1634 shows
Clear filtersMemphis 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.
New tenants in the Cheryomushki housing development struggle to get their apartment keys from corrupt managers Barabashkin and Drebednev, who have combined apartments for Drebednev’s girlfriend. Boris uses a construction crane to get Lidochka and her father inside, exposing the scheme. The tenants unite against the bureaucrats, who are finally made to confess through the residents’ magical garden.
In 1983, at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium, recording stars are gathered to celebrate Motown Records' 25th anniversary. In a flashback, the young Berry Gordy watches the neighbors dancing in Detroit. In 1957, the adult Berry forms his own record label, and begins to make lifelong friends with recording artists/singers such as Marvin Gaye and Smokey Robinson. Berry discovers the Supremes and Diana Ross, among many others. The recording stars sing their popular numbers, including: Diana Ross ("I Hear a Symphony", "You're Nobody till Somebody Loves You", and "You're All I Need to Get By"), Stevie Wonder, The Supremes ("Buttered Popcorn", "Where Did Our Love Go"), The Miracles ("Shop Around"), The Marvelettes ("Please Mr. Postman"), Mary Wells ("Bye Bye Baby"/"Two Lovers Medley"), The Temptations, Martha and the Vandellas ("Dancing in the Street"), The Contours ("Do You Love Me"), and The Jackson 5.
In turn-of-the-century Paris, a young writer named Christian falls in love with Satine, the star of the Moulin Rouge cabaret. Their relationship threatens the arrangement with a wealthy patron on whom the club depends. A score assembled from popular songs carries their struggle between artistic freedom, financial survival, and love.
Movin' Out is a 2002 jukebox musical featuring the songs of Billy Joel. Conceived and created by Twyla Tharp, the musical tells the story of a generation of American youth growing up on Long Island during the 1960s and their experiences with the Vietnam War. The principal characters are drawn from those who appeared in various Joel tunes: high school sweethearts Brenda and Eddie ("Scenes from an Italian Restaurant"), James ("James"), Judy ("Why Judy Why"), Sergeant O'Leary and Tony (Anthony in "Movin' Out"). The show diverts from the traditional musical in that it essentially is a series of dances linked by a thin plot, and none of the dancers sing. Instead, all the vocals are performed by a pianist (the "Piano Man", representing Billy Joel) and band suspended on a platform above the stage while the dancers act out the songs' lyrics, basically making the show a rock ballet.
In 1778 Paris, the young Mozart visits the salon of Madame d’Épinay, where Marie-Anne de Saint-Pons is being pressed to marry the Marquis de Chambreuil. Mozart entertains the company and later composes pieces while flirting with the dancer La Guimard and corresponding with Aloysia Weber in Mannheim. His attention to Marie-Anne also angers the Marquis, while Louise’s fiancé reproaches her for flirting with Mozart. Baron Grimm reveals that he arranged with Mozart’s father to hasten the composer’s departure. Mozart reluctantly bids farewell to the women and to Paris.
Jim is the adopted and put-upon son of Sir George Lancaster and his snobbish and cruel wife, Lady Agatha Lancaster, the widow of Sir General Bloodwing Beardsley. Jim works as a menial at Merton Chase, their elegant home. Lady Agatha dominates her weak husband and plots to marry her two foppish sons, Lumley and Guy (from her previous marriage) to wealthy girls, since the Lancasters have lost their fortune. Guy, however, is in love with a woman named Phyllis Patterson, whom Agatha rejects because of her lack of money. Jim keeps his spirits high, with the philosophy that one should Spread a Little Happiness. Jill is an American heiress who lives next door at a stately home, The Towers, with her wealthy father Henry Kemp and her cousin Minerva (who, like Jim, is the poor relation of her family). When Guy is credited with saving Henry from drowning (a task which Jim actually accomplished, unbeknownst to anyone but him and Guy), all at Merton Chase are invited to a costume ball at The Towers, but Jim is not allowed to attend. Jill, meanwhile, has disguised herself as a servant girl, Sarah Jones, in order to hide from a police officer who has accused her of physical assault on him. Minerva pretends to be Jill, and every man at Merton Chase is captivated by her beauty. Jim, with the help of Jill, gatecrashes the ball disguised as a famous South American explorer, the Earl of Ditcham. Lumley reveals that Jim is an imposter. Also, Jill's priceless necklace is found in Jim's pocket, leading everyone at the ball to believe that he stole it. Jill helps Jim escape, and they capture Smith the butler, the real thief, and leave him tied up for the authorities to arrest. After the ball, a hat is found that belongs to the valiant person who captured the thief (instead of the glass slipper). A search for the owner shows that it fits only Jim. He wins the £1,000 reward and learns that the maid "Sarah" is actually Jill, and she and Jim agree to get married. Lumley and Guy, meanwhile, announce their engagements to Minerva and Phyllis, respectively. All ends happily.
President Stephen Decatur Henderson is a true patriot and loves his family. His daughter Leslie has recently had a series of romantic liaisons, some liberal and some conservative. Her newest romance is with Youssein Davair, the son of a Middle Eastern ruler; the sincerity of his affection is questionable. Pat Gregory, a Secret Service agent, has watched Leslie grow up and has fallen in love with her but doesn't believe that she could be interested in a simple guy like him. With the Cold War as a backdrop, Henderson, together with Nell, his First Lady, and their children go on a "good-will tour" of Europe, including the Soviet Union. Henderson gets in trouble for jokingly comparing the Soviet leader to a "wild cat". But the President lands in Moscow anyhow and gives a conciliatory and humanizing speech, assisted by his Russian-speaking son Larry, that earns the respect of the Soviets. Nevertheless, back at home, the gaffe plagues him and hurts his party's popularity. Larry is a bit of a hot-head and punches the party chairman on TV to defend his father. The presidential term of office ends, and the Hendersons leave the White House. In Act II, Henderson finds his post-politics life in Ohio mundane. The family is invited to a party at the White House, and there Leslie finds that Youssein is now interested in Betty Chandler, the daughter of the new president, and so they break up. Leslie leaves the party with Pat. Meanwhile, one of Ohio's senators dies, and the governor asks Henderson to finish his term of office. Henderson yearns to return to public life, but he questions the governor's motives and declines the job. Soon afterwards, however, another opportunity comes: the new president asks Henderson to attend an international summit meeting on behalf of the US, because of the respect that he commands in the Soviet Union.
Mr. Saturday Night is a musical with music by Jason Robert Brown, lyrics by Amanda Green, and a book by Billy Crystal, Lowell Ganz, and Babaloo Mandel, based on the 1992 film. The musical follows comedian Buddy Young, Jr, decades past his prime, as he attempts a second chance at fame and his family. It premiered at Barrington Stage Company in October 2021. The musical moved to Broadway opening on April 27, 2022, at the Nederlander Theatre. The Broadway production received positive reviews by critics, praising the book and music of the musical, being nominated for five Tony Awards, including for Best Musical. The performances of Billy Crystal and Shoshana Bean were positively reviewed, and the two were nominated for Tony Awards. The show's cast recording received a nomination for a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.
Mr. Wonderful is a musical with a book by Joseph Stein and Will Glickman, and music and lyrics by Jerry Bock, Larry Holofcener, and George David Weiss. Written specifically to showcase the talents of Sammy Davis Jr., the thin plot, focusing on entertainer Charlie Welch's show business struggles, primarily served as a springboard for an extended version of Davis's Las Vegas nightclub act. The Broadway production, staged by Jack Donohue, opened on March 22, 1956, at The Broadway Theatre, following a tryout in Philadelphia on February 20, 1956. In addition to Davis, the cast included his father Sammy Sr. and uncle Will (who together with Davis had performed as the Will Mastin Trio), Olga James, Jack Carter, Chita Rivera, Malcolm Lee Beggs, Marilyn Cooper and Patricia Marshall. The Broadway production was panned by critics but surprised everyone, including the producers, to go on to be a commercial success, recouping its $225,000 investment. Davis had initially signed a contract for one year but, with the poor critical reception, made other commitments for the following year and, as he was considered irreplaceable, the play closed on February 23, 1957, after 383 performances.
Mrs Henderson Presents is a musical comedy with music by George Fenton and Simon Chamberlain, with lyrics by Don Black and a book by Terry Johnson. Based on the 2005 film Mrs Henderson Presents, the musical received its world premiere at the Theatre Royal, Bath in 2015 and transferred to the West End's Noël Coward Theatre in February 2016. The film was based on the true story of Laura Henderson and London's Windmill Theatre.
Mrs. Delaney of Newport is a musical in three acts with music by Jean Schwartz and both book and lyrics by William Jerome. Written as a starring vehicle for the comedian Kate Elinore and her sister May Elinore, it was the first of several musicals created by the songwriting team of Schwartz and Jerome. The musical premiered on September 15, 1903, at the Collingwood Opera House in Poughkeepsie, New York. The production was produced by the firm of Hyde and Benham. A road musical, Mrs. Delaney of Newport toured nationally for 18 months; closing after performances given in Alton, Illinois in March 1905. The tour included two stops on Broadway; the first being at the Grand Opera House where it ran for one week of performances beginning on November 2, 1903. It was one of several musicals that featured the Schwartz and Jerome hit song "Bedalia"; a tune first introduced by singer Blanche Ring in the musical The Jersey Lily.
Mrs. Doubtfire is a musical based on the 1993 film Mrs. Doubtfire, which in turn is based on the 1987 novel Madame Doubtfire by Anne Fine, with music and lyrics by Karey and Wayne Kirkpatrick and a book by Karey Kirkpatrick and John O'Farrell. The musical is produced by Kevin McCollum and presented by special arrangement with Buena Vista Theatrical. As with the film, the musical is set in the city of San Francisco, California. However, the timeframe has been updated to the 21st century. The stage musical has references to both technology and pop culture that did not exist in 1993 when the film was released.
When the Jarramies’ butler and cook leave before an important dinner, Mrs. Jarramie rubs an antique lamp and summons Ben-Zoh-Leen, who serves as both. Her husband employs the genie as a political canvasser. Misreading a telegram, Mrs. Jarramie sends her husband to Timbuctoo, but then locks the lamp in a safe. Ernest Pepperton finds the combination, frees the lamp, and brings Mr. Jarramie home; Pepperton is forgiven and the genie gains his freedom.
Murder Ballad centers around a young woman named Sara. She begins the story dating a wild bartender named Tom. After a messy breakup, she falls in love with Michael, a professor at NYU with a more sensible life than Tom's dangerous ways. After getting married and raising a child, Sara starts to long for the old life with Tom. She begins secretly seeing Tom, but as her affair gets more passionate with him, Sara longs to go back to the normal life she had with Michael and her daughter.
Music Is is a musical with a book by George Abbott, music by Richard Adler, and lyrics by Will Holt. It is the second musical adaptation of the William Shakespeare play Twelfth Night, following Your Own Thing in 1968.
The musical takes place in Bavaria during the 1930s but some contemporary productions have modified it to present day. In the simple mountain town of Edendorff in Bavaria, music teacher Dr. Walther Lessing has a beautiful daughter Sieglinde. She is in love with Karl Reder, the local schoolmaster. Karl and Sieglinde travel to the sophisticated city of Munich and try to get a song written by Walther and Karl published. Karl becomes enamored of glamorous operetta diva Frieda Hatzfeld while Sieglinde is smitten by Bruno Mahler, an operetta librettist with whom Frieda lives. Mahler wants Sieglinde to appear in his new work "Tingle-Tangle". Frieda moves out of Mahler's apartment and moves to an hotel where she can see Karl on a regular basis. Bruno takes Sieglinde to the Munich zoo where Sieglinde is warned by Cornelius, a bird-seller, that as she and Karl are country people, it is not wise to stay in the big city. Sieglinde spurns an unwanted pass from Bruno while Frieda finds Karl equally unresponsive. Frieda plans to leave for Berlin to star in a new film. Before she leaves, she warns Karl that Bruno will cast Sieglinde aside as soon as he has used her. It is up to Karl to tell the producer of the show that Frieda has left. Bruno insists, to Karl's chagrin, that Sieglinde can take over the leading role in the operetta. Resulting from machinations of her father, and a somewhat chaotic dress rehearsal it becomes evident that Sieglinde is far too inexperienced to take on a leading role. As a result, Bruno's affections vanish. Walther and Sieglinde are told in no uncertain terms that the theatre is no place for amateurs and they should return to their home, and they do. Frieda meanwhile has returned to take up the leading role and is an overwhelming success. Karl returns to Edendorff and to Sieglinde, both having learned a valuable lesson.
Mutiny! is a musical by David Essex to a book and lyrics by Richard Crane, based on the novel Mutiny on the Bounty by Charles Nordhoff and James Norman Hall.
My Darlin’ Aida is a 1952 Broadway musical play with music by Giuseppe Verdi, lyrics by Charles Friedman, based on Verdi's opera, Aida. It was produced by Robert L. Joseph.
In Edwardian London, Eliza Doolittle is a flower girl with a thick Cockney accent. The noted phonetician Professor Henry Higgins encounters Eliza at Covent Garden and laments the vulgarity of her dialect ("Why Can't the English?"). Higgins also meets Colonel Pickering, another linguist, and invites him to stay as his houseguest. Eliza and her friends wonder what it would be like to live a comfortable life ("Wouldn't It Be Loverly?"). Eliza's dustman father, Alfred P. Doolittle, stops by the next morning searching for money for a drink ("With a Little Bit of Luck"). Soon after, Eliza comes to Higgins's house, seeking elocution lessons so that she can get a job as an assistant in a florist's shop. Higgins wagers Pickering that, within six months, by teaching Eliza to speak properly, he will enable her to pass for a proper lady. Eliza becomes part of Higgins's household. Though Higgins sees himself as a kindhearted man who merely cannot get along with women ("I'm an Ordinary Man"), to others he appears self-absorbed and misogynistic. Eliza endures Higgins's tyrannical speech tutoring. Frustrated, she dreams of different ways to kill him ("Just You Wait"). Higgins's servants lament the stressful atmosphere ("The Servants' Chorus"). Just as Higgins is about to give up on her, Eliza suddenly recites one of her diction exercises in perfect upper-class style ("The Rain in Spain"). Though Mrs Pearce, the housekeeper, insists that Eliza go to bed, she declares she is too excited to sleep ("I Could Have Danced All Night"). For her first public tryout, Higgins takes Eliza to his mother's box at Ascot Racecourse ("Ascot Gavotte"). Though Eliza shocks everyone when she forgets herself while watching a race and reverts to foul language, she does capture the heart of Freddy Eynsford-Hill. Freddy calls on Eliza that evening, and he declares that he will wait for her in the street outside Higgins' house ("On the Street Where You Live"). Eliza's final test requires her to pass as a lady at the Embassy Ball. After more weeks of preparation, she is ready. ("Eliza's Entrance"). All the ladies and gentlemen at the ball admire her, and the Queen of Transylvania invites her to dance with the prince ("Embassy Waltz"). A Hungarian phonetician, Zoltan Karpathy, attempts to discover Eliza's origins. Higgins allows Karpathy to dance with Eliza. The ball is a success; Karpathy has declared Eliza to be a Hungarian princess. Pickering and Higgins revel in their triumph ("You Did It"), failing to pay attention to Eliza. Eliza is insulted at receiving no credit for her success, packing up and leaving the Higgins house. As she leaves she finds Freddy, who begins to tell her how much he loves her, but she tells him that she has heard enough words; if he really loves her, he should show it ("Show Me"). Eliza and Freddy return to Covent Garden but she finds she no longer feels at home there. Her father is there as well, and he tells her that he has received a surprise bequest from an American millionaire, which has raised him to middle-class respectability, and now must marry his lover. Doolittle and his friends have one last spree before the wedding ("Get Me to the Church on Time"). Higgins awakens the next morning. He finds himself out of sorts without Eliza. He wonders why she left after the triumph at the ball and concludes that men (especially himself) are far superior to women ("A Hymn to Him"). Col. Pickering is concerned about Eliza's well-being, calling the police as well as contacting an old chum he believes will help them track her down. Higgins despondently visits his mother's house, where he finds Eliza. Eliza declares she no longer needs Higgins ("Without You"). As Higgins walks home, he realizes he's grown attached to Eliza ("I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face"). At home, he sentimentally reviews the recording he made the day Eliza first came to him for lessons, hearing his own harsh words. Eliza suddenly appears in his home. In suppressed joy at their reunion, Professor Higgins scoffs and asks, "Eliza, where the devil are my slippers?"
In the 1950s, Benjy Stone (a Mel Brooks-type) is a sketch writer for a live television variety show starring King Kaiser (a Sid Caesar-type). Signed for a guest appearance is Alan Swann (an Errol Flynn-type), a one-time movie idol whose career was disrupted by his addiction to alcohol and loose women. The task of keeping him sober and celibate until airtime falls to Benjy, who soon finds himself involved in a sequence of shenanigans. Various characters, including Benjy's pushy mother Belle Steinberg Carroca and Alan Swann's estranged daughter Tess, complicate Benjy's task. The other writers, Sy, Alice and Herb, add to the chaos.
Vivacious Lady Molly Martingale disguises herself as a man to win the man she loves.
My Life with Albertine is a musical with music and lyrics by Ricky Ian Gordon and book and lyrics Richard Nelson. The story was adapted from parts of the 1913-1927 seven-volume novel In Search of Lost Time by Marcel Proust. It ran Off-Broadway in 2003. The musical is set in a salle du théâtre (private theatre in a home) in Paris, 1919. For much of the story, the Narrator stands beside a piano and speaks to the audience, as the curtain opens to reveal scenes from his life.
My Maryland is a "musical romance" with book and lyrics by Dorothy Donnelly and music by Sigmund Romberg, based on the play Barbara Frietchie by Clyde Fitch. The musical takes place in the towns of Frederick, Maryland and Hagerstown, Maryland.
At the Golden Years retirement hotel, there's a mixed bag of guests, a little romance, plenty of time for song, a little dancing and lots of jokes.
My One and Only is a musical with a book by Peter Stone and Timothy S. Mayer and music and lyrics by George and Ira Gershwin. The musical ran on Broadway and in the West End.
My Romance is a musical comedy in three acts with book and lyrics by Rowland Leigh, and music by Sigmund Romberg. It was produced on Broadway in 1948.
