''Beatlemania'' was a

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 ...

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 ...

revue A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own duri ...

focused on the music of

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

as it related to the events and changing attitudes of the tumultuous 1960s. A "

rockumentary A concert film, or concert movie, is a film that showcases a live performance from the perspective of a concert goer, the subject of which is an extended live performance or concert by either a musician or a stand-up comedian. Early history The ...

," advertised as "''Not the Beatles, but an incredible simulation'',""Four Young Musicians to Simulate Beatles,"
''New York Times'' (April 5, 1977). it ran from May 1977 to October 1979 for a total of 1,006 performances.

Synopsis

''Beatlemania'' took the form of a roughly chronological history of the Beatles via their music. A total of 29 songs were performed during the show. Other than some unscripted onstage banter, there was very little dialogue during the production, which consisted mostly of exact re-enactments of the Beatles' music. The ground-breaking multimedia production was notable for its extensive use of backdrops, projected images on multiple screens, film, newspaper headlines, and video footage to evoke the 1960s and iconic Beatle moments.

Productions

Originally conceived and produced by Steve Leber and David Krebs, ''Beatlemania'' debuted in Boston at the Colonial Theatre in April 1977. It premiered on

at the

Winter Garden Theatre The Winter Garden Theatre is a Broadway theatre at 1634 Broadway in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. It opened in 1911 under designs by architect William Albert Swasey. The Winter Garden's current design dates to 1922, when ...

on May 31, 1977 (after previewing since May 26 — although no critics were invited),Klein, Alvin
'Beatlemania' Captures the Panorama of a Decade,"
''New York Times'' (November 16, 1980). with cast members Joe Pecorino (rhythm guitar,

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

), Mitch Weissman (bass guitar,

Paul Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) *Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chris ...

Les Fradkin Les Fradkin (born 1951) is an American MIDI guitarist, keyboardist, songwriter, composer, and record producer. He is best known for being a member of the original cast of the hit Broadway show ''Beatlemania''. In addition to playing MIDI guitar, ...

(lead guitar,

George George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...

), and Justin McNeill (drums, Ringo) along with an alternate cast: Randy Clark "John", Reed Kailing "Paul", P.M. Howard "George", and Bobby Taylor "Ringo."Rockwell, John
"Stage: 'Beatlemania's' Formula Is Sincerely Flattering,"
''The New York Times'', June 17, 1977"''Beatlemania'' Credits"
ibdb.com, accessed February 12, 2019 Quickly achieving sellout status without ever having an official "opening night", ''Beatlemania'' saw great success and coverage in ''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...

'', ''

People A person (plural, : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of pr ...

'', '' Us'', ''

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis (businessman), Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print m ...

'', and ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

''. For the first six months, every ticket for the show was sold out. The production was nominated for the 1978

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual cer ...

for Best Lighting Design by designer

Jules Fisher Jules Fisher (born November 12, 1937) is an American lighting designer and producer. He is credited with lighting designs for more than 300 productions over the course of his 50-year career in Broadway and off-Broadway shows, as well extensive ...

. Sound design by

Abe Jacob Abe John Jacob (born October 7, 1944) is an American sound designer and audio engineer. Called the "Godfather of Sound", Jacob greatly influenced the design of sound reinforcement in modern musical theatre, and was one of the first persons credi ...

. The Broadway show ran until October 17, 1979, for a total of 1006 performances; grossing more than $40 million. During its New York run, the show moved to the

Lunt-Fontanne Theatre The Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, originally the Globe Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 205 West 46th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1910, the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre was designed by Carrère and Hasting ...

and finally the

Palace Theatre Palace Theatre, or Palace Theater, is the name of many theatres in different countries, including: Australia *Palace Theatre, Melbourne, Victoria *Palace Theatre, Sydney, New South Wales Canada *Palace Theatre, housed in the Robillard Block, Mo ...

. As the show expanded, over 50 cast members formed 10 "bunks" (or casts of a single set of four). As the New York show continued its run, shows were opened in Los Angeles, Chicago, Cincinnati, and London. At its peak, ''Beatlemania'' had limited-engagements in many more cities in the U.S. and abroad. After closing on Broadway, the ''Beatlemania Bus and Truck Tour'' began, running until 1983 and touring across the United States and worldwide. Short-term tours of Australia, Europe, Asia, and Africa were produced after 1982. A 1986 decision in a lawsuit by the Beatles production company

Apple Corps Apple Corps Limited (informally known as Apple) is a multi-armed multimedia corporation founded in London in January 1968 by the members of the Beatles to replace their earlier company (Beatles Ltd.) and to form a conglomerate. Its name (pro ...

officially ended the show for a period of time, but subsequent revival tours were still produced under such titles as ''Beatlemania: Yesterday and Today'' and ''Beatlemania Now''.

