Based on the life of comedian Charles Chaplin and named after his most famous character, The Tramp, it opens at the 1971 Academy Awards ceremony at which the aging star, long exiled from the United States, is about to receive a Lifetime Achievement Award. The trajectory of the impressive professional career and turbulent private life that leads to this moment is traced via flashbacks in which Chaplin recalls his introduction to Hollywood and silent movies, his failed marriages and problems with the press, his dealings with the FBI, and the creation of his most beloved character, the iconic Little Tramp.
In 1992, in order to create interest in a staged production, Pomeranz gathered together what he referred to as his "dream cast" and recorded a CD of the score. Artists participating in the project included Petula Clark, Lea Salonga, Tim Curry, Mel Brooks, Treat Williams, and Peter Duncan as Chaplin. It was released on the Warner Music UK Ltd. label.
Little Tramp received its first staging in 1995 at the prestigious Eugene O'Neill Theater Festival in Waterford, Connecticut (Eugene O'Neill having been the father of Chaplin's wife, Oona O'Neill).[1] The following year, a concert version was presented in St. Petersburg, Russia to inaugurate the world's first East/West Musical Theater Conference.
The show was first performed in the UK by Imagine Productions in Preston, and was endorsed by Richard Attenborough, director of the biopic Chaplin.
Synopsis
At the 1971 Academy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles, an 82-year-old Charlie Chaplin is about to receive a special Life Achievement award. 20 years earlier, Charlie had been barred from re-entry into the United States on the grounds that he was a Communist ("In America Again").
Charlie looks back at his life. His mother, a failed music hall performer, trying to make ends meet to support little Charlie and his older brother Sydney, reminds her sons that they have something more than mere material possessions ("Something No One Can Ever Take Away").
Not able to support her children, Hannah Chaplin is taken to the workhouse. The boys try selling their old clothing on the streets but there are no takers. Hungry and heartbroken, Sydney tries to cheer things up ("When the World Stops Turning") while the Charlie of 1971 rejoins them.
When Sydney joined the Navy, Charlie is left to fend for himself. Determined to help his mother, Charlie joined a dance troupe called "The Eight Lancashire Lads", but his mother's condition worsens, and she is placed in an insane asylum. Dodging truant officers, Charlie sees a sign, "Blackmore's Theatrical Agency" and barges into the agent's office ("Number One").
Now grown up and a consummate English Stage comedian, Charlie is discovered by filmmaker Mack Sennett and signed to a contract at Keystone Studios in California. Sennett's style of "pie in the face" comedy is different from Chaplin's slower, more deliberate style, and when Charlie tries to assert his ideas, Sennett gives him some strong advice ("Less It Ends with a Chase").
Charlie is relentless. Sennett finally throws up his hands in frustration and gives Charlie a chance ("The Tramp"/"He's Got to be Someone").
Charlie becomes an overnight sensation. Film distributors, fans and theater owners can't get enough of him ("Chaplin Films").
Charlie opens his own picture studio, and he becomes one of the most beloved public figures. One evening, he is visited by a local chapter of Chaplin Fan Club ("Thank You").
By this time, Sydney returns as Charlie's personal manager. Getting ready for a swank Hollywood party, Sydney reminisces how far they've come ("Heaven").
Back to 1971, Charlie's wife, Oona, is instructed by the show's assistant director on how Charlie should play to the camera. Furthermore, a government official then warns her that Charlie should avoid making any political comments. Oona is incensed ("He's Got to be Someone (Reprise)").
The story returns to the 1920s. Charlie's career and personal life are at a low point. His mother just died, and he just underwent two bitter divorces. He is overworked, reporters are on to him and to make things worse, talking pictures are threatening his artistic survival ("Too Many Words").
Nonetheless his success continued, and Charlie revisits England to attend a Royal Premiere of City Lights. He wanders through his old neighborhood and is stunned that injustice and poverty still exists. In an effort to improve such degenerate conditions, he decides to speak out on behalf of the Russian War Relief. He contends that it's no concern whether or not these people are Communist, they're being slaughtered by the Nazis. After one of his speeches, FBI agent Tippy Gray takes notes and reports his finding to Bureau Chief J. Edgar Hoover ("I Got Me a Red"/"There's Got to be a Law").
A paternity suit is filed against Chaplin, giving Hoover ammunition he needed. Although a blood test disproves the allegation, the press crucifies him. His fans turn on him and his films are boycotted. Charlie is dejected. He is convinced that it is just a matter of time before his new wife Oona leaves him too. However. Oona assures him that she won't ("This is What I Dreamed").
The Chaplins decide to cruise Europe, but aboard the ship, Charlie receives a cable from Washington stating that in order to re-enter the U.S., he must answer to political and moral charges. Crestfallen, Charlie decided to spend the next 20 years living in Veney, Switzerland.
Back to 1971, Charlie is escorted to the stage while deeply regarding what he will tell his audience ("Finale").
Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is considered one of the film industry's most important figures. His career spanned more than 75 years, from childhood in the Victorian era until a year before his death in 1977, and encompassed both accolade and controversy.
The Great Dictator is a 1940 American anti-fascist, political satire, and black comedy film written, directed, produced, scored by, and starring British filmmaker Charlie Chaplin. Having been the only Hollywood filmmaker to continue to make silent films well into the period of sound films, Chaplin made this his first true sound film.
