war, appears as the last witness. In prison, Arnaud, however, is freed by Martin who forgives him for stealing his identity, noting the legitimacy of Arnaud and Bertrande's love for each other. The mob, though, sets the town ablaze and Guillaume stabs Arnaud before he can escape. He then tries to kill Martin, hoping to take Bertrande for himself, and is killed in the struggle. As Arnaud dies in Bertrande's arms, Martin and Bertrande sing mournfully about love and the two part for good. The town contemplates their own xenophobic actions remorsefully.
Martin Short tries to turn his relatively comfortable life into a suitably dramatic show-business memoir. Invented scandals, celebrity impersonations, comic characters, and musical numbers interrupt the autobiography and parody the machinery of theatrical fame.
The Marvin Trilogy is a trilogy of one-act musicals created by William Finn. It consists of In Trousers (1978), March of the Falsettos (1981), and Falsettoland (1990). The musicals center on Marvin, who has left his wife to be with a male lover, Whizzer, and struggles to keep his family together. The first act of the trilogy (In Trousers) focuses on Marvin's life as an adolescent, the influential women of his life, and his struggle to accept his sexual identity. Much of the second act (March of the Falsettos) explores the impact his relationship with Whizzer has had on his family. The third act (Falsettoland) focuses on how family dynamics evolve as Marvin and Trina plan for their son's Bar Mitzvah. Central to the musical are the themes of Jewish identity, gender roles, and gay life in the late 1970s and early 1980s. March of the Falsettos and Falsettoland were later combined into one musical titled Falsettos with music and lyrics by Finn and a book by Lapine. When referring to Falsettos, March of the Falsettos is thought of as the first act, as opposed to In Trousers, which is act one in the Marvin Trilogy. The 2016 Broadway revival of Falsettos is the most widely well-known rendition of any play in the Marvin Trilogy. As for the first musical in the Marvin Trilogy, In Trousers is the most obscure musical of the three.
Mary (originally titled The house that Jack built) is a 1920 musical comedy with book and lyrics by Frank Mandel and Otto Harbach and music by Louis Hirsch. Among its songs was "Love Nest", Hirsch's most successful, later the theme song for the Burns and Allen radio show.
Mary Jane McKane is a musical comedy in three acts with book and lyrics by William Cary Duncan and Oscar Hammerstein, II and music by Herbert Stothart and Vincent Youmans. The show was produced by Arthur Hammerstein at the Imperial Theatre, and opened December 25, 1923.
Bert, a man of many professions, introduces the audience to Cherry Tree Lane ("Prologue/Chim Chim Cher-ee/Cherry Tree Lane – Part 1") in Edwardian London. Number 17 is where the Banks family lives: George and Winifred Banks, their two naughty children Jane and Michael, their cook/maid, Mrs. Brill and their house boy, Robertson Ay. Things are not going well for Jane and Michael. They are out of control and, as the show starts, their latest nanny, Katie Nanna, storms out. After that, Mrs. Brill and Robertson Ay complain about living in a "madhouse." The children decide to write the advertisement for a new nanny ("The Perfect Nanny"), but George, having a very different idea of what constitutes the perfect nanny, tears up the piece of paper and throws it in the fireplace. The family all reflect on if they will ever find the perfect nanny ("Cherry Tree Lane - Part 2"). Within moments, Mary Poppins arrives, restored advertisement in hand, and takes charge of the Banks children, having every confidence in her own qualifications and merits ("Practically Perfect"). On the children's first outing to the park, they meet Bert and, despite their reservations, Mary teaches them that they must learn to look past appearances. To illustrate the point, Mary brings the park statues, including a mythological figure named Neleus, to life ("Jolly Holiday"). A storm starts to brew and the children quickly hurry home, but not before Neleus mentions how much he misses his father. While Mary manages the children, other problems lie with their parents. Winifred is aware that she is somehow disappointing both her children and her husband. George, on the other hand, can't understand why she finds the role of wife and mother so difficult. In an effort to please her husband, Winifred sends out invitations for a smart tea party ("Cherry Tree Lane (Reprise) / Being Mrs. Banks / Jolly Holiday (Reprise)"). Mrs. Brill makes the preparations, while telling an eager Robertson Ay to keep his hands off. The children inadvertently sabotage the kitchen preparations, but Mary sorts it out with a lesson ("A Spoonful of Sugar"). However, it is then revealed that none of the invitees are coming and Winifred reflects on her failure at pleasing George ("A Spoonful Of Sugar (Reprise)"). Mary takes the children to visit their father at the bank where he works ("Precision and Order"). There, George is busy dealing with possible investment clients: firstly, an ambitious man named Herr Von Hussler with an elaborate money-making scheme, and then a middle-class man named John Northbrook with a simple factory project. George is furious when Mary turns up with the children, but an innocent question asked by Jane (What's more important, a good man or a good idea?) makes him realise how much his values have changed ("A Man Has Dreams") since he was an idealistic young man. He then decides to accept Northbrook's project and rejects Von Hussler's, even though he knows the bank disapproves. Outside St. Paul's Cathedral, Mary introduces the children to the Bird Woman ("Feed the Birds"). Jane is suspicious of her, but Michael responds to the Bird Woman and throws crumbs for the birds. On the trip home, the children meet the enigmatic Mrs. Corry who runs a magic sweet shop that also sells words ("Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious"). The children return home in high spirits, unaware that things have gone wrong for their father. Unknown to them, George's decision to reject Von Hussler has cost the bank dearly, and he is suspended without pay. George explodes with rage at the children and they are sent to the nursery. Reacting to their father's outburst, Mary briefly points out that other members of the family are rarely there to take care of the parents, before Jane and Michael get into a fight over Jane's doll Valentine, prompting a displeased Mary to order them to bed and enchant them to sleep. The frightening consequence of Jane's anger becomes apparent moments afterwards, as Valentine and the rest of Jane and Michael's disgruntled toys come to life and join Mary in teaching them a lesson in how to take better care of their belongings and toys (formerly "Temper, Temper", now "Playing the Game"). Believing that Jane and Michael need personal growth, Mary decides to leave Cherry Tree Lane to bring them to their senses, and speaks with Bert about her decision ("Chim Chim Cher-ee – Rooftop Duet"). She then flies away using her magical parrot headed umbrella. Jane and Michael wake up to find Mary Poppins and their toys gone, leaving only a note on the floor that reads, "Dear Jane and Michael, keep playing the game. Au Revoir, Mary Poppins." Mrs. Brill sees them awake, and when asked about what "Au Revoir" means, she tells them that it means "Till we meet again" before sending them in for bed. In a misguided attempt to please her husband, Winifred arranges for his childhood nanny, Miss Andrew, to take over from the suddenly departed Mary ("Cherry Tree Lane (Reprise)"). At the sight of her, a terrified George flees, exclaiming "the Holy Terror!" To everyone's shock and dismay, he is right. Miss Andrew is a brutal and cruel tyrant, quick to administer her own terrible elixir ("Brimstone and Treacle Part 1") and discipline by threatening to split Jane and Michael up by taking charge of Jane and sending Michael to boarding school. After Miss Andrew goes to her room, Jane and Michael decide that running away is the only solution. The children find their good friend Bert, who cheers them up and helps Michael fulfill his dream of flying a kite ("Let's Go Fly a Kite"). Mary Poppins flies in on the kite from the sky and reunites with the children. They update her on Miss Andrew and she takes them home, planning to "surprise" Andrew. Also hiding in the park is George, who is depressed over his supposed lack of achievements ("Good For Nothing"). Searching for him is Winifred, who at last understands her husband and the damage that was done to him by Miss Andrew ("Being Mrs Banks (Reprise)"). When the children return to Number 17, Mary sets Caruso, Miss Andrew's lark, free from his cage. This leads to a confrontation between the two nannies, ending with Miss Andrew having a taste of her own medicine as she is trapped in a large birdcage and vanishes down below ("Brimstone and Treacle Part 2"). Winifred and then George return at this point, surprised but pleased that Miss Andrew has "left". The group ascends to the rooftops, where Bert introduces the children to his friends the chimney sweeps ("Step in Time"). The sweeps' dance eventually enters the house, causing chaos. As the sweeps quickly exit, George receives a telegram from the bank requesting his presence there. George assumes that he has been fired and decides it's time to sell the family heirloom. However, the vase is shattered accidentally by Mrs. Brill, who goes into a despairing shock since she had been cleaning it from the top of the shelf. When she is being led away for comfort, George goes to clean the broken pile himself, to find it reveal a collection of gingerbread stars from his childhood. This leads to a brief moment of reflection for George ("A Man Has Dreams (Reprise) / A Spoonful Of Sugar (Reprise)"). After shaking hands with Bert, George leaves to meet the Chairman of the Bank. At the children's encouragement, Winifred decides to follow her heart and be at George's side at the bank ("Anything Can Happen (Part 1)"). Unseen to anyone else, Mary takes Jane and Michael into the sky to follow, where they watch the unfolding events. On his way to the bank, George encounters the bird woman and gives her tuppence to feed the birds ("Feed The Birds (Reprise)") At the bank ("Precision And Order (Reprise)"), George is surprised to learn the consequence of his choice: far from ruining the bank, he has made a fortune by both rejecting Von Hussler and approving Mr. Northbrook's loan. They ask for the word that made them so successful, which George admits to be Mary's word, ("Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious (Reprise)"). Winifred, arriving to defend her husband, finds instead he is the hero of the hour. After she mentions Miss Andrew's name to the Bank Manager, the old man, too, relates his experience under "the Holy Terror". Winifred convinces the manager to quadruple George's salary. George apologizes for underestimating her, and together they return to the house. Mary and Bert take the children across the skies and they see everyone they met along their journey ("Anything Can Happen (Part 2)"). Mary realises that with the family reunited and happy, her task is done. With regret, she says goodbye to Bert with a kiss on the cheek and sets off ("A Spoonful Of Sugar (A Task Is Done)"). Jane and Michael accept that Mary is leaving them and tell her that they'll never forget her. The two children watch as their parents waltz happily together and Mary flies high above the audience using her magical parrot headed umbrella.