Kat, Daisy and Jojo work at a small-town pizza restaurant while navigating friendship, romance and their futures.
Myths and Hymns (originally known as Saturn Returns) is a song cycle by composer Adam Guettel, based on Greek myth and lyrics found in an antique hymnal. Guettel's second major work, the song-cycle was originally produced by the Public Theater. The song cycle is structured as a revue, with no through plot.
Nancy Brown is a musical in two acts with music by Henry Kimball Hadley and both book and lyrics by George Broadhurst and Frederic Ranken. The musical also used several songs written by the African-American songwriting team of Robert Cole, J. Rosamond Johnson, and James Weldon Johnson. Set in the royal palace of the fictional kingdom of Ballyhoo, the show was about the matchmaker Nancy Brown's attempt to wed the Ballyhooian royalty and nobility to eight wealthy American heiresses in order to save the financially bankrupt kingdom.
Nanny McPhee is an upcoming stage musical with a book by Emma Thompson and music and lyrics by Gary Clark and Thompson. Its world premiere is announced for London in November 2027.
A German-language operetta by Richard Genée with a libretto adapted from the French play Nanon, Ninon et Maintenon.
The musical is a behind-the-scenes account of the Corsican man who rose from nothing to become Emperor of France. It is told through the eyes of an unreliable narrator, Talleyrand, a Machiavellian career politician who latches onto the young Napoleon and places him on the throne of an empire vaster than Rome. The narrative is Talleyrand's version of events, coloured and skewed by his own opinions as he steps in and out of scenes, offering comments and manipulating the plot. He spins facts to his purpose, has things he wants the audience to know, and others he struggles to keep hidden. Talleyrand thinks he can manage the extraordinary man he’s groomed for greatness. What he isn’t prepared for is the sheer force of Napoleon’s character - and his obsession with Josephine. In the battle to come, Napoleon and Josephine will play out one of the world’s most iconic love stories, while Talleyrand will emerge as the devil incarnate. The curtain rises on a nightmare vision of the Battle of Waterloo. Napoleon’s inability to command shocks his marshals who beg him to give the order to advance but can only watch helplessly as their troops are slaughtered (“Waterloo Opening”). This vision is revealed to be a memory of Talleyrand, first seen as a troubled old man grappling with the question of how Napoleon went from a blazing comet of passion and virtue to the ghost of a once-great man (“What’s Wrong with Him?”). The guilt Talleyrand feels for his role in that transformation consumes him. He takes us back in time to tell his story. He introduces us to Napoleon at 24: a firebrand of shining ideals. He has returned to his native Corsica to lead an uprising against the government of Pasquale Paoli (“Throw Him Out”). Napoleon has been attending the École Militaire in Paris, witnessed the Revolution unfolding in France and wants to bring its values of equality and justice to his homeland, but his coup attempt fails, and he and his family are banished to France (“Brothers”). Napoleon’s brother, Lucien, struggles to understand why Napoleon would risk his life for a cause. Napoleon explains that in this cruel world, a vendetta against those who keep the masses oppressed is the only path to change (“Wounded”). Napoleon and Lucien arrive to find Paris in chaos. The king has just been beheaded, law and order are non-existent, and a corrupt government led by the debauched Paul Barras is squandering the Revolution’s promise (“A Place Like Paris”). Witnessing the people’s suffering, Lucien becomes an activist. Napoleon meets Talleyrand, who is miserable in his job as Barras’ senior minister and relentlessly mocked for his physical infirmity – a withered leg which requires him to use a cane. Talleyrand has no patience for the hot-headed Napoleon, but when General Henri, the head of the army, is impressed by the military genius of Napoleon’s plan to defend Toulon against an attack by the British, Talleyrand sees an opportunity to improve his fortunes and attaches himself to Napoleon, claiming him as his protégé (“Providence”). Napoleon’s brilliant defence of Toulon is a stunning success and Talleyrand introduces him to Parisian society, making him the toast of the town. At a ball hosted by the wealthy Thérèse Tallien, Napoleon meets her friend Rose De Beauharnais and is instantly infatuated (“The Victims’ Ball”). Rose is Barras’ mistress. Seeing her laughing and dancing with Napoleon, Barras violently orders her to leave and belittles Napoleon in front of the crowd. A penniless widow of the Revolution, Rose has been forced into this sordid liaison by her desperate circumstances. She escapes by imagining the life a fortune teller once predicted for her, that she would one day be greater than a queen (“One Day”). Thérèse promises she’ll find a man of means for her, but for now advises Rose to bide her time with Barras. Napoleon calls on Rose and tells her that if she were his he’d give her the world, though he thinks her name doesn’t suit her as well as the one he’d give her – Josephine (“Josephine”). Thérèse, finding her friend with Napoleon again, fears for her safety and encourages her to avoid him. Talleyrand worries that Barras will dismiss Napoleon from the army just as his career is taking off. He counsels his protégé to forget Rose and uses his two henchmen, FOUCHÉ and Garrau, to foment an uprising that Napoleon will be called upon to quell, making his dismissal impossible (“Vendémiaire”). Lucien and Henri are shocked by the brutal tactics Napoleon employs to stop the uprising – using cannons on the protesters – but Barras is pleased and rewards him with a promotion that will send him away: the command of France’s Alpine border forces. Before Napoleon leaves, he invites Josephine to his humble apartments where they have an impassioned night together and fall in love (“On This First Night”). The next morning, Napoleon shares his battle plans with her. She marvels at his brilliance, believing he'll triumph. Meanwhile, Henri and the army, already on the march, gripe about Napoleon’s plans, calling them the scribblings of a madman (“The Road to Austria”). Napoleon proposes marriage and Josephine accepts. Talleyrand is incensed but they marry in haste. Napoleon’s ambitious march over the Alps dispirits his troops. He intends to take the anti-revolutionary Austrian army by surprise, but his army, exhausted and demoralized, is convinced they’ll be slaughtered. Napoleon wins them over with a rousing appeal that begins as quiet words of encouragement to a terrified young soldier named ANTON the night before the battle (“The Dream Within”). Against all odds, Napoleon and his army are victorious. Talleyrand is delighted when Napoleon receives a hero’s welcome from the people on his return to Paris (“The Day Is Won”). Barras is threatened by Napoleon’s popularity and orders Talleyrand to fix it. Talleyrand encourages Napoleon to stage a coup against Barras. (“The Journey Begins”). The plotting spreads across Paris. Josephine convinces Thérèse to fund the coup in payment for some unspecified trouble Thérèse caused Josephine while Napoleon was in the Alps (the details of which we will learn later). Lucien prints pamphlets to whip up the masses, Anton helps distribute them, and Henri agrees to give Napoleon the support of the army but cautions him not to abuse his trust. Henri’s daughter, CLARICE, meets and falls in love with Anton in the thrill and danger of the building plot which leads to the storming of the government council chamber (“The Eighteenth of Brumaire”). Barras’s guards quickly get the upper hand and for a moment all seems lost, but Lucien wins over the guards by swearing that his brother’s cause is just and dramatically vowing to kill him with his own sword if Napoleon ever betrays the principles of the Revolution. The guards arrest Barras, and Napoleon seizes the government, vowing to bring liberty, equality, and fraternity to all. Talleyrand celebrates over champagne with Fouché and Garrau who toast his brilliant political cunning (“A Cutthroat Game”). Installed in the Tuileries Palace, Josephine berates Napoleon for his crassness and lack of table manners after a mortifying state dinner with the Emperor of Prussia. She sets out to teach him manners. Talleyrand waits impatiently for Napoleon to sign some pressing treaties. He resents the power Josephine holds over Napoleon, and is delighted when an assassination attempt on Napoleon kills her. This is quickly revealed to be his fantasy – Josephine has survived – but the assassination attempt was real, and it prompts Talleyrand to advise Napoleon to enshrine his power in a dynasty and become emperor. This idea is seductively irresistible to Napoleon (“I Am the Revolution”). Lucien is horrified and draws his sword to honour his vow to kill Napoleon but can’t bring himself to do it, and is imprisoned (“The Calm Before the Storm”). Talleyrand convinces Napoleon to exile Lucien, and arranges Napoleon’s coronation (“Timor Mortis”). As the crown is about to be placed on Napoleon’s head, we are privy to his thoughts and get an ominous glimpse of where absolute power will take him (“Sweet Victory Divine”). Four years after the coronation, the empire is prospering. As the power behind the throne, Talleyrand has become obscenely wealthy (“Made by Talleyrand”). Though he’d rather we didn’t find out about his childhood, we do – in a flashback where we learn his parents abandoned him. Repulsed by his deformity and convinced he’d amount to nothing, they inflicted the emotional scars fueling his hunger for success. Anton has been traveling with the emperor on a state visit as his aide de camp. Henri orders Clarice to forget about Anton, unaware that Clarice and Anton have committed to each other (“A Promise”). Anton gives her a necklace promising to love her as his wife even though Henri will never permit them to marry. Clarice, now Josephine’s lady-in-waiting, says she’ll speak to the empress and persuade her to convince Henri to allow their marriage. Talleyrand presses Napoleon on the need for an heir. Josephine has been unable to conceive. Talleyrand deliberately lets slip to Napoleon that he suspects her prior miscarriage is to blame. Napoleon knows nothing of this and, in a flashback, we learn with Napoleon what happened right after his marriage (“Plombières”). Thérèse, certain that Napoleon would be killed in his new command, had arranged for Josephine to meet a wealthy aristocrat in the spa town of Plombières. When Josephine rebuffed the idea, Thérèse drugged Josephine’s wine to get her over her inhibitions. The result was an unintended pregnancy that Josephine terminated with a deliberate fall to cause a miscarriage. Talleyrand concludes it may have left her barren. Napoleon is devastated to learn of this secret that Josephine has kept from him all these years (“Secrets Kill”). Thérèse suffers deep regret for having interfered in her friend’s life (“If We Could Start Again”).
Children enter Narnia through a wardrobe and encounter a land held in winter by the White Witch. This musical adaptation follows their changing relationships, encounters with Aslan, and discovery of courage and belonging.
The musical starts in 1812, Moscow, Russia, by introducing the characters ("Prologue"). The audience is then introduced to Pierre Bezukhov, a depressed, unhappily married man who feels he is wasting his life ("Pierre"). He is a good friend of Andrey Bolkonsky, who is away fighting in the war. Andrey has recently become engaged to Natasha Rostova. Natasha and her cousin, Sonya Rostova, arrive in Moscow to visit Natasha's godmother, Marya Dmitrievna, and wait for Andrey to come home ("Moscow"). Natasha is to meet her future in-laws, Andrey's sister, the lonely Mary Bolkonskaya, and his father, the old Prince Bolkonsky, who are trapped in a hateful co-existence ("The Private and Intimate Life of the House"). However, their meeting ends in disaster, as Natasha finds Mary cold and Mary finds Natasha vain, with Bolkonsky behaving bizarrely and dismissing Natasha ("Natasha And Bolkonskys"). Natasha leaves, missing Andrey more than ever, and recalls the time they first met ("No One Else"). The next night, Natasha watches an opera with Sonya and Marya. Natasha catches the eye of Pierre's brother-in-law Anatole Kuragin, a notorious rogue and womaniser ("The Opera"). Anatole visits Natasha in her box to flirt and leaves her with feelings she has never experienced before ("Natasha And Anatole"). Anatole arrives home after the opera and goes out drinking with his friend, Fedya Dolokhov, and Pierre. They are met by Hélène Bezukhova, the unfaithfully promiscuous wife of Pierre and shamelessly suggestive sister of Anatole. Anatole lusts for Natasha, although it is revealed he is already married. Hélène flirts with Dolokhov, who taunts Pierre by raising a toast to "married women and their lovers". A drunk Pierre finds Dolokhov's behaviour insulting and challenges him to a duel. Pierre accidentally wounds Dolokhov, and Dolokhov, despite being a renowned crack shot, miraculously misses him. Before they all leave, Anatole asks Hélène to invite Natasha to a ball that evening, and she agrees ("The Duel"). They leave Pierre, who reflects on his near-death experience and realizes that despite wasting his life, he wishes to live and find love ("Dust And Ashes"). The next morning, as Natasha prepares for church, she is confused about her feelings for Anatole at the opera and questions whether they mean she has betrayed Andrey, fearing that something may prevent them from being together ("Sunday Morning"). Later that day, Hélène visits Natasha and invites her to the ball, praising her beauty, and Natasha agrees to attend. Hélène privately revels in the scandalous idea of her brother and Natasha getting together ("Charming"). That night at the ball, Natasha is met by Anatole, and they dance. Anatole professes his love to Natasha, who tries to tell him that she is already engaged. Ignoring this, Anatole kisses Natasha, leading her to fall in love with him in return ("The Ball"). After his duel with Dolokhov, Pierre begins studying to search for enlightenment. Natasha is further torn between her feelings for both Andrey and Anatole ("Letters"). Sonya discovers letters between Natasha and Anatole, learning of their relationship. She confronts Natasha and desperately explains her distrust of Anatole, but Natasha bursts out in anger at her and leaves. Natasha writes to Mary and breaks off her engagement with Andrey ("Sonya And Natasha"). Alone, Sonya reflects on her love for her cousin and her determination to save her, even if it means losing her closest friend ("Sonya Alone"). That evening, Anatole and Dolokhov prepare for the former's elopement with Natasha. Dolokhov attempts to change Anatole's mind, but is unsuccessful ("Preparations"). Balaga, their troika driver, arrives to take them to Natasha's house, where they will retrieve her before departing ("Balaga"). However, when they arrive at Natasha's house, their plan is thwarted at the last moment by Marya, who has discovered the plot ("The Abduction"). Marya scolds Natasha, who then reveals to Marya and Sonya that she broke off her engagement with Andrey and reaffirms her love for Anatole, whom she still believes is unmarried. Natasha screams at Marya and Sonya, bursting into tears as she waits all night for Anatole ("In My House"). Marya calls on Pierre in the middle of the night and explains the situation to him, begging him to handle the crisis. Pierre tells Marya that Anatole is already married ("A Call to Pierre"). Pierre, outraged, searches Moscow for Anatole while Marya and Sonya tell a grief-stricken Natasha that Anatole is already married. Pierre eventually finds Anatole at Hélène's house ("Find Anatole"). Pierre, close to violence, orders Anatole to leave Moscow and burn all his correspondence with Natasha. A terrified Anatole agrees, but manages to squeeze travelling money out of Pierre in the process ("Pierre And Anatole"). Natasha attempts to take her own life by poisoning herself with arsenic, but lives ("Natasha Very Ill"). The next day, Andrey returns home from the war and is disoriented about the refusal of marriage he received from Natasha, which he asks Pierre about. Pierre explains the scandal to him and pleads with him to be compassionate, but Andrey is unable to forgive Natasha and cold-heartedly tells Pierre that he will not ask for her hand in marriage again ("Pierre And Andrey"). Pierre visits a shattered Natasha, meeting her for the first time, and comforts her. During their conversation, he expresses that if he were the best man on Earth and were free, he would gladly marry her, giving her hope ("Pierre And Natasha"). After their meeting, Pierre experiences a moment of enlightenment as he watches the Great Comet of 1812 soar across the night sky ("The Great Comet Of 1812").
In the 18th century in New Orleans' Place d'Armes, vendors are hawking their wares ("Clear Away!"). They believe the fountain is haunted by the ghost of a woman who was killed by the pirate Bras Pique. Étienne Grandet, the son of the territory's lieutenant governor, is secretly the pirate and has been attacking ships bound for New Orleans. Étienne's father shares in his profits, and his quadroon slave mistress Adah knows Étienne's secret. Captain Dick Warrington and Sir Harry Blake lead a band of locals into the square vowing to capture Bras Pique ("Tramp, Tramp, Tramp"). Lieutenant Governor Grandet holds them off to assist Étienne's scheme to establish a breakaway Louisiana dictatorship under his own command. Captain Dick's men are also excited about the arrival of marriageable casquette girls that the King of France has sent ("Taisez-Vous"). Plain-looking Lizette latches on to the boastful Simon O'Hara, Captain Dick's Jewish servant. When the square clears, a fragment of the ghost's song comes from the fountain ("Mysterious Melody"). The singer is actually "Naughty Marietta", a casquette girl who escaped from her ship. Captain Dick, who had met her in Mozambique, agrees to hide her at the marionette theatre, where she poses as the son of the puppeteer Rudolfo. The captain insists he cannot love Marietta ("It Never, Never Can Be Love"). Marietta tells him that she will love the man who can complete the melodic fragment she dreamed up. Dick refuses her request to complete it but finds himself whistling it later. Simon tries to impress Lizette ("If I Were Anyone Else but Me"). Worried that Étienne does not love her, Adah tries to divine her future ("'Neath a Southern Moon"). Marietta performs at Rudolfo's theatre ("Italian Street Song"). The King offers a reward for the return of the missing Contessa d'Altena, who hid among the casquette girls. She is known to sing a tune that the townfolk recognize as the ghost melody. Blake accidentally ruins Marietta's disguise. She insists she is not the Contessa and, during a scuffle between Étienne's and Dick's men, runs away with Rudolfo. Marietta learns Rudolfo's craft ("Dance of the Marionettes"). Étienne believes she is the Contessa and woos her ("You Marry a Marionette"); a marriage to a contessa would legitimize his plan for a Louisiana. The decadence of New Orleans is displayed at a quadroon ball ("New Orleans, Jeunesse Dorèe" and "The Loves of New Orleans"). Lizette pines for a husband ("The Sweet By-and-By"). Simon hopes to complete the Contessa's song and marry her, and he ignores Lizette. Marietta is shocked by the ball's immorality: drinking, gambling and womanizing. Captain Dick arrives to protect her, but thinks he has been flirting with Adah, and so she dances with Étienne ("Live for Today"), who proposes to her. She asks Étienne about Adah, and he says he will auction her. Marietta seeks out Dick, who realizes his feelings for her ("I'm Falling in Love with Someone"). Étienne auctions Adah, and Dick buys her. Marietta jealously agrees to marry Étienne and reveals she is Contessa d'Altena. Dick sets Adah free, and she offers to help him reveal Étienne as Bras Pique. Simon revels in the ease of his new job as the Grandet's whipping boy ("It's Pretty Soft for Simon"), but when Dick fingers Étienne as Bras Pique, Simon is obligated to take the punishment. Adah tells Marietta of Étienne's pirate identity, and so she refuses to marry him. When the lieutenant governor locks her up, she hears a voice outside completing her dream song ("Ah, Sweet Mystery of Life"). It is Dick, whose men are not far behind. Dick and Marietta sing the finished song together. Étienne relinquishes his claim on Marietta, and Dick allows the pirates to escape without harm.
