"Times move. Tastes change. Lerner and Loewe. We shall never see their like again. A pity. I had grown accustomed to their grace."
--Clive Barnes, NY Times Drama Critic, on the occasion of Alan Jay Lerner's death, June 1986.
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Friday, May 20, 2011
CLASSIC MUSICALS ORCHESTRATORS (WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO LERNER & LOEWE)
THE UNSUNG "SUNG" HEROES OF BROADWAY
(Edited from a review by Jaime Weinman in MacLean's Magazine
of Steven Suskin's book THE SOUND OF BROADWAY MUSIC )
of Steven Suskin's book THE SOUND OF BROADWAY MUSIC )
In a Broadway musical, the composer writes the tunes, but someone else writes the score for all the different musical instruments. The book THE SOUND OF BROADWAY MUSIC by theatre critic STEVEN SUSKIN is about the hidden musical geniuses of Broadway's Golden Age: the great ORCHESTRATORS (sometimes called Arrangers), who created memorable sounds like the slide whistle in the overture to GYPSY or the sentimental violin solo in "Some Enchanted Evening" from SOUTH PACIFIC. Almost no Broadway composer has time to orchestrate their own music, so it is up to orchestrators to take a melody and a few chords and make them sound better than anyone ever dreamed. “An orchestrator, handed a song that’s not so good, can dress it up and make it sound great,” says Suskin. Though they do a big job, orchestrators are mostly unknown, and so underrated that they weren’t eligible for Tony Awards until 1997. (Suskin explains that many composers “didn’t want to admit that they needed help.”) His book gives Broadway fans a sense of how important these men were to your favorite songs. It includes anecdote-filled biographies of classic orchestrators like ROBERT RUSSELL BENNETT and DON WALKER, as well as some currently active greats like JONATHAN TUNICK (Stephen Sondheim’s orchestrator). Orchestrators have to work so fast that most of them often call on "ghosts" (fellow orchestrators) to help them. With the aid of manuscripts and invoices, Suskin identifies who scored which songs in which shows. The book also explains that orchestrators have to do more than just assign notes to instruments. Many memorable accompaniment figures and harmonies came from them, especially since many of the composers they worked for were not trained musicians. And sometimes the orchestrator needs to work on the vocal music too: Suskin writes that the title song of OKLAHOMA! was going nowhere until Russell Bennett created a choral section for the number; his arrangement (in which the chorus spells out “O-K-L-A-H-O-M-A”) turned the song into a show-stopping hit. Even composers with extensive training depend on orchestrators to give their music a sound style that they themselves can’t provide, saying "I don’t want to sound old-fashioned," and they gave their arrangers a free hand. The composers said "this guy can make me sound good." Many of the men profiled in THE SOUND OF BROADWAY MUSIC brought new sounds to the world of Broadway, which Suskin says is “usually about 10 years behind” when it comes to musical trends, such as the sound of ’50s jazz bands in songs like "Steam Heat" from THE PAJAMA GAME and even rock ’n’ roll in BYE, BYE, BIRDIE. Other orchestrators found ways to serve the story. Walker’s orchestrations for FIDDLER ON THE ROOF used unusual instruments to capture the ethnic flavour of the show. These musicians didn’t crank out pages of music; they created theatre with musical instruments. But you have to pay a lot of people to play those instruments, and most producers now spend the money elsewhere. Suskin admires much of the work being done on Broadway today, but it’s a more canned sound, featuring “16 instruments with 10 of them plugged into amps, so the singers can’t be heard over it.” Still, there have been signs of life for classic orchestrators. The revival of SOUTH PACIFIC, which won seven Tony Awards, restored the original orchestrations by Bennett, with 30 instruments including a harp (which he often used to set the rhythm instead of the drums). The orchestrations were a selling point of the production, starting with the overture’s thrilling statement of "Bali H’ai." Richard Rodgers composed that song, but as Suskin’s book demonstrates, it takes an orchestrator to make a great song sound even better.
