''A Connecticut Yankee'' is a

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film and television, a genre of film and television that incorporates into the narr ...

based on the 1889 novel ''

A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court ''A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court'' is an 1889 novel by American humorist and writer Mark Twain. The book was originally titled ''A Yankee in King Arthur's Court''. Some early editions are titled ''A Yankee at the Court of King Arth ...

'' by American writer

Mark Twain Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has p ...

. Like most adaptations of the Twain novel, it focuses on the lighter aspects of the story. The music was written by

Richard Rodgers Richard Charles Rodgers (June 28, 1902 – December 30, 1979) was an American Musical composition, composer who worked primarily in musical theater. With 43 Broadway musicals and over 900 songs to his credit, Rodgers was one of the most ...

, the lyrics by

Lorenz Hart Lorenz Milton Hart (May 2, 1895 – November 22, 1943) was an American lyricist and half of the Broadway songwriting team Rodgers and Hart. Some of his more famous lyrics include " Blue Moon", " The Lady Is a Tramp", "Manhattan", "Bewitched, Both ...

, and the book by

Herbert Fields Herbert Fields (July 26, 1897March 24, 1958) was an American librettist and screenwriter. Biography Born in New York City, Fields began his career as an actor, then graduated to choreography and stage direction before turning to writing. From 1 ...

. It was produced by

Lew Fields Lew Fields (born Moses Schoenfeld, January 1867 – July 20, 1941) was an American actor, comedian, vaudeville star, theatre Management, manager, and Theatrical producer, producer. He was part of a comedy duo with Joe Weber (vaudevillian), Joe We ...

and Lyle D. Andrews. It enjoyed an original run on

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 ...

in 1927 of 421 performances and a number of revivals. The 1931 film of the same name starring

Will Rogers William Penn Adair Rogers (November 4, 1879 – August 15, 1935) was an American vaudeville performer, actor, and humorous social commentator. He was born as a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, in the Indian Territory (now part of Oklahoma ...

was not adapted from this musical, nor was the 1949 musical film ''

'', which starred

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, musician and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. He was a ...

. The Rodgers and Hart ''Connecticut Yankee'', like many of the team's earlier musicals, has never been filmed for the big screen though a scene was staged for the 1948 biographical movie of the lives of Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart, '' Words and Music''.

Productions

''A Connecticut Yankee'' opened on

at the

Vanderbilt Theatre The Vanderbilt Theatre was a New York City Broadway theatre, designed by architect Eugene De Rosa for producer Lyle Andrews. It opened in 1918,Busby Berkeley Busby Berkeley (born Berkeley William Enos; November 29, 1895 – March 14, 1976) was an American film director and musical choreographer. Berkeley devised elaborate musical production numbers that often involved complex geometric patterns. Berke ...

, it starred

William Gaxton William Gaxton (né Arthur Anthony Gaxiola, December 2, 1893 – February 2, 1963) was an American star of vaudeville, film, and theatre. Gaxton was president of The Lambs Club from 1936 to 1939, 1952 to 1953, and 1957 to 1961. He and Victor ...

(Martin, the Yankee), Constance Carpenter (Alice Carter/The Demoiselle Alisande la Carteloise), and June Cochrane (Mistress Evelyn Al Belle-Ans). Retitled ''A Yankee at the Court of King Arthur'', the show opened in London at

Daly's Theatre Daly's Theatre was a theatre in the City of Westminster. It was located at 2 Cranbourn Street, just off Leicester Square. It opened on 27 June 1893, and was demolished in 1937. The theatre was built for and named after the American impresar ...

, under the management of

George Edwardes George Joseph Edwardes (né Edwards; 8 October 1855 – 4 October 1915) was an English theatre manager and producer of Irish ancestry who brought a new era in musical theatre to the British stage and beyond. Edwardes started out in theatre ma ...

, on 10 October 1929, running for just 43 performances. Harry Fox starred as Martin, with Constance Carpenter as Alice. After closing in London the show toured the UK provinces in the Spring of 1930. Additional numbers interpolated in the UK were by

Desmond Carter Herbert Desmond Carter (15 June 1895 – 3 February 1939) was a British lyricist who worked with George and Ira Gershwin, Ivor Novello, and others, and also wrote one of the first English language versions of the notorious "suicide song", "G ...

