''A Time for Singing'' is a musical with music by John Morris, lyrics by

Gerald Freedman Gerald Alan Freedman (June 25, 1927 – March 17, 2020) was an American theatre director, librettist, and lyricist, and a college dean. Life and career Freedman was born in Lorain, Ohio, the son of Fannie (Sepenswol), a history teacher, and Barn ...

and John Morris, and a book by Freedman and Morris. The work was based on

Richard Llewellyn Richard Dafydd Vivian Llewellyn Lloyd (; 8 December 1906 – 30 November 1983), known by his pen name Richard Llewellyn ( , ), was an English-born novelist of Welsh descent, who is best remembered for his 1939 novel '' How Green Was My Va ...

's novel of a Welsh mining village, ''

How Green Was My Valley ''How Green Was My Valley'' is a 1939 novel by Richard Llewellyn, narrated by Huw Morgan, the main character, about his Welsh family and the mining community in which they live. The author had claimed that he based the book on his own persona ...

''. The show takes place in the memory of Protestant minister David Griffith, recalling conflict within the Morgan family over the possible formation of a miners' union within the village, and the romance between Griffith himself and Angharad of the Morgans, who ultimately marries the mine owner instead. The show starred

Ivor Emmanuel Ivor Lewis Emmanuel (7 November 1927 – 20 July 2007) was a Welsh musical theatre and television singer and actor. He is probably best remembered, however, for his appearance as "Private Owen" in the 1964 film '' Zulu'', in which his char ...

(as David Griffith),

Tessie O'Shea Teresa Mary "Tessie" O'Shea (13 March 1913 – 21 April 1995) was a Welsh entertainer and actress. Early life O'Shea was born in Plantagenet Street in Riverside, Cardiff to newspaper wholesaler James Peter O'Shea, who had been a soldier and ...

Shani Wallis Shani Wallis (born 14 April 1933) is a British actress and singer, who has worked in theatre, film, and television in both her native United Kingdom and in the United States. A graduate of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, she is perhaps best ...

and

Laurence Naismith Laurence Naismith (born Lawrence Johnson; 14 December 1908 – 5 June 1992) was an English actor. He made numerous film and television appearances, including starring roles in the musical films '' Scrooge'' (1970) and the children's ghost fil ...

. The original

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

production began a series of ten previews at

The Broadway Theatre The Broadway Theatre (formerly Universal's Colony Theatre, B.S. Moss's Broadway Theatre, Earl Carroll's Broadway Theatre, and Ciné Roma) is a Broadway theater at 1681 Broadway (near 53rd Street) in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan i ...

on May 12, 1966, and opened officially on May 21, 1966, running for a total of only 41 performances. It closed on June 25, 1966. An Alexander H. Cohen production, it has been called "probably the best musical he ever produced." Cohen used an "extravagant publicity machine" to bring attention to the show, with the first 100 ticket buyers receiving "folding chairs and a picnic lunch catered by the Brasserie restaurant." Ken Mandelbaum argued that ''A Time for Singing'' pointed the way to later grand musicals like ''

Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' ( , ) is a French historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published in 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. In the English-speaking world, the novel is usually referred to by its origin ...

'' and ''

Grand Hotel A grand hotel is a large and luxurious hotel, especially one housed in a building with traditional architectural style. It began to flourish in the 1800s in Europe and North America. Grand Hotel may refer to: Hotels Africa * Grande Hotel Beir ...

'' in both its staging and its music, which was "richer and more serious" than other shows of the period, with a "cinematic fluidity and continuous movement" that later became common in 1980s musicals.Mandelbaum, Ken. ''Not Since Carrie: Forty Years of Broadway Musical Flops.'' Pages 298-299. St. Martin's Press, 1992. Theatre Historian

Gerald Bordman Gerald Martin Bordman (September 18, 1931 – May 9, 2011) was an American theatre historian, best known for authoring the reference volume ''The American Musical Theatre'', first published in 1978.Simonson, Robert (12 May 2011)Gerald Bordman, Th ...

, however, acknowledged the musical's "fine choral singing" but stated that the music the singers were given was drab and did little to enhance the grim story of the Morgan family's tribulations". Bing Crosby recorded two songs from ''A Time for Singing'' for Reprise Records on May 9, 1966, with the

Johnny Keating John Keating (10 September 1927 – 28 May 2015) was a Scottish musician, songwriter, arranger and trombonist. Biography Keating was born in Edinburgh, Scotland. After studying piano and trombone, he taught himself how to arrange and compose ...

Orchestra and Chorus: "Far From Home" and "How Green Was My Valley." They were released as a single. Stereo versions of the songs were released in 2010. A remastered CD of the original Broadway cast recording was issued in a limited edition by producer Bruce Kimmel on his Kritzerland label on April 3, 2013.

Song list

;Act I *Come You Men – Male Singing Chorus *How Green Was My Valley – David Griffith and Chorus *Old Long John – Male Singing Chorus *Here Come Your Men – Male Singing Chorus *What a Good Day Is Saturday – Beth Morgan, Gwillym Morgan, Angharad Morgan, Brothers and Company *Peace Come to Every Heart – Company *Someone Must Try – David Griffith *Oh, How I Adore Your Name – Angharad Morgan *That's What Young Ladies Do – David Griffith *When He Looks At Me – Angharad Morgan *Far From Home – Beth Morgan, Angharad Morgan, Gwillym Morgan and Brothers *I Wonder If – Brothers *What A Party – Gwillym Morgan, David Griffith, Cyfartha Lewis, Dai Bando and Brothers *Let Me Love You – Angharad Morgan *Why Would Anyone Want to Get Married? – Huw Morgan, Brothers, Beth Morgan and Gwillym Morgan *A Time For Singing – Beth Morgan and Company ;Act II *When the Baby Comes – Company *I'm Always Wrong – Angharad Morgan *There is Beautiful You Are – David Griffith *Three Ships – Beth Morgan, Bronwen Jenkins, Ivor Morgan and Company *Tell Her – Huw Morgan and Gwillym Morgan *There Is Beautiful You Are (Reprise) – David Griffith *Let Me Love You (Reprise) – Angharad Morgan and David Griffith *And The Mountains Sing Back – David Griffith *Gone in Sorrow – Company *How Green Was My Valley (Reprise) – Company

Notes

External links

''A Time for Singing'' on the Internet Broadway Database
{{DEFAULTSORT:Time for Singing, A Broadway musicals Musicals based on novels Works about mining 1966 musicals