MUSICAL MAYHEM: MY TOP
TWENTY-FIVE MUSICALS
The Honor Roll - Part 2
Some more musicals from the fifteen shows that make up my
musical Honor Roll. Lots to talk about, so this is going to be on the long
side. Enjoy! Let's begin.
BILLY ELLIOT - Music by Elton John, Book and Lyrics by
Lee Hall
Winter, 2005; Spring,
2006, January, 2008. In an earlier post I talked about this show and the New
York incarnation of it. I mentioned that somehow the show didn't seem to play
as well in New York as it had in London; that it didn't seem as moving or as dynamic
despite a superb cast and the recreated London design, direction and
choreography. In London, however, Bob and I (and niece Colleen in 2008) were
simply blown away by the show. There is humanity and warmth in this show that
skillfully manage to combine family with politics, that frequently had the
audience erupt into prolonged applause and cheers, yet also could turn on a
dime and bring a few tears to even this old curmudgeon's eyes. For the first
two London performances, we were privileged to see the remarkable Haydn Gwynne
as Mrs. Wilkinson. With Colleen, we saw a polished and terrific performance by
Jackie Clune as Mrs. Wilkinson. Both ladies had top-notch support from the
large cast of West End pros. Stephen Daldry's direction was seamless; Peter Darling's
choreography was amazing; the production designs by Ian MacNeil (sets), Nicky
Gillibrand (costumes) and Rick Fisher (lights) were spot-on, and Lee Hall's
book and lyrics and Elton John's excellent score gave all these talented folks
a remarkable story to tell with words, dance and music. Now here's the odd
thing: although this is among my favorite musicals, it's perversely the only
show in my top twenty-five that I don't especially want to see again. - at the
Victoria Palace Theatre, London
THE VISIT - Music by John Kander, Lyrics by Fred
Ebb, Book by Terrence McNally
September, 2001. This is in my top twenty-five in both the
original play by Friedrich Dürrenmatt
and the musical version by Kander/Ebb/McNally. You either loved this musical or
you hated it. I loved it. It was dark, daring, provocotive and ultimately
disturbing. Terrence McNally's book was a skillful retelling of Dürrenmatt's
tale of payback. Kander and Ebb's score was haunting and, at times, downright
creepy (witness the Act One closing number "Yellow Shoes"…..brrrrr!).
The lead performances by Chita Rivera and John McMartin were memorable and
powerful and demonstrated why they are considered, after decades in the
business, among the theatre's finest. And let's talk about a supporting cast
chock full of New York and Chicago A-listers including: Jim Corti, James Harms,
Brian Herriott, Mark Jacoby, Adam Pelty, Ami Silvestre and Steven Sutcliffe.
This was a first-class production in all aspects and had a Broadway production
in its sights. Sadly, those plans were derailed by the horrors on 9/11. It was
felt that a dark tale of revenge would not play well in the post-9/11
atmosphere. Twelve years after it's premiere, The Visit has yet to receive a Broadway production and that is a
great loss for the musical theatre. (Note: there are talks that a production
will be mounted at the Williamstown Theatre Festival next season (2014) prior
to a Broadway opening. We can hope!) (Factoid: Angela Lansbury was originally
attached to the project, but dropped out to care for her very ill husband. She
would have been fascinating in the role.) - at the Goodman Theatre, Chicago
BELLS ARE RINGING - Music by Jule Styne, Book
and Lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green
My introduction to
this terrific example of a classic musical comedy from the Golden Age of
Musical Theatre was the 1960 film starring the incandescent Judy Holliday,
recreating her Tony-winning role, and Dean Martin playing, essentially, Dean
Martin. The fairytale storyline about a big-hearted switchboard operator at a
small answering service in New York is pure 50s fluff. Comden and Green wrote
the warm and funny book to match the considerable skill set of their friend and
star, Judy Holliday and, if her performance in the movie is any indication, and
by all accounts she was even better on stage, Holliday more than returned the
favor. But where the show really soars is in the glorious score with impeccable
lyrics by Comden and Green and remarkable music by the prolific Jule Styne in
one of his best efforts. It's a true treasure with comic turns for the leading
lady, some rousing chorus numbers, two breakout standards, "Just in
Time" and "The Party's Over," and a sensational ballad that is
pretty much unknown; in fact it was replaced with a more uptempo number in the
movie, but is unforgettable once you've heard it, "Long Before I Knew
You." (It was one of the songs Bob and I chose for our pre-ceremony music CD
at our wedding.) Yes, the show is hopelessly dated and absolutely must be
played in its original time period, but is that a bad thing? This show makes me
smile. There's not a mean bone in its theatrical body. All Bells Are Ringing wants to do is entertain you, give you some
laughs and let you listen to some great songs. It accomplishes all that in
spades. I love it.