Vivian Ellis Vivian John Herman Ellis, CBE (29 October 1903 – 19 June 1996) was an English musical comedy composer best known for the song "Spread a Little Happiness" and the theme " Coronation Scot". Life and work Ellis was born in Hampstead, London in 1 ...

H. M. Tennent Henry Moncrieff Tennent (18 February 1879 – 10 June 1941), was a British theatrical producer, impresario and songwriter. From 1929 to 1933, he mentored Binkie Beaumont, having previously worked with him in Cardiff. When Tennent, already the ge ...

Percy Greenbank Percy Greenbank (24 January 1878 – 9 December 1968) was an English lyricist and librettist, best known for his contribution of lyrics to a number of successful Edwardian musical comedies in the early years of the 20th century. His older brothe ...

and others, and the piece now opened with a new Rodgers & Hart number "A Ladies Home Companion". A Broadway revival opened at the Martin Beck Theatre (now the

Al Hirschfeld Theatre The Al Hirschfeld Theatre, originally the Martin Beck Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 302 West 45th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1924, it was designed by G. Albert Lansburgh in a Moorish an ...

) on November 17, 1943, and closed on March 11, 1944, after 135 performances. Directed by John C. Wilson and choreographed by William Holbrook and Al White Jr., it featured

Vivienne Segal Vivienne Sonia Segal (April 19, 1897 – December 29, 1992) was an American actress and singer. Early years Segal was born on April 19, 1897, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She was the elder daughter of Jewish parents Bernhard Segal, a physician, ...

(Lt. Merrill/Queen Morgan Le Fay),

Dick Foran John Nicholas "Dick" Foran (June 18, 1910 – August 10, 1979) was an American actor, known for his performances in Western musicals and for playing supporting roles in dramatic pictures. Early years Foran was born in Flemington, New Jers ...

(Lt. Martin Barrett), Vera-Ellen (Mistress Evelyn Al Belle-Ans), and Robert Chisholm (Admiral Arthur/King Arthur of Britain). A television adaptation was broadcast on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

on March 12, 1955, with

Eddie Albert Edward Albert Heimberger (April 22, 1906 – May 26, 2005) was an American actor and activist. He was twice nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor; the first nomination came in 1954 for his performance in ''Roman Holiday'', ...

Janet Blair Janet Blair (born Martha Janet Lafferty; April 23, 1921 – February 19, 2007) was an American big-band singer who later became a popular film and television actress. Early years Janet Blair was born Martha Janet Lafferty on April 23, 1921, in ...

Gale Sherwood Gale Sherwood (born Jacqueline Nash;Sherwood stated in 1967 that her birth name was Jacqueline Nutt. See Thomas, Bob"Gale Sherwood, Eddy Partner, Makes Debut" ''The San Bernardino Sun'', September 19, 1967, p. B-9 March 4, 1929 – December ...

, and

Boris Karloff William Henry Pratt (23 November 1887 – 2 February 1969), better known by his stage name Boris Karloff (), was an English actor. His portrayal of Frankenstein's monster in the horror film ''Frankenstein'' (1931) (his 82nd film) established h ...

. New York City Center

Encores! Encores! is a Tony-honored concert series dedicated to performing rarely heard American musicals, usually with their original orchestrations. Presented by New York City Center since 1994, Encores! has revived shows by Irving Berlin, Rodgers & Ha ...

presented a staged concert in 2001, with

Christine Ebersole Christine Ebersole (born February 21, 1953) is an American actress and singer. She has appeared in film, television, and on stage. She starred in the Broadway musicals '' 42nd Street'' and ''Grey Gardens'', winning two Tony Awards. She has co-s ...

(Fay Morgan/Morgan Le Fay),

Henry Gibson Henry Gibson (born James Bateman; September 21, 1935 – September 14, 2009) was an American actor and poet. His best-known roles include his time as a cast member of the TV sketch-comedy series ''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In'' from 1968 to 19 ...

(Arthur Pendragos/King Arthur),

Ron Leibman Ron Leibman (; October 11, 1937 – December 6, 2019) was an American actor. He won both the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play and the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Play in 1993 for his performance as Roy Cohn in ''Angels in Amer ...

(Sir Launcelot) and

Jessica Walter Jessica Walter (January 31, 1941 – March 24, 2021) was an American actress who appeared in over 170 film, stage and television productions. In film, she was best known for her role as a psychotic and obsessed fan of a local disc jockey in t ...