CLASSIC MUSICALS ORCHESTRATORS
WITH REFERENCE TO LERNER & LOEWE MUSICALS
ROBERT RUSSELL BENNETT (1894 - 1981)
MY FAIR LADY (1956) / CAMELOT (1960)
Showboat (Jerome Kern, 1927) / Of Thee I Sing (George Gershwin, 1931)
Anything Goes (Cole Porter, 1934) / Oklahoma! (Richard Rodgers, 1943)
Annie Get Your Gun (Irving Berlin, 1946) / Finian's Rainbow (Burton Lane, 1947)
Kiss Me Kate (Porter, 1948) / South Pacific (Rodgers, 1949)
The Sound of Music (Rodgers, 1959) / On a Clear Day... (Lane, 1965)
PHILIP J. LANG (1911 - 1986)
MY FAIR LADY (1956) / CAMELOT (1960)
MY FAIR LADY (1956) / CAMELOT (1960)
Annie Get Your Gun (Irving Berlin, 1946) / High Button Shoes (Jules Stein, 1947)
Where's Charley (Frank Loesser, 1948) / Can-Can (Cole Porter, 1953)
Fanny (Harold Rome, 1954) / Plain and Fancy (Albert Hague, 1955)
Li'l Abner (Gene DePaul, 1956) / Take Me Along (Bob Merrill, 1959)
Hello, Dolly (Jerry Herman, 1964) / Ben Franklin in Paris (Mark Sandrich, Jr, 1964)
Mame (Herman, 1966) / Applause (Charles Strouse, 1970) / Annie (Strouse, 1977)
Mack and Mabel (Herman, 1977) / 42nd Street (Harry Warren, 1980)
TED ROYAL (1904 - 1981)
BRIGADOON (1947) / PAINT YOUR WAGON (1951)
BRIGADOON (1947) / PAINT YOUR WAGON (1951)
DuBarry Was a Lady (Cole Porter, 1939) / On the Town (Leonard Bernstein, 1944)
Annie Get Your Gun (Irving Berlin, 1946) / Where's Charley (Frank Loesser, 1948)
Guys and Dolls (Loesser, 1950) / House of Flowers (Harold Arlen, 1954)
The Boy Friend (Sandy Wilson, 1954) / Mr Wonderful (Bock & Weiss, 1956).
CONRAD SALINGER (1901 - 1962)
BRIGADOON (film, 1954) / GIGI (film, 1958)
BRIGADOON (film, 1954) / GIGI (film, 1958)
Working with MGM Musical Director JOHNNY GREEN (1908-1989), Salinger was responsible for most of the MGM musical orchestrations during the Golden Age of film musicals, including Meet Me in St Louis (1944), Anchors Aweigh (1945), Good News (1947), On the Town (1949), Annie Get Your Gun (1950), Showboat (1950), An American in Paris (1951), Singin' in the Rain (1952), Kiss Me Kate (1953), The Band Wagon (1953), Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954), and many other of the famous MGM musicals.
DON WALKER (1907 - 1989)
(No acknowledged orchestrations for Lerner & Loewe
although he worked in same time period and probably
did uncredited work on some L&L orchestrations)
Life Begins at 8:40 (Harold Arlen, 1934) / Panama Hattie (Cole Porter, 1940)
By Jupiter (Richard Rodgers, 1942) / On the Town (Leonard Bernstein, 1944)
Carousel (Rodgers, 1945) / Finian's Rainbow (Burton Lane, 1947)
Call Me Madam (Irving Berlin, 1950) / Damn Yankees (Adler & Ross, 1955)
The Most Happy Fella (Frank Loesser, 1956) / The Music Man (Meredith Willson, 1957)
Anyone Can Whistle (Stephen Sondheim) / Fiddler on the Roof (Jerry Bock, 1964)Cabaret (John Kander, 1966) / By Jeeves (Andrew Lloyd Webber, 1975).