Matador is the title of a 1991 musical by Mike Leander and Eddie Seago, with a book by Peter Jukes, which tells the story of the rise and fall of a fictional matador, loosely based on Manuel Benitez, El Cordobes.
May Wine is a musical with a book by Frank Mandel, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, and music by Sigmund Romberg. The show was adapted from the novel The Happy Alienist by Eric von Stroheim and Wallace Smith.
In a near-future Seoul, two obsolete helper robots form an unexpected relationship after meeting in their apartment building.
Mayor is a musical with a book by Warren Leight and music and lyrics by Charles Strouse. It is based on the memoir by former New York City Mayor Ed Koch and depicts a single day in the life of the city's mayor. The musical ran on Broadway in 1985 after an Off-Broadway run.
Maytime is a musical with music by Sigmund Romberg and lyrics and book by Rida Johnson Young, and with additional lyrics by Cyrus Wood. The story is based on the 1913 German operetta (Like Once in May), composed by Walter Kollo, with words by Rudolf Bernauer and Rudolph Schanzer. The story, set in New York, is told in episodes covering a long period, from 1840 to the early 20th century. Young Ottillie, the daughter of a prominent family is in love with Dick, a poor musician, but they are kept apart by family and circumstance. Years later, their descendants marry. Maytime introduced songs such as "The Road to Paradise", "Will You Remember?" and "Jump Jim Crow". The musical ran on Broadway from 1917 to 1918. It was the second longest-running book musical in the 1910s, and it established Romberg as one of the leading creators of operettas.
Me and Bessie is a musical revue about the life and career of blues singer Bessie Smith. The basically one-woman show, conceived and written by Will Holt and Linda Hopkins and performed by Hopkins, features songs by Lil Green, Clarence Williams, Henry Creamer, Andy Razaf, and Jimmy Cox, among others.
For theatrical terminology, see Stage (theatre). The entire action of the show takes place in and close to a Broadway theatre in which the long-running musical Me and Juliet (the "show-within-the-show") is playing. The setting is the early 1950s. A half-hour remains before the show is to begin. Electrician Sidney and chorus girl Jeanie are irritated at Sidney's fellow electrician, Bob, for not being there. Sidney needs Bob's help; Jeanie, Bob's girlfriend, is annoyed at being stood up. Sidney warns Jeanie that Bob may not be the right man for her; these are doubts she has too (Musical numbers: "A Very Special Day"/"That's the Way it Happens"). Jeanie leaves, and Bob appears. Bob tells Sidney he likes dating Jeanie, but does not plan to marry her. When Sidney jokes that Jeanie can do better than Bob, the larger man momentarily chokes him. Jeanie sees this, adding to her doubts about Bob. Larry, the assistant stage manager, is also attracted to Jeanie (reprise of "That's the Way it Happens"). Stage manager Mac sees to the final preparations, and the overture to the internal show is played by the orchestra, led by Dario, the conductor ("Overture to Me and Juliet"). The internal show's curtain rises ("Marriage Type Love"): the main male character, "Me" (performed by Charlie, a singer), tells the audience about the girl he wants to marry, Juliet (Lily, a singer). He also tells the audience of the girl he is determined not to marry, Carmen, who scares him. "Me" feels Carmen (the lead female dancing role) is better suited to his boss, Don Juan (the lead male dancer). As the internal show continues, Bob and Sidney are on the light bridge. Bob identifies with Don Juan for his reluctance to marry ("Keep It Gay"). Another day at Me and Juliet, and the dancers are rehearsing under Mac's supervision (conclusion of "Keep It Gay"). At Larry's urging, Jeanie decides to audition for the position of second understudy for the role of Juliet. On learning this, Mac takes Larry aside and warns him never to get involved with a cast member of a show while in charge of it. No sooner has Mac said this than his girlfriend Betty (currently in the show across the street) auditions for the role of Carmen. The producer gives her the role. As Larry looks on with amusement, Mac accepts this professionally, then stamps off in disgust. Jeanie practices for her own audition ("No Other Love"), and Larry tells her that the audience will accept her if she's "a real kid" like Juliet, but reject her if she's a "phony" ("The Big Black Giant"). Larry desires a romance with Jeannie, but fears the larger and stronger Bob. Several months pass, during which Jeanie gets the job as second understudy. Larry and Jeanie are meeting secretly and keeping their budding romance from Bob. The rest of the cast is aware of their dates—one dancer spotted them in a chili restaurant on Eighth Avenue. Mac, true to his principles, has dumped Betty, but the two are still attracted to each other. Betty enjoys acting ("It's Me"). As she performs in the internal show, Bob and Sidney are on the light bridge again. Bob has been fooled by Jeanie's lies about why they are not going out, and is enlightened when Sidney lets slip that Larry and Jeanie are seeing each other. Bob demands proof, and Sidney tells Bob to watch what happens in the wings during the upcoming Act 1 finale to Me and Juliet. Bob sees Larry and Jeanie kiss after she comes offstage with a tray of flowers, an action caught by Bob's spotlight. Mac enters, grasps the situation, sends Larry away, then puts the tray back in Jeanie's hands and pushes her onstage. She is pursued by Bob's spotlight, which relentlessly follows her around the stage as more and more of the dancers become aware something has gone badly wrong. Bob drops a sandbag from the light bridge; it knocks the tray Jeanie is holding to the ground. Mac orders the curtain lowered in front of a stage in panic. In the downstairs lounge, a few minutes before the Act 2 curtain for Me and Juliet rises, the ushers comment on the remarkable conclusion to Act 1—although the audience has noticed nothing unusual ("Intermission Talk"). As Act 2 of the internal show starts, an enraged Bob is searching the theatre for Jeannie and Larry. Unable to find them, he takes up position at a bar across the street where he can watch the theatre doors ("It Feels Good"). The perspective shifts to the onstage action in Me and Juliet, where Don Juan and Carmen are on a date ("We Deserve Each Other"), before moving to the manager's office where Larry and Jeanie are hiding out ("I'm Your Girl"). Mac has only just begun his lecture to them when Bob enters through the window, having heard familiar voices. In the ensuing fight, Bob knocks out Mac, but when the electrician grabs for Jeannie, Larry strongly defends her. The fight ends when Bob accidentally hits his head on a radiator and is knocked out as well. Ruby, the company manager, sends Larry and Jeannie down to the stage to continue the play. After Bob and Mac recover, Ruby informs Bob that Larry and Jeanie had secretly married earlier that day, and the surprised electrician leaves. Mac, fearful of more mayhem, goes in search of him. As Mac exits, the phone rings, and Ruby takes the call. It is the producer, calling for Mac to transfer him to another show, thereby setting him free to resume his romance with Betty. Onstage, Me and Juliet is concluding. After the internal show finishes ("Finale to Me and Juliet"), Larry, who will be the new stage manager, insists on rehearsing a scene from the show. Seeing Bob enter with a scowl, Larry orders him and Sidney to be present the next morning to re-angle the lights. Taken aback, and rather sheepishly, Bob says "I didn't know you were married" before quietly leaving, after stating, "I'll be here, I guess." Jeanie is congratulated by her showmates, but Larry, all business, waves them to their places to rehearse the scene. As Lily has had to leave, Jeanie stands in for her as Juliet, while Larry sings the part of Me in the scene, as the curtain falls ("Finale of Our Play").
