Twang!!

Last updated
Twang!!
TWANG (2).jpg
London Cast Album cover
Music Lionel Bart
Lyrics Lionel Bart
Book Lionel Bart & Harvey Orkin
BasisThe Robin Hood legend
Productions1965 West End

Twang!! is a musical with music and lyrics written by Lionel Bart and a book by Bart and Harvey Orkin, an American theatrical agent and former writer for The Phil Silvers Show . When production faced issues, American writer Burt Shevelove was called on to help fix the book. The piece, a spoof of the character and legend of Robin Hood, was a disastrous box-office failure and cost Bart his personal fortune.

Contents

After a preview in Manchester, Twang!! opened at the Shaftesbury Theatre in London's West End on 20 December 1965 and closed on 29 January 1966 after just 43 performances, receiving scathing reviews and playing to mostly empty houses. [1] Bart produced it with Bernard Delfont and John Bryan, and Joan Littlewood directed but quit before it opened. She was replaced by Shevelove and Bart. [2] Twang!! is remembered as "the most expensive flop" in West End history up to that time. [3]

In 2008, the Estate of Lionel Bart commissioned Julian Woolford to write a new book for the musical which was performed in 2013 at Guildford School of Acting. This version is now licensed through MTI.

Synopsis

Robin Hood and his Merry Men attempt to break into Nottingham Castle, in a variety of preposterous disguises, in order to prevent a marriage between the nymphomaniac "court tart" Delphina and the hairy Scots laird Roger the Ugly, arranged for the purpose of securing the loan of Scottish troops for bad Prince John. [4]

The new version is a "meta-musical" with a completely different plot. Robin Hood has lost his 'Twang' and is not the hero he once was. Much the Miller's Son arrives in Sherwood Forest having run away from home and is arrested by the sheriff. He is rescued by Robin and the Men before discovering that in Nottinghamshire life is a musical comedy. He falls in love with Delphina whilst Maid Marion helps Robin find his missing 'twang' before King Richard returns to re-establish order.

Roles and principal cast

Production

The cast included the strongest players from Littlewood's Theatre Workshop, including Ronnie Corbett, Barbara Windsor and James Booth. But Twang!! ran into difficulty from the start. The script was weak, especially the part of Robin Hood, which was badly underwritten. [5] When Booth expressed his concerns, he was repeatedly assured that the part would be expanded to a starring role. [5] Littlewood demanded a rewrite, but constant, confusing revisions failed to improve the script. Littlewood, the choreographer Paddy Stone, the designer Oliver Messel, and the writers failed to work together. [3] Rehearsals were disorganised and fraught with tension; Bart was drinking; Littlewood threatened to walk out. At a rehearsal, Littlewood accused Bart of failing to fulfill his creative responsibilities because he was too strung-out on LSD. [6] Bart, in turn, accused Littlewood of ruining the piece. [7]

A Birmingham tryout was scheduled and cancelled. A Manchester preview opened on 3 November 1965 at the Palace Theatre with a script that was unfinished. Word of the disaster leaked to the tabloids. [3] Littlewood quit the company, and a script doctor, American Burt Shevelove, was brought in to fix the script and score, leading to more confusing changes, but nothing helped. [6] The scenes had no relation to the songs, and Twang!! transferred to London preceded by continued bad press. [8] The show opened in disarray at London's Shaftesbury Theatre on 20 December 1965. Still, Bart thought he could save the show. [3] On opening night, the musical director, Ken Moule, collapsed of exhaustion and still had failed to orchestrate the second act. Two songs were cut in the hours before the curtain rose, and the piece was played for camp, even adding some transvestism. [9] The house lights kept going up and down throughout the performance, and vicious arguments were overheard backstage. [10] Twang!! garnered scornful and derisive reviews. The critics noted the lack of heroics and the pseudo-pantomime delivery, [11] although there were some effective musical sequences, including a scene around a gallows that became a morris dance around a maypole. [12] Windsor also came in for some praise. [7]