Saturday, May 7, 2011
COMPARISON OF SONG TYPES
COMPARISON OF SONG TYPES IN
THE CLASSIC MUSICALS OF LERNER & LOEWE
THE CLASSIC MUSICALS OF LERNER & LOEWE
A. OPENING SET UPS
1. "Once in the Highlands" / "Brigadoon" (BRIGADOON)
2. "I'm on My Way" ["Paint Your Wagon"] (PAINT YOUR WAGON)
3. "Why Can't the English" (MY FAIR LADY)
4. "Thank Heaven for Little Girls" (GIGI)
5. "Camelot" and marriage apprehension songs (CAMELOT)
B. CHARACTER (SELF-DECLARING)
1. "C'est Moi" (CAMELOT)
2. "I'm an Ordinary Man" (MY FAIR LADY)
3. "I'll Go Home with Bonnie Jean" (BRIGADOON)
4. "In Between" (PAINT YOUR WAGON)
5. "It's a Bore" (GIGI)
C. PLOT / THEME / SETTING
1. Cards, champagne, visit to Trouville scenes (GIGI)
2. "Ascot Gavotte" (MY FAIR LADY)
3. "The Heather on the Hill" (BRIGADOON)
4. "They Call the Wind Maria" (PAINT YOUR WAGON)
5. "Follow Me" (CAMELOT)
D. LOVE (ANTICIPATORY)
1. "Waitin' for My Dearie" (BRIGADOON)
2. "How Can I Wait?" (PAINT YOUR WAGON)
3. "Wouldn't It Be Loverly" (MY FAIR LADY)
4. "Before I Gaze at You Again" (CAMELOT)
5. "Say a Prayer for Me Tonight" (GIGI)
E. LOVE (NON-DECLARATIVE)
1. "Almost Like Being in Love" (BRIGADOON)
2. "I Talk to the Trees" (PAINT YOUR WAGON)
3. "I Could Have Danced All Night" (MY FAIR LADY)
4. "How to Handle a Woman" (CAMELOT)
5. Cards, champagne, visit to Trouville scenes (GIGI)
F. LOVE (ARBITRARY)
1. "Without You" (MY FAIR LADY)
2. "Gaston's Soliloquy" (GIGI)
3. "Then You May Take Me to the Fair" (CAMELOT)
4. "From This Day On" (BRIGADOON)
5. "Another Autumn" (PAINT YOUR WAGON)
G. LOVE (DECLARATIVE)
1. "Come to Me, Bend to Me" (BRIGADOON)
2. "On the Street Where You Live" (MY FAIR LADY)
3. "If Ever I Would Leave You" (CAMELOT)
4. "Carino Mio" (PAINT YOUR WAGON)
5. "Gigi" (GIGI)
H. COMEDIC (RISQUE)
1. "The Love of My Life" (BRIGADOON)
2. "Rumson" / "What's Goin' on Here?" (PAINT YOUR WAGON)
3. "The Lusty Month of May" (CAMELOT)
4. "Show Me" (MY FAIR LADY)
5. "The Parisians" (GIGI)
I. COMEDIC (GENERAL)
1. "She is Not Thinking of Me" (GIGI)
2. "Where are the Simple Joys of Maidenhood"
/ "I Wonder What the King is Doing Tonight" (CAMELOT)
3. "Get Me to the Church on Time" (MY FAIR LADY)
4. "My Mother's Wedding Day" (BRIGADOON)
5. "Whoop-Ti-Ay" (PAINT YOUR WAGON)
J. OFF-STAGE ACTION
1. "The Chase" (BRIGADOON)
2. "Guenevere" (CAMELOT)
3. "You Did It" (MY FAIR LADY)
4. "There's a Coach Comin' In" (PAINT YOUR WAGON)
5. "Gaston's Soliloquy" / "Gigi" (GIGI)
K. MEMORY
1. "I Loved You Once in Silence" (CAMELOT)
2. "I Remember It Well" (GIGI)
3. "I Still See Elisa" (PAINT YOUR WAGON)
4. "I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face" (MY FAIR LADY)
5. "There But for You Go I" (BRIGADOON)
L. LIST OR CATALOG
1. "Down on MacConnachy Square" (BRIGADOON)
2. "All for Him" (PAINT YOUR WAGON)
3. "I'm Glad I'm Not Young Anymore" (GIGI)
4. "The Seven Deadly Virtues" (CAMELOT)
5. "A Hymn to Him" (MY FAIR LADY)
M. NOVELTY
1. "Jeannie's Packin' Up" (BRIGADOON)
2. "Hand Me Down That Can of Beans" (PAINT YOUR WAGON)
3. "The Rain in Spain" (MY FAIR LADY)
4. "The Night They Invented Champagne" (GIGI)
5. "What Do the Simple Folk Do" (CAMELOT)
N. RECOGNITION
1. Gaston's Marriage Decision and Finale (GIGI)
2. Bar Scene and Finale (BRIGADOON)
3. Higgins Soliloquy and Finale (MY FAIR LADY)
4. "Wanderin' Star" and Finale (PAINT YOUR WAGON)
5. "Camelot" reprised and Finale (CAMELOT)
Friday, April 22, 2011
LERNER & LOEWE BRIEF BIOGRAPHIES
FREDERICK (Fritz) LOEWE (1901 - 1988)
was born on June 10, 1901 in Berlin, Germany. Loewe's Viennese father was a successful actor and singer of Viennese light opera songs (such as Franz Lehar's THE MARRY WIDOW), an element in Loewe's youth that undoubtedly influenced some of music he would later write in his collaboration with Alan Jay Lerner. Fritz himself was a child prodigy, playing the piano at age 5, composing for his father's presentations at 7, and at 13 becoming the youngest soloist to appear with the Berlin Philharmonic. Loewe wrote a popular song, “Katrina,” at age 15, whose sheet music reportedly sold over 2 million copies. However, Loewe arrived in the United States in 1924 unheralded and unknown with the desire to compose for the Broadway stage. He was unsuccessful until he met Alan Jay Lerner in 1942 at the Lambs Club, a theatrical club in New York City. They collaborated on two failed works, WHAT'S UP (1943) and THE DAY BEFORE SPRING (1945), before achieving success on Broadway