Setting: London, in and around Hareford Hall, Hampshire; Mayfair and Lambeth in the later 1930s. Act I The Harefords, a family of haughty aristocrats, are seeking the legitimate heir to the title of Earl of Hareford. Bill Snibson, a Cockney from Lambeth, is found and named as that heir. The 13th Earl had secretly and briefly wed a girl from a bad neighbourhood, and Bill is the couple's son. His rough behaviour does not satisfy the very proper executors of the 13th Earl's estate (Maria, Duchess of Dene, and Sir John Tremayne). Under the terms of the Earl's will, he must learn gentlemanly manners to their satisfaction to inherit the title and estate. The Duchess thinks that she can make Bill "fit and proper", but not his Cockney girlfriend, Sally Smith. The Duchess plans a party in Bill's honour, but Sally is not to be invited. Sir John tells Sally that she and Bill ought to return to Lambeth, but he is moved by Sally's heartfelt declaration of love for Bill ("Once You Lose Your Heart"). At the party, Bill puts on airs and tries to please his new-found upper-class lawyers, family and servants, but his everyman roots quickly begin to show. Sally shows up in inappropriate garb, with her Lambeth friends, saying that she is going back to where she belongs. Bill seconds this at first, but then teaches the nobility "The Lambeth Walk". Act II Bill must make a speech in the House of Lords in coronet and "vermin"-trimmed peer's robes. Sally leaves, telling him to marry someone with good blood, and, in a scene inspired by Gilbert and Sullivan's Ruddigore, the portraits of Bill's ancestors awaken to remind him of his noblesse oblige. Bill and Sally have gained an ally in Sir John, who offers to help them by engaging a speech professor (implied to be Henry Higgins from Pygmalion) to help Sally impress the Duchess. Bill constantly bemoans his separation from Sally. Preparing another party for Bill, the Duchess realises how much Sally means to him. This puts her in a romantic mood, and she accepts an offer of marriage from Sir John. Bill, dressed in his old outrageous Cockney clothes, declares that he is going home and goes upstairs to pack. Just then, Sally astonishes everyone by arriving in an elegant gown and tiara and speaking with a perfect upper-crust accent. When Bill returns downstairs, Sally conceals her identity; once she reveals it, Bill is relieved and the couple gain the acceptance of the family.
Janis Sarkisian and Damian Hubbard introduce the audience to Cady Heron, breaking the fourth wall and inviting them on their journey ("A Cautionary Tale"). Cady and her parents have moved to a Chicago suburb from Kenya, but Cady soon realizes that her high school classmates do not readily accept others who differ from them. Despite this, she is ready to accept the challenge of fitting in at the high school ("It Roars"), only for Cady to find that no one seems to like her or even acknowledge her ("It Roars" (reprise)). Janis and Damian decide to help her as she tries to find her social group ("Where Do You Belong?"); describing the clique of high school social royalty dubbed "the Plastics" in particular. The trio consists of Regina George, the "Queen Bee"; Gretchen Wieners, Regina's nervous, eager-to-please second-in-command; and Karen Smith, the stereotypical dumb blonde. Regina and her fellow Plastics decide that the new girl will eat lunch with them for the rest of the week ("Meet the Plastics"). When Cady tells Damian and Janis about the invitation, the latter asks her to say yes to the Plastics and tell them everything they say. Damian tries to explain why they hate Regina, but Janis interrupts him. In AP Calculus, Cady meets the dreamy Aaron Samuels and immediately falls for him ("Stupid with Love"). Kevin, head of the Mathletes, is impressed with Cady's performance in class and asks her to join them, but Gretchen warns Cady that joining the Mathletes is social suicide and Regina puts down Kevin to make him leave. Cady thinks Regina is nice for "protecting" her, but Janis warns her that Regina is dangerous. Amazed and intoxicated by her newfound power, however, Cady does not pay attention to Janis’s words ("Apex Predator"). At the mall, Gretchen asks Cady if she has met any boys she likes. When Cady tells her about Aaron, Gretchen becomes horrified because he is Regina's ex-boyfriend, which makes him off-limits to her friends. The Plastics and Cady retire to Regina's house, where they meet her "cool mom" and Gretchen and Karen show Cady their old Burn Book, where they put photos of their classmates and write mean comments about them. When they come across Janis' photo in the book, Gretchen explains that Janis and Regina used to be best friends. Regina claims Janis freaked out when she was not invited to Regina's thirteenth birthday party and ended up in art therapy. Later, Gretchen confides in Cady that, because of the state of her friendship with Regina, she has lost all confidence in herself ("What's Wrong With Me?"). The next day, Aaron tells Cady that his previous relationship with Regina made him feel like he was not himself; he has sworn off of dating. Cady feigns ignorance to get closer to Aaron, and get his help with math ("Stupid with Love" (reprise)). Aaron invites Cady to his Halloween party. Meanwhile, Karen explains that Halloween in high school is all about looking sexy ("Sexy"). Cady fails to realize this and arrives at the party in a "scary" costume, embarrassing herself. At the party, Gretchen tells Regina about Cady's crush on Aaron. Regina decides to flirt with and manipulate Aaron to spite Cady ("Someone Gets Hurt"). Cady sees Aaron kissing Regina and is devastated. Furious, Cady shows up at Damian's house and tells him and Janis what happened. Damian tells Cady that the real reason Regina and Janis stopped being friends was that in 6th grade, Regina accused Janis of being a lesbian. When the latter was unable to deny it, her classmates bullied her until she left school. The three friends decide to work together to get revenge on Regina, starting with giving her Kälteen Bars to make her gain weight. They also trick Gretchen by sending a fake Candy Cane Gram to Cady from "Regina" saying that they are now best friends. This leads Gretchen to reveal Regina's secret hook-ups with football player Shane Oman, among other vengeful acts ("Revenge Party"). After the Plastics' disastrous "Rockin' Around the Pole" dance at the school talent show, people start noticing Regina's weight gain. Later, when she breaks one of the Plastics' arbitrary clothing rules, Cady stands up to her, banning her from sitting at their table. Everyone is relieved to be freed from Regina's rule ("Fearless"). Cady tries to apologize to Regina for kicking her out, but she insinuates that her reign is far from over ("Someone Gets Hurt" (reprise 1)). Following the winter break, Cady has undergone a complete makeover befitting her new "Queen Bee" status leading Karen and Gretchen ("A Cautionary Tale" (reprise)), though Damian and Janis disapprove of this. After Cady tells Janis that she cannot attend her art show because of a trip with her parents, Damian and the other girls of North Shore High School try to hamper Cady's ever-growing social obsessions and make her stop acting dumb for Aaron by telling her about their own negative past experiences with obsessive behavior ("Stop"). Gretchen and Karen convince Cady to lie to her parents and throw a "small" party while they are gone that weekend. Gretchen starts to notice similarities between her friendship with Regina and Cady while Mrs. George wonders why her daughter refuses to confide in her; reminiscing about the old days when Regina was a child. Concurrently, Gretchen contemplates being friends with Cady ("What's Wrong With Me?" (reprise)). Following Gretchen and Karen's advice, Cady throws a party in an attempt to get Aaron to come over. However, she becomes intoxicated and crazier ("Whose House is This?"). When Aaron shows up, they sneak off to her bedroom, where Cady tells him the "funny" story about how she pretended that she was dumb to make him like her. Aaron becomes upset and says he liked the smart and kind Cady, not her new Plastic self ("More is Better"). He leaves, but she chases after him and runs into Janis and Damian outside, who have come to confront her after the art show. They tell Cady that she betrayed their trust, lied to them, and has gone full Plastic. Cady accuses Janis of being in love with her, just as Regina did years ago. Janis and Damian are disgusted by Cady's behavior, with the former throwing a picture she submitted to her art show at Cady; revealing that the winning painting was of the three of them ("Someone Gets