| Parade | |
|---|---|
 Original Cast Album | |
| Music | Jerry Herman |
| Lyrics | Jerry Herman |
| Book | Jerry Herman |
| Productions | 1960 Off-Broadway |
Parade is a musical revue with book, music, and lyrics by Jerry Herman.
The original production was produced by Lawrence Kasha that opened originally at the Showplace in New York [1] and moved off-Broadway to The Players Theatre on January 20, 1960. [2]
In addition to writing the book, music and lyrics, Jerry Herman directed the show with choreography and staging by Richard Tone. The costumes were by Nilo and the production was designed by Gary Smith. The cast included Dody Goodman, Richard Tone, Fia Karin, Charles Nelson Reilly, and Lester James. [3] Some of the songs from Parade were later used by Herman in Mame and Mack and Mabel . [4] For example, Herman used the song "Show Tune" with a new lyric and stronger B section, as "It's Today" in Mame. [5]
The songs and sketches reflected some topical and local subjects, such as Goodman and Reilly portraying New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller and his wife, explaining why he decided not to run for president in the 1960 election. "Jolly Theatrical Season" made fun of overly serious plays. In "Save the Village" Goodman poked fun at people who wanted to save Greenwich Village. William Ruhlman wrote that the romantic ballads – "Your Hand in Mine," "The Next Time I Love," "Another Candle" – "might have had a chance to live beyond the show if it had been more successful." [6]
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An original cast recording was released by Decca Records. [6] [4]
The show failed to make much of an impression. [7] According to Steven Suskin, " 'Parade'...didn't cause much of a stir over the course of its 95-performance run." [5] Dan Dietz noted that Brooks Atkinson "was somewhat cool to Jerry Herman's contributions...", Atkinson writing that the revue was more "in the style of 'Little Broadway' than 'Off-Broadway'." Dan Dietz wrote that the song "Maria in Spats", about the opera diva Maria Callas, sung by Dody Goodman was "memorable." [8] Stephen Citron observed that "what these songs lack in craft is made up for in élan....The show end [s] with what would become a Herman trademark, a reprise of most of the revue's twelve songs.... In spite of the Times pan, Parade was Herman's steppingstone to Broadway." [9]
Hello, Dolly! is a 1964 musical with lyrics and music by Jerry Herman and a book by Michael Stewart, based on Thornton Wilder's 1938 farce The Merchant of Yonkers, which Wilder revised and retitled The Matchmaker in 1955. The musical follows the story of Dolly Gallagher Levi, a strong-willed matchmaker, as she travels to Yonkers, New York, to find a match for the miserly "well-known unmarried half-a-millionaire" Horace Vandergelder.
Gerald Sheldon Herman was an American composer and lyricist, known for his work in Broadway theatre.
Dear World is a musical with a book by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee and music and lyrics by Jerry Herman. With its opening, Herman became the first composer-lyricist in history to have three productions running simultaneously on Broadway. It starred Angela Lansbury, who won the Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical in 1969 for her performance as the Countess Aurelia. It is not to be confused with Dear World, the popular photo series where people write meaningful messages on their skin.
Mame is a musical with the book by Jerome Lawrence and Robert Edwin Lee and music and lyrics by Jerry Herman. Originally titled My Best Girl, it is based on the 1955 novel Auntie Mame by Patrick Dennis and the 1956 Broadway play by Lawrence and Lee. A period piece set in New York City and spanning the Great Depression and World War II, it focuses on eccentric bohemian Mame Dennis, whose famous motto is "Life is a banquet and most poor sons of bitches are starving to death." Her fabulous life with her wealthy friends is interrupted when the young son of her late brother arrives to live with her. They cope with the Depression in a series of adventures.
Showtune is a musical revue celebrating the words and music of Broadway composer and lyricist Jerry Herman. Its title was inspired by Herman's autobiography of the same name. The revue's original title was Tune the Grand Up. After its 1985 San Francisco premiere and several regional productions through the 1990s, the piece played in the West End in 1998 under the title The Best of Times, and Off-Broadway in 2003, titled Showtune.
Charles Strouse is an American composer and lyricist best known for writing the music to such Broadway musicals as Bye Bye Birdie, Applause, and Annie.
Jerry's Girls is a musical revue based on the songs of composer/lyricist Jerry Herman.
Dody Goodman was an American character actress. She played the mother of the title character in the television series Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman, her distinctive high-pitched voice announcing the show's title at the beginning of each episode. She was a frequent guest on The Tonight Show in the 1950s, and cast member of The Mary Tyler Moore Hour in 1979. Aside from film and television appearances, she also voiced Miss Miller in the television series Alvin and the Chipmunks and the film spin-off The Chipmunk Adventure.She also played on Punky Brewster, as Punky’s teacher.
Marin Joy Mazzie was an American actress and singer known for her work in musical theatre.
Milk and Honey is a musical with a book by Don Appell and music and lyrics by Jerry Herman. The story centers on a busload of lonely American widows hoping to catch husbands while touring Israel and is set against the backdrop of the country's struggle for recognition as an independent nation. It was Herman's first Broadway book musical following a succession of off-Broadway revues.
Miss Spectacular is an unproduced musical with a libretto by Robert L. Freedman, lyrics and music by Jerry Herman and additional lyrics by Steve Lawrence and Michael Feinstein. Its plot focuses on a girl from the Midwest who heads to Las Vegas and is a finalist in the "Miss Spectacular" contest.
From A to Z is a musical revue with a book by Woody Allen, Herbert Farjeon, and Nina Warner Hook and songs by Jerry Herman, Fred Ebb, Mary Rodgers, Everett Sloane, Jay Thompson, Dickson Hughes, Jack Holmes, Paul Klein, Norman Martin, William Dyer, and Charles Zwar.
Rita Gardner was an American actress and singer.
Lend an Ear is a musical revue with a book, music, and lyrics by Charles Gaynor and additional sketches by Joseph Stein and Will Glickman.
Lorelei is a musical with a book by Kenny Solms and Gail Parent, lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green, and music by Jule Styne. It is a revision of the Joseph Fields-Anita Loos book for the 1949 production Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and includes many of the Jule Styne-Leo Robin songs written for the original.
The Little Show was a musical revue with lyrics by Howard Dietz and music by Arthur Schwartz. It was the first of 11 musicals that featured the songs of Dietz and Schwartz. The revue opened at the Music Box Theatre on Broadway on April 30, 1929 and ran for 321 performances until February 1930.
The Second Little Show is a musical revue with lyrics by Howard Dietz and music mostly by Arthur Schwartz.
The Band Wagon is a musical revue with book by Walter Thomson and Howard Dietz, lyrics also by Dietz and music by Arthur Schwartz. It first played on Broadway in 1931, running for 260 performances. It introduced the song "Dancing in the Dark" and inspired two films.
Madame Aphrodite is a musical with a book by Tad Mosel and music and lyrics by Jerry Herman. It is based on Mosel's play of the same name that was broadcast on television in 1953.
Red, White and Maddox is a satirical musical revue written by Jay Broad and Don Tucker. The play debuted in Atlanta in October 1968 and later had a 41-performance run on Broadway from January 26 to March 1, 1969. The play was conceived by Broad, who at the time was the director of the Theatre Atlanta theatrical company. Modeled as a fictional biography of Georgia Governor Lester Maddox, the play is split into two acts. The first act chronicles Maddox's foray into politics as a firebrand segregationist, culminating in him becoming governor of the state. The second act, set in the future, details Maddox becoming president of the United States.