with BRIGADOON in 1947. This was followed by PAINT YOUR WAGON (1951), the Tony-winning MY FAIR LADY (1956), the Oscar-winning MGM film GIGI (1958), and the Broadway hit CAMELOT (1960). Loewe's music ranged from high romance (“If Ever I Would Leave You” from CAMELOT and “On the Street Where You Live” from MY FAIR LADY) to lighthearted melodies (“The Night They Invented Champagne” and “Thank Heaven for Little Girls” from GIGI) to subtle settings for nearly spoken songs (such as those for Rex Harrison in MY FAIR LADY and for Richard Burton in CAMELOT). Personal differences between Loewe and Lerner surfaced during the writing of CAMELOT, and they suspended their collaboration for more than a decade -- Loewe in retirement and Lerner writing with other composers. They reunited to adapt GIGI for the stage in 1973 and to write the score for the film THE LITTLE PRINCE in 1974. After that, Loewe retired for good and lived comfortably in Southern California on his laurels and considerable musical royalties until his death at the age of 86 on Feb. 14, 1988 in Palm Springs.
ALAN JAY LERNER (1918-1986)
was born on August 31, 1918 in New York City. His father founded the famous Lerner Stores and Alan grew up in privileged circumstances. He was educated at private schools in England and Connecticut, the Juilliard School of Music in New York City, and at Harvard University (B.S., 1940). Lerner's archly romantic and literate librettos (in part the product of his sophisticated background and education) and his witty and romantic lyrics (influenced by his post-college friendship with lyricist Lorenz Hart of Broadway's Rodgers & Hart) matched Loewe's music perfectly. Lerner skillfully integrated music, character and story into a seamless whole similar to the celebrated works of Rodgers & Hammerstein. Lerner also won Oscars for two of his musical screenplays, AN AMERICAN IN PARIS (1951) and GIGI (1958). Three of Lerner's eight marriages were to actresses: Marion Bell (1947-48) who starred in his 1947 Broadway success BRIGADOON; movie actress Nancy Olson (1950-57) with whom he was married when he wrote PAINT YOUR WAGON and MY FAIR LADY; and his last wife, British actress Liz Robertson, who had starred in a London revival of MY FAIR LADY. Robertson and Lerner were married from 1981 until his death in New York City on June 14, 1986. He was 67 years old.
was born on June 10, 1901 in Berlin, Germany. Loewe's Viennese father was a successful actor and singer of Viennese light opera songs (such as Franz Lehar's THE MARRY WIDOW), an element in Loewe's youth that undoubtedly influenced some of music he would later write in his collaboration with Alan Jay Lerner. Fritz himself was a child prodigy, playing the piano at age 5, composing for his father's presentations at 7, and at 13 becoming the youngest soloist to appear with the Berlin Philharmonic. Loewe wrote a popular song, “Katrina,” at age 15, whose sheet music reportedly sold over 2 million copies. However, Loewe arrived in the United States in 1924 unheralded and unknown with the desire to compose for the Broadway stage. He was unsuccessful until he met Alan Jay Lerner in 1942 at the Lambs Club, a theatrical club in New York City. They collaborated on two failed works, WHAT'S UP (1943) and THE DAY BEFORE SPRING (1945), before achieving success on Broadway with BRIGADOON in 1947. This was followed by PAINT YOUR WAGON (1951), the Tony-winning MY FAIR LADY (1956), the Oscar-winning MGM film GIGI (1958), and the Broadway hit CAMELOT (1960). Loewe's music ranged from high romance (“If Ever I Would Leave You” from CAMELOT and “On the Street Where You Live” from MY FAIR LADY) to lighthearted melodies (“The Night They Invented Champagne” and “Thank Heaven for Little Girls” from GIGI) to subtle settings for nearly spoken songs (such as those for Rex Harrison in MY FAIR LADY and for Richard Burton in CAMELOT). Personal differences between Loewe and Lerner surfaced during the writing of CAMELOT, and they suspended their collaboration for more than a decade -- Loewe in retirement and Lerner writing with other composers. They reunited to adapt GIGI for the stage in 1973 and to write the score for the film THE LITTLE PRINCE in 1974. After that, Loewe retired for good and lived comfortably in Southern California on his laurels and considerable musical royalties until his death at the age of 86 on Feb. 14, 1988 in Palm Springs.