The show had been intended as a romp that poked fun at the Crusades, the attitude of the Church and the human flaw of wanting to turn an outlaw into a hero. [2] Orkin believed the show failed because they failed to establish the exact butt of that satire; it was too vague and inconsequential. [4] Bart lost his personal fortune in Twang!! and was devastated by the failure of the show. [13] So was Booth, who made no money for a year while preparing for it. [14] For Ronnie Corbett, however, the failure of Twang!! was a lucky break – it meant he was free to participate in The Frost Report , his breakthrough in television, and also the show where he first worked with Ronnie Barker. [15] Orkin went on to be a regular on the short-lived Not So Much a Programme, More a Way of Life, as well as vp of Columbia Pictures. [16] He wrote the novel Scuffler, which was praised by humorist S.J. Perelman and the actor Richard Burton when it was published in 1974. [16]

When revived at the Union Theatre, London in 2018, the musical received some positive reviews. [17] It was dubbed "a meta-musical with bags of heart" by The Stage . [18]

Songs

A cast album, produced by George Martin, [20] was recorded and released in 1966 on the United Artists Records label on LP (no. ULP 1116). It was re-released in 1987 on the TER label (no. 1055) on LP and cassette. A CD-R pressing was sold in the U.S. exclusively through the online reseller Footlight in 2011. The recording includes a track called "Twang!!" at the beginning of side B.

Notes

  1. ↑ Roper, p. 98
  2. 1 2 Roper, p. 84
  3. 1 2 3 4 Feiner, Michael. "Bart's Twang!! – Most Expensive Flop in London", The Montreal Gazette, 2 April 1966
  4. 1 2 Roper, p. 93
  5. 1 2 Roper, p. 86
  6. 1 2 Roper, p. 88
  7. 1 2 Twang, 1965 shows, Over the Footlights, accessed 25 December 2012
  8. ↑ Roper, p. 89
  9. ↑ Roper, p. 92
  10. ↑ Roper, p. 94
  11. ↑ Roper, pp. 94–95,
  12. ↑ Parker, 1979
  13. ↑ Roper, pp. 88–89
  14. ↑ Blackwell, Diana. Bio, JamesBooth.org, 2005, accessed 5 January 2013
  15. ↑ Corbett, pp. 6–9
  16. 1 2 Freeman, William M. (1975-11-05). "HARVEY ORKIN, 57, FILM AGENT, DIES". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2024-07-29.
  17. ↑ Musical Theatre reviews. Accessed 7 March 2018.]
  18. ↑ Reviews in The Stage. Accessed 7 March 2018.
  19. ↑ Shaftesbury Theatre programme, December 1965
  20. ↑ Womack, Kenneth (4 September 2018). Sound Pictures: The Life of Beatles Producer George Martin, The Later Years, 1966–2016. Chicago Review Press. p. 6. ISBN   978-0-912777-77-1 . Retrieved 22 September 2022.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ronnie Barker</span> English actor, comedian and writer (1929–2005)

Ronald William George Barker was an English actor, comedian and writer. He was known for roles in British comedy television series such as Porridge, The Two Ronnies, and Open All Hours.

<i>Oliver!</i> English musical by Lionel Bart

Oliver! is a stage musical, with book, music and lyrics by Lionel Bart. The musical is based upon the 1838 novel Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barbara Windsor</span> English actress (1937–2020)

Dame Barbara Windsor was an English actress, known for her roles in the Carry On films and for playing Peggy Mitchell in the BBC One soap opera EastEnders. She joined the cast of EastEnders in 1994 and won the 1999 British Soap Award for Best Actress, before leaving the show in 2016 when her character was killed off.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joan Littlewood</span> English theatre director (1914–2002)

Joan Maud Littlewood was an English theatre director who trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, and is best known for her work in developing the Theatre Workshop. She has been called "The Mother of Modern Theatre". Her production of Oh, What a Lovely War! in 1963 was one of her more influential pieces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lionel Bart</span> English composer and writer (1930–1999)

Lionel Bart was an English writer and composer of pop music and musicals. He wrote Tommy Steele's "Rock with the Caveman" and was the sole creator of the musical Oliver! (1960). With Oliver! and his work alongside theatre director Joan Littlewood at Theatre Royal, Stratford East, he played an instrumental role in the 1960s birth of the British musical theatre scene after an era when American musicals had dominated the West End.