The plot of Never Forget has been through several incarnations since the initial workshop production which toured the UK in 2007. Each version of the script is deliberately different in order to update the setting of the show. When the original production played, Take That had just reformed and the show referenced this. In more recent productions, the characters have noted the success the boyband have seen since their comeback. Ash Sherwood is a struggling singer-songwriter in Manchester, England, with dreams of making it big. He proposes to his girlfriend Chloe and, to his surprise, she accepts ("Could It Be Magic"), and the couple's engagement party follows. Ash's mum's pub, 'The Three Bells' is under threat due to mounting debt, and Ash needs to raise money quickly. Taking a desperate chance, Ash and his best friend, Jake Turner (Chloe's older brother), decide to audition for a tribute band set to be entered into the lucrative 'Battle of the Tribute Bands' competition. Holding the auditions is Ron Freeman, an eccentric but hard-nosed band manager. With money problems of his own, Ron is looking for a group of lads he can mould into the ultimate Take That tribute band. At the audition ("Pray"), the band come together as Ash and Jake are joined by three others: Adrian Banks, an introverted bank manager trying to win back his adulterous wife; Dirty Harry, a dim but endearing stripper who is desperate to escape the world of stripping; and Jose Reize, a Spaniard come to England in search of fame and fortune, and happy to escape from his overbearing mother. Once Ron chooses the band members, rehearsals begin, and the boys are joined by their new choreographer and backing dancers ("Pray" (reprise)). In her dark and empty pub, Babs Sherwood has just received her final eviction notice. She reminisces over her years spent behind the bar ("Never Forget"). Ash promises Babs that he will save the pub with his competition winnings (if they win). Chloe, immersed in wedding magazines, wants the perfect wedding. Babs tries to convince Ash that it is too late for the pub, and the money would be better spent on the wedding. The following day at the gym, the boys are working out with their choreographer and backing dancers. Jake tries to hit on the choreographer, who is not best pleased with the bands progress in the rehearsal room; she turns on him and calls the band amateurs. The argument between the band members and choreographer turns into a 'dance off' between the boys and the backing dancers ("Take That & Party"). Ron enters the gym's changing room to discover the boys messing around, and he lectures them about dedication. He makes them sign his contract and relays the news that they are scheduled to perform a 'practice gig' the next night at a local pub in Salford. The following evening, back stage at the pub, Ron gives the band his pre show pep talk and inspires them with stories of "World Ruddy Domination". Ron takes Ash aside to tell him that there will be somebody special watching the performance. On stage at the pub, the boys lose their confidence in front of the audience, and the other four leave Ash alone to begin the number ("Babe"). Inspired by Ash's performance, the others regain their confidence and join Ash on stage. Ron and Annie Borrowman, Ron's record-producer friend, watch the performance from the sidelines. After the performance, they take Ash aside and offer him a special contract – a solo deal. Ash tells Chloe about the offer, vowing to try to talk Annie into taking the rest of the group as well. On Ash's Stag Night, whilst queuing outside the Salsa Bar, Ash and his friends bump into Chloe and her friends out for her Hen Night. Ash's mum forces them to combine the 2 parties inside the club ("It Only Takes a Minute"). Ron and Annie turn up for the party, and Chloe discovers that Annie is after more than just Ash's talent. Ash is unable to convince Annie to take on any of the other boys as part of her special deal. A jealous Chloe throws her drink at Annie. Outside the club, Chloe and Ash argue over Annie and the special deal. Chloe shouts "Do What You Like", leaving Ash alone to make his choice: loyalty to his friends and fiancée or his solo career. The next day, at the Three Belles Pub, Chloe tells her brother and the rest of the group about Annie's secret offer. Ash enters and is forced to tell them that he has decided to take Annie's offer, which could lead to stardom, and to leave the boys and their tribute band behind. The rest of the band leave Chloe and Ash behind in disgust. Chloe is upset, and after another argument calls off the engagement. Ash is left alone with his thoughts and wanders in the rain ("Back for Good"). Ash and Chloe are unable to resolve their differences. The rest of the band and the crowd returns ("Never Forget" (reprise)) and the rain stops. The front cloth flies out to reveal the four remaining band members tap dancing to the tune of ("I Found Heaven"), but there is a space where Ash should be, as the four boys carry on without him. In a backstage dressing room, Chloe decides to join the group to fill in Ash's missing space. The four boys, happy with that resolution, decide to visit Ash to make peace. In the TV studio, Ash is busy rehearsing his own number with his new dancers under the scrutinising eye of Annie ("Every Guy"). The four boys enter, interrupting the rehearsal to speak to Ash, and Annie reluctantly gives them five minutes. During this time the boys make up, but Harry accidentally lets on that Chloe has replaced Ash in their band. Ash is struck with a sudden pang of jealousy. After the rehearsal is finished, Annie decides to take Ash out for a quiet drink to discuss his career. The 'drink' ends in a seedy pole dancing club where Annie seduces Ash ("Once You've Tasted Love"). The next morning, Chloe appears at Ash's flat in Manchester to try to resolve their problems. Annie appears in the doorway inside half dressed. Chloe flees, distraught, and wanders off into the streets of Manchester ("Love Ain't Here Anymore"). In Ash's backstage dressing room, he is preparing to go on stage to perform his own entry in the 'Battle of the Bands' competition. His mum gives him a 'right good telling off' for the way he has treated Chloe, when Annie enters to tell Ash he should be warming up. Babs and Annie have a massive argument, during which Annie reveals that the money he was expecting for his deal actually went to Ron to Buy him out of his previous contract. Babs finally tells Ash he is too late to save the pub as it has gone. They leave Ash alone, but when Ron enters, Ash throws him to the ground in a heated rage before storming off. Ron is left alone with his own thoughts ("Never Forget"). In the band's dressing room, the four boys are preparing to go on stage to perform their number for the competition. Ash joins them and wants to make amends; he decides to break his deal with Annie and re-join his friends in their tribute band. They agree to accept him back. Chloe arrives to discover that they have let Ash back into the band without her approval, and she storms off. On The Battle of the Bands concert stage, the final act is announced. Amidst spectacular flames, the band perform ("Relight My Fire"), with Chloe reluctantly taking on the role made famous by Lulu. After the performance, the competition winners are announced, with the band a winner. Ron joins the band on stage to apologise for selling Ash off to Annie. Ash forgives him, and they all leave a happy Ron on stage with his trophy. Outside the concert hall, Ash chases after Chloe, wanting to make things right, and they reconcile ("A Million Love Songs"). Later, at the church where wedding guests are arriving, the children's choir and priest are on the pulpit. Ash and Chloe enter and walk up the isle under a trumpet fanfare of "Never Forget". The children's choir sing as the couple are married, and after the ceremony is complete, all join in.
Never Gonna Dance is a Broadway musical featuring the music of Jerome Kern. The musical was based on the 1936 Fred Astaire/Ginger Rogers film Swing Time. Lyricists include Oscar Hammerstein, Ira Gershwin, P. G. Wodehouse, Bernard Dougall, Johnny Mercer, Jimmy McHugh, Otto Harbach, and Dorothy Fields. It opened on Broadway in 2003.
Nevermore: The Imaginary Life and Mysterious Death of Edgar Allan Poe is a musical that was written, composed, and directed by Jonathan Christenson and designed by Bretta Gerecke. It follows the life of Edgar Allan Poe and the internal and external struggles he faced which are depicted as inspiring his writings. In the play, Poe struggles with tragedies such as death, abandonment, addiction, poverty, and loss. The script contains many references to Poe's poems and short stories. The script fictionalizes true events that took place in his life while also incorporating his creative works and poems. It was originally produced at the Catalyst Theater in Edmonton, Alberta, for an 11-week production that then went on to be performed at theater festivals, theaters across Canada, to the Barbican Theater in London, and the New Victory Theater in New York City.
New Girl in Town is a 1957 musical with a book by George Abbott and music and lyrics by Bob Merrill based on Eugene O'Neill's 1921 play Anna Christie, about a prostitute who tries to live down her past. New Girl, unlike O'Neill's play, focuses on the jealousy of the character Marthy and on love's ability to conquer all. The musical ends far more hopefully than the play.
New York, New York is a musical with music by John Kander, lyrics by Fred Ebb and Lin-Manuel Miranda, and a book by David Thompson and Sharon Washington. Inspired by and loosely based on the 1977 film of the same name by Martin Scorsese, the musical premiered on Broadway on April 26, 2023. Despite receiving mixed to mostly dismal reviews and becoming a commercial disappointment, the Broadway production, directed and choreographed by Susan Stroman, received nine nominations at the 76th Tony Awards, including Best Musical, winning one award for Best Scenic Design in a Musical.
Newsical (styled "NEWSical") is a musical with music, lyrics, and book written by Rick Crom. In ever-changing songs and sketches, it lampoons current events, hot topics, celebrities, politicians, and other well-known entities. New songs are added on a continual basis to keep up with the headlines. The musical began with a cabaret production in 2002 before moving Off-off-Broadway in 2004. In 2009 producer Tom D'Angora opened a new edition at Theater Row. It won the Off-Broadway Alliance Award for Best Musical and over the years received several Drama Desk nominations. In 2022 the show played at The Majestic Repertory Theatre in Las Vegas before transferring to the V Theater located in the Miracle Mile Shops at Planet Hollywood.
New York newsboys organize a strike when newspaper owners increase the price they must pay for papers. Jack Kelly and his fellow sellers confront powerful publishers while discovering the strength and risks of collective action.
Diana Goodman, a suburban mother with bipolar disorder, waits for her teenage son to return home after he has broken curfew. Diana's daughter Natalie is also awake completing her homework. Her son returns home and Diana's husband Dan wakes up, and the family prepares for the day ahead until Diana, disoriented, prepares sandwiches on every surface in the kitchen, including the floor ("Just Another Day"). Natalie, a pianist who hopes to attend the Yale School of Music, laments the stress of being an overachiever while practicing for an upcoming recital in the school music room ("Everything Else"). She runs into her classmate Henry and they bond over their shared love of music. Diana regularly visits her psychiatrist Dr. Fine, who prescribes a series of medications to treat her bipolar disorder that all cause unpleasant side effects. Dan, waiting in the car, mourns the current state of his life and his and Diana's relationship. When Diana says her new medication makes her feel numb and emotionless, Dr. Fine declares her stable ("Who's Crazy?/My Psychopharmacologist and I"). Henry confesses his romantic feelings for Natalie and they start dating ("Perfect for You"). Diana mourns the full spectrum of emotions she once felt and flushes her medications at her son's urging ("I Miss the Mountains"). Henry joins the family for dinner ("It's Gonna Be Good"), but when Diana brings out a cake for her son's 18th birthday, Dan gently reminds her that he died as an infant and her visions of him are delusions ("He's Not Here"). Diana reveals to Dan that she stopped taking her medication and tells him he will never understand the pain she feels ("You Don't Know"). Dan begs her to help him understand, but Diana is torn between the comfort her delusion brings her and confronting the painful reality of his absence ("I Am the One"). Natalie vents to Henry about Diana's attachment to her firstborn child and their strained relationship ("Superboy and the Invisible Girl"). Diana visits a new psychiatrist, Dr. Madden, who agrees to start with talk therapy. Her son reappears and reasserts his control over Diana's life; her delusions disturb her, but she is also comforted by his presence ("I'm Alive"). Diana later tries hypnotherapy with Dr. Madden; she opens up about her son's death and her relationship with Natalie, admitting she had Natalie to be a replacement child and Diana was unable to hold her in the hospital. Meanwhile, Natalie messes up her piano recital after realizing her parents are not there ("Make Up Your Mind/Catch Me I'm Falling"). Dr. Madden encourages Diana to begin getting rid of her son's things, and she has another vision of him ("I Dreamed a Dance"). The vision tells Diana the only way they can be reunited is if she is dead, and she attempts suicide ("There's a World"). Diana survives the suicide attempt, and Dr. Madden tells Dan that due to the severity of Diana's condition, electroconvulsive therapy is among the last treatment options left. Dan reminisces about their relationship and how he has stood by her through everything ("I've Been"), while Diana is furious at the suggestion she undergo ECT ("Didn't I See This Movie?"), Dan convinces Diana that the treatment is a chance to get back to normal, and she reluctantly agrees ("A Light in the Dark"). Diana undergoes ECT, while Natalie experiments with drugs and frequently goes clubbing. The two have a shared hallucination ("Wish I Were Here"). When Diana is released from the hospital, she reveals that she has lost her memories from the past 19 years, including her son and daughter. Dan remains optimistic that her memories will return, while Natalie is upset her mother agreed to the treatment in the first place ("Song of Forgetting"). Henry, worried about Natalie's substance use and self-destruction, asks her to the upcoming school dance and she declines ("Hey #1"). Dr. Madden assures Dan that Diana's memory loss from ECT is normal. Dan is hesitant to remind her about their late son, given her mental illness first manifested after the trauma of his death ("Seconds and Years"). The family goes through old photo albums to jog Diana's memory, leaving out any mention of their firstborn ("Better Than Before"). Diana's vision of her son appears and reminds her there is an important part of her life she has forgotten ("Aftershocks"). Henry again asks Natalie to the dance and she again declines, though he says he will come pick her up that night in case she changes her mind ("Hey #2"). At a follow-up visit, Diana tells Dr. Madden she knows there is something important from her past she still can't remember. Dr. Madden, unaware that Dan has been keeping it from her, accidentally reveals the existence of her dead son ("You Don't Know (Reprise)"). Diana returns home and finds her son's music box, and Dan reluctantly reminds her of the circumstances of his death at 18 months old from an intestinal blockage, which all the doctors had missed ("How Could I Ever Forget?") but the confused Diana says she remembers him as a teenager due to having hallucinated him. The couple argue over Dan's insistence that she undergo more ECT and his refusal to tell her their son's name ("It's Gonna Be Good (Reprise)"). Diana asks Dan why he stays with her despite everything her illness has put him through. He reminds her of the vows he took when they married and promises he is committed to her no matter what. Henry, waiting to take Natalie to the dance, pledges the same to her ("Why Stay?/A Promise") and she agrees to go with him. The vision of Diana's son reappears ("I'm Alive (Reprise)") and threatens Diana, telling her the doctors lied to her. Natalie takes Diana to visit Dr. Madden, telling Henry that she will meet him at the dance later. Diana expresses her frustrations to Dr. Madden that years of treatments haven't helped her and wonders if her grief over her son's death can even be treated ("The Break"). Dr. Madden unsuccessfully pleads with her to continue treatment ("Make Up Your Mind/Catch Me I'm Falling (Reprise)") but she leaves, deciding not to undergo more ECT. Diana and Natalie have a heart-to-heart, noting their similarities ("Maybe (Next to Normal)"). Diana drives Natalie to the dance, where she frets to Henry that she will struggle with her mental health the same way as her mother. Henry promises he will stand by her regardless of what happens in the future ("Hey #3/Perfect for You (Reprise)"). Diana returns home and tells Dan though she loves him, she is leaving, as they each need to grieve their son on their own ("So Anyway"). After she leaves, a devastated Dan finally acknowledges the vision of his late son, and they embrace. For the first and only time in the show, Dan and Diana's son is called by his name: Gabe ("I Am the One (Reprise)"). Natalie returns home from the dance to find her mother gone and her father sitting in the dark. She turns on a lamp, telling Dan, "We need some light." Natalie continues her relationship with Henry, while Diana temporarily moves in with her parents. Dr. Madden recommends another psychiatrist to Dan, so he can begin his own journey of grieving Gabe's death. The cast, including Gabe, acknowledge the difficulty of moving forward but hopeful that they will adjust to the changes in their lives ("Light").
