Jeeves is the original 1975 version, which opened on 22 April 1975 and closed on 24 May after 38 performances at Her Majesty's Theatre, London. It is regarded as Andrew Lloyd Webber's only real flop.
By Jeeves is the rewritten 1996 version, which opened 1 May 1996 in London and due to success was extended to February 1997, through three theatres. It premiered in the U.S. in 1996 and on Broadway in 2001.
1975: Jeeves
Tim Rice conceived the idea of turning P. G. Wodehouse's Jeeves stories into a musical. Originally, he was to work with his then-partner, Andrew Lloyd Webber, but Rice backed out of the project.[1] Eventually Lloyd Webber teamed up with famed British playwright Alan Ayckbourn, and the two of them began work with the personal blessing of Wodehouse. Ayckbourn utilized characters and plot lines from several Jeeves and Wooster stories, and Lloyd Webber provided a strong period score.
He seems to have lacked the confidence to orchestrate the score himself, so was prepared to pay for another's anonymous contributions. In the end, the sound of trumpets, banjos and saxophones flavouring this score were written by a group of arrangers: Keith Amos, Don Walker, Lloyd Webber himself and his future orchestrator, David Cullen.
The Director Eric Thompson (father of Actress- Emma) was alleged to be in over his head, trying to stage a small farce with a large group of singing chorus hanging around, near redundant. Thompson was fired just before the opening, so Ayckbourn himself stepped into the fray, aided by choreographer Christopher Bruce. It received mixed-to-poor reviews and closed after little over a month and 38 performances, on 24 May. Several critics noted that the authors failed to develop the title character, Jeeves not even having a solo song.
The original cast album (MCA Cat. No. MCF 2726) was recorded and released, but it is extremely hard to find. Lloyd Webber, reportedly acting on the advice of American Theatre Director- Harold Prince, withdrew the recording in order to be able to reuse some of the musical material in subsequent shows. Some London theatre fans tell (probably apocryphal) stories of Andrew Lloyd Webber going around London record shops to buy up the remaining copies of the album. The musical score does have some sprightly songs interwoven quite heavily into the plot.
Musical numbers
Note: from Original London Cast recording, 1975; only the first 11 songs were recorded[2]
The Jeeves theatrical programme lists song titles that weren't recorded...
"Literary Men" sung by Bertie, Jeeves & Gussie. "Food Of Love" sung by Aunt Dahlia (the role and song were cut in previews) and "Song Of Spode" sung by the villainous Roderick Spode.
Some of the songs from the score managed to find a life after the original production: "Half a Moment" was later recorded by Lloyd Webber's second wife, Sarah Brightman, on the album The Songs That Got Away; and a melody was reused in Song and Dance, first as the finale "When You Want to Fall in Love", and later as a new song in the first act- "Unexpected Song". The track "Summer Day" was re-written and appeared in new chordal disguise as "Another Suitcase In Another Hall" in Evita. The melody of "Travel Hopefully" was used in "The Likes Of Us," the melody of which can be heard on the World Premiere Recording.
The tune of "It's A Pig" appears with different lyrics as "Magdalena", an unsuccessful pop song for Tony Christie in 1977.[3]
The melody of "Female Of The Species" appeared earlier than its Jeeves incarnation, with lyrics written and sung by Tim Rice as "The Ballad Of Robert And Peter" in 1973 (for private recording purposes).[4]
1996: By Jeeves
Background
In 1996, Lloyd Webber and Ayckbourn decided to revisit the show, jettisoning most of the score and the entire original book. Only three songs from the original show remained lyrically intact- "Banjo Boy", "Half a Moment" and "Travel Hopefully". The other songs and musical interludes were mostly new or reworked compositions by Lloyd Webber. One track: "When loves Arrives" is a melody originally written for the first ever Lloyd Webber/Rice project- The Likes of Us .
Productions
Retitled By Jeeves, the rewritten version re-opened on 1 May 1996 at the Stephen Joseph Theatre-in-the-round in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, an English seaside resort. Audience reaction was generally enthusiastic so the show moved on 2 July 1996 to London for a 12-week season at the fairly intimate Duke of York's Theatre. The show turned out to be more popular than first thought, and the run was extended to February 1997 with the show moved to The Lyric Theatre in Shaftesbury Avenue.[5]
Steven Pacey played Bertie Wooster and Malcolm Sinclair played his valet Jeeves. The cast recording has an interesting format, taking a track between every song where Bertie and Jeeves discuss the plot.[6]Pacey was nominated for an Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical, and By Jeeves also received nominations for Outstanding New Production and Best Costume Designer.[7]
The show had its U.S. premiere on 12 November 1996, at the Goodspeed Opera House in Connecticut. U.S. actor John Scherer took the part of Bertie, and Richard Kline played Jeeves.[8] The show was specially recorded and released on VHS and DVD where British actor, Martin Jarvis, took over from Richard Kline as Jeeves. It also had a brief run on Broadway at the Helen Hayes Theatre, from October 28, 2001 (in previews October 16) through December 30, 2001 for 73 performances. Directed by Ayckbourn, the cast featured Scherer (Bertie) and Martin Jarvis (Jeeves) (who received the Theatre World Award).[9]
In May 2008, the American Gulf South Premiere of the show was produced by Rivertown Repertory Theatre in New Orleans, Louisiana starring Vatican Lokey as Jeeves, Gary Rucker as Bertie, and Edward R. Cox as Sir Watkyn Bassett.[11]
Cornstock Theatre held the regional premiere of By Jeeves in Central Illinois, which opened on October 17, 2008 and ran through October 25. The production was directed by Laura Johnson, and starred Ryan Campen as Bertie and Mike Reams as Jeeves. Rounding out the cast are Kelsey Burd, Nate Downs, Melissa Grimson, Katy Hawley, Jarod Hazzard, John Johnson, Chris Leasor, Angela Manasco, Katie McLuckie, Dave Montague, Jillian Rebmann, Matt Stubbs and Emily Toohill.[12]
The Genesian Theatre in Sydney, Australia presented the Sydney premiere of By Jeeves on 18 October 2008 running through 6 December 2008.[13]The cast featured Nick Hunter (Bertie Wooster), Richard Cotter (Jeeves), Rowan Witt (Gussie Fink-Knottle), Leon Waserman (Bingo Little), Adam Majsay (Harold "Stinker" Pinker), Daniel Felkai (Cyrus Budge The 3rd, Jr.), Rod Stewart (Sir Watkin Basset), Jacqui Robson (Honoria Glossop), Emily Twemlow (Stiffy Bing), Melanie McLeod (Madeline Basset), James Graham (Male).
References
^Andrew Lloyd Webber: His Life and Works – Walsh, Michael (1989, revised and expanded, 1997),P.82, Abrams: New York