The floating heads of the two stars are a bit disturbing, don't you think?
July, 1976. Okay. I think I may need to seriously consider
turning in my gay card. I saw this summer stock production of Bells Are Ringing starring Rita
Moreno (!!) and Tab Hunter (!!) and I don't remember a thing about it
except that I enjoyed it, thought that the role of Ella wasn't exactly a
perfect fit for the uber-talented Moreno and was surprised at the easy-going
stage presence of Hunter in a very likeable turn. Why wasn't I taking notes?
Why didn't I sneak in a tape recorder or something? I hang my head in shame. -
at the Melody Top Theatre, Milwaukee
(Sidebar:
Melody Top was a summer stock theatre in Milwaukee. It produced 23 seasons of
musicals and operettas, most of which featured a star or two from theatre,
movies or TV. Some were A-list, like Moreno, who had won her Tony for The Ritz the previous year, but most
were B-list celebrities getting up close and personal with the folks to boost their
visibility. Local favorites usually filled the supporting roles and the chorus.The shows were done in a big tent seating approximately 2200 patrons. If
the quality wasn't exactly Broadway, it was still professionally done and
enjoyable.)
June, 2001. Little did I know months earlier when I
purchased these tickets that Bob and I would be attending the final performance
of this show. It was an incredible experience. Not only was the show closing,
but it was also being taped for the Lincoln Center archives. During the
intermission, we went down from our perches in the mezzanine to the stage as is
our custom so Bob can touch the stage. (It's a tech theatre geek thing.) Seated in the front row and mere inches
from me was the legendary Betty Comden! She graciously signed my program and
beamed when I told her the first show I appeared in was the
Comden/Green/Bernstein classic, Wonderful
Town. There's class and there's class. Comden was class. Faith
Prince burned up the stage and stopped the show with her final number,
"I'm Going Back," which resulted in a standing ovation that lasted
several very loud minutes. Marc Kudisch made a handsome leading man and there
was fine support from David Garrison, Beth Fowler and Martin Moran. At times
the physical production looked a bit cheap and Tina Landau's direction didn't
point up the breeziness of the show. I don't think musicals are her forte and
it especially showed during those parts where everyone just appeared to be
working too damn hard. We thoroughly enjoyed
it, though, and it deserved a longer run. - at the Plymouth Theatre, New York
(Sidebar: The
2000-2001 season was not an especially good year for highly anticipated musical
revivals. Bells Are Ringing, in its
first ever Broadway revival, received very lukewarm reviews during its tryout
in Connecticut and when it opened in New York. Most of the criticism was
leveled at the dated quality of the show and faulted director Landau with
making a featherweight 50s bon-bon leaden and even more dated. Star Faith
Prince also received very mixed reviews. There is a huge difference between a
performer making a part iconic (for
example: Carol Channing and Dolly Levi, Ethel Merman and Rose Hovick, etc.) and
a part becoming iconic because of the performer
(for example: Judy Holliday and Ella Peterson, Barbara Harris and her roles in The Apple Tree). In the former, it's
easier for an actor to bring their own unique take to the role - there have
been terrific Dollys besides Channing and there have been terrific Roses
besides Merman - but in the latter, it's difficult to establish your own take
on a role that is so indelibly associated with its originator. It's even more
difficult when the part in the show that you are starring in was written
specifically for its originator. In this case, lots of critics pointed out,
unfairly I hasten to add, that Faith Prince was not Judy Holliday and didn't
bring the same qualities to the part. Well, of course she wouldn't; she's Faith
Prince, not Judy Holliday, and has her own comedic sensibility. The mediocre critical
reception, however, wasn’t the only thing that adversely affected the show. It
was widely reported that Prince was not consistent in her performances.