Act I; It's 1927, in the midst of a riotous bachelor party for the oft-married Jimmy Winter ("Sweet and Lowdown"). Outside, a trio of bootleggers – Cookie, Billie and Duke – are trying to figure out where to hide the 400 cases of gin they have stashed on their boat. As a stranger approaches, Duke and Cookie rush off. A drunken Jimmy staggers and comes across the pants-wearing Billie and is immediately smitten. He explains his plight – he must marry someone respectable or his mother will disinherit him, so he's marrying someone he doesn't truly love. Billie isn't all that interested in his tale of woe, until he reveals that he has a huge Long Island beach house that he never uses, so she swipes his wallet to discover the address. Jimmy assumes Billie is falling for him, but Billie insists that love is for suckers. Jimmy vehemently disagrees ("Nice Work If You Can Get It"). Jimmy passes out, and Billie focuses on this interesting man unconscious on the ground before her ("Nice Work If You Can Get It - Reprise"). Cookie and Duke rush back on, and Billie tells them that she found a place to store their bootleg – a Long Island beach house. A police whistle pierces the air, and the bootleggers scatter. Senator Max Evergreen and Chief Berry enter, along with Duchess Estonia Dulworth, who has brought along her Vice Squad and vows to rid society of its greatest evil ("Demon Rum"). The next morning, Billie, Cookie and Duke have stored their 400 cases of gin in the cellar of Jimmy's ritzy beach house. Eileen Evergreen, the finest interpreter of modern dance in the world, enters with Jimmy. They were married that morning, and they are on their honeymoon, though Eileen has yet to allow Jimmy to touch her. Cookie, disguised as a butler, enters and they naturally assume he's their servant. They send him off, and Eileen tells Jimmy that she's ready for the honeymoon shenanigans to begin – as soon as she takes a bath. She exits into the house as Billie enters, stunned to see Jimmy. Jimmy has no memory of meeting her last night, and as Jimmy flirts with her, Billie confesses that she's never been kissed. Strictly for educational purposes, Jimmy kisses Billie, and she realizes what she's been missing ("Someone to Watch Over Me"). Four and a half hours later, Eileen is still bathing ("Delishious"). In the ritzy living room, Cookie and Billie devise a plan for Billie to distract Jimmy from the 400 cases of gin in his cellar. Billie runs off as Jimmy enters, followed by a gaggle of chorus girls who invite him for a group swim, which Jimmy almost accepts ("I've Got to be There"). Eileen enters with a flourish, and just as she is about to let Jimmy touch her, he receives a telegram revealing that his last wife has refused to sign the annulment, and an irate Eileen storms off to get her father. That night in Jimmy's ritzy bedroom, Billie breaks in and tries to seduce him, badly ("Treat Me Rough"). Chief Berry, who has been pursuing Billie, barges in to arrest her. But Jimmy convinces him that Billie is actually his newest wife ("Let's Call the Whole Thing Off") and Billie and Jimmy are forced to spend the whole night together in his bedroom. The next morning, Jeannie, a happy-go-lucky chorus girl, comes upon Duke, a lug from New Jersey, and mistakes him for an actual English Duke. Duke, who is perpetually nervous around women, tries to escape, but Jeannie does everything in her power to get him to notice her ("Do it Again"). In the ritzy living room, Jimmy and Billie realize that they are hopelessly in love ("'S Wonderful") But Eileen returns with her father – the ultra-conservative Senator Evergreen – and her aunt – the Duchess Estonia Dulworth – to demand that Jimmy and Eileen have a legal wedding. Jimmy has no choice but to marry Eileen, and Billie pretends to be a cockney maid so she can stick around and guard the bootleg. As Eileen beelines towards the cellar to get the wedding china, Jimmy and Cookie frantically distract the wedding party away from the basement ("Fascinating Rhythm") as the curtain falls. Act II; On the ritzy terrace, the Vice Squad and Chorus Girls revel ("Lady Be Good"). Billie enters and realizes she'll never be as happy as the dancing revelers around her ("But Not For Me"). Cookie and Duke enter and, since they're all now disguised as servants, they plot how they can get the impending wedding luncheon over and done with as quickly as possible. The Duchess barrels on to instruct Cookie in the finer points of luncheon preparation. She insists on hiring a string quartet for entertainment, but Cookie has other ideas ("By Strauss" / "Sweet and Lowdown - Reprise"). As Billie sets the ritzy luncheon table, Jimmy makes one last attempt to appease her ("Do, Do, Do"). But Billie will have none of it. As the luncheon begins, Cookie and Duke frantically serve the luncheon guests, and the Duchess continues to annoy Cookie, who spikes her lemonade with Gin. Billie entertains them all with a cockney song ("Hangin' Around With You") which mainly serves as an excuse to keep pouring hot soup on Jimmy's lap. But Billie accidentally pours some steaming soup onto Eileen, who immediately fires her. The Duchess, now happily drunk, defends Billie and reveals a deep secret as she grabs onto Cookie, climbs on the luncheon table and swings from a chandelier ("Looking for a Boy"). After he drags off the Duchess, an angry Jimmy calls Billie a common criminal, and they realize that they can never be together. Jimmy goes to prepare for his wedding, as Jeannie enters looking for Duke, who Billie accidentally reveals isn't a real duke. Jeannie is furious, so Duke tries to win her over with a poem ("Blah Blah Blah"), but Jeannie rushes away. In the ritzy bedroom, Cookie is dressing Jimmy for his wedding as Billie enters to return his wallet. Jimmy and Billie both realize that this is the last time they'll ever see each other ("Will You Remember Me?"). The Chorus Girls and Vice Squad set up the wedding ("I've Got To Be There - Reprise"). As Senator Evergreen presides, Eileen makes her very grand entrance ("I've Got a Crush on You"). But just before vows are exchanged, Cookie and Duke rush in, pretending to be Prohibition Agents, though Chief Berry quickly enters and reveals their true identities. As they're arrested, Jeannie rushes in and proclaims her love for Duke, then the now sober Duchess proclaims her love for Cookie. Still, Senator Evergreen insists the bootleggers must be arrested, but Jimmy's mother, Millicent, makes an appearance, revealing the true nature of her son's heritage – Senator Evergreen is Jimmy's father. The senator proclaims the day a joyous one and all are free to pursue their new and surprising loves. Jimmy realizes that Billie has rushed to the boathouse to sail away forever, and he rushes to swear his devotion to her. Millicent follows and reveals that she happens to be the biggest rum-runner on Long Island, and she'd like Billie to marry her son and take over her business. Billie happily accepts ("Someone to Watch Over Me - Reprise"). And on the ritzy terrace under a starry night, love has blossomed, the bootleg is opened and the company celebrates their newfound joy ("They All Laughed!").
Nick & Nora is a musical with a book by Arthur Laurents, lyrics by Richard Maltby, Jr., and music by Charles Strouse. The plot involves witty and urbane high society couple Nick and Nora Charles, characters created by Dashiell Hammett in his novel The Thin Man, which inspired six films, a radio show, and a television series. In this version, the two are attempting to solve the murder of a bookkeeper on a film production in Hollywood. Crucially, the musical departs from the formula of previous incarnations, defined by the chemistry between Nick and Nora, by creating a subplot of marital woes and tensions between them. The show had a brief run of nine performances on Broadway in 1991, and was remounted for the first and only time by San Francisco's 42nd Street Moon in April 2015.
A Chinese emperor learns of a nightingale whose singing moves everyone who hears it and orders his courtiers to find the bird. After a mechanical bird arrives from Japan, the courtiers prefer it and the real nightingale disappears. When the mechanical bird breaks and the emperor falls gravely ill, a little girl brings the real nightingale back; its song helps him recover, and the people celebrate.
Guido Contini, a famous Italian film director, has turned forty and faces double crises: he has to shoot a film for which he can't write the script, and his wife of twenty years, film star Luisa del Forno, may leave him if he can't pay more attention to their marriage. Luisa's efforts to talk to him are drowned out by voices in his head: voices of women in his life whom he has loved ("Overture delle Donne"). In an attempt to find some peace and save the marriage, they go to a spa near Venice ("Spa Music"), where they are immediately hunted down by the press with intrusive questions about their marriage and Guido's imminent film project, which he has not told Luisa about ("Not Since Chaplin"). As Guido struggles to find a story for his film, he becomes increasingly preoccupied, his interior world sometimes becoming indistinguishable from reality ("Guido's Song"). His mistress Carla arrives in Venice, calling him from her hotel room ("A Call from the Vatican"). His producer Liliane La Fleur, former vedette of the Folies Bergeres, insists he make a musical, an idea which veers off into a vivid fantasy ("The Script / Folies Bergeres"). All the while, Luisa watches, the resilience of her love being consumed by anxiety for him and a gathering dismay about their life together ("My Husband Makes Movies / Only With You"). In Guido's imagination, he encounters his mother bathing a nine-year-old boy—his own young self ("Nine"). The vision leads him to re-encounter a moment on a beach with Saraghina, a prostitute to whom he went as a curious child, sneaking out of his Catholic boarding school St. Sebastian, to ask her to tell him about love. Her answer, to be yourself ("Ti Voglio Bene / Be Italian"), and the dance she taught him reminds the forty-year-old Guido of the consequences of that night—punishment by the nuns and rejection by his mother ("The Bells of St. Sebastian"). Unable to bear the adults, the little boy runs back to the beach to find no one. Back into the present, Guido is on a beach once more. With him is Claudia Nardi, a film star and his muse, who has flown in from Paris for him; however, she does not want the role. He is enraged by her rejection. Claudia loves him but wants him to love her as a person and not a "spirit", which he cannot do. She calls him "My charming Casanova!", thereby involuntarily giving Guido the inspiration he needs ("A Man Like You"). Claudia lets him go ("Unusual Way"), Guido has an idea for a movie set on the Grand Canal and cast with every woman in his life ("The Grand Canal"). During the filming of the movie, Carla races onto the set to announce her divorce and her delight that they can be married, only to be rejected by Guido in his fixation on the film. Luisa is enraged and saddened by his use of their intimacy and her words as a source for the film. Guido keeps the cameras rolling, capturing the desolation of the women he loves ("Cut, Print!"). The film is dead. Carla leaves with a broken heart ("Simple"). Claudia sends a letter from Paris to say that she has married. Luisa ends their marriage ("Be On Your Own"). Guido is alone and directionless, contemplating suicide ("I Can't Make This Movie"). As the gun is at his head, he is interrupted by his nine-year-old self telling him it is time to grow up and move on, and Guido surrenders the gun ("Getting Tall"). The women return, this time to let him go, with the exception of Luisa ("Reprises"). Guido feels the aching void left by the only woman he will ever love. In the 2003 Broadway production, as the boy leads the women off, Luisa steps into the room on the final note, and Guido turns toward her.
Nite Club Confidential is a musical that debuted Off-Broadway in 1984. The show, which was written and directed by Dennis Deal, was about 1950s-era nightclubs and starred Fay DeWitt, a former nightclub performer.
Heiress Annabella resists wealthy older Mr. Dee but cannot marry until her guardian Mr. Coodle is found. Dee and the shy Churchmouse each disguise themselves as Coodle to seek her hand. Mrs. Pennythorne sees through the impostures, reveals that Annabella is not wealthy, and exposes both suitors. Dee admits he is too old; Churchmouse says she is not too poor, and Annabella accepts him.
No Strings is a musical drama with book by Samuel A. Taylor and words and music by Richard Rodgers. No Strings is the only Broadway score for which Rodgers wrote both lyrics and music, and the first musical he composed after the death of his long-time collaborator, Oscar Hammerstein II. The musical opened on Broadway in 1962 and ran for 580 performances. It received six Tony Award nominations, winning three, for Best Leading Actress in a Musical, Best Original Score and Best Choreography.
Based on 1971 Revised Production Act I: 1925. The home of James Smith, New York City. Jimmy Smith, a millionaire Bible publisher, is married to the overly frugal Sue. Jimmy thus has plenty of disposable income, and, because he likes to use his money to make people happy, he has secretly become the (platonic) benefactor of three beautiful women: Betty from Boston, Winnie from Washington, D.C., and Flora from San Francisco. Sue's best friend, Lucille, is married to Jimmy's lawyer and friend, Billy Early. Lucille is a spendthrift and delights in spending all the money Billy makes. Jimmy and Sue have a young ward, Nanette, who they hope will become a respectable young lady. At Jimmy and Sue's home in New York, many young men come to call on Nanette. Lucille advises the young people that having one steady boyfriend is better than many flirtations ("Too Many Rings Around Rosie"). Tom Trainor, Billy's nephew and assistant, works up the courage to tell Nanette that he loves her, and she returns his sentiments ("I've Confessed to the Breeze"). Tom wants to settle down and get married as soon as possible, but Nanette has an untapped wild side and wants to have some fun first. Jimmy's lady friends are attempting to blackmail him, and he, afraid that Sue will find out about them, enlists Billy's legal help to discreetly ease the girls out of his life. Billy suggests that Jimmy take refuge in Philadelphia. Unknown to Jimmy, Billy decides to take Tom and meet the three ladies at the Smiths' seaside home, Chickadee Cottage, in Atlantic City, New Jersey ("Call of the Sea"). Sue and Lucille, hearing that both their husbands will be away on business, also decide to take a vacation to the cottage. Nanette wants to go to Atlantic City with her friends, but Sue forbids her to go. Jimmy, wanting to make Nanette happy, gives her $200 and agrees to secretly take her to Chickadee Cottage, with the grumpy cook, Pauline, acting as Nanette's chaperone ("I Want to Be Happy"). Nanette is tired of everyone (especially Tom) trying to control her behavior and dreams of the extravagant fun she will have ("No No Nanette"). To tease Tom, she shows him the $200 and refuses to tell him how she got it. Tom angrily breaks off his relationship with Nanette, and, under the pretense that she is going to visit her grandmother in Trenton, New Jersey, Nanette leaves for Atlantic City (Finaletto Act I). Act II: The garden and living room of Chickadee Cottage, Atlantic City. Nanette arrives in Atlantic City and quickly becomes the most popular girl on the beach ("Peach on the Beach"). Meanwhile, Jimmy crosses paths with his three girlfriends, who confront him with the promises he made to them ("The Three Happies"). Tom meets up with Nanette, and they resolve their quarrel, fantasizing about being happily married one day ("Tea for Two"). Lucille runs into Billy, and though she is surprised to meet him in Atlantic City, she assures him that she does not mind whether he spends time with other women as long as she's there to watch – and he comes home with her at the end of the evening ("You Can Dance with Any Girl At All"). Sue is shocked to find Nanette in Atlantic City. Nanette at first lies and said she was only visiting her grandmother in Trenton, but Sue knows that cannot be true: Nanette's only living grandmother lives in Omaha, Nebraska. Nanette admits that she actually spent the night in Atlantic City. Against her protests, Sue arranges for her to go back to New York with Pauline. Sue overhears Billy speaking to the women and, assuming that he is having an affair with them, tells Lucille. Billy, to keep Jimmy's secret, does not deny it, and Lucille says she is leaving him. Meanwhile, Tom, shocked by Nanette's behavior, breaks off their relationship. Jimmy is oblivious to the confusion he's created (Finaletto Act II). Act III Billy tries to call Lucille on the telephone, but she refuses to answer. Flora, Winnie, and Betty tempt him to spend time with them instead ("Telephone Girlie"). Lucille, finding herself alone, realizes that she misses Billy, and nothing else can make her feel better ("Where-Has-My-Hubby-Gone Blues"). The truth begins to emerge as Lucille realizes that Billy cannot be the benefactor of the three girls; he never has any money to spend because Lucille spends it all! Jimmy finally pays off the ladies, and finally the truth comes out: Billy has not been cheating on Lucille, and though Jimmy has been spending his money on the three girls, it is strictly platonic. Nanette and Pauline, unable to catch a train to New York, return to the cottage, where Tom and Nanette make up; however, it appears that once more, Tom wants to settle down while Nanette wants to enjoy being single. Tom produces a magnificent engagement ring, and Nanette has a change of heart, now insisting that they should get married today ("Waiting for You"). Sue and Lucille decide that in order to ensure Jimmy never again has philandering opportunities, Sue must spend all of Jimmy's money herself. The show ends with a tea dance, where Sue wows Jimmy with a fancy dress and a final dance number ("Take a Little One-Step"; "Finale").
