James Broderick as Johnny Johnson and
Gene Saks
Gene Saks (born Jean Michael Saks; November 8, 1921 – March 28, 2015) was an American director and actor. An inductee of the American Theater Hall of Fame, his acting career began with a Broadway debut in 1949. As a director, he was nominated ...
as the Mad Psychiatrist. It ran from October 21, 1956 through October 28. Samuel Matlowsky was the musical director and conducted the 1956 record album which had none of the cast from the Stella Adler production.
After 10 previews, a revival directed by
José Quintero
José Benjamín Quintero (15 October 1924 – 26 February 1999) was a Panamanian theatre director, producer and pedagogue best known for his interpretations of the works of Eugene O'Neill.
Biography
Early years
Quintero was born in Panama C ...
and choreographed by
Bertram Ross
Bertram Ross (November 14, 1920 – April 20, 2003) was an American dancer best known for his work with the Martha Graham Dance Company, with which he performed for two decades. He was Martha Graham’s longtime dance partner and the originator ...
opened on April 11, 1971 at the
Edison Theatre
The Edison Theatre was a Broadway theatre located in the Hotel Edison at 240 West 47th Street in Midtown Manhattan.
Originally opening in 1931 as the hotel's ballroom, it became the Arena Theatre on May 31, 1950, with a revival of George Kelly ...
, where it closed after one performance. The cast included Ralph Williams as Johnny and Alice Cannon as Minny Belle.
The play was staged by the
Royal Shakespeare Company on 6–15 August 1986 at the
Almeida Theatre
The Almeida Theatre, opened in 1980, is a 325-seat producing house with an international reputation, which takes its name from the street on which it is located, off Upper Street, in the London Borough of Islington. The theatre produces a diver ...
, London directed by
Paul Marcus
Paul Coryn Valentine Marcus (30 May 1954 – 13 February 2011) was a BAFTA winning British television director and producer.Obituary '' London Guardian'', 4 March 2011. His most notable success was as producer of the television series ''Prime Su ...
.
The cast was
Clive Mantle
Clive Andrew Mantle (born 3 June 1957) is an English actor. He played general surgeon Mike Barratt in the BBC hospital drama series ''Casualty'' and '' Holby City'' in the 1990s, and Little John in the 1980s fantasy series ''Robin of Sherwood' ...
, Tina Marian, Michael McNally, Keith Osborn,
Juliet Stevenson
Juliet Anne Virginia Stevenson, (born 30 October 1956) is an English actor of stage and screen. She is known for her role in the film ''Truly, Madly, Deeply'' (1991), for which she was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leadi ...
, Graham Turner and Andrew Yeats.
In 2009, a concert-staging was mounted in London by the Discovering Lost Musicals Charitable Trust, with
Max Gold in the title role.
The ReGroup Theatre Company staged two sold-out staged readings that were directed by
Estelle Parsons at the 47th St Theatre, in New York on December 12, 2011. Johnny was played by Pete McElligott, and his performances was named one of the 10 memorable performances of 2011 by ''Backstage''.
[http://www.backstage.com/bso/reviews-movie-tv-reviews/2011-memorable-new-york-stage-performances-1005792152.story ]
Recordings
A November 1956 studio recording ("MGM Records" MGM E 3447, later released on Heliodor, Polydor, and online at ArkivMusik.com) has
Burgess Meredith
Oliver Burgess Meredith (November 16, 1907 – September 9, 1997) was an American actor and filmmaker whose career encompassed theater, film, and television.
Active for more than six decades, Meredith has been called "a virtuosic actor" and "on ...
as Johnny,
Evelyn Lear as Minny Belle, and
Hiram Sherman
Hiram Sherman (February 11, 1908 – April 11, 1989) was an American actor.
Biography
Hiram Sherman was born in Boston, Massachusetts. His father, Clifford Leon Sherman, worked in the art department of ''The Boston Globe''.
He made his Bro ...
as the Mad Psychiatrist; smaller roles are taken by
Jane Connell
Jane Sperry Connell (pronounced con-NELL, née Bennett; October 27, 1925 – September 22, 2013) was an American actress and singer.