Some days she'd be merely adequate and other days she'd be brilliant and that
had an effect on box office sales. Patrons wanted brilliant, not adequate. For
the record, we saw brilliant. Perhaps the reviews got to her; perhaps she felt
misdirected by Landau; perhaps all the apparent backstage drama with management
ineptitude (revealed after the show closed) wore her down. In any event, the
show closed after a very short run and it's unlikely Bells will receive another major revival. For the record, the
hugely-anticipated first NYC revival of Follies
also received a great deal of critical indifference (lots of finger pointing at
the director in that one, too) and closed after a short run. At least Bells got a cast recording of the
revival; Follies did not.)
THE FULL
MONTY - Music and Lyrics by David Yazbek, Book by Terrence McNally
I'm a big fan of the film, but frankly couldn't see how they
could take this very English film and translate it into a musical. Happily
composer/lyricist David Yazbek and playwright Terrence McNally figured it all
out. Probably the best move they made was to shift the locale of the piece from
Sheffield, England to Buffalo, New York. Crossing the Pond didn't detract from
the story at all and in all likelihood made the piece more accessible to
American audiences. Unlike Billy Elliot,
which absolutely could not be done in any other locale or time frame, The Full Monty deals with issues that
are the same in the United States as they are in the United Kingdom as they are
in Brazil as they are everywhere in the world: unemployment, family, loss,
love, self-respect. McNally's book combines great humor with heart and warmth
and more than the occasional moments of tenderness that at first glance might
seem out of place, but by second glance are just so perfectly right. He creates
characters that you want to know. Yazbek's score is fresh, yet rooted in
musical theatre tradition with numbers that range from an almost discordant and
jarring opening number to gorgeous ballads that make your heart happy,
"Breeze Off the River," "You Walk with Me," and the reprise
of "You Rule My World." One of the best things about this musical is
that is not dependent on a star performance. All this show needs are talented
actors and good direction and choreography to make it a winner. Although it was
nominated for 10 Tony Awards in 2001, it had the misfortune of opening the same
season as The Producers, which won in
every category in which it received a nomination. No matter. In my
humble opinion, this is the better show!
A fun flyer stuffed in our NYC program. Buy now...get the coveted first seven rows!! All the better to ogle the boys!
June, 2001. There were a lot of understudies performing at our matinee, but as is typical in New York, you would never know these talented folks weren't the usual performers in the roles. From the first brassy, rhythmic chords of the overture to the final backlit moment when the guys go the full monty, I was hooked. Leading the troupe of great actors at the Eugene O'Neill was Patrick Wilson, whose nicely layered performance that combined macho bravado with loving tenderness won the audience's affection. Joining him in the full monty adventure were these wonderful gentlemen: John Ellison Conlee, Jason Danieley, Denis Jones, Todd Weeks and the extraordinary Andre DeShields as Horse. The distaff side wasn't short-changed on talent, either, with Annie Golden and Emily Skinner in the primary ladies' roles. The great Kathleen Freeman, who, sadly, would die during the run of the show, transformed her song, "Jeanette's Showbiz Number," which, in my opinion, is the weakest number in the show and the only one that tries too hard, into a triumph of talent and showbiz savvy over so-so material and easily stopped the show. A delightful afternoon at the theatre. We thoroughly enjoyed it. - at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre, New York
The boys against the Chicago skyline. Kinda fun!