ALAN JAY LERNER (1918-1986)
was born on August 31, 1918 in New York City. His father founded the famous Lerner Stores and Alan grew up in privileged circumstances. He was educated at private schools in England and Connecticut, the Juilliard School of Music in New York City, and at Harvard University (B.S., 1940). Lerner's archly romantic and literate librettos (in part the product of his sophisticated background and education) and his witty and romantic lyrics (influenced by his post-college friendship with lyricist Lorenz Hart of Broadway's Rodgers & Hart) matched Loewe's music perfectly. Lerner skillfully integrated music, character and story into a seamless whole similar to the celebrated works of Rodgers & Hammerstein. Lerner also won Oscars for two of his musical screenplays, AN AMERICAN IN PARIS (1951) and GIGI (1958). Three of Lerner's eight marriages were to actresses: Marion Bell (1947-48) who starred in his 1947 Broadway success BRIGADOON; movie actress Nancy Olson (1950-57) with whom he was married when he wrote PAINT YOUR WAGON and MY FAIR LADY; and his last wife, British actress Liz Robertson, who had starred in a London revival of MY FAIR LADY. Robertson and Lerner were married from 1981 until his death in New York City on June 14, 1986. He was 67 years old.
Saturday, April 16, 2011
LERNER & LOEWE LECTURES
RODGERS & HAMMERSTEIN / LERNER & LOEWE
SIMILARITIES
Dramatic Plot Development,
Song/Plot Integration,
Strong Character Portrayals
Dramatic use of Dance & Ballet
Similar Song Types (handout)
DIFFERENCES
Rodgers and Hammerstein (major works)
Emphasis: Social Concerns Method: Romantic Realism
Oklahoma! (1943) Carousel (1945)
South Pacific (1949)
The King & I (1951)
Flower Drum Song (1958)
The Sound of Music (1959)
Emphasis: Personal Relationships Method: Realistic Fantasy
Brigadoon (1947)Paint Your Wagon (1951)
My Fair Lady (1956)
Gigi (movie 1958)
Camelot (1960)
Composer FREDERICK LOEWE
(1901-1988)
Biography and Influences
Classical European Music
(child prodigy)
Melodious Popular Viennese Operetta Music
(his father’s operetta concerts)
Excerpts from Franz Lehar’s celebrated Viennese Operetta
THE MERRY WIDOW (1905)
THE MERRY WIDOW (1905)
Excerpt One -- think of the musical style in Gigi...
Excerpt Two -- think of the comedy songs of Doolittle in My Fair Lady...
Excerpt Three -- think of the romantic L&L songs...esp in Camelot...
Excerpt Four -- think of the misogynist songs of Higgins in My Fair Lady...
Playwright / Lyricist ALAN JAY LERNER (1918-1986)
(1918 - 1986)
Biography and Influences
Friend and mentor LORENZ (Larry) HART (1896 -1943) (Rodgers & Hart)
Friends during Lerner's post-college days and last 3 years of Hart's life... Hart was witty & cynical...but also melancholy and ROMANTIC...
”My Funny Valentine”...”Where or When”...”Isn’t It Romantic”...”BLUE MOON”
Strong early relationship with his father JOSEPH LERNER (founded Lerner Stores)
Alan had privileged youth...well educated in England and US...grad Harvard (1940)
Alan was favored middle son to father...attended boxing matches (lost eye at Harvard)
...attended NY theatre with father...vowed to have a career writing on Broadway..
Rejected his father's anti-romantic, anti-spiritual and misogynist view of life...