Hurt" (reprise 2)). When Regina discovers that she was not invited to Cady's party and that the Kälteen Bars were the cause of her weight gain, she decides to get revenge by releasing the Burn Book after adding "Regina is a Fugly Cow" to it in order to take the blame off of herself. She throws copies of the Burn Book pages all over the school, revealing the insults about everyone they know, except Karen, Gretchen, and Cady ("World Burn"). All of the junior class girls begin fighting over the insults. Janis and Damian see an insult in the book that only Cady could have written about him. At a required assembly about the Burn Book, Ms. Norbury tries to bring the girls together. Janis explains her philosophy to the school, referencing her failed friendships with both Cady and Regina; empowering the girls to stand up for themselves ("I'd Rather Be Me"). When Regina storms out in anger and disbelief, Cady tries to apologize, but Regina gets distracted and hit by a passing school bus. The accident prompts Cady to reevaluate herself and realize what a monster she has become. After learning Ms. Norbury was about to be fired due to the things she wrote, Cady takes full blame for the Burn Book, despite not having written the entire thing herself. She is suspended for three weeks and banned from the Spring Fling ("Fearless" (reprise)). When Cady returns to school, Ms. Norbury offers her a way to earn extra credit and save her grade: joining the Mathletes at the state championships. The team wins, and Cady feels redeemed ("Do This Thing"). She then sneaks into the Spring Fling with Aaron's help after kissing him. There, she runs into Regina, and they have a heart-to-heart before making up. Cady is elected Spring Fling Queen, but after noticing how fragile and cheap the plastic crown is, she breaks it into several pieces and gives them to each girl in attendance – telling them they are all "real, and rare." She apologizes to Janis and Damian, and they move forward as friends once more. Cady, Damian, Janis, Gretchen, Karen, Aaron, and Regina join together, finally accepting each other ("I See Stars").
The musical opens in the summer of 1903. The family is going about their daily businesses – Tootie is playing with her dolls, Agnes is practicing her stilt walking, Esther is playing tennis, Rose is relaxing, Lon received his Princeton catalog in the mail, Mrs. Smith and Katie, their maid, went shopping, Grandpa is playing with Agnes, and Mr. Smith was at work ("Opening" / "Meet Me in St. Louis"). Upon request from Esther, Katie asks Mrs. Smith if they could have dinner an hour earlier because her sister is having trouble with her husband. We soon learn that the real reason is that Warren Sheffield, a Yale scholar and heir to a grand fortune, is calling Rose long-distance at 6:30, when they usually eat dinner. Esther was trying to get dinner to be an hour earlier so the family would be out of the room when he called. Soon Rose enters and tells Esther that John Truitt, their neighbor and the boy that Esther has a crush on, is outside with his friend. They pretend to want to go to the pool, and try to attract the boys' attention. However, Agnes enters looking for her cat, and John leaves, causing Esther to lament about how John Truitt never notices her ("The Boy Next Door"). A little later that day, Mr. Smith comes home in a bad mood, because he lost his case. He refuses to eat an hour earlier and storms offstage to go take his cool bath. Meanwhile, Tootie and Agnes begin to fight over a doll, causing the older siblings to have to break them up and remind them that they're all friends (Whenever I'm With You). Everyone exits except for Esther and Mrs. Smith. Esther asks if she is too young to fall in love, and her mother is shocked by the question. She proceeds to tell of how she fell in love with Mr. Smith ("You'll Hear a Bell"). Dinner is approaching, and by now everyone in the family knows about Warren's telephone call except for Mr. Smith. When he joins the family at the dinner table, everyone gulps down their food so they can leave before Warren calls. Unfortunately, they are not fast enough, and the telephone rings. Mr. Smith answers, but is confused when the operators tell him that someone is calling from New York. He hangs up, and Esther accidentally tells him everything out of anger. He soon figures out that he was the only one who didn't know about the call, and tries to put his foot down, but when the phone rings again he tells Rose to answer it. Her phone call turns out to be less than successful, because he was only calling to ask how she was, and he said if his parents knew he was calling, they would kill him. Katie tries to lighten the mood ("Meet Me in St. Louis" (Reprise)). A few months later, we are at Lon's going-away party, right before he leaves for Princeton. Warren tries to apologize to Rose, but she refuses to accept ("Raving Beauty"). At the party, Esther is formally introduced to John Truitt, pretending not to know who he is. She takes his hat and hides it in the piano. The guests then participate in a square dance called by Lon and Warren ("Skip to My Lou"). Agnes and Tootie have crept to the landing to see what was going on, and after being caught, perform a dance they do with Esther ("Under the Bamboo Tree"). Afterwards the guests leave, but Esther asks John if he would like to come with them to the Fairgrounds on Friday. He agrees, and then she asks him if he will help her turn off the lights, because she's afraid of the dark ("Over the Bannister"). He leaves, leaving Esther slightly disappointed. On Friday, they get on the trolley to the fairgrounds, where John Truitt just barely makes it on ("The Trolley Song"). Act II opens on Halloween, where Tootie and Agnes are getting ready to go trick or treating. After they leave, Katie asks the older sisters why they won't go out to the Halloween Social. They both respond that men are too bothersome and they'd rather not. Katie gives them some advice ("Touch of the Irish"). Immediately following the number, a scream is heard offstage. Tootie comes in with a bloody lip, saying John Truitt hit her. When he comes by to ask if she's alright, Esther beats him up for hurting her little sister. Agnes enters soon after, telling what happened. They stuffed one of Katie's dresses so it looked like a body, then put it on the trolley tracks so when the motorman had to put on the brakes, the trolley would come off the tracks. Tootie then reveals that it was not John who hurt her, but she fell. Esther is ashamed and goes to apologize to John. He forgives her ("The Boy Next Door" (Reprise)). Mr. Smith comes home and breaks the news to the family that they are moving to New York. He thought the family would be happy, but they all are shocked and upset. He tries to convince them that it will be fun, but it doesn't work ("A Day in New York"). They all exit, leaving Mr. and Mrs. Smith alone. Mrs. Smith tries to comfort him, reminding him that as long as they are together, they can be happy ("You'll Hear a Bell" (Reprise) / "Wasn't It Fun"). Now it is winter and their last Christmas in St. Louis is fast approaching. Both Rose and Warren are left without dates. Rose didn't respond to Warren's proposal to the dance, so he decided to go with Lucille Ballard who is Lon's girlfriend. Esther and Katie persuade them to go with each other, and Rose and Esther make a plan to fill out Lucille's dance card with the worst people imaginable. Unfortunately, John Truitt comes by and tells Esther that he can't take her to the dance because his tuxedo is locked up in the tailor's. Grandpa comes to the rescue, inviting Esther to the dance with him. At the ball, Lucille suggests that Warren and Rose and she and Lon be partners for the evening. Esther doesn't realize that, and ends up taking Lucille's dances. Lon leads everyone in a dance he learned at college ("The Banjo"). John comes, in his tuxedo, after calling every Jones in St. Louis until he found who ran the shop. After the dance, John proposes to Esther, but she feels bad about it because he would have to give up going to college to be with her in New York ("You Are for Loving"). Esther enters the house to find Tootie sitting on the couch. She's upset about leaving St. Louis, and has been waiting for Santa to come so she can tell him that they're moving. Esther tries to convince Tootie that New York will be fun ("Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas"). Mr. Smith sees how upset Tootie is and decides that they can't move to New York. After hearing the good news, the family goes to the fair and everything works out well ("Trolley Song" (Reprise) / "Meet Me in St. Louis" (Reprise II) / "Finale").