September, 2001. The tragic events of 9/11 derailed this
production, the First National Tour, after only a short time on the road and on
its second stop. (It would close in Chicago a few weeks after we saw it.) It
had the misfortune of officially opening in Chicago on September 12, 2001, and,
sadly, despite good reviews and a popular title, the production could not
overcome the box office ennui that seemed to be a direct result of those horrid
events. When we took our boys to see the show, we bought half-price tickets at
Hot Tix and ended up in the 7th row. The theatre wasn't even 50% full! That was
truly a shame since the company headed by Rod Weber, Danny Gurwin, Larry
Marshall and the legendary Kaye Ballard was outstanding and their performance
was just what those tragic times needed. The guys were great and Ballard used
her considerable comic skills to nail her big number. (We met Kaye after the
show…one of those six degrees of separation things. In person, she's warm and
friendly and seemed genuinely happy to meet us.) Also in the cast were the
now-popular musical performer Heidi Blickenstaff, Kevin M. Burrows, who is
Christopher Sieber's husband, and James Moye, who would soon play File in
Signature Theatre's amazing production of 110
in the Shade. The boys, by the way, liked the show a lot. - at the Shubert
Theatre, Chicago
June, 2005. My Playbill
states that this production was the inaugural production at the newly reopened
and redecorated (gaudy beyond belief) Drury Lane Water Tower Place Theatre. The
cast, a mixture of Equity and non-Equity actors, was talented and did well,
though I felt the show lacked the energy and pizzazz that both the original
Broadway company and the touring company had. Nothing was wrong, mind you, it
just wasn't very exciting. Chicago favorite Renee Matthews was Jeanette and
played the role sassily enough, but just didn't have the charismatic chops to
really put across her number. Kathleen Freeman and Kaye Ballard both stopped
the show with this number; Matthews did not. Peter James Zielinski was a fine
Jerry Lukowski and anchored the show well. This wasn't a bad production by any
means, but it wasn't an outstanding one either. - at the Drury Lane Water Tower
Place Theatre, Chicago
June, 2009. Full
disclosure. The reason we trucked out to Millburn, New Jersey, was because of
the actress playing Jeanette, the legendary Elaine Stritch. With Stritch, one simply must pay
homage. At eighty-four, she was as feisty as ever and it was a joy to see her
again in a book show. Now mind you, her performance was pure
Stritch despite the character name listed in the program, but the capacity
audience cared not one whit and she stopped the show with her solo number as
only a seasoned pro can. She was a marvel to watch. The cast was full of
accomplished New York actors, including Michael Rupert and Jenn Colella. Rob
Richardson covered the lead role of Jerry Lukowski that night and he was
excellent. The was the second show we'd seen at Paper Mill and this production confirmed for us Paper Mill's commitment to quality. As a bonus, we discovered that Millburn has
a variety of nice restaurants a short walk from the theatre. Who knew? - at the
Paper Mill Playhouse, Millburn, New Jersey.
THE BEST LITTLE WHOREHOUSE IN TEXAS - Music and Lyrics
by Carol Hall, Book by Larry L King and Peter Masterson
This musical is thisclose
to making my top ten. I love everything about it: the book, the music, the
story, the sheer exuberance of it that's tempered by a wearily resigned view of
life that infuses the show with heart and humanity. Carol Hall's score is a
marvel from start to finish and Larry L King and Peter Masterson's book keeps
everything remarkably real even when the sometimes in-your-face satire could
easily overwhelm the proceedings, but, props to the creators, doesn't. There is
an honesty to this underappreciated show that is refreshing. I'd love to see
Encores tackle it. And I would absolutely kill to play the Sheriff, Melvin P.
Thorpe or the Governor. (Bob, take note!) The flavorless 1982 movie version did
the show absolutely no favors. It's a musical that, though wildly successful in
its original New York run and throughout a profitable tour, hasn't received the
respect I think it deserves. It's time for a revival! I would love to see Connie Britton as Mona, wouldn't you? This is a first-rate, A-quality show. Full stop.
August, 1979. By the time I first saw this show, it had been
open for a little over a year and many of the original supporting players had
already left. Fortunately, Henderson Forsythe, Carlin Glynn and Delores Hall
were still on hand with Forsythe and Glynn handily demonstrating why they won
Tony Awards for their performances two months earlier.
(Note: Both won supporting Tonys for performing leading
roles, a quirk that has happened more than once in Tony history. This was
probably due to the fact that when the show opened, no one was listed above the
title, and listing was/is a primary factor in determining leading vs.
supporting Tony eligibility.)
Forsythe's profane and gruff Sheriff was an absolute
delight. Texas-born Glynn offered an honest, humorous and heartfelt performance
as a thoroughly decent human being who just happened to be a madam at Texas'
most famous whorehouse. And just listen to the way she performs her songs on
the original cast album! (Example: "The Bus from Amarillo." Divine!)
Delores Hall, as Miss Mona's trusted friend, Jewel, tore up the house with her
gospel-influenced "Twenty-Four Hours of Lovin'." Clinton Allman,
still in his original role as Melvin P. Thorpe, Barbara Marineau as Doatsey Mae
(beautiful version of the haunting "Doatsey Mae") and Tom Avera as
the side-stepping Governor were especially noteworthy among the large and
talented cast.
(Note: Years later
I had the good fortune to meet and work with Michael Scott, one of Whorehouse's ensemble members, during
the early development of Such a Pretty
Face. See earlier post.)