''Beatlemania: The Album''

In 1978, ''Beatlemania'' released a self-titled original cast album of the show which included contributions from the first and second cast of performers from the show (as well as five additional off-stage musicians — keyboards; violin; cello; sax/flute/recorder; trumpet/picollo trumpet and oboe). Released on

Arista Records Arista Records () is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. The label was previously handled by BMG Entertainmen ...

in 1978, the album received warm audience reaction, even placing on the ''Billboard'' 200 for several weeks, before falling into obscurity. Tracks from the album included most but not all of the original show's song list, and several of the tracks were either re-recorded entirely or partially re-recorded in the studio. Original cast members that appear on the album include Mitch Weissman, Joe Pecorino,

, Justin McNeill, Randy Clark, Reed Kailing, P. M. Howard, and Bobby Taylor.

''Beatlemania: The Movie''

After three years of production USA Video Productions took an interest in making a film version of the ''Beatlemania'' stage show. After a brief contract negotiation, ''Beatlemania: The Movie'' began production in late 1980 (shortly before the

murder of John Lennon On the evening of 8 December 1980, English musician John Lennon, formerly of the Beatles, was shot and fatally wounded in the archway of the Dakota, his residence in New York City. The killer was Mark David Chapman, an American Beatles fan wh ...

). Directed by Joseph Manduke, the film's cast featured Mitch Weissman (bass guitar; "Paul"), David Leon (rhythm guitar; "John"), Tom Teeley (lead guitar; "George"), and Ralph Castelli (drums; "Ringo").Rosenbaum, Jonathan
"Beatlemania,"
''Chicago Reader''. Accessed March 21, 2016. ''Beatlemania: The Movie'' was released in the summer of 1981 and received negative reviews.

Janet Maslin Janet R. Maslin (born August 12, 1949) is an American journalist, best known as a film and literary critic for ''The New York Times''. She served as a ''Times'' film critic from 1977 to 1999 and as a book critic from 2000 to 2015. In 2000 Maslin ...

of ''The New York Times'', "''Beatlemania'' was a horror on the stage, and it's even more of a horror at close range, where the seams really show. This isn't a loving impersonation, or even an honest one. It's cheap, disingenuous and loathsome."

Jonathan Rosenbaum Jonathan Rosenbaum (born February 27, 1943) is an American film critic and author. Rosenbaum was the head film critic for ''The Chicago Reader'' from 1987 to 2008, when he retired. He has published and edited numerous books about cinema and has ...

of the ''

Chicago Reader The ''Chicago Reader'', or ''Reader'' (stylized as ЯEADER), is an American alternative weekly newspaper in Chicago, Illinois, noted for its literary style of journalism and coverage of the arts, particularly film and theater. It was founded by a ...

'' wrote, "My idea of hell is being forced at gunpoint to resee this ... atrocity, ... based on a terrible stage musical." Other observers criticized the film for being too artsy and not worthy of being associated with the stageshow; plans for a follow-up film were immediately cancelled.

Apple Corps lawsuit

In 1979,

sued show creator Steve Leber and ''Beatlemania'''s producers, alleging that Apple Corps owned various publicity rights and trademarks, and Leber and others "appropriated to themselves" the value of those trademarks and the Beatles' goodwill and fame without paying for it. In 1986, Los Angeles Superior Court judge Paul Breckenridge found in favor of Apple Corps, and ordered Leber and Beatlemania Inc. to pay Apple $5.6 million, plus 7% interest from September 1979. He also found that Apple was entitled to a court order barring the further unconsented use or exploitation of the Beatles, and that Beatlemania's actions "amounted to virtually a complete appropriation of the Beatles' persona" without their consent. The judge also found that

Ely Landau Ely Abraham Landau (January 20, 1920 – November 4, 1993) was an American producer and production executive best remembered for films of plays in the American Film Theatre series. Landau began working in television as a director and producer i ...

and the This Is The Week That Was Beatlemania Company, which produced the ''Beatlemania'' film, were liable $2 million and 7% interest, also payable to Apple Corps.Reuters
"'Beatlemania' Ordered To Pay $10 Million,"
''New York Times'' (June 5, 1986).