The school board for the Bloomdale, Indiana, high school is convinced Mike Butler (David Cryer), the new English teacher, is a brash freethinker who is willing to teach students in unconventional ways and give them too much freedom for the board's liking. Albert McKinley (David Sabin), the principal, defends him. Sarah Larkin (Sally Niven), music teacher and church choir leader, is another of Albert's foundlings. Mike and Sarah meet and are attracted to each other. Mike tries to change her personality to suit his desires, and Sarah disapproves, but they enjoy their time together. For a while Mike and Sarah enjoy their teatimes and hayrides left alone. But Sarah has an enemy, her own sister, Eugenie Seldin (Judy Frank), a lively and outspoken waitress at the local truck-stop eatery. Eugenie spots Mike right away and sets her sights. After all, hadn't she known Sarah's late husband in ways Sarah never did? And soon enough, Mike develops an enemy of his own. The brightest kid in class, Tommy (Steve Skiles) is the son of the athletic coach, Herbert Heller (Art Wallace), who doesn't like English teachers to begin with because their drama classes mess up his gym floor. When he finds out that Mike is encouraging young Tommy to read Thoreau and think for himself, well, he can spot a Commie pretty far off. And Herbert Heller is a real "Americun". Only once a year he's apt to get drunk and shoot up the place. This year, as Mike and Sarah stand listening to Christmas carolers and enjoy being together, he comes upon them, carrying a shotgun in one hand, and Old Glory in the other. When he demands that Mike pledge allegiance to the flag, then and there, it gets kind of tight. Luckily, Herbert is too drunk to be effective and falls down. Mike carries Sarah off over his shoulder and Herbert is taken away for another year. By now, Sarah is enchanted with Mike, thought resisting him ("I'm not going to be a challenge to you and have you have the satisfaction of seeing me develop!") But develop she does. And by now young Tom Heller is actively practicing civil disobedience, though in a kind of tentative way. With some effort he manages to get himself jailed for the night, though Mike explains that this isn't strictly necessary. Tommy's girlfriend, Ramona (Anne Kaye), is trying to keep up with him. But Tommy can't see it. Was there a Mrs. Davy Crockett? A Mrs. Jim Bowie? Please. He'd rather do it all alone. The kindly townspeople, good-hearted as they come, overlook Herbert's shotgun shenanigans and nominate him for Man of the Century in the coming Centennial Celebration. Tommy just can't see his old man as "having influenced the entire population of Bloomdale" (Of course he doesn't know him the way other people do.) So Tommy nominates Mike Butler. Herbert finds this upsetting ("I'll tan your hide, boy.) and calls Mike a pantywaist. There is to be a mock wedding at the Centennial, Sarah as mock-bride, Albert McKinney as mock-groom. But Albert comes to Sarah and proposes. He offers a real wedding, in Civil War costume, horse-drawn vehicles, a shivaree, and then a simple life thereafter. (It's just that the Centennial seemed the perfect time--and it only comes every 100 years.") Sarah demurs. She's in love with Mike. Tommy has a real campaign going to elect Mike the Man of the Century. If Mike were elected, maybe he could even get rid of that smell from the canning factory. Tommy's father reacts by nudging Tommy toward enlistment in the Army. He wants his boy to be an athlete, a hero or, at the very least, a star on the memorial monument. Sarah tells Albert she's in love with Mike, and Albert takes steps. He goes to her sister to ask a favor. Eugenie must tell Sarah that Mike was in prison and, worse, to say that Mike told her all about it when they were together "listening to records." This happens as planned, and has the expected effect. Sarah is appalled. ("A criminal is a criminal is a criminal.") Mike says he was in the Army during Vietnam, but he couldn't kill anyone. For this, he spent five years in the penitentiary. His mistake had been not being a conscientious objector in the first place. Albert and Sarah become engaged. The Centennial Celebration turns into a kind of trial. Eugenie, beautifully drunk, appears and shouts out the secret of Mike's past. When he speaks to defend himself, Mike finds himself in a kind of kangaroo court, surrounded by his peers. "Fire Him!" shouts Herbert, and McKinley does. But it also becomes apparent to Sarah that Albert knew about Mike all along. And at last she sees through his sanctimonious disguise. Tommy says goodbye to Mike Butler. Tommy and Ramona are together now, and it is very clear that they, at least, are going to be all right. But what about Butler? He'll go to some other town, some town probably a good deal like this one. Tommy says maybe he'll be a teacher too. They embrace. Now you just can't do a thing like that. Herbert Heller sees his boy Tommy embraced by this "Commie queer" and he gets his shotgun and fires it right at him. But of course Helbert is the "true example of American manhood" and gets elected Man of the Century anyway. So it's all right. Even if he isn't much of a shot anymore. A man can't do everything well. All he can do is try. And "Now Is The Time For All Good Men" to do just that. [ ]
Five of the 19 surviving Little Sisters of Hoboken, a one-time missionary order that ran a leper colony on an island south of France, discover that their cook, Sister Julia, Child of God, accidentally killed the other fifty-two residents of the convent with her tainted vichyssoise while they were off playing bingo with a group of Maryknolls. Upon discovering the disaster, Mother Superior had a vision in which she was told to start a greeting card company to raise funds for the burials. The greeting cards were an enormous success and, thinking there was plenty of money, the Reverend Mother bought a VCR and camcorder for the convent, leaving her with no money in the kitty to pay for the last four burials. With the deceased nuns on ice in the deep freeze, they decide to stage a variety show in the Mount Saint Helen's School auditorium to raise the necessary amount. Participating in the project are Mother Superior Mary Regina, a former circus performer who can not resist the spotlight; her competitive but dignified rival, second-in-command Sister Mary Hubert; Sister Robert Anne, a streetwise nun from Brooklyn; Sister Mary Leo, a novice who is determined to be the world's first ballerina nun; and wacky, childlike Sister Mary Amnesia, who lost her memory when a crucifix fell on her head. The entertainment that they present includes solo star turns, madcap dance routines, and an audience quiz. Naturally, VCRs and camcorders are now no longer such current or expensive devices, so modern presentations of the show tend to substitute newer or more generic terms such as "home entertainment system" or a "plasma TV". Mother Superior opens the show by greeting the audience and apologizing for their set constraints (the middle school still has the set for "Grease" up), and the five nuns introduce themselves in the opening number ("Nunsense is Habit-Forming"). The Sisters then explain in song how they got where they are today, originally working in a leper colony near France, but quickly leaving after some of the Sisters developed leprosy themselves ("A Difficult Transition"), and after the song, Sister Amnesia quizzes the audience on it. Sister Mary Leo then performs a dance interpretation of morning at the convent (Benedicite), but starts to get too flamboyant, and is stopped by Sister Mary Hubert, who reminds her "The Biggest Ain't The Best". Reverend Mother comes back on stage, only to be stopped by Sister Robert Anne, who pleads with her to let her sing a solo. Reverend Mother refuses, reminding Robert Anne she is only the understudy, prompting Robert Anne to launch into a song about just that ("Playing Second Fiddle"). Mary Amnesia comes on next and sings a song about what it's like to be a nun, along with a foul-mouthed puppet, Sister Mary Annette ("So You Want To Be A Nun"). Reverend Mother returns and apologizes, but is shocked to hear from Mary Amnesia that the Jersey Board of Health has sent an inspector to the convent just that afternoon. Amnesia runs off crying, and the rest of the Sisters follow, except for Reverend Mother. She tells the audience how she became a nun, but still somewhat misses performing ("Turn Up the Spotlight"). Amnesia, Leo, and Hubert return, and learn that a local Jewish temple has sent them flowers wishing them good luck. They try to use the flowers to remind Amnesia of her past, but all she can get is a quick flashback ("Lilacs"). Robert Anne rushes on stage to give Reverend Mother a bag that she seems troubled about, claiming she found it in one of the girls' bathrooms. Reverend Mother dismisses the rest of the Sisters, and has a look in the bag, the contents of which ultimately get her high - hilariously so. The rest of the Sisters notice, and put on a hastily thrown-together tap number to close the first act and get her off the stage ("Tackle That Temptation"). Robert Anne opens the second act, overjoyed at being able to finally take a starring role. She sings a slow ballad about how church has changed since she was a little girl ("Growing Up Catholic"). The rest of the nuns rush on afterwards, led by an especially distraught Reverend Mother, who has received a summons from the Board of Health that "We've Got to Clean Out the Freezer". Reverend Mother is calmed down by Mary Hubert, who reminds her that they've got to stick together in times of crisis like this ("Just a Coupl'a Sisters"). Mary Leo and Robert Anne then perform "The Dying Nun Ballet", which the Reverend Mother does not receive well. Amnesia and Hubert return with Sister Julia, Child of God's cookbook and put on a short cooking show segment, which is interrupted by the fact that the book is full of misprints and innuendos. Reverend Mother finally gives in and lets Robert Anne sing her number, "I Just Want to Be a Star". Amnesia, Robert Anne, and Leo then perform an Andrews Sisters-type number ("The Drive-In"), then show a "homemade convent film display", which is shut off by Reverend Mother after it shows embarrassing clips of her. Amnesia remains on stage after the rest leave, and decides to tell the audience a story about who she would be if she wasn't a nun ("I Could've Gone to Nashville"). Mid-song, everything comes back to her and she remembers her real name - Sister Mary Paul - and her past. She was going to be a famous country singer, but chose the convent instead. She tells the rest of the sisters, who realize that Sister Mary Paul is also the name of the nun who just won the Publisher's Clearing House sweepstakes, and rejoice, thanking God for their good fortune. Sister Hubert closes the show with a rousing gospel number about what it takes to become a saint ("Holier Than Thou").
Nymph Errant is a musical with music and lyrics by Cole Porter and book by Romney Brent based upon the novel by James Laver. The somewhat controversial story concerned a young English lady intent upon losing her virginity. Porter considered the score his best because of its worldliness and sexual sophistication. The musical was produced in London in 1933 and received its US premiere in 1982.
In a "drab church basement on a rainy night", a group of eight meet as part of an internet addiction support group ("The Forest"). Paula, the group leader, apologizes for the absence of the founder, "Saul", and lays out the agenda for the meeting: the members will share their personal experiences in song, interspersed with a few hymns and group rituals. Jessica shares first, explaining she was cancelled after a public meltdown, and mourns her loss of privacy ("Refresh"). Henry shares his addiction to tile-matching video games focused on candy, expressing fear that the amount of time he wastes reflects a total lack of care for his own well-being ("Candy"). Another member, Karly, reminds the group they agree to avoid explicitly naming particular websites, apps, or platforms that are part of "The Monster" (the term the group uses to refer to the internet). Paula shares her own issue, describing how mindlessly scrolling on their phones comes between any intimacy for her and her husband in bed ("Glow"). The group then gathers for "Fugue State", where they stay quiet for a minute before sharing any thoughts that come up: during this, the group describe various internet activities such as sharing funny jokes or videos, expressing outrage over current events, vapid shows of solidarity on social media, playing 2048, and engaging in arguments ("Fugue State"). During a coffee break, Henry compliments Velma, the newest member, on her singing and the two discuss their relationship with technology: Velma recently went offline but still texts a friend she met online. She diagnoses Henry as having a "Recreational" addiction to his candy game, listing out the different addictions people have: "Recreational, Financial, Social, Sexual, and Informational", and that all of the group's issues fall into these categories. The two then discuss with the group how they were recruited by the elusive Saul, who not only lacks any kind of internet presence but only Paula and Marvin have met in real life. Velma expresses some fear that the group is a front for a cult, and launches into a rant about the tarot community, which she joined to escape a toxic niche community of which she was a previous member only to find just as much discourse, bemoaning that all she really wants is something pure and good. After the break, Paula leads the group in another hymn describing how the "monster" occupies the peace of their "Forest" ("Monster"). Karly and Ed share next, where the both of them find their sexual and romantic life is affected by their relationship to technology: Karly finds herself on a mindless string of dating app matches and dates with horrible men, yet fears lashing out or rejecting them could lead to violence; meanwhile Ed feels the pull of the incel community as a solution to his loneliness. The two agree that pornography has played a role in both of their issues, due to its ease of access and potentially catastrophic affect on brain chemistry ("Solo"). Toby suggests the problem goes much deeper, describing how easy access to violent content such as beheading videos and hate groups will affect the next generation, and that the internet is a tool to keep everyone distracted while those in power take from them. Conversely, he reaches the conclusion it is futile to try to fight against it, giving into nihilism ("Actually"). Marvin is the last to go. He elects to refrain from singing and instead describes a bizarre encounter with an entity claiming to be God who challenged him and his research team to prove its existence: the team instead had a complete existential crisis as they discovered every seeming miracle the entity performed could be brushed off through hypotheses and theories, leaving Marvin to realize his commitment to rationalism and skepticism also means he can explain away any sense of love, responsibility, or morals ("Little God"). Velma suggests he is "The Hanged Man" in a tarot deck, offering that he needed to go through this trial in order to get to "the really good stuff". Lastly, Paula leads the group in the Tower Tea Ceremony, where they end the session by ingesting "a powerful group psychedelic that induces a 5-minute coma, in which your consciousness is transported back to its original, pure, pre-technological limbic state" ("Tower Tea Ceremony"). All participate except Velma, who elects not to drink her tea and instead shares her own story in the silence: that through her participation in the "lonely ugly chaos of the internet"—the only time the word is used instead of "monster"—she was able to meet a girl just like her, making her realize she was not alone ("Beautiful"). Paula then leads the group in a final, hopeful hymn ("The Field").
Oh! Oh! Delphine is a musical comedy with book and lyrics by C. M. S. McLellan and music by Ivan Caryll. It is based on the French farce Villa Primrose by Marcel Guillemaud and Georges Berr. A Broadway production opened at the Knickerbocker Theatre on September 30, 1912, and played for 258 performances, directed by Herbert Gresham, choreographed by Julian Mitchell and music directed by Frederick Solomon. It opened in London in 1913 at the Shaftesbury Theatre, and in Australia in 1918.
Oh, Boy! is a musical comedy with music by Jerome Kern and book and lyrics by Guy Bolton and P. G. Wodehouse.
Oh, Captain! is a musical comedy based on the 1953 film The Captain's Paradise with music and lyrics by Jay Livingston and Ray Evans and the book by Al Morgan and José Ferrer. The basis of the musical was the 1953 film The Captain's Paradise, which had been written by Alec Coppel and Nicholas Phipps. The musical updated the film's Gibraltar and Algiers setting to London and Paris. The production was dismissed by the critics as a "tired businessman's show", but the cast and choreography were much praised. A 5-minute dance sequence between Tony Randall (in the title role) and prima ballerina Alexandra Danilova is called "the best five minutes in the show" by Ken Mandelbaum.
Oh, Kay! is a musical with music by George Gershwin, lyrics by Ira Gershwin, and a book by Guy Bolton and P. G. Wodehouse. It is based on the play La Présidente by Maurice Hennequin and Pierre Veber. The plot revolves around the adventures of the Duke of Durham and his sister, Lady Kay, English bootleggers in Prohibition Era America. Kay finds herself falling in love with a man who seems unavailable. The show is remembered for its enduring song, "Someone to Watch Over Me". The musical opened on Broadway in 1926, starring Gertrude Lawrence and Victor Moore, and ran for 256 performances. The musical then opened in London's West End in 1927, starring Lawrence and John Kirby, where it ran for 213 performances.
Oh, Lady! Lady!! is a musical with music by Jerome Kern, a book by Guy Bolton and P. G. Wodehouse and lyrics by Wodehouse. It was written for the Princess Theatre on Broadway, where it played in 1918 and ran for 219 performances. The story concerns an engaged young man, Bill, whose ex-fiancée arrives unexpectedly on his wedding day. Bill works to convince his old flame that he was not worthy to marry her, but his clumsy efforts do not make him look good to his new fiancée, whose mother already dislikes Bill. A couple of crooks cause further complications. The original cast starred Vivienne Segal as Mollie Farringdon. The songs include "Not Yet", "When Ships Come Home", "Greenwich Village", the innovative "Moon Song" and "Our Little Nest". The song "Bill", later famous in Show Boat, was cut before the production opened.
Oh, My Dear! was a musical comedy in two acts with book and lyrics by Guy Bolton and P. G. Wodehouse, and music by Louis A. Hirsch. It premiered under the direction of Robert Milton and Edward Royce at the Princess Theatre on Broadway on November 27, 1918, produced by William Elliott and F. Ray Comstock and ran for 189 performances, closing on May 10, 1919. The story takes place at Dr. Rockett's Health Farm in the State of New York.
Act I Jack Rushton is a well-to-do college student in New York City who resides in an upscale apartment on Riverside Drive with his valet, Washington. He is infatuated with the cabaret singer Margot Merrivale and is determined to marry her. His straight-laced uncle, Deacon Amos Titmouse from Cemetery Corners, New Jersey, disapproves of the relationship with this sophisticated city woman and wants Jack to wed his wholesome old girlfriend from rural New Jersey, Susie Smith. On a visit to New York City, the deacon fails to persuade Jack to change course and finds himself being tempted by the allures of Manhattan, including imbibing alcohol at the cabaret where Margot performs. The deacon abandons his conservative ways for a life of partying in New York and also becomes infatuated with Margot. Act II Both the deacon's wife, the temperance advocating Amanda Titmouse, and Susie Smith arrive in New York. Amanda puts her husband's meandering ways in check, the deacon gives Jack and Margot his blessing to their union, and Susie becomes engaged to Jack's best friend, Bill Corcoran, with whom she has fallen in love. All ends happily.
Songs, sketches, and documentary material recount the First World War through the form of a music-hall entertainment. The contrast between cheerful performance and military catastrophe examines leadership, class, and the human cost of war.
Oil City Symphony is a musical with a book by Mike Craver, Mark Hardwick, Debra Monk, and Mary Murfitt and songs by various composers. It is a recreation of a recital by four middle-aged amateur musicians who have reunited in the auditorium of the Ohio high school they attended in the 1960s to pay…
Oklahoma! is a musical written by the duo of Rodgers and Hammerstein.
In the poor seaside town of Dullport, Old Sarah sells sweets while Simon smuggles rum and residents resent tax collector Archibald Jones. Chancellor Claude Newcastle investigates their incomes, but Sarah traps him in a bathing machine and threatens to drown him. Archibald rescues Newcastle, who forgives everyone; the couples are happy.
The musical opens in the workhouse, as the half-starved orphan boys are entering the enormous dining hall for supper. They are fed only gruel, but find some solace by imagining a richer menu ("Food Glorious Food"). Oliver gathers up the courage to ask for more, and is immediately apprehended by parish beadle Mr. Bumble and the Widow Corney, the heartless and greedy caretakers of the workhouse ("Oliver!"). Mr. Bumble and Widow Corney are left alone, and Mr. Bumble begins to make amorous advances ("I Shall Scream!"). Mrs. Corney pretends to resent his attentions, but ends up on Mr. Bumble's lap, as he eventually proposes to her. Mr. Bumble then takes Oliver and sells him as an apprentice to an undertaker, Mr. Sowerberry ("Boy for Sale"). Mr. Sowerberry and his wife taunt Oliver and Mr. Bumble ("That's Your Funeral"), causing Mr. Bumble to become angry and storm out. Oliver is sent to sleep in the basement with the coffins ("Where Is Love?"). The next morning, Noah Claypole, another employee of Mr. Sowerberry, insults Oliver's dead mother, whereupon Oliver begins pummeling him. Mrs. Sowerberry and her daughter, Charlotte, who is also Noah's girlfriend, run in. The three lock Oliver inside a coffin, and Mr. Bumble is sent for. The entrance of an intoxicated Mr. Sowerberry doesn't aid matters, and during all the commotion Oliver escapes. After a week on the run, he ends up in the city of London and meets a boy about 16 years old known as the Artful Dodger. Dodger seems a kindly boy, and welcomes Oliver to join him and his friends ("Consider Yourself"). Dodger is, unknown to Oliver, a pickpocket, and invites Oliver to come and live in Fagin's lair. Fagin is a veteran criminal "fence" who sends out young boys as pickpockets. Oliver is completely unaware of any criminality and believes that the boys make handkerchiefs rather than steal them. Oliver is introduced to Fagin and his boys and taught their ways ("You've Got to Pick a Pocket or Two"). The next day, Oliver meets Nancy, an older member of Fagin's gang and the girlfriend of Fagin's terrifying associate Bill Sikes, a brutal house-burglar whose abuse she endures because she loves him. Nancy, along with her good friend Bet and the boys sing about how they mostly like their unconventional if dangerous lifestyle ("It's a Fine Life"). Oliver bows deeply to Nancy and Bet, trying to be polite. All the boys laugh and mimic Oliver. Nancy singles out Dodger to demonstrate the way the rich people treat each other ("I'd Do Anything"). Nancy and Bet leave, and Oliver is sent out with the other boys on his first pickpocketing job ("Be Back Soon"). Fagin tells Oliver to go with Dodger and another boy named Charley Bates, but when Dodger and Charley steal a handkerchief from Mr. Brownlow, a wealthy old man, they run off, leaving the horrified Oliver to be arrested for the crime ("The Robbery"). In the Three Cripples pub, at the request of boisterous customers, Nancy strikes up an old tavern song with the low-life ruffians, ("Oom-Pah-Pah"). Bill Sikes makes his first appearance and disperses the crowd ("My Name"). Dodger runs in and tells Fagin about Oliver's capture and removal to the Brownlow household. Worried that Oliver will "blow upon them" (i.e. betray the gang to the authorities), Fagin and Bill decide to abduct Oliver and bring him back to the den, with Nancy's help. Nancy, who has come to care for Oliver, at first refuses to help, but Bill physically abuses her and forces her into obedience. In spite of this, Nancy still loves Bill and believes he loves her too ("As Long as He Needs Me"). The next morning, at Mr. Brownlow's house in Bloomsbury, Mrs. Bedwin, the housekeeper, sings to Oliver ("Where Is Love?" (reprise)), and Oliver wakes up as street-sellers begin their day's work outside ("Who Will Buy?"). Mr. Brownlow and Dr. Grimwig decide that Oliver is well enough to go outside, so Brownlow sends Oliver to return some books to the bookseller. Oliver sees a group of street vendors and joins them in song ("Who Will Buy?" (reprise)). As the vendors leave, Nancy and Bill appear and grab Oliver. They bring him back to Fagin's den, where Nancy saves Oliver from a beating from Sikes after the boy tries to flee. Nancy remorsefully reviews their dreadful life, but Bill maintains that any living is better than none while Fagin tries to smooth things over ("It's A Fine Life" (reprise)). Left alone, Fagin ponders his current existence and possible life changes ("Reviewing the Situation"); however, after thinking of various excuses, he elects to stay just as he is. Back at the workhouse, Mr. Bumble and the Widow Corney, now unhappily married, are told by the dying pauper Old Sally that Oliver's mother, Agnes, left a gold locket when she died in childbirth. Old Sally had stolen the locket, which she gives to the Widow Corney before she dies. Mr. and Mrs. Bumble realize that Oliver may have wealthy relatives ("Oliver!" (reprise)) and visit Mr. Brownlow (who has advertised for news of Oliver), hoping to profit from any reward given for information. Mr. Brownlow realizes they are not interested in Oliver's welfare but only money and throws them out. Recognizing the picture inside the locket as a picture of his daughter, he realizes that Oliver is actually his grandson. Nancy visits Mr. Brownlow, explains how she and Bill abducted Oliver, and remorsefully promises to deliver Oliver to him safely that night on London Bridge but refuses to give up her fellow gang members. She ponders again about Bill ("As Long as He Needs Me" (reprise)). Suspecting Nancy, Bill follows her as she sneaks Oliver out of Fagin's den. At London Bridge, he confronts them and viciously clubs Nancy to death. He then grabs Oliver and runs off. Mr. Brownlow arrives and discovers Nancy's body. A large crowd forms, among them the distraught Bet. Bullseye, Bill's terrier, turns on his master and returns to the scene of the crime, and the crowd prepares to follow him. After Sikes brings Oliver to Fagin's hideout looking for aid, Fagin and his boys flee in panic. The constables break in, and Dodger is arrested before he can escape. Not finding Bill at the hideout, the crowd returns to the Thames Embankment. Bill appears at the top of the bridge, holding Oliver as hostage and threatening to kill him. When a memory of the dead Nancy freezes Sikes, two policemen sneak up on him, and one of them shoots Bill while the other grabs Oliver. After Oliver is reunited with Mr. Brownlow, the mob disperses. Fagin appears and decides that the time has never looked better for him to straighten out his life ("Reviewing the Situation" (reprise)).