Sets, lights and costumes were all first-rate. The Rio Grande
band provided atmospheric accompaniment. Tommy Tune's choreography, especially
the sexy and athletic "The Aggie Song" and Peter Masterson and Tommy
Tune's direction perfectly complimented the fine book by Larry L King and Peter
Masterson and Carol Hall's exquisite score. No surprise. I had a fabulous time!
- at the 46th Street Theatre, New York
February, 1980. When my BFF, Pat, decided to stay with me
for an extra few days following our appearance at a national word-processing
conference, I took her to see this. There were further cast
changes, but the three above-the-title stars were still around and still as
wonderful as when I first saw them six months earlier. (Imagine…stars still
performing in their original roles eighteen months after opening. How often
does that happen today?) Pat became a fan. - at the 46th Street Theatre, New
York
May, 1980. When the producers of The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas
rolled out the First National Tour, they made sure they stacked the deck in
their favor by casting a bona fide star as Mona. Now this is absolutely no reflection on
the marvelous Carlin Glynn. whose performance as Mona Stangley remains one of
my fondest theatre memories. With that tricky show title, however, I'm sure the
producers felt they needed an extra measure of insurance to put bums in seats
while traveling the great American hinterland, so they cast the glamorous Alexis
Smith in the role. Alexis Smith was not a star; Alexis Smith was a STAR. And
that was, well, problematic. It wasn't that Alexis Smith wasn't good; she was. But…Smith was inherently very elegant
and sophisticated with a commanding stage presence and all of that, perversely,
worked against the role. She didn't try to steal focus; it was just hard not to
concentrate on her and on what she was doing, even if she was only listening to
another actor. She was on-the-mark and often very funny, but I didn't find her
especially warm or vulnerable. Maybe it was me. Maybe I couldn't get her
Tony-winning performance as Phyllis in Follies
out of my mind. But maybe it was just an…uncomfortable fit of actor to role. Larry
Hovis of "Hogan's Heroes" fame played Melvin P. Thorpe, Jay Garner
recreated his Broadway role as the Governor and Barbara Marineau left the New
York company to bring her Doatsey Mae to this tour. (Note: Marineau was Alexis
Smith's cover. I suspect she would have been incredible in the role.) Also in
the cast were future Tony-nominated director and choreographer Jeff Calhoun as
the featured Aggie/Ensemble, George
Dvorsky, who I would see decades later in The
Happy Time at Signature Theatre (see earlier post), as an Aggie/Ensemble
and Ruth Gottschall, who I would see on Broadway years later in several shows,
as Ginger, one of Miss Mona's girls. My companion for the evening, a
houseguest, of sorts, from the UK (strange, complicated and ended badly) had a
grand time. I enjoyed it, but… - at the Shubert Theatre, Chicago
July, 1981. When the Second
National Tour toe-tapped its way to Milwaukee, Pat and I made the drive up from
Waukegan to see it. This first-class edition starred William Larsen as the
Sheriff and in the leading role of Miss
Mona, June Terry. A Google search for June Terry came up empty, but according
to her bio, June Terry was a Dot recording artist and a busy singer and
actress, primarily in the Houston area. I'm not sure if she was cast for her
box office allure or whether it was simply a matter of casting two skilled
actors in, at this time, a very marketable property and letting the property be
the star. Whatever the reason, it was a wise choice. Larsen and Terry, both
Texans, gave the show a verisimilitude that was absent in the Alexis Smith
production and was a better fit for the material. Understudying the role of
Jewel was a young Avery Sommers. I would see her twenty years later as Jewel in
the Ann-Margret version. And in an interesting twist, William Hardy, who played the
Sheriff in Chicago, was now the understudy for the Sheriff. Ah, the vicissitudes
of the theatre! The audience loved the show; so did we. - at Uihlein Hall,
Milwaukee
 |
| Drury Lane even had its own Stagebill cover design! |
February, 1986. This version
unexpectedly turned out to be my second favorite production of The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas,
right behind the Broadway original. It was as though director/choreographer
Jerry Yoder took a good look at the book and score and decided to keep it
simple, keep it clean and keep it honest, unlike the misguided movie version
which took this unpretentious musical and blew everything completely out of
proportion, took songs out, added songs by Dolly Parton, who was also the
affable, but miscast, star, cast Burt Reynolds in a singing role (talk about
miscast!) and pretty much made it all unwatchable. Yoder wisely cast
Texas-born, Northwestern University-educated and veteran of the original
Houston company, Connie Cooper as Mona. Supported by a fine company of actors,
many from Chicago, Cooper had an easy-going charm and a way with Carol Hall's
songs that energized the proceedings and had the audience in the palm of her
hand. She was quite marvelous. Everything about this production was done with
skill and professionalism. Curiously, however, "The Bus from
Amarillo" was moved from the end of Act One and placed as the show's
closing. I understand the reasoning behind it and it worked, but not as well as
the song's original placement. According to an article I just read, this was a
stop on a national tour and not part of the Drury Lane subscription series.