Music

The musical numbers in the show, based on the Broadway opening, were: ;Act 1 *"

I Wanna Hold Your Hand "I Want to Hold Your Hand" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles. Written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, and recorded on 17 October 1963, it was the first Beatles record to be made using four-track equipment. With advance orders ...

" (

Lennon–McCartney Lennon–McCartney was the songwriting partnership between English musicians John Lennon (1940–1980) and Paul McCartney (born 1942) of the Beatles. It is the best-known and most successful musical collaboration ever by records sold, with the ...

) *"

She Loves You "She Loves You" is a song written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney and recorded by English rock band the Beatles for release as a single in 1963. The single set and surpassed several sales records in the United Kingdom charts, and set a record i ...

" (

) *"

Help! ''Help!'' is the fifth studio album by the English Rock music, rock band the Beatles and the soundtrack to their Help! (film), film of the same name. It was released on 6 August 1965. Seven of the fourteen songs, including the singles "Help! ( ...

" (

) *"

If I Fell "If I Fell" is a song by English rock band the Beatles which first appeared in 1964 on the album '' A Hard Day's Night'' in the United Kingdom and United States, and on the North American album '' Something New''. It was written primarily by John ...

" (

) *"

Can't Buy Me Love "Can't Buy Me Love" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released in March 1964 as the A-side of their sixth single. It was written by Paul McCartney and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. The song was included o ...

" (

) *"

Day Tripper "Day Tripper" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released as a double A-side single with "We Can Work It Out" in December 1965. The song was written primarily by John Lennon with some contributions from Paul McCartney and ...

" (

) *" Yesterday" (

) *"

Eleanor Rigby "Eleanor Rigby" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1966 album ''Revolver''. It was also issued on a double A-side single, paired with " Yellow Submarine". The song was written primarily by Paul McCartney and credited to L ...

" ( Lennon-McCartney) *"

We Can Work It Out "We Can Work It Out" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written by Paul McCartney and John Lennon. It was first issued as a double A-side single with "Day Tripper" in December 1965. It also appeared on the 1966 US release '' Yesterd ...

" (

) *" Nowhere Man" (

) *" A Day in the Life" (

) *"

Penny Lane "Penny Lane" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released in February 1967 as a double A-side single with "Strawberry Fields Forever". It was written primarily by Paul McCartney and credited to the Lennon–McCartney songwr ...

" ( Lennon-McCartney) *"

Strawberry Fields Forever "Strawberry Fields Forever" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. It was released on 13 February 1967 as a double A-side single with "Penny Lane". It represented a departur ...

" (

) *"

Magical Mystery Tour ''Magical Mystery Tour'' is a record by the English rock band the Beatles that was released as a double EP in the United Kingdom and an LP in the United States. It includes the soundtrack to the 1967 television film of the same name. The EP ...

" (

) *"

Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1967 album '' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band''. It was written primarily by John Lennon and credited to the Lennon–McCartney songwriting partners ...

" (

) ;Act 2 *"

Lady Madonna "Lady Madonna" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written primarily by Paul McCartney and credited to Lennon–McCartney. In March 1968, it was released as a mono single, backed with " The Inner Light". The song was recorded on 3 a ...

" (

) *"

The Fool on the Hill "The Fool on the Hill" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1967 EP and album '' Magical Mystery Tour''. It was written and sung by Paul McCartney and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. The lyrics describe the ...

" (

) *"

Got to Get You into My Life "Got to Get You into My Life" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, first released in 1966 on their album ''Revolver''. It was written by Paul McCartney and credited to Lennon–McCartney. The song is a homage to the Motown Sound, wit ...

" (

) *" Michelle" (

) *"

Get Back "Get Back" is a song recorded by the British rock band the Beatles and Billy Preston, and written by Paul McCartney though credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. It was originally released as a single on 11 April 1969 and credited to ...

" (

) *"

Come Together "Come Together" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. The song is the opening track on their 1969 album ''Abbey Road'' and was also released as a single coupled with "Somethin ...

" (

) *"

With a Little Help from My Friends "With a Little Help from My Friends" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, from their 1967 album '' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band''. It was written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney and sung by drummer Ringo Starr (as Sgt. Pe ...

" (

) *"

All You Need Is Love "All You Need Is Love" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released as a non-album single in July 1967. It was written by John Lennon and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. The song was Britain's contribution t ...

" (

) *"

Revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...

" (

) *" Helter Skelter" (

) *"

Hey Jude "Hey Jude" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released as a non-album single in August 1968. It was written by Paul McCartney and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. The single was the Beatles' first release o ...

