Redhead (musical)
| Redhead | |
|---|---|
 Logo | |
| Music | Albert Hague |
| Lyrics | Dorothy Fields |
| Book | Dorothy Fields Herbert Fields Sidney Sheldon David Shaw |
| Productions | 1959 Broadway |
| Awards | Tony Award for Best Musical |
Redhead is a musical with music composed by Albert Hague and lyrics by Dorothy Fields, who with her brother, Herbert, along with Sidney Sheldon and David Shaw wrote the book/libretto. Set in London in the 1880s, around the time of Jack the Ripper, the musical is a murder mystery in the setting of a wax museum.
Background
[edit]Herbert and Dorothy Fields wrote the musical, then titled The Works for Beatrice Lillie. When Sidney Sheldon joined the writing team, it was rewritten for Gwen Verdon, who just had two smash hits on Broadway (Damn Yankees and New Girl in Town). Verdon took the lead on the condition that Bob Fosse would be the director as well as choreographer, making this his debut as a director.[1][2][3] According to Stanley Green, Verdon was at the time contracted with producers Robert Fryer and Lawrence Carr to appear in a musical written by David Shaw. The producers resolved this conflict by producing Redhead and bringing Shaw in as one of the writers. [4]
Redhead opened on Broadway at the 46th Street Theatre (now the Richard Rodgers Theatre) on February 5, 1959, and closed on March 19, 1960, after 452 performances. Bob Fosse directed and choreographed. Production design was by Rouben Ter-Arutunian and lighting design was by Jean Rosenthal. Orchestrations were by Philip J. Lang and Robert Russell Bennett under the musical direction of Jay Blackton.
The cast starred Verdon and Richard Kiley. The show won the Tony Award for Best Musical. The musical ran in a brief US tour after closing on Broadway, starring Verdon and Kiley. The tour started at the Shubert Theatre, Chicago in March 1960 and ended at the Curran Theatre, San Francisco, California, in June 1960.[5]
Synopsis
[edit]In Victorian London, the plain Essie Whimple works in the Simpson Sisters Wax Museum, run by her two aunts, Aunt Sarah and Aunt Maude. They show the murder of Ruth LaRue, an American chorus girl, at the museum. They are visited by the murdered women's co-workers and by Inspector White of Scotland Yard. Notable among them is Tom Baxter, a "Strong Man." Essie, attracted to Tom, makes up a story about knowing who the killer is, and fakes an attempt on her life. She hides in Tom's show, and is turned into a "Redhead."
Original cast and characters
[edit]| Character | Broadway (1959)[6] | First National Tour (1960)[7] |
|---|---|---|
| Essie Whimple | Gwen Verdon | |
| Tom Baxter | Richard Kiley | |
| George Poppett | Leonard Stone | |
| Sarah Simpson | Doris Rich | |
| Maude Simpson | Cynthia Latham | |
| Howard Cavanaugh | William LeMassena | |
| Inspector White | Ralph Sumpter | |
| Charles Willingham | Patrick Horgan | Michael Sinclair |
| The Jailer | Buzz Miller | Bill Guske |
| Ruth La Rue / Tilly | Pat Ferrier | |
| May | Joy Nichols | |
Songs
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Production history
[edit]One year after the Broadway premiere, a Spanish language adaptation was produced in Mexico City. La pelirroja was starred by the actress Vilma González and the actor Armando Calvo, featuring a young Plácido Domingo. The production opened in the Teatro de los Insurgentes on February 11, 1960.[8]
The Costa Mesa Playhouse in Costa Mesa, California known for mounting lesser-known, unique, and obscure musicals, presented Redhead in June 1981. The musical revival group 42nd Street Moon in San Francisco, presented a staged concert of Redhead from September 2 to 20, 1998.[9] The Goodspeed Opera House, Connecticut, presented the musical from September to December 1998. Directed by Christopher Ashley, the cast featured Valerie Wright as Essie, Timothy Warmen (Tom), Marilyn Cooper (Aunt Maude), and Carol Morley (Aunt Sarah).[10]
In late January and early February 2015, "Theatre West" in Hollywood, California presented benefit concert performances of Redhead, featuring Lee Meriwether.[11]
Awards and nominations
[edit]Original Broadway production
[edit]| Year | Award | Category | Nominee | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1959 | Tony Awards | Best Musical | Won | |
| Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical | Richard Kiley | Won | ||
| Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical | Gwen Verdon | Won | ||
| Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical | Leonard Stone | Won | ||
| Best Choreography | Bob Fosse | Won | ||
| Best Conductor and Musical Director | Jay Blackton | Nominated | ||
| Best Costume Design | Rouben Ter-Arutunian | Won | ||
The original cast album also tied with that of Gypsy: A Musical Fable for Best Broadway Show Album at the Grammy Awards for 1959 releases.
References
[edit]- ^ PBS article pbs.org, retrieved January 22, 2010 Archived November 8, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Bob Fosse" masterworksbroadway.com, accessed January 17, 2016
- ^ "'Redhead' Show History" mtishowstemp.com, accessed January 17, 2016
- ^ Green, Stanley, "1959. Redhead", Broadway Musicals: Show by Show, Hal Leonard Corporation, 2011 (updated), ISBN 1557837848 (no page number)
- ^ "'Redhead' US Tour" ovrtur.com, accessed January 18, 2016
- ^ Playbill 1959 Bio Cast Listaccessed 07/22/2023
- ^ Playbill 1960 Bio Cast Listaccessed 07/22/2023
- ^ Red Teatral. net: Redhead (Mexican version), accessed July 15, 2020
- ^ "'Redhead' Listing" Archived 2013-01-23 at the Wayback Machine 42ndstmoon.org, accessed January 17, 2016
- ^ Simonson, Robert and Viagas, Robert. "Wright's Redhead Takes Up Residence at CT's Goodspeed, Sept. 23-Dec. 13" playbill.com, September 23, 1998
- ^ "'Redhead' Announcement" theatrewest.org, accessed January 17, 2016
External links
[edit]- Redhead at the Internet Broadway Database
- Redhead at the Music Theatre International website
- Guinness Who's Who of Stage Musicals – editor, Colin Larken, ISBN 0-85112-756-8
- New York Public Library Blog on Redhead