Olympus On My Mind is a musical with music by Grant Sturiale and a book and lyrics by Barry Harman, based on Heinrich Von Kleist's adaptation of Plautus' Amphitryon. The musical ran Off-Broadway at Lamb's Theatre for 297 performances in 1986. It was also staged that year in a regional production in Fairfield, Connecticut by the Boston Post Road Stage Company.
On Second Avenue is a Yiddish American musical theatre production which looks back at the heyday of Yiddish Theater, especially in the Yiddish Theater District in Manhattan's East Village on Second Avenue.
A dance number from Gloria Estefan's dancers leads to backstage with Gloria, Emilio Estefan, and their son, Nayib before a concert in 1990 ("Rhythm Is Gonna Get You"). In a flashback, Gloria is younger, playing the guitar and singing to send a recording to her father, José Fajardo, who is stationed in Vietnam. ("Cuando Salí de Cuba"). Gloria grows up in the Little Havana neighborhood of Miami, with her mother, Gloria Fajardo, and grandmother, Consuelo García. During the dance number, Gloria is shown as older ("Tradición"). As time progresses, Gloria is introduced by her grandmother to Emilio Estefan, who is a part of a group, then called the Miami Latin Boys. Emilio invites Gloria to perform one of the songs she has written at their upcoming rehearsal. Gloria, who is studying to be a psychologist and spending most of her extra time caring for her father through his battle with multiple sclerosis, is initially resistant to the idea of performing. With pressure from her grandmother, she attends the rehearsals, despite push-back from her mother. She brings her sister, Rebecca Fajardo, mother, and grandmother the day of. Gloria performs and has her sister come with her on stage for "emotional support," ("Anything for You"). Despite initially being shy, and not wanting to be in the spotlight, she finds her place after being given advice from Emilio ("1-2-3"). Gloria realizes she is falling for Emilio, and Emilio is feeling the same way ("I See Your Smile"). Gloria's mother is initially not on board with Gloria joining the Miami Latin Boys (renamed the Miami Sound Machine), and when Gloria is frustrated that her mother doesn't like Emilio, Consuelo tells her that when her mother was younger she wanted to be a singer too. Gloria Fajardo was offered a contract with Twentieth Century Fox to be the Spanish voice of Shirley Temple, but her father forbade it. A flashback follows, of Gloria Fajardo performing in a club and finds out during the performance she learns she has to flee Cuba without her love, José Fajardo. ("Mi Tierra") Later, Gloria and Emilio propose a new song to Phil, a record label executive, but he refuses to publish it because it is in English. Then, on July 4, Emilio and Gloria go on a date where Gloria kisses Emilio for the first time. ("Con Los Años Que Me Quedan"). They try to discuss the single, but Gloria is lost in Emilio, and her love for him ("Here We Are"). Gloria is spending time with her father, José Fajardo, and although he cannot speak, she wishes she could hear what he would say about Emilio. She imagines the advice he would give her ("When Someone Comes into Your Life"). Gloria then writes a song using the encores they played on tour in Holland, with all the lyrics in English. Executive Chris is initially not backing it, and won't propose it to Phil, so they have to "bring Phil to the song," before they can release it. Gloria initially performs her new song at a Bar Mitzvah for a boy named Jeremy, and Phil refuses to attend. Then she performs it at an Italian wedding, and Phil still will not come. It is not until she performs it at a Shriners convention in Las Vegas that Phil wants to attend ("Conga"). Gloria and Emilio hit the top of the music charts and launch a worldwide tour ("Get on Your Feet"). Gloria is thankful for the fact that her grandmother Consuelo had encouraged her to pursue a music career and even calls Consuelo on stage during one of her performances ("Live for Loving You"). However, Gloria also struggles with the exhausting schedule, and the fact that her mother has become estranged due to her disapproval (and potential jealousy) of Gloria's fame ("You'll Be Mine (Party Time)"). Even though Gloria is exhausted and wants to take a couple of days off, Emilio encourages her to take on one other concert in Syracuse. On the road, the Estefans' bus collides with a semi truck during a snowstorm ("Famous"). Gloria breaks her back in the accident, and is flown to New York City for emergency spinal surgery. Gloria's mother rushes to the hospital after hearing about Gloria's accident on the news and she and Emilio bond over their love for Gloria ("If I Never Got to Tell You"). Emilio worries Gloria might not survive the surgery ("Don't Wanna Lose You"). During her surgery, Gloria imagines seeing her late father José and her grandmother Consuelo, who had died a couple of months before ("Wrapped"). They both encourage her to live. After coming out of surgery, Gloria finally reconciles with her mother. Doctors tell Gloria she may never walk again, but she dedicates herself to rehabilitation. Thousands of fan letters, and Emilio's steadfast determination, provide her the encouragement she needs to get back on her feet ("Reach"). Gloria makes a triumphant return to the stage with her performance at the 1991 American Music Awards ("Coming Out of the Dark").
On Your Toes (1936) is a musical with a book by Richard Rodgers, George Abbott, and Lorenz Hart, music by Rodgers, and lyrics by Hart. It was adapted into a film in 1939. While teaching music at Knickerbocker University, Phil "Junior" Dolan III tries to persuade Sergei Alexandrovich, the director of the Russian Ballet, to stage the jazz ballet Slaughter on Tenth Avenue. After becoming involved with the company's prima ballerina Vera Barnova, Junior is forced to assume the male lead in Slaughter. Trouble ensues when he becomes the target of two thugs hired by Vera's lover and dance partner to kill him. On Your Toes marked the first time a Broadway musical made dramatic use of classical dance and incorporated jazz into its score.
Act I Quirky Daisy Gamble sees herself as an unremarkable person and has low self-esteem, even though she can (1) make plants grow remarkably, (2) predict when a telephone will ring or someone will drop in, and (3) tell where to find an object that someone else is looking for. Her current problem, though, is her nasty smoking habit, which will interfere with the chances of her fiancé, Warren, for a job with great benefits. She seeks help from a psychiatrist, Dr. Mark Bruckner, to stop smoking. When he hypnotizes her, she describes living a previous life in late 18th century England as "Melinda Wells", who died in her late twenties from circumstances beyond her control. Free spirited Melinda was in love with portrait painter Edward Moncrief. Mark keeps to himself what Daisy has revealed to him, and he tells her that she should not be ashamed of her ESP. At their next session, Daisy, under hypnosis, relates scenes from the salacious London Hellrakers' Club where Melinda met Edward. Melinda and Edward eventually marry, but the painter is unfaithful to her, having sex with his subjects. Mark finds himself falling for "Melinda" and becomes convinced that Daisy is really the reincarnation of Melinda. Melinda finally leaves Edward and sets sail for America, but the ship never reaches Boston. Before Mark can save Melinda from shipwreck, Daisy wakes up. Act II Mark reports on the case to his fellow psychiatrists, who ridicule his findings. Greek shipping magnate Themistocles Kriakos learns of Mark's belief in reincarnation and offers to finance a study of the events of Melinda's life in exchange for Mark's help in discovering who he will be in his next life, which will allow him to leave his fortune to his future self. Daisy accidentally discovers that she is the "Melinda" at the center of the growing controversy and that Mark prefers Melinda to herself. In her angry confrontation with the psychiatrist about the matter, she tells him that she is "through being a go-between for you and your dream girl. You're not going to go on using my head for a motel." Daisy goes to the airport, ready to return home. Her ESP powers warn her that the plane on which she plans to travel will crash. She realizes at last how special she really is. She leaves her starchy fiancé and she and Mark unite to explore their extraordinary future.
A trio of dockyard workers mourns the start of a new workday ("I Feel Like I'm Not Out of Bed Yet"). The whistle blows at 6 AM, and three sailors emerge: Ozzie, Chip, and Gabey, excited for 24 hours of shore leave ("New York, New York"). Chip is excited to see all the sights that his father told him about after his trip to New York in 1934, with his decade-old guidebook by his side. Ozzie is interested in finding a date (or several) because Manhattan women are the prettiest in the world. Gabey is looking for one special girl, hopefully one who reminds him of his 7th-grade girlfriend, Minnie Finchley. On the subway, the three spot a poster of Ivy Smith, "Miss Turnstiles" for June. Gabey, overcome with love for the picture, takes it with him. An old lady angrily tells him that she will have him arrested for vandalism and the three run off. Gabey wants to meet Ivy Smith, despite Chip's protests that the city is too big for things like that to happen. Ozzie, recounting an incident where Gabey saved their lives, convinces Chip to help Gabey find her. Chip grudgingly agrees and Ozzie coaches Gabey on what to do once he meets Ivy ("Gabey's Comin'," performed in the 2014 Broadway revival). The three break up, Gabey to Carnegie Hall, Ozzie to the Museum of Modern Art, and Chip to the "subway people." The three imagine what Miss Turnstiles must be like, and a ballet is performed in which Ivy demonstrates all the many different, contradictory, skills she has. The little old lady finds a policeman and the two chase after the sailors. A young woman cabbie named Hildy is found asleep in her cab by her irate boss S. Uperman. He fires her and tells her to return the cab in an hour or he will call the police. Looking for one last fare, she comes across Chip. It is love at first sight, at least for Hildy. She forcefully kisses Chip, but Chip wants nothing more than to find Ivy. Hildy tempts him into taking a tour of the city, but all the places he wants to go to (the Hippodrome, the Forrest Theatre to see Tobacco Road, the New York City Aquarium, and the Woolworth Building) are either no longer in existence or no longer notable. The only place Hildy wants to take Chip is her apartment ("Come Up to My Place"). Uperman joins the lady and the cop in the chase, implying Hildy stole the cab. Ozzie goes to the museum but mistakenly arrives at the Museum of Natural History instead of the Museum of Modern Art. There he meets a budding anthropologist, Claire de Loone. She is amazed at his resemblance to a prehistoric man and asks him for his measurements. He mistakes her scientific interest for romantic interest, but as she explains, she is engaged to be married to the famous Judge Pitkin W. Bridgework. Pitkin has taught her to learn to know men scientifically, but she, like Ozzie, often gets "Carried Away." The two of them accidentally knock over a dinosaur. Waldo Figment, the professor who built the dinosaur, joins Uperman, the cop, and the lady in the chase. Gabey mopes around the city. Without love, New York is nothing but a "Lonely Town." At Carnegie Hall, Ivy Smith is taking lessons from Madame Dilly, a drunk who clearly does not know vocal training. Ivy is not quite as glamorous as the Miss Turnstiles contest has made her out to be. In reality, while she is studying to do all the things they said she was, she is nothing more than a "cooch dancer" at Coney Island. When Madame Dilly leaves to refill her flask, Gabey enters. He asks Ivy to go out with him, and to his surprise, she accepts. Gabey leaves ecstatically. Madame Dilly advises Ivy to break the date as "sex and art don't mix" ("Carnegie Hall Pavane"). Ozzie accompanies Claire back to her apartment, where he meets Claire's fiancé, Pitkin W. Bridgework. They try desperately to explain what they are doing together, but Pitkin does not mind ("I Understand"). He leaves them alone to go to a meeting, reminding Claire that they are to meet at Diamond Eddie's to celebrate their engagement. The two take advantage of their alone time ("Carried Away (reprise)"). Hildy brings Chip and an armful of groceries back to her apartment, promising to cook for him. Chip insists that he must leave to find Ivy. She tells him to call the IRT, but they refuse to give Chip her address or phone number. He decides that he has tried hard enough, and he and Hildy attempt to get physical when her roommate, Lucy Schmeeler, home from work with a cold, intrudes. Hildy finally gets rid of her by convincing her to go to an air-cooled movie. Hildy seduces Chip, bragging about her many talents, not the least of which is her cooking ("I Can Cook Too"). Gabey's attitude has done a full 180, and he feels "Lucky to Be Me." Ivy, about to meet Gabey at Nedick's, runs into Madame Dilly, who reminds her that if she does not do her cooch dance that night, she will be fired, and will not be able to pay Madame Dilly for her lessons. Madame Dilly threatens to smear her reputation, and she is forced to stand Gabey up. Chip and Ozzie both arrive at Nedick's with Hildy and Claire, both dressed as Ivy Smith. Gabey is not fooled and tells them the story of how he met her. Just then, Madame Dilly arrives with a message from Ivy: she will not be coming because she instead elected to go to a fancy party. Gabey is alone and dejected, but Hildy tells him that she can get him a date: Lucy. The five go into a dance demonstrating the nightlife of the city. At Diamond Eddie's, the dancers perform a number ("So Long Baby"). Gabey is still hung up on Miss Turnstiles, and Lucy has not shown up yet. A singer, Diana Dream, performs a very sad song, "I Wish I Was Dead," which causes Gabey to feel even sadder. Lucy calls, having accidentally gone to the Diamond Eddie's in Yonkers. The group decides to go to the Congacabana at the suggestion of Claire, but on their way out, they run into Pitkin. Ozzie and Claire try to explain the situation, but as before, all Pitkin says is "I Understand (reprise)." The gang leaves for the Congacabana while Pitkin stays behind to pay the check. At the Congacabana, Dolores Dolores (the same performer as "Diana Dream") sings the same sad song as before, in Spanish. Hildy interrupts her, saying she had gotten a request to sing. Hildy, as well as Ozzie, Claire, and Chip try to lift Gabey's spirits by reminding him that he can count on them ("Ya Got Me"). As they are about to depart for another nightclub, the Slam Bang Club, Pitkin arrives ("I Understand (reprise)"). Claire tells him once again to pay the check, also to wait for Lucy and come to the Slam Bang later. At the Slam Bang Club, Madame Dilly is in a drunken stupor. Gabey asks her where Ivy is, and she lets it slip that she is at Coney Island. Gabey runs off to find her. Chip and Ozzie, afraid that he will not be able to get back to the ship on time, rush after him. On their way out, they come across Lucy and Pitkin. Claire once again leaves him to go with Ozzie. Pitkin recalls all the times in his life that he "understood" and realizes he has been played the fool by everyone, including Claire ("Pitkin's Song (I Understand)"). He also bonds with Lucy and the two of them join the chase along with the little old lady, the police officers, Figment, and Uperman. Riding the subway, Gabey dreams about Coney Island and Ivy. An extended dance sequence occurs with Ivy and a dream Gabey in a boxing match ("Subway Ride/The Great Lover Displays Himself/The Imaginary Coney Island"). The other four have just missed Gabey and are riding another subway car. They wonder about their future after the men have to go back to the ship ("Some Other Time"). At Coney Island, Ivy, along with several other girls, dances in a show called Rajah Bimmy's Harem Scarem ("The Real Coney Island"). Gabey sees Ivy and accidentally tears her already skimpy outfit off. She is arrested for indecent exposure as the chasers arrive and demand the others be arrested. Claire hopes Pitkin will get her out of the situation, but he no longer trusts her and has the three men brought to the naval authorities. The girls ask Pitkin if he has ever "committed an indiscretion," which he staunchly denies. Just then, he sneezes in the same way as Lucy Schmeeler, casting doubt on his claim. As the clock chimes six, the sailors prepare to get back on the ship. Just then, the girls come running to them, telling them that Pitkin understood. They say a fond farewell as three new sailors leave the ship, eager to have their own adventures in New York City ("New York, New York (reprise)/Finale Act II").
On the Twentieth Century is a musical with book and lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green and music by Cy Coleman. Based partly on the 1932 play Twentieth Century and its 1934 film adaptation, the musical is part operetta, part farce and part screwball comedy.