Chaplin is a 1992 biographical comedy-drama film about the life of English comic actor and filmmaker Charlie Chaplin. It was produced and directed by Richard Attenborough and stars Robert Downey Jr., Marisa Tomei, Dan Aykroyd, Penelope Ann Miller and Kevin Kline. It also features Charlie Chaplin's own daughter, Geraldine Chaplin, in the role of his mother, Hannah Chaplin.
Tillie's Punctured Romance is a 1914 American silent comedy film directed by Mack Sennett and starring Marie Dressler, Mabel Normand, Charlie Chaplin, and the Keystone Cops. The picture is the first feature-length comedy and was the only feature-length comedy made by the Keystone Film Company.
The Tramp, also known as the Little Tramp, was English actor Charlie Chaplin's most memorable on-screen character and an icon in world cinema during the era of silent film. The Tramp is also the title of a silent film starring Chaplin, which Chaplin wrote and directed in 1915.
Charles Spencer Chaplin III, known professionally as Charles Chaplin Jr., was an American actor. He was the eldest son of Charlie Chaplin and Lita Grey, and is known for appearing in 1950s films such as The Beat Generation and Fangs of the Wild.
Sydney Earl Chaplin was an American actor. He was the second son of Charlie Chaplin and Lita Grey. One of his major roles was in his father's film Limelight (1952). In theater, Chaplin won the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for his 1957 performance in Bells Are Ringing.
A Dog's Life is a 1918 American short silent film written, produced and directed by Charlie Chaplin. This was Chaplin's first film for First National Pictures. It was part of a then groundbreaking $1 million contract. It was for a total of eight 3 reel short silent films.
Mack Swain was a prolific early American film actor, who appeared in many of Mack Sennett’s comedies at Keystone Studios, including the Keystone Cops series. He also appeared in major features by Charlie Chaplin and starred in both the world's first feature length comedy and first film to feature a "movie-within-a-movie" premise.
Oona O'Neill, Lady Chaplin was a Bermudian-born actress, the daughter of Irish-American playwright Eugene O'Neill and English-born writer Agnes Boulton, and the fourth and last wife of actor and filmmaker Charlie Chaplin.
The Knockout is a 1914 American silent comedy film starring Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle. It also features Charlie Chaplin in a small role, his seventeenth film for Keystone Studios. It is one of only a few films in which Chaplin's Little Tramp character appears in a secondary role, not appearing until the second half of the film. It also stars Arbuckle's wife, Minta Durfee, Edgar Kennedy and Keystone owner, Mack Sennett in a minor role as a spectator. The film was directed by Charles Avery.
His Prehistoric Past is a 1914 American short silent comedy film, written and directed by Charlie Chaplin, featuring Chaplin in a stone-age kingdom trying to usurp the crown of King Low-Brow to win the affections of the king's favorite wife. As this film was the final one that Chaplin made at Keystone Studios, it was also the last film he made with most of Keystone's regular roster of comedians. Co-star Mack Swain would not appear in another Chaplin film until 1923 when he had a prominent role in the Chaplin silent film Pay Day.
The Face on the Bar Room Floor is a short film written and directed by Charlie Chaplin in 1914. Chaplin stars in this film, loosely based on the poem of the same name by Hugh Antoine d'Arcy.
David Pomeranz is an American singer, songwriter, composer, lyricist, and writer for musical theater. He is also an ambassador for Operation Smile, a foundation dedicated to cleft lip and palate and a member of the Church of Scientology.
Mabel's Strange Predicament is a 1914 American film starring Mabel Normand and Charles Chaplin, notable for being the first film for which Chaplin donned the costume of The Tramp, although his appearance in the costume in Kid Auto Races at Venice was released first. The film was directed by Normand and produced by Mack Sennett.
Caught in the Rain is a 1914 American comedy silent film starring Charlie Chaplin. This film was the first of many movies in which Chaplin both directed and played the lead. The short film was produced by Mack Sennett for Keystone Studios with a running time of 16 minutes.
The Property Man is a short 1914 American comedy silent film made by Keystone Studios starring Charlie Chaplin.
The Chaplin Revue is a 1959 film comprising three silent films made by Charlie Chaplin. The three shorts included are A Dog's Life, Shoulder Arms, and The Pilgrim. All three star Chaplin's trademark character, The Tramp. For the 1959 release, Chaplin added a soundtrack to help appeal to modern audiences. Chaplin also added extra footage including clips from World War I to express the context. He provides a personal introduction to each of the clips.
The Chaplin family is an acting family. They are the descendants of Hannah Harriet Pedlingham Hill, mother of Sydney John Chaplin, Sir Charles Spencer "Charlie" Chaplin Jr., and George Wheeler Dryden.
Chaplin: The Musical, formerly titled Limelight: The Story of Charlie Chaplin, is a musical with music and lyrics by Christopher Curtis and book by Curtis and Thomas Meehan. The show is based on the life of Charlie Chaplin. The musical, which started at the New York Musical Theatre Festival in 2006, debuted at the La Jolla Playhouse in 2010, and then premiered on Broadway in 2012.
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