AMERICAN OPERETTA


At first, Cy Coleman was reluctant to compose On The Twentieth Century because he felt there had been too many other musicals set in the ‘20s and referencing popular music of that decade. But as he considered the characters’ large personalities and “tikka-tikka-tikka” patter sound of a train, Coleman was excited to reference operetta, also known as “light” or “comic” opera, which had its peak popularity in America in the 1920s.


a play that is already good and turn into a great musical.


THE MUSICAL TRYOUT: The new musical, titled On the Twentieth Century and featuring direction from Harold Prince and a stunning train set from designer Robin Wagner, begins its four weeks of tryout performances at Boston’s Colonial Theatre in January 1978. Critics cite actress Imogene Coca, playing the character of Letitia Primrose, as a standout.


THE MUSICAL ON BROADWAY: The musical opens on Broadway at the St. James Theatre on February 19, 1978. It receives strong reviews, with the New York Times writing, “The musical has an exuberance, a bubbly confidence in its own life.” It goes on to win five Tony® Awards, including those for score, book, and set design, plus two for the actors—John Cullum as Oscar Jaffee and Kevin Kline as Lily’s lover, Bruce Granit. The production runs for 449 performances and launches a successful national tour.


THE PLAY RETURNS: Playwright Ken Ludwig (Lend Me a Tenor) creates a streamlined version of the Hecht and MacArthur play, turning it from three acts to two. Roundabout Theatre Company produces Ludwig’s version of Twentieth Century, directed by Walter Bobbie, starring Alec Baldwin and Anne Heche at the American Airlines TheatreSM


on Broadway. The production


plays a limited engagement in the spring of 2004. THE MUSICAL GETS A REVIVAL:


Roundabout produces the first-ever Broadway revival of the musical On the Twentieth Century, under the direction of Scott Ellis at the American Airlines TheatreSM


. Opening night is set


for March 12, 2015. The production stars Kristin Chenoweth as Lily Garland and Peter Gallagher as Oscar Jaffee.


The origins of operetta go back to 19th-century Europe, with Jacques Offenbach in France and the ever-popular W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan in England. For his inspiration, Coleman drew largely from two great composers of American


operetta: Sigmund Romberg and Rudolf Friml. Both came from Eastern Europe in the first decade of the 20th century. They struck musical gold collaborating with American lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II. How else could Friml, a piano virtuoso from Prague, dream up Rose-Marie, an operetta set in the Canadian Rockies, with lovers yodeling the “Indian Love Call”? Romberg’s great success, The Desert Song, traded on the success of American movie star Rudolph Valentino and the adventures of Lawrence of Arabia.


With sweeping scores and romantic stories, operetta appealed to middle-class audiences who wanted something in between the rough entertainments of the Bowery and the highbrow refinements of the Metropolitan Opera. With the Great Depression, the attraction of operetta’s grandness shifted to more sophisticated musical comedy. Productions of Friml and Romberg shows are rare today, but their works would influence musical theatre for many decades. Hammerstein went on to pen the books and lyrics for some of Broadway’s greatest romantic musicals, including Showboat, The King and I, and South Pacific.•


LINKS: To hear Jeanette McDonald sing “Indian Love Call”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87bUBB-rwFc


To watch a scene and title song from The Desert Song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wub_DjEvsSo


ON THE TWENTIETH CENTURY UPSTAGE GUIDE 7


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