Act I A thirty-something Dublin busker (identified only as "Guy") sings a heartfelt ballad of unrequited love on a Dublin street, accompanying himself on guitar ("Leave"). He then puts his guitar in its case and turns to leave without it but a young Czech woman (identified only as "Girl"), who has been listening to him sing approaches. She asks numerous personal questions about his songs and he replies that he wrote most of them for a girlfriend who broke up with him and moved to New York City. He is giving up on his music because the memories of his failed relationship are too painful so he now works as a vacuum cleaner repairman in his father's shop. Girl responds that she has a vacuum that "does not suck" and asks him to fix it. She offers to pay for the repair by playing piano for him. Over his protests, she snatches the sheet music for a new song from his jacket. Reluctantly, Guy picks up his guitar and they play the song together ("Falling Slowly"). Girl suggests that he could win his old girlfriend back by singing her that song. Guy brushes this off but Girl reminds him that he now owes her a vacuum repair so they head to his father's shop ("The North Strand"). As Guy fixes the vacuum, Girl becomes acquainted with his father, who seems to like her. Once the vacuum is repaired, Guy impulsively invites Girl to his bedroom, above the shop. They are clearly attracted to each other but when he attempts to kiss her she stops him and leaves ("The Moon"). The next day he apologises and they write, rehearse and record songs together. Girl introduces Guy to her family, including her young daughter, Ivanka ("Ej, Pada, Pada, Rosicka"). After Guy leaves, Girl plays one of his songs on the piano, substituting her own lyrics as she thinks of him ("If You Want Me"). The next morning Girl tells Guy that she has arranged a meeting with a banker ("Broken Hearted Hoover Fixer Sucker Guy"). To persuade the bank manager to approve a loan – which would enable Guy to take his music to New York – Guy plays him a song ("Say It to Me Now"). The banker is impressed with his talent, approves the loan and adds that he can play guitar as well. He plays a song for them ("Abandoned in Bandon") and though he is not a very good singer, they invite him to play in the band. The following night at a nightclub, Guy tells Girl that she has convinced him that his musical career is worth pursuing. Good, she replies, because its open mic night at the club and she has signed him up to perform as "The Hoover Man". He is reluctant but eventually takes the stage. As he sings, it seems like he is now singing to Girl, not his ex-girlfriend ("Gold"). Act II During band practice, one of the musicians gets into an argument with the bank manager. He opposes capitalism, he says, despite the fact that he owns the shop where they are rehearsing. Guy and Girl retreat to a hill overlooking the city where the two share a brief, tender moment. Girl tells Guy, in Czech, that she loves him – but when he asks her to translate, she replies, "It looks like rain". Guy realizes that he has fallen in love with Girl and wonders how he will live without her when he moves to New York ("Sleeping"). The next day the band records a demo for a major record label ("When Your Mind's Made Up"). After receiving praise for their performance, the band members take a break. Girl remains at the piano, and thinking she is alone, plays one of her own compositions that reveals the depth of her feelings for Guy ("The Hill"). Guy, who has been listening, compliments her on her song. He suggests that she and Ivanka move to New York with him because they clearly have feelings for each other that they cannot ignore. Girl answers angrily that he cannot feel that way. Incredulous, Guy asks why and Girl replies that her husband – Ivanka's father – is trying to reconcile with her and for the sake of their daughter she must consider it ("It Cannot Be About That"). The following morning the band gathers at the hill to voice their hopes for success with the impending album ("Gold (A Cappella)"). Guy asks Girl to spend his last night in Dublin with him but she demurs, because it would only result in "hanky-panky", which is a "bad idea"; but ultimately she agrees to come to the vacuum shop. Back at the shop, Guy plays the demo for his father. Impressed and moved, he gives Guy money to help him get settled in New York. Then Guy, encouraged by Girl, calls his ex-girlfriend in New York, who is happy about his imminent arrival, and seems willing to give their relationship another try. A few days later Girl comes home to find a piano with a bright red bow on it – a gift from Guy. She sheds a few tears, then sits at the piano and sings; as Guy, in his New York apartment, sings the same song ("Falling Slowly (Reprise)").
Once Around the City is a musical written by brothers Robert (music) and Willie Reale (book and lyrics). The musical is set in 1980s Manhattan, when hostile takeovers of properties was the norm.
A fictional medieval kingdom in 15th-century Europe is ruled by the devious Queen Aggravain and the mute King Sextimus the Silent. King Sextimus suffers from a curse cast by a witch that can only be reversed "when the mouse devours the hawk." The Minstrel sings of the Princess and the Pea ("Many Moons Ago"), but reveals the story to be fake, though he knows the true tale because he was there when it happened. The princess in the story is not the first princess tested to see if she is worthy of marrying Prince Dauntless the Drab—she is the thirteenth princess. The day the Minstrel arrives at court, the Queen, alongside her confidant, the Wizard, is testing Princess #12 with an unfair quiz. To the Queen's delight, the princess misses the last question: "What was the middle name of the daughter-in-law of the best friend of the blacksmith who forged the sword that killed the Beast?" and is given a rubber chicken by Sir Studley. The populace of the castle complains about an unjust law levied by Queen Aggravain: "Throughout the land no one may wed, 'till Dauntless shares his wedding bed." However, every petitioning princess is sent away after failing unfair tests devised by the Queen. It seems that no one is good enough to marry Prince Dauntless ("An Opening for a Princess"). The crisis escalates when the leading knight of the realm, Sir Harry, discovers that his girlfriend, Lady Larken, is pregnant. Though Lady Larken says that she will run away so he will never have to face embarrassment and the loss of his station, Sir Harry decides that he will set out to find a princess himself ("In a Little While"). He petitions the Queen who immediately refuses, but when Dauntless manages to speak up and beg, she gives in. The Minstrel tells the audience that in the original story, the princess arrived at the castle on a stormy night ("Many Moons Ago - Reprise"), but in the true story, it was not night at all—and the princess only looked as though she went through a storm. Princess Winnifred the Woebegone, a brash and unrefined princess from the Marshlands, was so eager to arrive that she swam the castle moat. She immediately charms Dauntless, Studley, and the knights and most of the kingdom ("Shy"). However, she also earns the utter loathing of the evil Queen, who vows to stop her. The King discovers Larken's pregnancy and pantomimes this to his confidants, the Minstrel and the Jester. He tells them not to say a word, but they both are more worried about the King letting it slip, because even though he is mute, he can still communicate ("The Minstrel, the Jester, and I"). Later, the Queen, assisted by the Wizard, designs a test for Winnifred based on something they are sure she doesn’t have at all—sensitivity. They will place a tiny pea beneath twenty thick downy mattresses. If Winnifred is unable to sleep due to the pea, then she will be sensitive enough to marry Dauntless ("Sensitivity"). Meanwhile, Winnifred tells Dauntless and the ladies in waiting about her home in the swamp ("The Swamps of Home") and meets the King, and they immediately like each other. Then, after spilling a purple vase filled with fresh new baby's breath, Winnifred is caught cleaning the mess by Lady Larken who mistakes her for a chambermaid. Soon Harry gets mad at Larken for her mistake and they get in a fight. Larken vows that she will run far, far away where she will never see him again. The King, the Minstrel and the Jester catch Larken trying to run away, and they try to stop her but in the end decide to help her escape to Normandy ("Normandy"). Later that night, the Queen throws a ball so Winnifred can dance the most exhausting dance in the world: "The Spanish Panic". The Queen hopes that Winnifred will tire herself, but the plan fails. Winnifred is the last one standing as everyone collapses from exhaustion at the dance's climax. She asks Dauntless to try to give her a clue as to what the test might be, but he's not sure. He brings out a huge barbell that one of the princesses was asked to lift, but even he cannot lift it. Winnifred does easily and Dauntless admits that he loves her. Winnifred mentions that her nickname is Fred and Dauntless sings of his love for her as she practices numerous tasks she might have to do for the test, including singing, dancing, wrestling, acting, playing the Minstrel's lute, pantomiming and drinking herself unconscious ("Song of Love"). Later that night, the Queen leads the knights and ladies as they carry the twenty mattresses to Fred's room ("Quiet"), and she catches the Minstrel, the Jester, the King, and Larken (disguised in Dauntless' clothes) running away. The Minstrel tries to protect Larken by saying he was escaping with Larken against her will. The Queen declares that the Minstrel will be banished by daybreak. Fred and Dauntless study for the test, and Fred convinces Larken to fix things with Harry. Larken leaves to find Harry, Dauntless bids Fred goodnight, and now she is left alone. While studying a fairy tale, she complains about how other fairy tale princesses had it easy and how she wants to live happily ever after ("Happily Ever After"). King Sextimus has a man to man talk with Dauntless about the birds and the bees completely in pantomime ("Man to Man Talk"). The Jester and Minstrel trick the Wizard into telling them of the test and the Jester reminisces about his father's dancing days ("Very Soft Shoes"). Sir Harry and Lady Larken run into each other and they confess that their love is stronger than ever ("Yesterday I Loved You"). When Fred is finally ready for bed, the Queen tries to make her even more sleepy by attempting to hypnotize her with a hypnotic mirror, burning poppy and mandragora incense, forcing her to drink a sleeping draught, and finally bringing in the Nightingale of Samarkand to sing her to sleep ("Nightingale Lullaby"), but Winnifred is kept wide awake. It seems that there is some "lump" under the mattresses that is keeping her from relaxing. She starts counting sheep. The next morning, Dauntless dresses in his finest to see Winnifred pass the test, but the Queen tells him to his great disappointment that the test has already happened and what it was. She says that since Winnifred has not yet emerged from her room, she must still be sleeping and therefore has failed. Dauntless is heartbroken until Winnifred drowsily stumbles into the throne room while still counting sheep; she hasn't slept a wink. Everyone is ecstatic that Winnifred has passed but the Queen insists that Dauntless should not throw himself away on Winnifred. Dauntless has had enough of his mother's attempts to control his life and finally yells, "I told you to shut up!". The curse on King Sextimus is lifted (the "mouse", Dauntless, has metaphorically devoured the "hawk", Queen Aggravain). Aggravain discovers that she cannot talk and the King can, so Dauntless and Winnifred are free to be married. The King forces the Queen to hop, skip, and jump around the room to everyone's amusement, and with this, she is forced to step down. Finally the real reason why Winnifred passed the test is revealed: after learning about the test, the King, Minstrel, and Jester stuffed the mattresses full of weapons, jousting equipment, and other sharp items. All the items are removed by the Jester in the finale ("Finale"). After the items are removed, Winnifred still has trouble sleeping until Dauntless takes the pea out from under the mattresses; she then falls asleep almost immediately, proving that she was indeed a true princess. Everyone, in classic fairy-tale tradition, lives happily ever after.
One stormy night in the Antilles archipelago, thunder booms, making a small girl cry in fear. To comfort her, the village storytellers tell her the story of Ti Moune, a peasant girl who falls in love with a grand homme, Daniel Beauxhomme – a story of life, pain, love, grief, faith, and hope. In this story, four gods (consisting of Asaka: Mother of the Earth, Agwé: god of Water, Erzulie: goddess of Love, and Papa Ge: demon of Death) rule an island known as the Jewel of the Antilles where poor peasants worship them (Prologue/"We Dance"). The peasants, "black as night", live on one side of the island, and the grands hommes, lighter-skinned descendants of the original French planters and their slaves, live on the other. One night, Agwe unleashes a terrible storm upon the island, which in turn causes a disastrous flood, wiping out many villages. However, the gods save the life of a little orphan named Ti Moune by placing her in a tree above the flood's waves. She is found and subsequently adopted by the peasants Mama Euralie and Tonton Julian ("One Small Girl"). Years afterwards, a grown-up Ti Moune prays to the gods to let her know her purpose, and to let her be like the fast-driving strangers on the roads near her village - the grands hommes ("Waiting for Life"). Hearing her plea, the gods laugh at her. However, Erzulie suggests that they give her love, because it is stronger than any of the other elements. Offended, Papa Ge proposes a bet to prove which is stronger: love or death. Agwe arranges for the car of Daniel Beauxhomme, a young grand homme, to crash during a storm so that Ti Moune may meet Daniel and restore him to health ("And the Gods Heard Her Prayer/Rain"). Despite the objections of the other peasants including her own parents, Ti Moune helps the intruder recover ("Pray"). Ti Moune falls in love with the stranger and as she cares for the unconscious boy, she imagines he loves her too. When Papa Ge comes to take Daniel's life, Ti Moune offers her life in exchange for Daniel's so that he will not die ("Forever Yours"). Papa Ge is angry but leaves, hinting he will return – sooner or later, as her life now belongs to him. Tonton Julian travels to the other side of the Island to seek Daniel's family at the Hotel Beauxhomme. When he returns, he brings with him some of Daniel's people to take the boy back, as well as the story of Daniel's family: Four generations ago, during the Napoleonic era, a French aristocrat named Armand colonised the island. Although Armand had a wife, he had affairs with several natives, one of which bore him a son, named Beauxhomme. When Beauxhomme grew up, war broke out between the peasant locals and the French. The peasants won the war with Beauxhomme's help, after which he banished Armand back to France. Before leaving, however, Armand cursed Beauxhomme and his descendants saying their "black blood will keep them forever on the island, while their hearts yearn forever for France." To this day the curse causes future Beauxhommes to alienate the peasants for reminding them of their homeland ("The Sad Tale of the Beauxhommes"). Ti Moune is tearfully separated from Daniel and tells her parents that she will go after Daniel to marry him, and though they are reluctant to let her go, they eventually give her their blessing ("Ti Moune"). The goddess Asaka tells Ti Moune not to fear, as the Earth will give her everything she needs on her journey to Daniel ("Mama Will Provide"). Ti Moune travels across the island ("Waiting for Life (Reprise)"), and the storytellers relate the many versions of her difficult journey to the city (including being forced to wear too-tight shoes), through the hotel gates and finding Daniel's room ("Some Say"). Daniel, still ill and unable to walk, does not remember her but believes her after she describes the scar on his chest. As they stay together, Erzulie gives them the gift of love ("Human Heart"). Daniel ignores the townspeople's gossiping ("Pray (Reprise)") over the unlikely relationship between a rich Beauxhomme and a poor peasant. Daniel delights in Ti Moune's differences from the rich girls in his life, noting that "some girls you marry, some you love" ("Some Girls"). At a ball held at the hotel ("The Ball"), Andrea Devereaux, a daughter of Daniel's family friends, cajoles Ti Moune to dance for them (her ulterior motive being to make her look bad in front of the grands hommes). Ti Moune does dance and gains the admiration of the rich society members, inspiring both the peasant servants and the grand homme guests to join her ("Ti Moune's Dance"). Afterwards, Ti Moune learns that Daniel is already engaged to be married to Andrea ("When We Are Wed"). Daniel, reminded of his responsibilities, must go through with the arranged marriage, although he insists they can be lovers forever, leaving Ti Moune crushed. Papa Ge reappears and reminds Ti Moune of her promise to exchange her life for Daniel's – but says she can revoke the bargain if she kills Daniel ("Promises/Forever Yours (Reprise)"). Ti Moune enters Daniel's room with a knife, but she still loves him too much to kill him, proving love is stronger than death. However, Daniel finds Ti Moune with the knife. Appalled at the attempted murder, the Beauxhommes throw her out of the hotel grounds. Barred from the hotel, Ti Moune waits for two weeks to try and meet Daniel at the gate. As Daniel and Andrea are married, they follow an old tradition of throwing coins to the peasants outside the hotel gates. Ti Moune calls to Daniel who gently places a silver coin in Ti Moune's hand, kisses her cheek, and leaves. The storytellers tell of how the gods were moved to tears by Ti Moune's selflessness and love, and chose to bestow a final kindness on her; Erzulie took her by the hand and led her to the ocean, where Agwé allowed her to drown peacefully. Papa Ge received her gently and brought her back to shore where Asaka transformed her into a tree ("A Part of Us"). The tree becomes a celebration of life and love that cracks open the gates of the hotel, allowing those of all social statuses to become one, including a peasant girl and a young grand homme, Daniel's son, as they play in her branches. As the years go by, the story of Ti Moune is told again and again, passed down through generations as proof of the power of love and stories to bring people together. As the musical ends, the little girl who was frightened by the storm begins to retell the story herself ("Why We Tell the Story").
One Day is a musical with music and lyrics by Amanda Sudano and Abner Ramirez (with additional lyrics by Freya Catrin Smith) and a book by David Greig. Based on the 2009 novel of the same name, the musical follows Emma and Dex, whose lives have taken them in different directions, but one day keeps bringing them back together. Directed by Max Webster, the world premiere production of One Day opened in Edinburgh at the Royal Lyceum Theatre in March 2026. It is scheduled to transfer to the Garrick Theatre in London's West End from 17 November 2026.
One Mo' Time is a musical revue conceived by Vernel Bagneris. It is an evening of 1920s African-American vaudeville, set in the Lyric Theatre of New Orleans in 1926.
One Night Stand is a musical with a book and lyrics by Herb Gardner and music by Jule Styne. Its plot centers on a songwriter who feels he's past his prime. Styne had approached Gardner about adapting his play A Thousand Clowns for the musical stage, but Gardner was more interested in working on an original project. According to producer Joe Kipness, the collaboration was ill-conceived, since the two men could not agree about anything. The Broadway production, directed by John Dexter and choreographed by Peter Gennaro, began previews at the Nederlander Theatre on October 20, 1980. After eight performances, it closed without ever officially opening. The cast included Charles Kimbrough, Catherine Cox, Jack Weston, and Brandon Maggart. A cast album was released by Original Cast Records.
One Touch of Venus is a 1943 musical with music written by Kurt Weill, lyrics by Ogden Nash, and book by S. J. Perelman and Nash, based on the 1885 novella The Tinted Venus by Thomas Anstey Guthrie, and very loosely spoofing the Pygmalion myth. The show satirizes contemporary American suburban values, artistic fads and romantic and sexual mores. Weill had been in America for eight years by the time he wrote this musical, and his music, though retaining his early haunting power, had evolved into a very different Broadway style.
One & One is an American 1970s ASCAP award-winning original off-Broadway musical comedy by Dianne Adams (music and lyrics), Fred Bennett (book), and Richard O'Donnell (book, music and lyrics).
The story compresses 22 years and 64 episodes of the show into a two-hour tale in which Rodney and Cassandra are making wedding preparations, Boycie and Marlene are trying to conceive, and Del Boy goes to a dating agency looking for a "sort" and ends up with Raquel.
Onward Victoria is a musical (1980) with a book and lyrics by Charlotte Anker and Irene Rosenberg, and music by Keith Herrmann. Its subject is Victoria Woodhull, the 19th-century woman who with her sister were the first women to operate a brokerage firm, at which they became millionaires, and started a newspaper.