In a courtroom, Dolly and Roger Fleuriot seek to dissolve their marriage. Roger recounts how wealthy Princess Dolly loved her shy librarian but invented a sister working in a Nancy shoe shop. Disguised as the sister, Dolly meets Roger there; he falls for her, while her fiancé Count Lacy falls for saleswoman Irma. Dolly and Roger marry, but after Roger discovers the disguise he retreats into shyness. The judge rejects their divorce request and urges Roger to try again with Dolly; they leave hand in hand.
Memphis is a musical with music by David Bryan, lyrics by Bryan and Joe DiPietro, and a book by DiPietro. The show is loosely based on the story of Memphis disc jockey Dewey Phillips, one of the first white DJs to play black music in the 1950s.
An all-African-American touring company is traveling to Memphis on a showboat, the Calliboga Queen. When the boat is run aground in Tennessee, the company mounts a production of Gilbert and Sullivan's H.M.S. Pinafore to raise funds to get it unstuck. Much of the musical consists of a play within a play, as the company presents a musically updated version of the Gilbert and Sullivan opera; the boat pilot (played by Bill Robinson in the original production) takes a major role as Sir Joseph Porter, First Lord of the Admiralty. Another actor (Avon Long in the original) sings and dances the role of Captain Corcoran, while the part of Josephine goes to an Andrews Sisters-style trio of women from the company chorus (Sheila Guyse, Ida James, and Thelma Carpenter)—each had been promised the role, so they join forces and play it simultaneously. The police arrest the company for performing without a license, and the case is taken to court in a scene involving excerpts from another Gilbert and Sullivan work, Trial by Jury.
Merlin is a musical based on a concept by popular illusionist Doug Henning and Barbara De Angelis, written by Richard Levinson and William Link, with music (and incidental music) written by Elmer Bernstein and lyrics by Don Black.
This is a synopsis of the current, revised version of the show since the 1994 York Theatre production, not the original one performed on Broadway in 1981. The plot revolves around Frank Shepard, a famous songwriter and eventual film producer ("Overture/Merrily We Roll Along"). Moving backwards across 20 years, the show details Frank's rise from a penniless dreamy-eyed composer to a wealthy film-producing sell-out, and what he lost to get there. In 1976, the charismatic Frank Shepard hosts an opening-night party of Hollywood insiders, along with his mistress and star of his new film, Meg, who all lavishly praise him ("That Frank"). Frank initially seems jovial but tenses when a partygoer mentions Charley Kringas, Frank's former best friend and musical collaborator. His oldest remaining friend, theatre critic Mary Flynn, attends the party too but is disgusted by the other guests' shallowness and Frank's abandonment of music: his true talent. Becoming more and more jaded, Mary finally gives a drunken toast, castigating Frank and his guests, before storming out. Frank's wife Gussie arrives, angry that Meg landed the film role over her, and reveals she knows he is cheating on her with Meg. He admits that he has pursued financial success at the expense of his values and loved ones. Gussie viciously splashes iodine in Meg's face and declares her and Frank's marriage over. The years roll back to 1973 ("First Transition"), when Frank and Charley are about to be interviewed in a New York television studio. Mary greets the bitter Charley backstage, who says Frank rarely makes time to collaborate anymore. Mary tries to soothe him by explaining she set up this interview to force Frank to publicly commit to the show the two men have been planning for years. She is nostalgic ("Old Friends – Like It Was"), and Charley is shocked that, even after 16 years, Mary clearly remains in love with Frank. Frank belatedly arrives with his new wife Gussie, who is trying to avoid lending money to her ex-husband: washed-up Broadway producer Joe. Frank is nervous to tell Charley that he has signed a three-picture deal, but the interviewer lets the news slip right before they go live on air, during which Charley launches into a sardonic rant on Frank's shift from music towards money, before urging the audience to keep Frank committed to his piano ("Franklin Shepard, Inc."). Once the interview ends, a disgusted Frank declares Charley has betrayed him, and ends their friendship despite Charley’s apology and Mary's protests. In 1968, Mary and Charley surprise Frank in his new apartment on Central Park West ("Second Transition") with Frank's young son, Frankie, whom he has not seen since his contentious divorce from his first wife. Frank wants to option a film version of his and Charley's stage show Musical Husbands to pay for the divorce, but, when Charley passionately objects, Mary calms her friends' tensions ("Old Friends"). Frank's producer Joe and Joe's wife Gussie arrive with champagne which Mary, a teetotaler at this time, refuses. Everyone is aware that Frank and Gussie are having an affair except Mary who, appalled to now realize this, gulps down the champagne. After everyone leaves, Frank plays an old song on his piano and attempts to make sense of his choices. On the verge of composing a new piece, he is interrupted when Gussie returns, announcing that she intends to leave Joe and commit to Frank ("Growing Up"). In 1967 ("Third Transition"), Frank and his first wife Beth are fighting over custody of their son Frankie in a courthouse. Reporters flock around, eager to catch gossip since Gussie has been subpoenaed. Frank confronts Beth, who still loves him but cannot live with him knowing he was unfaithful to her with Gussie ("Not a Day Goes By"). Beth drags their son away, heading to Texas to live with her father. Frank collapses in despair but is consoled by Mary, Charley, and his other remaining friends who try to convince him that this is the "best thing that ever could have happened" ("Now You Know"). In 1964, Gussie is performing a song on the opening night of Musical Husbands: Frank and Charley's first Broadway show ("Gussie's Opening Number"). The curtain comes down on the show and, as the audience applauds, Charley and Frank, backstage with Joe, Mary, and Beth, are ecstatic to learn the show is a hit ("It's a Hit!"). Charley's wife is in labor, and before he and Beth rush to the hospital, Mary begs Beth to stay behind so that Frank will not be left alone with Gussie. Beth says she trusts her husband and departs. In 1962 ("Fourth Transition"), Frank, Beth, Charley, and Mary have been invited to a party at Gussie and Joe's elegant Sutton Place apartment, where they stand starstruck by the influential crowd ("The Blob"). Deliberately spilling wine on Beth's dress, Gussie pulls Frank away from the partygoers, confiding her unhappiness to him, and convinces him to write the commercial show Joe is producing, Musical Husbands, rather than the political satire he and Charley are trying to get produced ("Growing Up" (Reprise)). Returning to her guests, she invites the songwriters to perform their latest song, "Good Thing Going". The guests love it and Gussie implores them to do an encore, but the guests quickly lose interest and resume their noisy cocktail chatter ("The Blob" (Reprise)). Charley storms out as Mary looks on worriedly. In 1960 ("Fifth Transition"). Charley, Frank, and Beth are performing at a small nightclub in Greenwich Village, with Mary lending a hand. Trying to appear bright and sophisticated, they perform a song celebrating America's new First Family ("Bobby and Jackie and Jack"). Joe is in the tiny audience and is quite impressed, as is his new fiancée and former secretary Gussie. After the show, Frank explains to them that he and Beth are marrying. It becomes clear that the wedding is due to her pregnancy, but Frank professes his happiness anyway. With Mary, Charley, and Beth's disapproving parents looking on, the happy couple exchanges vows as a lovelorn Mary tries to swallow her feelings for Frank ("Not a Day Goes By" (Reprise)). In 1958 to 1959 ("Sixth Transition"), Frank, Charley, and Mary are busy in New York, working their way up the career ladder, taking any job they can and working feverishly on their songs, plays, and novels. Frank and Charley audition for Joe, but he wants more "hummable" tunes, and instructs them to leave their name with his secretary, Gussie. So they decide to do their own show and, in an ensuing montage, audition and hire Beth, forming a cabaret show together ("Opening Doors"). In 1957 ("Seventh Transition"), early one morning, college-attending Frank and Charley are on the roof of an apartment building on New York City's 110th Street, waiting to spot the first-ever Earth-orbiting satellite, Sputnik. Frank tells Charley how much he likes Charley's plays and proposes that they turn one, a political satire, into a musical. Mary, their neighbor, arrives to view the satellite, and meets the boys for the first time. She has heard Frank's piano from her apartment, and tells him how much she admires his music. He speaks of how much composing means to him. Suddenly, Sputnik appears in the sky, and now, for the young friends, anything is possible ("Our Time"). The original 1981 version had much the same plot as the revised version, with a few notable differences. The original version begins and ends with an actor playing an older Frank giving a cynical speech to a group of high school graduates, who play the characters in the rest of the show. At the end, he joins with his younger self in a symbol of hope. "That Frank" replaced a song called "Rich and Happy", which had a more childish view of Hollywood parties. Both instances of "Growing Up" were also not present, and the "Old Friends" scene ended with Mary drinking. "Not a Day Goes By" was originally sung by Frank; "Now You Know" and "It's a Hit" had different lyrics, and the ensemble was composed of a different set of characters. In the scene with "It's a Hit", Beth is the one who is pregnant instead of Charley's wife. There was also an additional scene, between "Rich and Happy" and "Franklin Shepard, Inc.", in which Mary attempts to bring Charley and Frank together at a restaurant to reconcile. This scene, and the song "Like it Was", were folded into the following scene in the revised version. Aside from these changes, the two versions are mostly the same.