Theatre Workshop is a theatre group whose long-serving director was Joan Littlewood. Many actors of the 1950s and 1960s received their training and first exposure with the company, many of its productions were transferred to theatres in the West End, and some, such as Oh, What a Lovely War! and A Taste of Honey, were made into films.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ronnie Corbett</span> Scottish actor and comedian (1930–2016)

Ronald Balfour Corbett was a Scottish actor, broadcaster and comedian. He had a long association with Ronnie Barker in the BBC television comedy sketch show The Two Ronnies. He achieved prominence in David Frost's 1960s satirical comedy programme The Frost Report and subsequently starred in sitcoms such as No – That's Me Over Here!, Now Look Here, and Sorry!

Marti Webb is an English actress and singer. She appeared on stage in Evita before starring in Andrew Lloyd Webber's one-woman show Tell Me on a Sunday in 1980. This included her biggest hit single, "Take That Look Off Your Face", a UK top three hit, with the parent album also reaching the top three.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yootha Joyce</span> English actress (1927–1980)

Yootha Joyce Needham, known as Yootha Joyce, was an English actress best known for playing Mildred Roper opposite Brian Murphy in the sitcom Man About the House (1973–1976) and its spin-off George and Mildred (1976–1979).

<i>Oh, What a Lovely War!</i> 1963 musical by Joan Littlewood

Oh, What a Lovely War! is an epic musical developed by Joan Littlewood and her ensemble at the Theatre Workshop in 1963. It is a satire on World War I, and by extension on war in general. The title is derived from the "somewhat satirical" music hall song "Oh! It's a Lovely War!", which is one of the major numbers in the production.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shaftesbury Theatre</span> Theatre in London, England

The Shaftesbury Theatre is a West End theatre, located in Shaftesbury Avenue, in the London Borough of Camden. It opened in 1911 as the New Prince's Theatre, with a capacity of 2,500. The current capacity is 1,416. The title "Shaftesbury Theatre" belonged to another theatre lower down the avenue between 1888 and 1941. The Prince's adopted the name in 1963.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Theatre Royal Stratford East</span> Theatre in London, England

The Theatre Royal Stratford East is a 460 seat Victorian producing theatre in Stratford in the London Borough of Newham. Since 1953, it has been the home of the Theatre Workshop company, famously associated with director Joan Littlewood, whose statue is outside the theatre.

Alan-a-Dale is a figure in the Robin Hood legend. According to the stories, he was a wandering minstrel who became a member of Robin's band of outlaws, the "Merry Men".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James Booth</span> English actor (1927–2005)

James Booth was an English film, stage and television actor and screenwriter. He is best known for his role as Private Henry Hook in Zulu.

<i>Fings Aint Wot They Used TBe</i> 1959 musical comedy by Frank Norman and Lionel Bart

Fings Ain't Wot They Used T'be is a 1960 West End musical comedy about Cockney low-life characters in the 1950s, including spivs, prostitutes, teddy-boys and corrupt policemen. The work is more of a play with music than a conventional musical. The original play, by Frank Norman, who though born in Bristol lived his adult life in London, was intended to be a straight theatrical piece, but was supplemented with music and lyrics by Lionel Bart, who also grew up in London's East End.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alun Owen</span> Welsh playwright, screenwriter and actor (1925–1994)

Alun Davies Owen was a Welsh playwright, screenwriter and actor, predominantly in television. However, he is best remembered by a wider audience for writing the screenplay of The Beatles' debut feature film A Hard Day's Night (1964), which earned him a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.

<i>Sparrows Cant Sing</i> 1963 British film by Joan Littlewood

Sparrows Can't Sing is a 1963 British kitchen sink comedy, the only film that Joan Littlewood directed. It starred James Booth and Barbara Windsor. It was written by Stephen Lewis based on his 1960 play Sparrers Can't Sing, first performed at Littlewood's Theatre Workshop in the Theatre Royal Stratford East. The producer was Donald Taylor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amelia Bayntun</span> English actress (1919–1988)

Amelia Bayntun was an English stage and television actress.

Sean Kenny was an Irish theatre and film scenic designer, costume designer, lighting designer and director.

This is a summary of 1965 in music in the United Kingdom.

References

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.