''Babes in the Wood'' is a 1964

Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

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 ...

adaptation of

A Midsummer Night's Dream ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a comedy written by William Shakespeare 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One subplot involves a conflict amon ...

. The show's book and lyrics are by

Rick Besoyan Richard Besoyan (July 2, 1924 – March 13, 1970) was a singer, actor, playwright, composer and director especially of operetta and musicals. He is best remembered for writing the successful satirical musical ''Little Mary Sunshine''. Life an ...

. It opened on December 28, 1964, at the Orpheum Theatre and closed on February 7, 1965.

Production

In addition to writing the show, Besoyan also directed the production, with musical direction by Natalie Charlson. Sandy Farber and

Aaron Schroeder Aaron Harold Schroeder (September 7, 1926 – December 2, 2009) was an American songwriter and music publisher. Early years Born in Brooklyn, Schroeder graduated from the school now known as the Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art ...

produced the show. Ralph Beaumont provided choreography, and set design and lighting were done by Paul Morrison. Howard Barker designed the show's costumes.

Songs

Act l

* ''This State of Affairs'' (Oberon, Robin Goodfellow) * ''Titania's Philosophy'' (Titania) * ''A Lover Waits'' (Oberon) * ''The Gossip Song'' (Helena) * ''I'm Not for You'' (Demetrius) * ''I'm Not for You (Reprise)'' (Helena, Demetrius) * ''Mother'' (Bottom) * ''Old Fashioned Girl'' (Bottom, Goodfellow) * ''Love Is Lovely'' (Lysander, Hermia) * ''Babes in the Wood'' (Goodfellow) * ''Love Is Lovely (Reprise)'' (Lysander, Helena) * ''Finale'' (Company)

Act ll

* ''Opening'' (Company) * ''Anyone Can Make a Mistake'' (Goodfellow) * ''Cavorting'' (Titania, Bottom) * ''There's a Girl'' (Oberon, Demetrius) * ''There's a Girl (reprise)'' (Demetrius) * ''I'm Not for You (reprise)'' (Lysander) * ''Little Tear'' (Hermia) * ''Babes in the Wood (reprise)'' (Goodfellow) * ''Helena's Solution'' (Helena, Lysander, Demetrius) * ''Helena'' (Demetrius, Lysander) * ''Midsummer Night'' (Oberon, Titania) * ''Moon Madness'' (Titania, Bottom) * ''A Lover Waits'' (reprise) (Oberon) * ''The Alphabet Song'' (Titania, Hermia, Helena) * ''FInale'' (Company)

Cast

Reception

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' criticized the show, saying it "manages to rob his source of all enchantment", and although its music was enjoyable, the songs added nothing to the plot. The view of the musical as "pleasant but forgettable" seems to have been shared by other theater critics as well.{{Cite book , last=Hischak , first=Thomas S. , url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1136298069 , title=Off-Broadway musicals since 1919 : from Greenwich Village follies to The toxic avenger , date=2011 , publisher=Scarecrow Press , isbn=978-0-8108-7772-6 , location=Lanham, Md. , pages=95 , language=en , oclc=1136298069

References

1964 musicals Off-Broadway musicals Plays and musicals based on A Midsummer Night's Dream Musicals set in forests