The storyline focuses on a group of youngsters who decided to live in the subway tunnels for various reasons. Everyone of them brings his own history and dreams. Teenagers take part in a casting to a theatre, but they do not succeed and because of that decide to organize their own musical on the subway station. After success of underground show, they get a job offer from the theater which previously rejected them. A dilemma whether to go for money or for dreams appears. Synopsis of scenes and musical compositions from Broadway edition. Act 1 Scene 1. A theatre somewhere in Europe: Philip, Jan and The Company. “Overture” – orchestra. Scene 2. A Metro somewhere in Europe. “Metro” (Metro) – Jan and The Company. Scene 3. The Theatre: Klaus, Denisa, Alicja, Duda, Wojtek, Jaga, Basia, Monika, Magda, Max, Philip, Anka and The Company. “My Fairy Tale” (Chcę być kopciuszkiem) – singers: Basia, Alicja, Denisa; dancers: Iwona, Lidia, Violetta. Scene 4. The Metro: Jan, Anka. “But Not Me” (A ja nie) – Jan and The Company. Scene 5. The Theatre: Max, Philip, Anka and The Company. “Windows” (Szyba) – Anka; dancer: Iwona. Scene 6. The Metro: Jan, Anka. Scene 7. Audition results: Edyta, Piotr, Alicja, Denisa, Monika, Duda, Jaga, Magda, Anka. “That's Life” (Życie) – Edyta, Anka, Polina. “Bluezwis” (Bluzwis) – Jan, Wojtek and The Company. “Love Duet” (Na strunach szyn) – Anka and Jan. Scene 8. “Tower of Babel” (Wieża Babel) – company. Act 2 Scene 1. “Labels” (Hasła) – The Company. Scene 2. Philip's Office: Philip, Max. Scene 3. Abandoned subway station: Anka, Jan, Edyta, Duda, Jaga, Klaus, Alicja, Basia, Wojtek, Duda. “Uciekali” – Jan and The Company. Scene 4. The Metro: Jan, Anka, Philip. Scene 5. The Metro. “Waiting” (Wszystko jedno czy słońce, czy deszcz) – Edyta, Anka and Dancers. Scene 6. The Metro: Anka, Jan, Max, Philip. Scene 7. “Pieniedze” (Pieniądze) – The Company. Scene 8. The Metro: Edyta, Denisa, Jan, Wojtek, Duda, Basia, Magda, Piotr, Alicja, Grzegorz, Monika, Jaga “Love Duet II” (Na strunach szyn II) – Anka and Jan. Scene 9. The Metro. “Dreams Don't Die” (Tylko w moich snach) – Anka.
Metropolis is a musical based on the 1927 silent movie of the same name that was staged at the Piccadilly Theatre in London in 1989. The music was written by Joe Brooks, the lyrics by Dusty Hughes. The show was directed by Jérôme Savary.
Mexican Hayride is a musical with a book by Herbert Fields and Dorothy Fields and music and lyrics by Cole Porter. The show opened on Broadway in 1944.
An English burletta, or mock opera, first performed privately near Lurgan in 1760 and later revised and expanded.
In America's South during the nineteenth century, the audience is introduced to the story of Rail, a young Black man, who was sold as a slave as a young boy. Rail falls in love with bubbly Lily Rose, a young Black woman. Rail's owner, young Scarlet, falls in love with Richard, a wealthy neighbour, at a ball she and her family organise. Richard chooses Rail to work alongside him and a group of Black and white workers on his future house, and a bond starts between the two men. The friendship grows into mutual respect, and ultimately into a forbidden and dangerous love that challenges everyone's stories. When Rail is brutally attacked, all characters are forced to confront their differences and what divides them, while the show invites the audiences to look at the story through other people's eyes. The final message is that we cannot choose the roles we are given in life, but we can choose how we play them.
The calm of a morning street scene in modern Jerusalem is shattered when a police officer orders a Yemenite boy to remove his flock of sheep to a side street. Phil Arkin, an American visiting his married daughter, defends the boy, and in the ensuing fracas he meets Ruth Stein, a tourist travelling with a group of widows from the United States. She is impressed with Phil's command of Hebrew as he explains the meaning of the word "Shalom". They keep running into each other and together they celebrate Israel's Independence Day ("Independence Day Hora"). Their friendship begins to deepen and Phil's conscience starts troubling him. Although he has been separated from his wife for many years, he does not think it right to continue seeing Ruth since he is still married. Phil's daughter, Barbara, however, likes Ruth and invites her to go with them to her farm in the Negev. After some hesitation, Ruth accepts. On the farm - called a Moshav - Phil tries to talk Barbara and her husband David into going back to Baltimore with him. But the young man vows his devotion to his country and is joined in its praise by his neighbors, including his cynical friend Adi, who claims he would rather live in the city ("Milk and Honey"). Phil, who is falling in love with Ruth, asks her to stay at Barbara's a little longer. In fact, he is even thinking of building a house of his own there that he would like her to share ("There's No Reason in the World"). Meanwhile, the group of touring widows comes to visit. When they eye the virile young farmers, the ladies, led by Clara Weiss, reveal their hopes of finding suitable husbands. Though their dreams are quickly dashed when all the men turn out to be married, Clara is still optimistic ("Chin Up, Ladies"). Later, Phil tells Ruth that he has bought a lot on which to build a home, and she gives him her approval ("That Was Yesterday"). But Barbara is shocked at the news, and urges her father to tell Ruth that he is married. Reluctantly he does, but he also tells her why she must remain ("Let's Not Waste a Moment"). At a wedding ceremony that they attend, Phil and Ruth, envious of the younger people, express their deep love for each other and, forgetting the consequences for the moment, go off together ("The Wedding"). Phil energetically feels the spirit of the new land and goes out to work the fields with the other farmers ("Like A Young Man"). Barbara, however, brings news that Ruth, realizing the consequences of living with a married man, has run off to Tel Aviv, and Phil goes off to bring her back. When they are alone, David, convinced that Barbara really longs to go back to the United States, asserts that he would go anywhere to be with her ("I Will Follow You"). In Tel Aviv, Phil finds Clara at the Cafe Hotok, but she refuses to tell him where Ruth is. When he leaves, Clara accidentally meets Sol Horowitz, a widower from Jerusalem, and they promptly show mutual interest. Alone, she seeks her late husband's permission to remarry if Sol proposes ("Hymn to Hymie"). Back at the moshav, Phil, after much inner conflict, realizes that it would be wrong to live with Ruth. Although she comes back to him, he tells her that she must leave ("As Simple as That"). At Lydda Airport, the touring widows are preparing to board the plane home. Phil and Ruth have their final, brief moment together during which he promises to fly to Paris, where his wife lives, and plead for a divorce. Ruth boards the plane with the hope that somehow Phil will succeed and she will be able to come back to him ("Finale").