" (

) *"

I Am the Walrus "I Am the Walrus" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1967 television film ''Magical Mystery Tour''. Written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney, it was released as the B-side to the single "Hello, Goodbye" a ...

" (

) *"

The Long and Winding Road "The Long and Winding Road" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1970 album ''Let It Be''. It was written by Paul McCartney and credited to Lennon–McCartney. When issued as a single in May 1970, a month after the Beatles ...

" (

) *"

Let It Be Let It Be most commonly refers to: * ''Let It Be'' (Beatles album), the Beatles' final studio album, released in 1970 * "Let It Be" (Beatles song), the title song from the album It may also refer to: Film and television * ''Let It Be'' (1970 ...

" (

)

Cast members

Because of the vocal strain (especially for "Paul") involved in doing 8 or more shows per week, each production utilized two casts or "Bunks," as they were dubbed by musical director Sandy Yaguda (after they had dubbed him "Camp Counselor"). The Original Broadway production featured Bunk 1: Mitch Weissman, Joe Pecorino, Les Fradkin and Justin McNeill. and Bunk 2: Randy Clark, Reed Kailing, P.M. Howard, and Bobby Taylor. Subsequent cast members were added as the show expanded with several touring casts. Casts and casting became independent after 1984 as revival and current casts tour under many different Beatle-related nomenclatures. (It is common practice for other Beatles tribute bands to promote themselves falsely as "Original Broadway Cast".)

John Lennon

*Joe Pecorino *Randy Clark - also played "John" with "RAIN: a Tribute to The Beatles", "Imagine: a Tribute to John Lennon" (with members of the Elephant's Memory/Plastic Ono bands), and "Legends In Concert" in Las Vegas and on Broadway *Michael Palaikis (''deceased'') *David Leon — also played with '' Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles'' *Caspar McCloud (later swapped roles with Marshall Crenshaw) *

Marshall Crenshaw Marshall Howard Crenshaw (born November 11, 1953) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and guitarist best known for hit songs such as " Someday, Someway," a US top 40 hit in 1982, " Cynical Girl," and "Whenever You're on My Mind." He i ...

— performed in Hollywood and San Francisco productions as well as the touring production *Mark Vaccacio (''deceased'') *Peter McGann *Bob Williford *Robert Wirth *Jim Riddle (''deceased'') *Steve Landes — currently a member of ''Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles'' *Joe Palermo - currently a member of Adamsapple A tribute to the Beatles

Paul McCartney

*Mitch Weissman *Reed Kailing * Lenie Colacino *Alan LeBoeuf — also played with ''Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles'', and currently playing with “Beatlemania Again!”. * Glen Burtnick * Tony Kishman *Joey Curatolo — currently a member of ''Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles'' *Jim Odom *Jimmy Rooney * Bobby Grant *Don Linares *Jim Cushing *John Redgate *Billy J. Ray

George Harrison

*P. M. Howard *Tom Teeley — also played with ''Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles'' and with Marshall Crenshaw of ''Beatlemania'' *Rob Laufer *Bobby Diebold *Richie Gomez *Jimmy Pou — currently a member of ''Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles'', formerly with “1964-The Tribute“. *Jimmy Rooney *Bob Miller - formerly with “1964-The Tribute” *Peter Santora *Chris Gavin *Joe Bithorn — currently a member of ''Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles'' *Richi Ray

Ringo Starr

*Justin McNeill *Bobby Taylor - also played with "RAIN: A Tribute to The Beatles" *Bennett Gale *Louie Colucci *Ralph Castelli — currently a member of ''Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles'' *Jake Ehrenreich *Sy Goraieb *Bobby Forte *

Al Sapienza Al Sapienza is an American actor who has had numerous roles in television, stage and film productions. He is best known for his role as Mikey Palmice on the HBO series ''The Sopranos ''The Sopranos'' is an American crime drama television ...

*Rick Bloom-replaced Justin McNeil 9/1978 *Phil LoMedico *Gemma Press *Cho Paquet

Awards and nominations

Original Broadway production

References

External links

* * {{IMDb title, 0082052, Beatlemania
''Beatlemania'' Alumni
1977 musicals Broadway musicals Musicals based on songs by the Beatles Revues Musicals inspired by real-life events Jukebox musicals

Synopsis

Productions

''Beatlemania: The Album''

''Beatlemania: The Movie''

Apple Corps lawsuit

Music

Cast members

John Lennon

Paul McCartney

George Harrison

Ringo Starr

Awards and nominations

Original Broadway production

See also

References

External links