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Babes in Arms
Babes in Arms is a 1937 coming-of-age musical comedy with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Lorenz Hart, and book by Rodgers and Hart. It concerns a group of small-town Long Island teenagers who put on a show to avoid being sent to a work farm by the town sheriff. Several songs in Babes in Arms became pop standards, including the title song, "Where or When", "The Lady Is a Tramp", and "My Funny Valentine". The film version, released in 1939, starred Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney and was directed by Busby Berkeley.
The original version had strong political overtones with discussions of Nietzsche, the appearance of a Communist character, and two African-American youths who are victims of racism. In 1959 George Oppenheimer created a "sanitized, de-politicized rewrite" for stage performance; it is now the most frequently performed version. In the new version, the young people are trying to save a local summer stock theatre from being demolished, not trying to avoid being sent to a work farm. The sequence of the songs and orchestration are changed drastically, and the dance numbers eliminated.
The 1959 version was the only one available for performance until 1998 when the Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music presented the original version (with a few race references slightly re-edited).
Babes in Arms opened on Broadway at the Shubert Theatre on April 14, 1937, transferred to the Majestic Theatre on October 25, 1937, and closed on December 18, 1937, after 289 performances. The production, under the auspices of Dwight Deere Wiman, was staged by Robert B. Sinclair with choreography by George Balanchine. Settings were by Raymond Sovey, and costumes by Helene Pons. Hans Spialek created the orchestrations and Gene Salzer led the orchestra which included pianists Edgar Fairchild and Adam Carroll. The cast featured Mitzi Green, Ray Heatherton, and Alfred Drake, as well as the Nicholas Brothers.
A studio cast recording starring Gregg Edelman as Val, Judy Blazer as Billie, Jason Graae as Gus, Donna Kane as Dolores, Judy Kaye as Baby Rose, Adam Grupper as Peter, with JQ and the Bandits as the Quartet and featuring the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra was released by New World Records in 1990.[citation needed]
On July 20, 2016, All Star Productions revived the original version at Ye Old Rose and Crown Theatre Pub, London. Theatre critic Darren Luke Mawdsley described the work as 'outmoded,' stating that he "understand[s] why it has not been staged here [in the UK] in 15 years."
Porchlight Music Theatre presented Babes in Arms in Chicago, Illinois in 2015.
In addition to the revival of the 1930s original, a New York City Center Encores! staged concert version ran in February 1999. It was directed and choreographed by Kathleen Marshall and featured Erin Dilly, David Campbell, Jessica Stone and Christopher Fitzgerald.
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Babes in Arms
Babes in Arms is a 1937 coming-of-age musical comedy with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Lorenz Hart, and book by Rodgers and Hart. It concerns a group of small-town Long Island teenagers who put on a show to avoid being sent to a work farm by the town sheriff. Several songs in Babes in Arms became pop standards, including the title song, "Where or When", "The Lady Is a Tramp", and "My Funny Valentine". The film version, released in 1939, starred Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney and was directed by Busby Berkeley.
The original version had strong political overtones with discussions of Nietzsche, the appearance of a Communist character, and two African-American youths who are victims of racism. In 1959 George Oppenheimer created a "sanitized, de-politicized rewrite" for stage performance; it is now the most frequently performed version. In the new version, the young people are trying to save a local summer stock theatre from being demolished, not trying to avoid being sent to a work farm. The sequence of the songs and orchestration are changed drastically, and the dance numbers eliminated.
The 1959 version was the only one available for performance until 1998 when the Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music presented the original version (with a few race references slightly re-edited).
Babes in Arms opened on Broadway at the Shubert Theatre on April 14, 1937, transferred to the Majestic Theatre on October 25, 1937, and closed on December 18, 1937, after 289 performances. The production, under the auspices of Dwight Deere Wiman, was staged by Robert B. Sinclair with choreography by George Balanchine. Settings were by Raymond Sovey, and costumes by Helene Pons. Hans Spialek created the orchestrations and Gene Salzer led the orchestra which included pianists Edgar Fairchild and Adam Carroll. The cast featured Mitzi Green, Ray Heatherton, and Alfred Drake, as well as the Nicholas Brothers.
A studio cast recording starring Gregg Edelman as Val, Judy Blazer as Billie, Jason Graae as Gus, Donna Kane as Dolores, Judy Kaye as Baby Rose, Adam Grupper as Peter, with JQ and the Bandits as the Quartet and featuring the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra was released by New World Records in 1990.[citation needed]
On July 20, 2016, All Star Productions revived the original version at Ye Old Rose and Crown Theatre Pub, London. Theatre critic Darren Luke Mawdsley described the work as 'outmoded,' stating that he "understand[s] why it has not been staged here [in the UK] in 15 years."
Porchlight Music Theatre presented Babes in Arms in Chicago, Illinois in 2015.
In addition to the revival of the 1930s original, a New York City Center Encores! staged concert version ran in February 1999. It was directed and choreographed by Kathleen Marshall and featured Erin Dilly, David Campbell, Jessica Stone and Christopher Fitzgerald.