On December 4, 1956, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and Elvis Presley assemble at the Sun Record recording studio in Memphis, Tennessee. Established performer Carl Perkins was there to record songs with a new performer, Jerry Lee Lewis. Elvis Presley stops by the studio along with his girlfriend, a singer named Dyanne (at the real session, Elvis’ girlfriend was a dancer, Marilyn Evans—now Riehl). Johnny Cash has stopped by to talk to recording impresario Sam Phillips. They soon have a jam session together. Phillips attempts to re-sign Johnny Cash to a new contract, unaware he has already signed with Columbia Records. Typically, as a member from the Quartet enters for the first time, he sings a verse of one of his most famous songs, followed by an onstage freeze of all actors. During this time Sam Phillips relates to the audience how he first discovered the boy, and a brief, few line scene of that moment occurs between Philips and the musician, followed by Sam Phillips asking the boy to play something for him, which is the next verse of the song, and everyone unfreezes. The show is performed without an intermission. At the end of the show, the traditional announcement is made that "Elvis has left the building".
Minnie's Boys is a musical with a book by Arthur Marx (Groucho Marx's son) and Robert Fisher, music by Larry Grossman, and lyrics by Hal Hackady. It provides a behind-the-scenes look at the early days of the Marx Brothers and their relationship with their mother Minnie Marx, the driving force behind their ultimate success.
Setting: A Villa on the Thames at Henley and the Garden of a Hotel in Paris Wealthy Dorothy Gay, an American girl, is pursued while in Europe, by a number of penniless aristocrats, but she does not wish to marry simply for a title. A secretary, Finney Doolittle, is mistaken for his wealthy English Lord. Dorothy's father, Samuel, urges her to marry the phony Lord Burlingham, but she prefers a man whom she takes to be poor, but who is actually the English nobleman, and all ends happily.
Miss Hook of Holland is an English musical comedy (styled a "Dutch Musical Incident") in two acts, with music and lyrics by Paul Rubens with a book by Austen Hurgon and Rubens.
Miss Liberty is a 1949 Broadway musical with a book by Robert E. Sherwood and music and lyrics by Irving Berlin. It is based on the sculpting of New York City's Statue of Liberty (Liberty Enlightening the World) in 1886. The score includes the song "Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor", a musical setting of Emma Lazarus's sonnet "The New Colossus" (1883), which was placed at the base of the monument in 1903.
In April 1975 at "Dreamland", a Saigon bar and brothel, shortly before the end of the Vietnam War, it is Kim's first day as a bargirl. The seventeen-year-old peasant girl is hauled in by the Engineer, a French-Vietnamese hustler who owns the joint. Backstage, the girls ready themselves for the night's show, jeering at Kim's inexperience ("Overture / Backstage Dreamland"). The U.S. Marines, aware that they will soon be leaving Vietnam, party with the Vietnamese sex workers ("The Heat Is on in Saigon"). Chris Scott, a sergeant disenchanted by the club scene, is encouraged by his friend John Thomas to go with a girl. The girls compete for the title of "Miss Saigon", and the winner is raffled to a Marine. Kim's guilelessness strikes Chris. Gigi Van Tranh wins the crown for the evening and begs the marine who won the raffle to take her back to America, annoying him. The showgirls reflect on their dreams of a better life ("The Movie in My Mind"). John buys a room for Chris and the virgin Kim ("The Transaction"). Kim is reluctant and shy, but dances with Chris, who tries to pay her to leave the nightclub. When the Engineer interferes, thinking that Chris does not like Kim, Chris allows himself to be led to her room ("The Dance"). Chris, watching Kim sleep, asks God why he met her just as he was about to leave Vietnam ("Why, God, Why?"). When Kim wakes up, Chris tries to give her money, but she refuses, saying that it is her first time sleeping with a man ("This Money's Yours"). Touched to learn that Kim is an orphan, Chris offers to take her to America with him, and the two fall in love ("Sun and Moon"). Chris tells John that he is taking leave to spend time with Kim. John warns him that the Viet Cong will soon take Saigon, but then reluctantly agrees to cover for Chris ("The Telephone Song"). Chris meets with the Engineer to trade for Kim, but the Engineer tries to include an American visa in the deal. Threatening the Engineer at gunpoint, Chris forces him to honor the original arrangement for Kim ("The Deal"). The bargirls hold a "wedding ceremony" for Chris and Kim ("Dju Vui Vai"), with Gigi toasting Kim as the "real" Miss Saigon. Thuy, Kim's cousin, to whom she was betrothed at thirteen, arrives to take her home. He has since become an officer in the North Vietnamese Army and is disgusted to find her with a white man ("Thuy's Arrival"). The two men confront each other, drawing their firearms. Kim tells Thuy that their arranged marriage is now nullified because her parents are dead, and she no longer harbors any feelings for him because of his betrayal. Thuy curses them all and storms out ("What's This I Find?"). Chris promises to take Kim with him when he leaves Vietnam. Chris and Kim dance to the same song as on their first night ("Last Night of The World"). Three years later, in 1978, a street parade is taking place in Saigon (since renamed Ho Chi Minh City) to celebrate the third anniversary of the reunification of Vietnam and the defeat of the Americans ("The Morning of The Dragon"). Thuy, now a commissar in the new Communist government, has ordered his soldiers to look for the still-corrupt Engineer. For the Communist Party, he goes by the name "Tran Van Dinh" and has spent the past three years working in the rice fields as part of a re-education program. Thuy orders the Engineer to find Kim and bring her to him. Although the intervening period is not shown, it is apparent that Kim and Chris have become separated in the three year time jump. Kim has been hiding in an impoverished area, still in love with Chris and steadfastly believing that Chris will return to Vietnam and rescue her. Meanwhile, Chris is in bed with his new American wife, Ellen, when he wakes from a dream shouting Kim's name. Ellen and Kim both swear their devotion to Chris from opposite ends of the world ("I Still Believe"). The Engineer takes Thuy to where Kim has been hiding. Kim refuses Thuy's renewed offer of marriage, unaware that his men are waiting outside the door. Furious, Thuy calls them in and they begin tying up Kim and the Engineer, threatening to put them into a re-education camp ("Coo-Coo Princess"), before Thuy orders them out and allows the Engineer to leave. Again, Kim refuses to go with Thuy and shocks him by introducing Thuy to Tam, her three-year-old son from Chris. Thuy calls Kim a traitor and Tam an enemy, and tries to kill Tam with a knife, but Kim is forced to shoot Thuy to protect Tam ("You Will Not Touch Him"). Thuy dies as the street parade continues nearby ("This Is the Hour"), with Kim showing horror and heartbreak at her action, before fleeing with Tam. The Engineer laments being born Vietnamese and wishes to go to the US ("If You Want to Die in Bed"). Kim tells the Engineer what she has done, and he learns that Tam's father is American ("Let Me See His Western Nose") – thinking the boy is his chance to emigrate to the United States. He tells Kim that now he is the boy's uncle, and he will lead them to Bangkok. As Kim swears to Tam that she would do anything to give him a better life, the three set out on a ship with other refugees ("I'd Give My Life for You"). In Atlanta, Georgia, John now works for an aid organization whose mission is to connect Bui-Doi (from Vietnamese trẻ bụi đời "street children," meaning children conceived during the war) with their American fathers ("Bui Doi"). John tells Chris that Kim is still alive, which Chris is relieved to hear after years of having nightmares of her dying. He