“All his life, it would seem, Lerner was caught in a conflict between his instinctive romanticism and the cynicism about women (and religion and life generally) preached to him by his father. He wanted to believe that love transforms all; he wanted to believe that the paths of glory do not lead to an all-too-final grave." --Gene Lees, Inventing Champagne: The Worlds of Lerner and Loewe, p. 324
Friday, April 15, 2011
Plot & Song Synopsis CAMELOT
CAMELOT (1960) -- Plot Synopsis (Musical numbers in Bold Italics)
(Overture). The play opens with the festive arrival of Guenevere from abroad to marry Arthur, the young king of Camelot (Parade March). Shy and nervous about his upcoming marriage, Arthur is hiding in the nearby woods (I Wonder What the King is Doing Tonight). Guenevere herself is uncertain about her future and the loss of youthful dreams (The Simple Joys of Maidenhood) when she stumbles into Arthur, not knowing who he is. He reassures her about the wonderful place that will now be her new home (Camelot) and then identifies himself as her new husband. They both seem to be charmed with each other and look forward to the future together. Arthur has been tutored from childhood by the wise wizard Merlyn who has fostered in him the concepts of peace and brotherhood. But aging Merlyn is seduced and called away to his last resting place by the nymph Nimue (Follow Me) and Arthur must face any new challenges alone. Arthur establishes his Round Table for knights who want to share his dream of establishing peace and justice. The news of this reaches the handsome young knight Lancelot in France who comes to Camelot to join Arthur's knights (C'est Moi). After he arrives, a gala outing takes place (The Lusty Month of May), where Arthur introduces his wife to Lancelot, but Guenevere and the rest of the court take an instant dislike to this arrogant fellow. She encourages three knights to engage him in a jousting match (Then You May Take Me to the Fair). Arthur tries to dissuade Guenevere from taking sides against Lancelot, but he gives up and remembers Merlyn's advice (How to Handle a Woman). In the jousting match Lancelot handily defeats all three knights and brings one of them back to life to the amazement of the Court and gains the respect and admiration of Guenevere and perhaps the beginning of something more. Lancelot also has unspoken romantic feelings for the Queen that causes him internal conflict over his feelings for her and devotion to Arthur. He asks permission to leave Camelot to engage in foreign good works. As he leaves, Guenevere begins to realize her own deep unspoken feelings for him (Before I Gaze on You Again). He comes back to Camelot two years later, and in an impressive ceremony Arthur now makes him a Knight of the Round Table. But Lancelot's feelings for Guenevere have not changed during his absence and he finally reveals it to her (If Ever I Would Leave You). She acknowledges her own love for him but feels she must remain true to her husband. Arthur begins to fully realize the romantic feelings Lancelot and Guenevere have for each other, but he feels powerless to do anything about it. To further complicate matters, Mordred, Arhur's illegitimate son by a sorceress, now arrives on the scene with an evil plan to dishonour and replace his father on the throne (The Seven Deadly Virtues). Still loyal Guenevere tries to rally Arthur's spirits (What Do the Simple Folk Do?). To add to Arthur's problems, the knights are unused to peace and harmony and long for battle and heroic deeds (Fie on Goodness). One night Mordred prevails on the sorceress Morgan le Fey to trap Arthur in her enchanted forest. While Arthur is gone, Lancelot visits Guenevere in her chambers where she breaks down and tells Lancelot how much she loves him (I Loved You Once in Silence). Mordred bursts into the room with some of the knights to accuse Lancelot of treachery and to imprison him. Lancelot succeeds in escaping from prison, but Guenevere is sentenced to burn at the stake. At the last minute, however, with the secret connivance of Arthur, she is saved by Lancelot who escapes with her to France (Guenevere). For the sake of his own honor and that of Camelot, Arthur must now wage war on Lancelot. Just before the final battle which will kill both Arthur and Mordred and many of the knights, Arthur meets Lancelot and Guenevere and forgives them both. But the battle must go on. In camp Arthur meets a young stowaway who wants to join the Round Table. Arthur knights him and sends him back to England to grow up there and keep the memory and spirit of Camelot alive (Camelot reprise and Finale Ultimo).
