''Billion Dollar Baby'' 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 ...

with the book and lyrics by

Betty Comden Betty Comden (May 3, 1917 - November 23, 2006) was an American lyricist, playwright, and screenwriter who contributed to numerous Hollywood musicals and Broadway shows of the mid-20th century. Her writing partnership with Adolph Green spanned s ...

and

Adolph Green Adolph Green (December 2, 1914 – October 23, 2002) was an American lyricist and playwright who, with long-time collaborator Betty Comden, penned the screenplays and songs for some of the most beloved film musicals, particularly as part of Art ...

and the score by

Morton Gould Morton Gould (December 10, 1913February 21, 1996) was an American composer, conductor, arranger, and pianist. Biography Morton Gould was born in Richmond Hill, New York, United States. He was recognized early as a child prodigy with abilities i ...

. Comden and Green were fresh from their success with '' On the Town'', and the production team was something of an ''On the Town'' reunion: once again,

George Abbott George Francis Abbott (June 25, 1887 – January 31, 1995) was an American theatre producer, director, playwright, screenwriter, film director and producer whose career spanned eight decades. Early years Abbott was born in Forestville, New Yo ...

directed and

Jerome Robbins Jerome Robbins (born Jerome Wilson Rabinowitz; October 11, 1918 – July 29, 1998) was an American dancer, choreographer, film director, theatre director and producer who worked in classical ballet, on stage, film, and television. Among his nu ...

choreographed. The musical is set on

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located in the city's southwest portion, the borough is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull an ...

and in

Atlantic City Atlantic City, often known by its initials A.C., is a coastal resort city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. The city is known for its casinos, Boardwalk (entertainment district), boardwalk, and beaches. In 2020 United States censu ...

during the late 1920s. It follows the adventures of an ambitious young woman, Maribelle Jones, in her quest for wealth during the

Prohibition era Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacturing, manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption ...

Production

The musical opened 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 ...

at the

Alvin Theatre The Neil Simon Theatre, originally the Alvin Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 250 West 52nd Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1927, the theater was designed by Herbert J. Krapp and was built for ...

on December 21, 1945, and ran for 220 performances. ''Billion Dollar Baby'' was not well-received, although Robbins' choreography — which included two

dream ballet A dream ballet, in musical theater, is an all- dance, no-singing production number that reflects the themes of the production. The plot, themes, and characters are typically the same—although the people playing the characters may be different, ...

s, a Charleston, and a gangster's

funeral procession A funeral procession is a procession, usually in motor vehicles or by foot, from a funeral home or place of worship to the cemetery or crematorium. In earlier times the deceased was typically carried by male family members on a bier or in a cof ...

- was widely praised. (Decades later, Robbins incorporated the Charleston number into ''

Jerome Robbins' Broadway ''Jerome Robbins' Broadway'' is an anthology comprising musical numbers from shows that were either directed or choreographed by Jerome Robbins. The shows represented include, for example, '' The King and I'', '' On the Town'' and ''West Side Stor ...

''.) The cast starred

Joan McCracken Joan Hume McCracken (December 31, 1917 – November 1, 1961) was an American dancer and actress who became famous for her role as Sylvie ("The Girl Who Falls Down") in the original 1943 production of ''Oklahoma!'' She also was noted for her per ...

(as Maribelle),

Mitzi Green Mitzi Green (born Elizabeth Keno; October 22, 1920 – May 24, 1969) was an American child actress for Paramount and RKO, in the early "talkies" era. She then acted on Broadway and in other stage works, as well as in films and on television ...

, William Tabbert, and David Burns. Early in the run, McCracken was replaced by

Virginia Gorski Virginia Gibson (born Virginia Gorski; April 9, 1925 – April 25, 2013) was an American dancer, singer and actress of film, television and musical theatre. Early years Of Polish and Irish lineage, Gibson was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. ...

(later

Virginia Gibson Virginia Gibson (born Virginia Gorski; April 9, 1925 – April 25, 2013) was an American dancer, singer and actress of film, television and musical theatre. Early years Of Polish and Irish lineage, Gibson was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Jo ...

). Other dancers in the cast included

Danny Daniels Danny Daniels, (October 25, 1924 – July 9, 2017), born Daniel Giagni, Jr., was an American choreographer, tap dancer, and a dance teacher. Daniels was a featured dancer in several 1940s Broadway musicals, including '' Billion Dollar Baby'', ' ...

Helen Gallagher Helen Gallagher (born July 19, 1926) is an American actress, dancer, and singer. She is the recipient of three Emmy Awards, two Tony Awards, and a Drama Desk Award. Early years Born in Brooklyn, she was raised in Scarsdale, New York, and the Br ...

, and James Mitchell; Mitchell was Tabbert's dance double. The musical director was

Max Goberman Max Goberman (8 February 191131 December 1962) was an American conductor. He conducted ballets, Broadway musicals (including the original productions of Leonard Bernstein's ''On the Town (musical), On the Town'' and ''West Side Story''), and the cl ...

. There is no original cast recording, although there is a recording of the 1998

York Theatre Company York Theatre is an off-Broadway theatre company based in East Midtown Manhattan, New York City. In its 50th year, York Theatre is dedicated to the production of new musicals and concert productions of forgotten musicals from the past. Each seas ...

Mufti Series staged concert version with

Kristin Chenoweth Kristin Dawn Chenoweth (; born Kristi Dawn Chenoweth; July 24, 1968)Kristin Cheno ...

Debbie Gravitte Debbie Shapiro Gravitte is an American actress and singer. She was born in Los Angeles, California. Career Gravitte made her Broadway debut in the chorus of '' They're Playing Our Song'' in 1979. She performed on Broadway in '' Blues in the Nig ...

Marc Kudisch Marc Kudisch (born September 22, 1966) is an American stage actor, who is best known for his musical theatre roles on Broadway. Early life and education Kudisch was born in Hackensack, New Jersey, the son of Florence and Raymond Kudisch. His fami ...

, and

Richard B. Shull Richard Bruce Shull (February 24, 1929 – October 14, 1999) was an American character actor. Biography Early life Shull was born in Evanston, Illinois, the son of Zana Marie (née Brown), a court stenographer, and Ulysses Homer Shull, a manufa ...

. The show gained notoriety for an event that happened in rehearsals: Robbins, walking backwards as he ranted at the dancers, failed to realize how close he was to the orchestra pit—and fell into it.Although the story has been attached to a number of other Robbins musicals, both Greg Lawrence and Deborah Jowitt have traced it to ''Billion Dollar Baby''. Lawrence, ''Dance with Demons: The Life of Jerome Robbins'' (New York: Berkley, 2001), pp. 101-102; Jowitt, ''Jerome Robbins: His Life, His Theater, His Dance'' (New York: Simon & Schuster, 2004), pg. 116.

Songs

;Act I *Million Dollar Smile (Billion Dollar Baby) *Who's Gonna Be the Winner *Dreams Come True *Charleston *Broadway Blossom *Speaking of Pals *There I'd Be *One Track Mind sung and danced by Shirley Van *Bad Timing *The Marathoners *A Lovely Girl ;Act II *Funeral Procession *Havin' a Time *The Marathon Dance Faithless *I'm Sure of Your Love *A Life With Rocky *The Wedding

References

External links

Internet Broadway Database

Entry at York Theatre Company store
{{Comden and Green Broadway musicals Musicals by Betty Comden and Adolph Green 1945 musicals