(Guinevere).

Plot

In Connecticut in the 1920s, Martin is about to be married to Fay. When an old flame, Alice, visits him, Fay knocks him out with a champagne bottle in a jealous fit. As Martin dreams, he is seemingly in the court of King Arthur in 528 A.D. Dubbed "Sir Boss" by Arthur, Martin is directed to industrialize Camelot, which he does, including telephones, and radios. He falls in love with "Demoiselle Alisande" ("Alice") but the king's evil sister, "

Morgan Le Fay Morgan le Fay (, meaning 'Morgan the Fairy'), alternatively known as Morgan , Morgain /e Morg e, Morgant Morge , and Morgue namong other names and spellings ( cy, Morgên y Dylwythen Deg, kw, Morgen an Spyrys), is a powerful ...

" ("Fay"), kidnaps her. As Martin rescues her, he wakes up and realizes that it was Alice that he loved all along.

Changes made to the 1943 revival

The 1943 revival was revised by Rodgers and Hart. The setting was changed to a more topical war-time setting, and the show art showed a knight and his damsel in a jeep. Also, "Morgan Le Fay" was turned into a "singing sorceress" anti-heroine, and the song "To Keep My Love Alive" was written especially for this revival, for Vivienne Segal to perform.Hyland, William G. ''Richard Rodgers'' (1998), , p. 151.

Songs

Among the best remembered songs are the up-tempo duet, "

Thou Swell "Thou Swell" is a show tune, a popular song and a jazz standard written in 1927. History The music was written by Richard Rodgers, with words by Lorenz Hart, for the 1927 musical '' A Connecticut Yankee''. The lyric is notable, as indicated b ...

the ballad "

My Heart Stood Still "My Heart Stood Still" is a 1927 popular song composed by Richard Rodgers, with lyrics by Lorenz Hart. It was written for the Charles Cochran revue ''One Dam' Thing after Another'', which opened at the London Pavilion on May 19, 1927. The sho ...

"On a Desert Island with Thee", and "I Feel at Home with You". For the 1943 revival, Rodgers and Hart added several additional songs, including "Can't You Do a Friend a Favor

and "

To Keep My Love Alive "To Keep My Love Alive" is a 1943 popular song composed by Richard Rodgers, with lyrics by Lorenz Hart for the 1943 revival of the 1927 musical '' A Connecticut Yankee,'' where it was introduced by Vivienne Segal. It was written especially for Se ...

", Hart's last song and a hit for star

. ;Act I *"This Is My Night to Howl"—Fay Morgan and Ensemble *"

"—Martin and Alice Carter *"

"—Martin and Alice Carter *"At the Round Table"—The Company *"On a Desert Island with Thee"—Mistress Evelyn Al Belle-Ans, Sir Galahad, Sir Gawain and Ensemble *"

" (1943 revival)—Queen Morgan Le Fay *"My Heart Stood Still" (Reprise)—Martin and The Demoiselle Alisande la Carteloise ;Act II *"Ye Lunchtime Follies"—Sir Galahad and Ensemble *"Can't You Do a Friend a Favor?" (1943 revival)—Queen Morgan Le Fay and Martin *"Thou Swell" (Reprise)—Martin and The Demoiselle Alisande la Carteloise *"I Feel At Home With You"—Sir Galahad, Mistress Evelyn Al Belle-Ans, Sir Gawain and Ensemble *"You Always Love the Same Girl"—Martin and King Arthur of Britain *"The Camelot Samba"—Sir Gawain and Ensemble

Recordings

A recording of the 1943 revival was released on June 29, 1944, by

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label * Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label * Decca Studios, a recording facility in W ...

References

Plot and production notes, Guide to Musical Theatre

External links

Internet Broadway Database listings''A Connecticut Yankee'' plot summary and character descriptions
fro
StageAgent.comInternet Movie database listing 1955 television broadcast
{{DEFAULTSORT:Connecticut Yankee, A 1927 musicals Broadway musicals Arthurian musical theatre Musicals based on works by Mark Twain Musicals based on novels Musicals by Rodgers and Hart Musicals by Herbert Fields Works based on A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court Dreams in fiction Fiction set in the 6th century Fiction set in the 1920s