Opening Night is a stage musical with music and lyrics by Rufus Wainwright and conceived and book by Ivo van Hove. It is based on the 1977 film of the same name by John Cassavetes, which van Hove has also previously adapted as a play in 2005.
In 1943, Naval intelligence officer Ewen Montagu welcomes the audience to MI5, where the "elite" of the British military contribute to the World War II effort ("Born to Lead"). Colonel Johnny Bevan informs his subordinates that the British government requires a strategy to convince the Nazis that the Allied Forces are planning to invade Sardinia rather than their actual (and more obvious) target, Sicily; several officers, including Montagu and Ian Fleming, present their ideas, but despite their conviction of their own brilliance ("God That's Brilliant"), Bevan dismisses them all as unrealistic and poorly planned. Sulking after his rejection, Montagu encounters Air Force officer and "amateur naturalist" Charles Cholmondeley, who has formulated a strategy code-named "Operation Mincemeat", but is convinced of its futility after being bullied out of line by Montagu and his colleagues ("Dead in the Water"). Montagu reads his plan, and despite declaring it "insane", recognises its potential and convinces Charles that they should team up to pitch Mincemeat to Bevan, noting his own natural "flair for presentation" will bolster Charles' lack of confidence. Meanwhile, Bevan's secretary Hester Leggatt welcomes new clerk Jean Leslie to her team, who is eager to disrupt the typically side-lined role of women in MI5 and dreams of ranking alongside the male officers ("All the Ladies"). Although Jean tries to stop them while bringing Bevan tea, Montagu and Charles arrive at the last minute to pitch Mincemeat. After Charles fumbles their presentation, Montagu recognises Jean's worthwhile attempts to help and drafts her in to explain the plan: MI5 will obtain a male corpse, dress it as a British soldier who has drowned following a plane crash at sea, plant documents on it "revealing" the Allied plans to invade Sardinia, and place it off the coast of neutral Spain, where Nazi spies will discover it and use the documents as cause to move their troops from Sicily ("The Pitch"). Bevan is highly sceptical, but concedes that it is the one decent idea he has heard and allows the operation to proceed. Jean and Hester are officially drafted in as support, but Bevan covertly assigns Hester to investigate Montagu, who is believed to be in contact with his brother Ivor, a filmmaker who is suspected to be a spy for the Russian government. Together, Montagu, Charles, Jean and Hester create a fake Royal Marines major, "Bill Martin". To ensure his identity is "watertight", Hester falsifies numerous identification papers, Charles designs an airtight canister to ensure the corpse can be transported without rotting and Montagu and Jean source receipts for a week of leisure in London (by literally having a week of leisure in London). Montagu purchases an engagement ring so the receipt can be on Bill's person, along with a photograph of Jean posing as Bill's imagined fiancée ("Making a Man"). Charles notices that Montagu occasionally "misplaces" important files, but suppresses his concerns. A corpse, that of an unnamed transient who ingested rat poison, is obtained with the help of Montagu's morally dubious acquaintance Bernard Spilsbury ("Spilsbury"); the team are concerned about using it without the knowledge and consent of any relatives, let alone knowing his real name, but Montagu is adamant that it is better if the corpse is a "nobody". Bevan is unimpressed by the team's spending spree, but concedes that their creation is believable, suggesting that Bill should be carrying a letter from his fiancée. After dismissing Charles and Jean's questionable efforts at writing one ("Love is a Bird"), Hester indirectly relates her own story of the lover she lost during World War I, and agrees to a deeply moved Jean's request that she write the letter herself ("Dear Bill"). That night, Montagu and Charles arrive in Scotland to load "Bill's" corpse onto the submarine HMS Seraph; its crew are told that the sealed canister contains meteorological equipment ("Sail On, Boys"). Charles is deeply insecure about the result of the operation, but is swayed by Montagu into celebrating its completion in a carefree pub crawl, during which he witnesses a brief meeting between Montagu and his brother Ivor. ("Just For Tonight") Meanwhile, after enduring enemy attacks, the crew of the Seraph are unnerved by the contents of the canister but follow their orders, placing Bill in the sea off the Spanish coast before thanking him for his service. The German army present a display of their apparent dominance, in the form of a high energy boy band performance. ("Das Übermensch"). After reprimanding the audience for "appreciating" the enemy, Bevan relates the progression of Mincemeat and reveals that a problem has arisen ("Bevan's Update"). The team await news from Vice-Consul Francis Haselden in Huelva, but are dismayed to learn that the victim of an aeroplane accident he calls to report is a live American soldier, also named William; they fear it will make Bill's story less believable. Moments later, they learn Bill has also been recovered, but the Spanish government is indeed suspicious and have ordered an autopsy. They instruct Haselden to make sure the briefcase holding the false plans is seized by the Nazi-populated Spanish authorities ("The Ballad of Willie Watkins"). Charles and Jean attempt to keep working through the crises, but Montagu believes they can do no more and simply wants to enjoy himself; he is hurt by Jean reminding him that their London excursions were merely for the operation. Bevan calls the team into his office to alert them to an unexpected complication: Spilsbury's methodology is flawed and he should not have been trusted with the operation ("Spilsbury Reprise"). Montagu insists that Mincemeat is running smoothly despite the setbacks, but Bevan orders the immediate abortion of all plans ("I Call Abort"); however, this fails to reach Haselden, who diligently ensures that the autopsy is rushed and the briefcase reaches the authorities ("Haselden's Got a Good Feeling"). After an animated reprimanding by Bevan for his nonchalance and failure to obtain consent for the use of Bill's body, Montagu takes his frustration out on Jean, fully dismisses her role in Mincemeat and orders her to go back to her role as a clerk and assistant. Furious and humiliated, Jean confesses to Hester that she'd pictured the veneration they'd receive if the operation was a success; Hester gently persuades her that not everyone who works for a cause will be recognised, but that does not make them any less valuable – whether they are spearheading an operation or making tea – and Jean thanks her for helping her to "grow" ("Useful"). Hester is inspired to recruit Jean into the investigation of Montagu's brother, asking her to continue dining with Montagu and encouraging him to talk about himself. Jean agrees to swallow her pride and investigate. Montagu orders Haselden to drop hints that the British desperately want Bill's briefcase back in the hopes of alerting German spies. After stroking Haselden's ego to get him to cooperate, Montagu describes tactics for getting people to trust him, upsetting Charles, who has grown increasingly suspicious of seeing Montagu take files out of the office. Haseldon succeeds in his efforts: Bill's briefcase is taken to Berlin, but there is no sign the Germans plan on moving their troops ("Act as If"). Eventually, Montagu discovers Charles, Jean and Hester going through his possessions. Despite his protests, they read his files, learn that he is actually writing a film script about Mincemeat depicting himself as a hero. He was secreting files so that he could archive them for personal use, being careful not to let them into the wrong hands, and he was talking to Ivor – a filmmaker – to get his opinion on a rough, censored draft of the script. While appalled that he intends to sensationalise their story, Charles, Jean, and Hester conclude that Montagu is innocent of treason. An update from Bevan then confirms that Haselden's whisper campaign has worked, and Adolf Hitler himself has ordered the transfer of German troops from Sicily to Sardinia. The Allies subsequently invade Sicily with little-to-no bloodshed. Bevan informs an ecstatic Montagu, Charles, Jean and Hester that Operation Mincemeat is officially a success, and that Montagu and Charles will receive the highest level of commendation in the British Army ("Did We Do It?"). As the team celebrate, Charles observes that the unfortunate moral of their story is that as long as you're in charge, you can do whatever you like. To counteract this, they relate a summary of everything that occurred following the success of Mincemeat: the Second World War is won by the Allies with help from the US Army (who recruit a number of Nazis in the aftermath); Ian Fleming goes on to create James Bond; Haselden and his assistant Steve remain in Spain; Hester initiates a romance with Bevan; Jean looks ahead to the progress of feminism during and after the war; Montagu eventually makes (and acts in) his film about Operation Mincemeat; and Charles goes on to do classified work for MI5. As Bevan finishes relating the events of the operation to his superiors, they wonder who the man known as Bill Martin really was; the cast address the audience to inform them that thanks to Montagu's archives, he was eventually identified as a gardener named Glyndwr Michael, and that there is now an inscription in Huelva acknowledging that he served in the Second World War as Major William Martin ("A Glitzy Finale").
Setting: Lawyer's Office, Paris and Kitty's Villa at Cannes. Baron Roger Belmont's aunt has recently died, leaving him her inheritance if he marries within a year of her death. He is in love with Helene de Vasquez, but is unable to marry her as his aunt's will specifies he cannot marry a divorcee. His lawyer, Tillie Jones, suggests Belmont enter into a marriage of convenience with her niece Kitty, allowing him to receive his full inheritance before divorcing Kitty and marrying Helene. However, Belmont and Kitty do end up falling in love.
This synopsis is based on the 2008 UK Tour version. Camden lad Joe Casey arrives to his house, later joined by his best friends Emmo and Lewis, his girlfriend Sarah, and her best friends Billie and Angie, where a party has been organised by his mother, Kath, for his sixteenth birthday ("Our House"). After the party, wanting to impress Sarah, Joe breaks into a building site to show her his street, Casey Street, from above. When the police arrive, Joe convinces Sarah to run away and is left with the decision of whether to run away or give himself up. The story splits into two paths revealed by the ghost of Joe's dead criminal dad: the right path where Joe gives himself up, and the wrong path where he runs away ("Simple Equation"). On the wrong path, Joe escapes the police but is berated by Sarah, and looked down upon by Dad. Joe, Emmo and Lewis drown their sorrows at the pub ("My Girl"). When Joe wakes up, he encounters Reecey, the school hardman, who offers Joe an opportunity to leave school and get involved with a "business idea" he has ("Baggy Trousers"). On the right path, the judge sentences Joe to go to a young offender institution. Joe is subsequently branded an embarrassment by neighbours and family members. Upon his release, Joe tries to get a job, but all of his interviews fail when he reveals that he is a young offender ("Embarrassment"). On the wrong path, Joe accepts Reecey's offer to work for him and they run a scam alarm company. Emmo and Lewis disapprove of Joe and Reecey's business, but are eventually convinced the business is a good idea when they experience some of the perks of Joe's lavish lifestyle ("Embarrassment – Reprise (Encouragement Version)"). On the right path, Joe has gotten a humiliating job wearing a sign pointing to a golf shop. Reecey offers to let Joe borrow one of his stolen cars, which Joe declines but it also gives him an idea; he rents a low quality car which Billie and Angie laugh at but Sarah loves ("Driving in my Car"). Sarah thanks Joe and invites him to a charity ball and offers to pay for a dinner jacket. He declines and Sarah is devastated ("My Girl - Reprise (Ballad Version)"). On the wrong path, Joe has started a building business, as well as a limousine business for Emmo and Lewis. Joe, Emmo and Lewis go out for drinks, and their waiter is Sarah, who they have not seen since school. Sarah criticises Joe's selfishness and his decision to run away from the building site when he asks about the charity ball, but confirms that he can come if he wants to. On the right path, Reecey approaches Joe as he walks home from work and convinces him to attempt to burgle a house ("Simple Equation - Reprise"). On the wrong path, Billie, Angie, Sarah, and her new friend Callum are at the charity ball. Joe arrives at the ball with a large donation, and he and Sarah dance ("The Return of the Los Palmas 7"). On the right path, Joe and Reecey are caught by the police, and each blames the other for the crime ("Shut Up"). Emmo and Lewis call Sarah, who arrives with Callum. The situation escalates, with Joe eventually punching Callum and a policeman. Joe says he wishes he had never met Sarah, causing her to storm off. Joe is sent back to prison. Meanwhile, on the wrong path, Joe and Sarah share a kiss, having rekindled their relationship ("Tomorrow's (Just Another Day)/The Sun and the Rain"). On the wrong path, Joe and Sarah are on a gondola, on their way to get married in Las Vegas ("Night Boat To Cairo"). While there, Joe encounters Mr Pressman, who gives Joe his business card. Joe and Sarah get married and a paradise wedding party ensues ("Wings of a Dove"). On the right path, Joe is released from prison, but doesn't go home. Kath is worried for him, as she now has two family members who went to prison and never came home ("One Better Day"). Mr Pressman meets with Kath to try and convince her to move out of 25 Casey Street so he can build it up; she refuses. Joe overhears Pressman's plans to get rid of number 25, and is now determined to track down Mr Pressman with a new mission: save 25 Casey Street ("Rise and Fall"). On both paths, Joe arrives at Mr Pressman's office ("House of Fun"). On the wrong path, Mr Pressman explains to Joe his plan to vacate and build up 25 Casey Street. Joe agrees to get Kath out of the house. On the right path, Joe enters Mr Pressman's office to argue against his plans, but Pressman doesn't pay attention to Joe. On the wrong path, while at dinner, Joe reveals his plans to move Kath out of Casey Street and rebuild it as Casey Boulevard. Lewis disagrees with Joe and leaves dinner. Joe looks to Sarah for support, but she also disagrees with him. Joe angrily leaves and Sarah laments on her feelings about Joe, remembering the night he ran away from the police. Meanwhile, Joe tells Mr Pressman he doesn't want to work on Casey Street anymore ("NW5"). On the right path, Joe looks for a lawyer, revealed to be Sarah, now engaged to Callum ("Embarrassment - Reprise (Law Firm)"). Joe decides he should find a different lawyer and leaves. Sarah realises she misses him and wants him back. On the wrong path, Joe is waiting for Mr Pressman's demolition expert, who is revealed to be Reecey. Joe tells Reecey to break into 25 Casey Street while Kath is out ("Simple Equation – Reprise"). On the right path, Sarah finds Joe sleeping in the now disheveled Morris Minor and they discuss Joe's while thinking about how much they miss each other. She reveals that 25 Casey Street was gifted to the Casey family. Joe praises her investigative skills and they hug, more in love than ever ("It Must Be Love"). Sarah also reveals she didn't get married. Secretly elated, Joe decides to go home to his mother. On the wrong path, Emmo and Lewis tell Joe that Kath didn't get in the limousine because she wanted to wait for Joe. Realising she'll still be home when Reecey breaks in, Joe runs home ("The Sun and the Rain"). On both paths, Reecey sets fire to 25 Casey Street, and both Joes arrive as the house is burning down. On the right path, Kath is safe, much to the relief of Joe. On the wrong path, Kath dies in the fire. At her funeral, Lewis blames Joe for her death and one by one, the others leave. Joe is charged with arson and manslaughter after Reecey names him as an accomplice. On the right path, Joe and Sarah get married. Joe talks with Kath, where he says he now understands his dad's situation better. He says he wishes he'd done things differently, to which his dad says that as long as he's with the people he loves, he's done the right thing. For a brief moment, Joe and Dad can finally hear each other. They share a touching moment as Dad leaves. Joe returns to the group for the wedding photo and the party ensues. Suddenly, Joe is thrust back to the night of the party and eventual break in. However, instead of breaking into the building site, he kisses Sarah before taking her out dancing ("Our House – Reprise").
After a theatrical company is stranded on an island, the domineering Mrs. Reed divides the land and Mr. Cecil claims the fertile quarter. A cask of anchovy paste prompts a bargain, and Cecil’s new land proves to be solid gold. Captain Bang arrives, bound by pirate indentures to execute them, but Thomas German Reed recognizes him as his long-lost son. Bang has just turned twenty-one, ending his indenture, and agrees to take everyone home.
After a family revelation turns his understanding of his life upside down, Noam Tomaschoff sets out to make sense of his unexpectedly large family. Based on his true story, this solo musical explores identity, parenthood and the people who make us who we are.
Our Man Crichton is a musical play based on The Admirable Crichton by J. M. Barrie, with book and lyrics by Herbert Kretzmer and music by David Lee. It opened in Manchester and then London at the end of 1964.
Our Miss Gibbs is an Edwardian musical comedy in two acts by 'Cryptos' and James T. Tanner, with lyrics by Adrian Ross and Percy Greenbank, music by Ivan Caryll and Lionel Monckton.
The Roman gods Mercury and Jupiter are in search of some entertainment of the human kind. The focus of their attention is a young bride, Helen, and her husband, Art. Mercury joins the two on their trip to Athens, intending to put himself between the blushing newlyweds. While the men are busy chasing Helen, the goddess Juno (Jupiter's wife) is playing games of her own, with inept gangster Nikki as her reluctant sidekick.
Over Here! is a musical with a score by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman and book by Will Holt. The original Broadway production was directed by Tom Moore and choreographed by Patricia Birch, with scenic design by Douglas W. Schmidt and costumes by Carrie F. Robbins. Over Here! was a follow-up to the Sherman brothers' World War II musical Victory Canteen, an off-Broadway production that featured 1940s icon Patty Andrews. The setting is a cross-country train trip in the United States during World War II (hence the name of the play, in contrast to the popular patriotic war anthem entitled Over There). The show begins as a nostalgic look at 1940s America (where fashion, music, big bands and swing dance dominates) but, quickly evolves into a social commentary about the fear of dying in battle, prejudice, and discrimination.
Act 1 A large family of British plantation owners on the Pacific island of Samolo, the Stirlings, are hosting a party. The father refuses to extend an invitation to a visitor to the island, the young opera singer Elena Salvador, but one of the sons, romantic-minded Kerry, finds this unreasonable, believing that she has been the target of malicious gossip. A carriage accident happens near the Stirlings' home, and Elena is the victim. She and Kerry become acquainted, and he invites her to the party, as they express affection for each other. Act 2 At the party, the six Stirling daughters and their boyfriends who work at Government House are poking fun at the Governor. The Stirlings withdraw their objections to Elena's presence when they learn that she is a friend of the Governor's wife. Elena and Kerry entertain the guests with a native song, but when she kisses Kerry, in front of the guests, they are scandalised. A week later, at Elena's house her chaperone warns Elena not to fall seriously in love. Sadly, financial considerations force Elena to leave Samolo to resume her career, and both Kerry and Elena are heartbroken. Act 3 Elena returns a year later to find that it is the wedding day of young Mr. Stirling; she is despondent. But it turns out that it is not Kerry who is getting married, but his practical brother, Rollo; Kerry is the best man. When Kerry finally sees Elena, they fall into each other's arms at once.
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