Steve and I had a grand time. Yee-haw! - at the Drury Lane Oakbrook Theatre,
Oakbrook Terrace, IL
(Sidebar: Drury
Lane Oakbrook is the sole surviving theatre of the Drury Lane theatres. At one
time, there were also a Drury Lane South in Evergreen Park, a Drury Lane Water
Tower Place in Chicago (now the Broadway Playhouse), a Drury Lane North in
Lincolnshire (now the Marriott Theatre) and a Drury Lane East at Chicago's
McCormick Place. The Oakbrook theatre is an ostentatiously-decorated affair
that borders on bad taste. The redeeming factor is that rather than being
bashful about its over-the-top awfulness, it revels in it. The dinner/show
package is a staple there and after the performance, pre-show diners head to
the lobby tables to pick up their doggie bags. It's a trip. The auditorium
seats about 1000 on one nicely-raked level. It's a very wide house, however,
which can make sightlines less than ideal. Drury Lane has a great reputation
for spending money on their productions and doing quality work. Hmm, I may need
to return to Drury Lane soon. The pictures on the website feature a gray color
scheme instead of the red that I'm used to seeing. It's still pretty
over-the-top, but it looks as if they may finally have toned down the
awfulness.)
Drury Lane South was still committed to presenting shows with well-known names, some talented, some not-so-talented. Think of Drury Lane South as the theatrical version of "Dancing with the Stars" and you'll get the predominant caliber of the starring talent. The very idea of Carol Lynley starring in Bernard Slade's charming, unpretentious comedy chills me to the bone, but, truth be told, I wish I'd seen it.
May, 2001. Ann-Margret starring in
a tour of The Best Little Whorehouse in
Texas? Who wouldn't go see our favorite Kitten with a Whip make her stage
debut at age 60? As it turned out, a lot of people didn't and for good reason.
It was pretty awful. When the show opened in Chicago, Ann-Margret was,
according to the show's management, fighting a throat infection. When we saw it
several days later, she was, per the pre-show announcement, still fighting it.
Unlike Jim Dale, who, even with laryngitis, gave a sensational all-stops-out
performance in Barnum (see earlier
post), Ann-Margret, wearing costumes
designed by Bob Mackie that belonged on a Vegas stage instead of on the madam
of the Chicken Ranch in Texas, gave a listless, dull, odd performance that had the leading lady not really connecting
with anyone and singing everything full front as though nobody else was on
stage. (For the record, everyone else wore costumes by Dona Granata.) She
looked totally out of her element and that rather surprised me. Years earlier I
saw Ann-Margret do her concert act at the Auditorium and she was wonderful:
vibrant, exciting, connecting with her dancers and the audience. Although not
the greatest actor on the block, despite two Academy Award nominations, she's
always had a personality that I thought would work well for her in this role. I
was wrong. Not helping matters was the overall tattiness of this production. It
looked tired even this early in the tour. Two bright spots: the Aggie number and
Gary Sandy's portrayal of the Sheriff. The critics blasted it; the audiences
stayed away. At the performance we attended the house was very small. We bought
half-price tickets; the guys sitting next to us paid full price and were
pissed. I would have been, too. Avery Sommers from the Second National Tour
graduated from playing Jewel's cover in that production to playing it on this
tour. I'm sure she was fine, but her performance didn't register one way or the
other. Roxie Lucas played one of Miss Mona's girls in the First National Tour
starring Alexis Smith and was now played Doatsey Mae and I don't remember her
at all. To be fair, I understand things improved as the tour progressed and by
all accounts Ann-Margret was extremely well-liked by everyone in the company. What
I was most disappointed in was that Bob to this day doesn't understand why I
love this show. With this as his only point of reference, I can see why. - at
the Oriental Theatre, Chicago
That's it for now. I so enjoyed writing this! More later.
© 2013 Jeffrey Geddes