(Overture). The play opens with the festive arrival of Guenevere from abroad to marry Arthur, the young king of Camelot (Parade March). Shy and nervous about his upcoming marriage, Arthur is hiding in the nearby woods (I Wonder What the King is Doing Tonight). Guenevere herself is uncertain about her future and the loss of youthful dreams (The Simple Joys of Maidenhood) when she stumbles into Arthur, not knowing who he is. He reassures her about the wonderful place that will now be her new home (Camelot) and then identifies himself as her new husband. They both seem to be charmed with each other and look forward to the future together. Arthur has been tutored from childhood by the wise wizard Merlyn who has fostered in him the concepts of peace and brotherhood. But aging Merlyn is seduced and called away to his last resting place by the nymph Nimue (Follow Me) and Arthur must face any new challenges alone. Arthur establishes his Round Table for knights who want to share his dream of establishing peace and justice. The news of this reaches the handsome young knight Lancelot in France who comes to Camelot to join Arthur's knights (C'est Moi). After he arrives, a gala outing takes place (The Lusty Month of May), where Arthur introduces his wife to Lancelot, but Guenevere and the rest of the court take an instant dislike to this arrogant fellow. She encourages three knights to engage him in a jousting match (Then You May Take Me to the Fair). Arthur tries to dissuade Guenevere from taking sides against Lancelot, but he gives up and remembers Merlyn's advice (How to Handle a Woman). In the jousting match Lancelot handily defeats all three knights and brings one of them back to life to the amazement of the Court and gains the respect and admiration of Guenevere and perhaps the beginning of something more. Lancelot also has unspoken romantic feelings for the Queen that causes him internal conflict over his feelings for her and devotion to Arthur. He asks permission to leave Camelot to engage in foreign good works. As he leaves, Guenevere begins to realize her own deep unspoken feelings for him (Before I Gaze on You Again). He comes back to Camelot two years later, and in an impressive ceremony Arthur now makes him a Knight of the Round Table. But Lancelot's feelings for Guenevere have not changed during his absence and he finally reveals it to her (If Ever I Would Leave You). She acknowledges her own love for him but feels she must remain true to her husband. Arthur begins to fully realize the romantic feelings Lancelot and Guenevere have for each other, but he feels powerless to do anything about it. To further complicate matters, Mordred, Arhur's illegitimate son by a sorceress, now arrives on the scene with an evil plan to dishonour and replace his father on the throne (The Seven Deadly Virtues). Still loyal Guenevere tries to rally Arthur's spirits (What Do the Simple Folk Do?). To add to Arthur's problems, the knights are unused to peace and harmony and long for battle and heroic deeds (Fie on Goodness). One night Mordred prevails on the sorceress Morgan le Fey to trap Arthur in her enchanted forest. While Arthur is gone, Lancelot visits Guenevere in her chambers where she breaks down and tells Lancelot how much she loves him (I Loved You Once in Silence). Mordred bursts into the room with some of the knights to accuse Lancelot of treachery and to imprison him. Lancelot succeeds in escaping from prison, but Guenevere is sentenced to burn at the stake. At the last minute, however, with the secret connivance of Arthur, she is saved by Lancelot who escapes with her to France (Guenevere). For the sake of his own honor and that of Camelot, Arthur must now wage war on Lancelot. Just before the final battle which will kill both Arthur and Mordred and many of the knights, Arthur meets Lancelot and Guenevere and forgives them both. But the battle must go on. In camp Arthur meets a young stowaway who wants to join the Round Table. Arthur knights him and sends him back to England to grow up there and keep the memory and spirit of Camelot alive (Camelot reprise and Finale Ultimo).
Plot & Song Synopsis GIGI
GIGI (Film 1958) -- Plot Synopsis (Musical numbers in Bold Italics)
(Main Title Music with turn-of-the-century period drawings behind the credits). The film opens in the leafy Bois de Boulogne in 1900 Paris with elderly but debonair bachelor Honore Lachaille narrating to the camera his admiration of all the attractive women on view and ends with a song about the young girls playing nearby who will soon be attractive young women themselves (Thank Heaven for Little Girls). His nephew Gaston, a younger bachelor man-about-town, joins him for a carriage ride but complains that he is dissatisfied with his life (It's a Bore). Gaston leaves Honore and goes to his only solace--a quiet visit with one of his uncle's old mistresses, Mamita Alverez (Grandmama). She lives with her impetuous teen-aged tomboy granddaughter Gigi, who is taking lessons from her former courtesan aunt, Alicia, in the ways to be alluring to men -- not for marriage or love but for financial security thru romantic alliances. However, Gigi reacts to the Parisian obsession with such things negatively (The Parisians) Gaston takes Gigi to a skating rink where they meet Gaston's current romantic flame, Liane. Gaston and Liane go to a party at Maxim's and he is forced to admit to himself that Liane's attentions are not completely on him (She is Not Thinking of Me). When Gaston and Honore catch her being unfaithful, Liane unsuccessfully attempts suicide to which Honore congratulates Gaston on his "first suicide!" But Gaston is still bored with his life and continues to visit Grandmama and Gigi who beats him in a game of cards. For a reward, Gaston says he will take Grandmama and Gigi on a trip to the seaside resort of Trouville. They celebrate with Gigi's first champagne (The Night They Invented Champagne). They all have a grand time at Trouville where Grandmama has an unexpected visitor in her old beau Honore and they reminence about their love affair of long ago but with different memories (I Remember It Well). Knowing that Gaston is now free from Liane and has taken Gigi to the seashore, Aunt Alicia thinks he might be interested in Gigi as a mistress and intensifies her lessons in such things as how to choose good wine and cigars, serve tea, sit elegantly, and wear nice clothes. However,when Gaston comes calling, he is appalled when Gigi models her new adult gown for him. He does not accept that she is an adult ready for such clothing. When Grandmama tells him that he cannot see Gigi alone anymore unless he promises to secure her future, he tells her that he is shocked and disgusted because she is still a child. He roams the streets of Paris in deep thought, at first upset that Grandmama would think Gigi was at an age when she was mature enough to be physically desirable and then upon reflection realizes that she has changed and he did feel an attraction to her (Gaston's Soliloquy and Gigi). He goes back and tells Grandmama that he indeed does want to take Gigi as his mistress and will take care of her in the grandest style. Gigi becomes angry and resents the offer of becoming Gaston's mistress which she considers demeaning. Gaston leaves and asks Honore for advice. Afterward Honore muses that he no longer has these problems (I'm Glad I'm Not Young Anymore). When Gigi relents because of her love for Gaston, he decides to take her to Maxim's although she is very anxious about such a visit (Say a Prayer for Me Tonight). All goes well at Maxim's except that Gaston begins to feel conscience-stricken and goes back to the house and asks Grandmama if he can have Gigi's hand in marriage. The film ends where it began at the Bois de Boulogne, with Gaston and Gigi married and riding together in a fashionable carriage with Honore's apparent blessing (Thank Heaven for Little Girls reprise).