also tells Chris about Tam and urges Chris to go to Bangkok with Ellen, and Chris then finally tells Ellen about Kim and Tam ("The Revelation"). In Bangkok, the Engineer is hawking a sleazy club where Kim works as a dancer ("What A Waste"). Chris, Ellen, and John arrive in search of Kim. John finds Kim dancing at the club and tells her that Chris is also in Bangkok. He then tries to tell her that Chris is remarried, but Kim interrupts. She is thrilled about the news and tells Tam that his father has arrived, believing that they are to go to America with Chris. Seeing Kim happy, John cannot bring himself to break the news to her but promises to bring Chris to her ("Please"). The Engineer tells Kim to find Chris herself because he doubts that Chris will come ("Chris Is Here"). Kim is haunted by the ghost of Thuy, who taunts Kim, claiming that Chris will betray her as he did the night Saigon fell. Kim suffers a horrible flashback to that night ("Kim's Nightmare"). In the nightmare and flashback to 1975, Kim remembers the Viet Cong approaching Saigon. As the city becomes increasingly chaotic, Chris is called to the embassy and leaves his gun with Kim, telling her to pack. When Chris enters the embassy, the gates close, as orders arrive from Washington for an immediate evacuation of the remaining Americans. The Ambassador orders that no more Vietnamese be allowed into the Embassy. Kim reaches the gates of the Embassy, one in a crowd of terrified Vietnamese trying to enter. Chris calls to Kim and is about to go into the crowd to look for her. John is eventually forced to punch Chris in the face to stop him from leaving. Chris is put into the last helicopter leaving Saigon as Kim watches from outside, still pledging her love to him ("The Fall of Saigon"). Back in 1978 Bangkok, Kim joyfully dresses in her wedding clothes ("Sun and Moon [Reprise]") and leaves the Engineer to watch Tam while she is gone. She goes to Chris's hotel room, where she finds Ellen. Ellen reveals that she is Chris's wife. While Kim is heartbroken and initially in denial about the truth, she soon confirms to Ellen that Tam is Chris's son, and says that she does not want her son to continue living on the streets, pleading that they take Tam with them back to America, but Ellen refuses, saying that Tam needs his real mother, and Ellen wants her own children with Chris. Kim angrily demands that Chris tell her these things in person, and runs out of the room ("Room 317"). Ellen feels bad for Kim, but is determined to keep Chris ("Now That I've Seen Her/Maybe"). Chris and John return, having failed to find Kim. Ellen tells them both that Kim arrived and that she had to tell Kim everything. Chris and John blame themselves, realizing that they were gone too long. Ellen also tells them that Kim wants to see Chris at her place and that she tried to give away her son to them. John realizes that Kim wants Tam to be "an American boy." Ellen then issues an ultimatum to Chris: Kim or her. Chris reassures Ellen, and they pledge their love for each other. Chris and Ellen agree to leave Tam and Kim in Bangkok but offer them monetary support from America, while John decries their decision as selfish ("The Confrontation"). Back at the club, Kim tells the Engineer that they are still going to America ("Paper Dragons"). The Engineer imagines the extravagant new life that he will lead in America ("The American Dream"). Chris, John, and Ellen find the Engineer and he takes them to see Kim and Tam. In her room, Kim tells Tam that he should be happy because he now has a father. She tells him that she cannot go with him but will be watching over him ("This Is the Hour [Reprise]"). Chris, Ellen, John, and the Engineer arrive just outside her room. The Engineer comes in to take Tam outside to introduce him to his father. While this is happening, Kim steps behind a curtain and shoots herself. As she falls to the floor, Chris rushes into the room at the sound of the gunshot and finds Kim mortally wounded. He picks up Kim and asks what she has done. Replying that the gods guided him to his son, Kim asks Chris to hold her once more and they share one last kiss. Kim then repeats something that he said to her on the first night they met: "How in one night have we come so far?", and dies in Chris's arms as everyone watches ("Finale").
Fifi, a talented Parisian hat-shop saleswoman, dreams of becoming an opera singer and loves Etienne, whose aristocratic uncle disapproves of their match. An American promoter finances her training in Vienna; a year later, her success and a staged reconciliation persuade the Count to accept their marriage.
Moby Dick is a musical with a book by Robert Longden, and music and lyrics by Longden and Hereward Kaye, first staged in 1990. The plot follows the anarchic and nubile girls of St. Godley's Academy for Young Ladies who, determined to save the institution from bankruptcy, decide to stage Herman Melville's classic 1851 novel in the school's swimming pool. The musical is a mixture of high camp, music hall-style smut, and wild anachronism overflowing with double entendres; the lead role of headmistress/Captain Ahab is portrayed by a man in drag. Originally produced as Moby Dick: A Whale of a Tale, and alternatively known as Moby Dick! The Musical, or Moby!, the show has proven to be a popular choice with regional theatre groups. Since 2003 a more Americanized version deleted the unfamiliar British references and played down many of the burlesque aspects.
Mr. and Mrs. Wranglebury quarrel constantly, but pretend to be amiable when her mother, who once lent Mr. Wranglebury money for his business, comes to stay. They discover they prefer being kind to one another. When their servant Jane reveals their quarrels, they call her a liar and dismiss her.
Molly is a musical with lyrics by Leonard Adelson and Mack David and music by Jerry Livingston. The musical book by Louis A. Garfinkle and Adelson is based on characters from Gertrude Berg's The Goldbergs. The musical premiered on Broadway on September 27, 1973 at the Alvin Theatre where it ran for a total of 108 performances, closing on December 29, 1973. The cast included Kaye Ballard as Molly, Lee Wallace as Jake, Eli Mintz as Uncle David, and Swen Swenson as Michael Stone.
German-language operetta with a topical plot about movies.
Monte Carlo is an Edwardian musical comedy in two acts with a book by Sidney Carlton, music by Howard Talbot and lyrics by Harry Greenbank. The work was first performed at the Avenue Theatre in London, opening on 27 August 1896. The New York production, which opened on March 21, 1898, at the Herald Square Theatre, was directed by Frank Smithson, who also played General Boomerang.
Monte Cristo Jr. is a musical in two acts with music by Sigmund Romberg and Jean Schwartz and both book and lyrics by Harold Atteridge. Additional music was by Maurice Abrahams, Fred E. Alhert and Earl Carroll, with lyrics by Earl Carroll, Sam M. Lewis and Joe Young. It should not be confused with the similarly named Monte Cristo Jr. by Richard Henry. Romberg, Schwartz, & Atteridge's Monte Cristo, Jr. premiered on Broadway at the Winter Garden Theatre on February 12, 1919; closing on October 4, 1919, after 215 performances. Performances of this show were suspended for a month during the Actor's Equity strike. It starred Charles Purcell as a boy named Monte who is reading Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo, and after falling asleep, finds himself and his friends transformed into characters within the book. Others in the original cast included Charles "Chic" Sale (as Jefferson Sap Jr.), Flore Revalles (as Yvonne, Haydee, and Diamonda), Rosa Rolanda (as King Love), Sam Ash (as Julian Danglers), Gordon Dooley (as Wilbur), Esther Walker (as Daisy), and Ralph C. Herz (as Jameson and Reverend Fluffy Ruff) among others.
Morocco Bound is a farcical Edwardian musical comedy in two acts by Arthur Branscombe, with music by F. Osmond Carr and lyrics by Adrian Ross. It opened at the Shaftesbury Theatre in London, on 13 April 1893, under the management of Fred J.
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