(Main Title Music with turn-of-the-century period drawings behind the credits). The film opens in the leafy Bois de Boulogne in 1900 Paris with elderly but debonair bachelor Honore Lachaille narrating to the camera his admiration of all the attractive women on view and ends with a song about the young girls playing nearby who will soon be attractive young women themselves (Thank Heaven for Little Girls). His nephew Gaston, a younger bachelor man-about-town, joins him for a carriage ride but complains that he is dissatisfied with his life (It's a Bore). Gaston leaves Honore and goes to his only solace--a quiet visit with one of his uncle's old mistresses, Mamita Alverez (Grandmama). She lives with her impetuous teen-aged tomboy granddaughter Gigi, who is taking lessons from her former courtesan aunt, Alicia, in the ways to be alluring to men -- not for marriage or love but for financial security thru romantic alliances. However, Gigi reacts to the Parisian obsession with such things negatively (The Parisians) Gaston takes Gigi to a skating rink where they meet Gaston's current romantic flame, Liane. Gaston and Liane go to a party at Maxim's and he is forced to admit to himself that Liane's attentions are not completely on him (She is Not Thinking of Me). When Gaston and Honore catch her being unfaithful, Liane unsuccessfully attempts suicide to which Honore congratulates Gaston on his "first suicide!" But Gaston is still bored with his life and continues to visit Grandmama and Gigi who beats him in a game of cards. For a reward, Gaston says he will take Grandmama and Gigi on a trip to the seaside resort of Trouville. They celebrate with Gigi's first champagne (The Night They Invented Champagne). They all have a grand time at Trouville where Grandmama has an unexpected visitor in her old beau Honore and they reminence about their love affair of long ago but with different memories (I Remember It Well). Knowing that Gaston is now free from Liane and has taken Gigi to the seashore, Aunt Alicia thinks he might be interested in Gigi as a mistress and intensifies her lessons in such things as how to choose good wine and cigars, serve tea, sit elegantly, and wear nice clothes. However,when Gaston comes calling, he is appalled when Gigi models her new adult gown for him. He does not accept that she is an adult ready for such clothing. When Grandmama tells him that he cannot see Gigi alone anymore unless he promises to secure her future, he tells her that he is shocked and disgusted because she is still a child. He roams the streets of Paris in deep thought, at first upset that Grandmama would think Gigi was at an age when she was mature enough to be physically desirable and then upon reflection realizes that she has changed and he did feel an attraction to her (Gaston's Soliloquy and Gigi). He goes back and tells Grandmama that he indeed does want to take Gigi as his mistress and will take care of her in the grandest style. Gigi becomes angry and resents the offer of becoming Gaston's mistress which she considers demeaning. Gaston leaves and asks Honore for advice. Afterward Honore muses that he no longer has these problems (I'm Glad I'm Not Young Anymore). When Gigi relents because of her love for Gaston, he decides to take her to Maxim's although she is very anxious about such a visit (Say a Prayer for Me Tonight). All goes well at Maxim's except that Gaston begins to feel conscience-stricken and goes back to the house and asks Grandmama if he can have Gigi's hand in marriage. The film ends where it began at the Bois de Boulogne, with Gaston and Gigi married and riding together in a fashionable carriage with Honore's apparent blessing (Thank Heaven for Little Girls reprise).
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