Early years
Connell was born in Berkeley, California, to Louis Wesley and Mary (née Sperry) Bennett. She majo ...
,
Lotte Lenya
Lotte Lenya (born Karoline Wilhelmine Charlotte Blamauer; 18 October 1898 – 27 November 1981) was an Austrian-American singer, diseuse, and actress, long based in the United States. In the German-speaking and classical music world, she is best ...
, and
Thomas Stewart, and the conductor is
Samuel Matlowsky.
A November 1996 recording (Erato 0630-17870-2) offers
Donald Wilkinson as Johnny,
Ellen Santaniello as Minny Belle, and
Paul Guttry as the Mad Psychiatrist;
Joel Cohen conducts.
Original Song List (Prior to Cuts)
Act One
;"How Sweetly Friendship Binds"
*Over in Europe - Mayor, Men and Women
*Democracy Advancing - Minny Belle, Men and Women
*Up Chickamauga Hill - Grandpa Joe, Men and Women
*Democracy Advancing (Reprise) - Minny Belle, Mayor, Men and Women
*Interlude: Johnny's Melody - Orchestra
;"Keep The Home Fires Burning"
*Aggie's Song - Aggie
*Oh, Heart of Love - Minny Belle
*Farewell, Goodbye - Minny Belle
;"Your Country Needs Another Man-And That Means You"
*Captain Valentine's Tango (Part I) - Captain Valentine
*Democracy March - Orchestra
*Captain Valentine's Tango (Part II) - Captain Valentine
*Army Interlude - Orchestra
;"Pack Up Your Troubles In Your Old Kit Bag"
*The Sergeant's Chant - Sergeant
*The West-Pointer's Song - West-Pointer and Soldiers
;"A Light That Lighteth Men Their Way"
*Farewell, Goodbye (Interlude)/Johnny's Song (Underscore) - Orchestra
*Song of the Goddess - The Statue of Liberty
Act Two
;"Lead Kindly Light"
*Song of the Wounded Frenchmen (Nous Sommes Blesses)- Wounded French Soldiers
;"There Is One Spot Forever England"
*The Tea Song - An English Sergeant and English Soldiers
*Oh the Rio Grande - Private Harwood
*Johnny's Dream (Oh Heart of Love) - Minny Belle
*Song of the Guns - The Guns
;"If Thine Enemy Hunger-"
*Music of the Stricken Redeemer - Orchestra
;"'Tis Not So Deep As A Well-But 'Tis Enough. 'Twill Serve."
*Mon Ami, My Friend - A French Nurse
;"In The Multitude Of Counselors There Is Saftey"
*The Allied High Command - The Allied High Command
*Dance of the Generals (We'll All Be Home For Christmas) - The Allied High Command and Johnny
;"Still Stands Thine Ancient Artifice"
*The Battle (with Reprise of the Dance of the Generals) - Johnny, American and German Soldiers
;"There's Many A Mangled Body, A Blanket For Their Shroud"
*In Time Of War and Tumult (Almighty God/Almachtiger Gott) - English and German Priests
;"Dulce et Decorum est pro patira mori"
*Song Of The Wounded Frenchmen (Reprise) - Orchestra
;"Hail Mary, Full of Grace"
*Reminiscence - Orchestra
Act Three
;"Is There No Balm in Gilead, Is There No Physician There?"
*The Psychiatry Song - Dr. Mahodan
;"Out Of The Mouth Of Babes And Sucklings"
*Asylum Chorus - Members of the Debating Society
*Hymn to Peace (Round) - Members of the Debating Society
*Asylum Chorus (Reprise) - Orchestra
;"Whither Have Ye Made A Road?"
*Johnny's Song - Johnny
1971 revival song list
;Act 1
* Over in Europe
* Democracy's Call
* Up Chuckamauga Hill
* Johnny's Melody
* Aggie's Song
* Oh Heart of Love
* Farewell, Goodbye
* The Sergeant's Chant
* Valentine's Tango
* You're in the Army Now (Interlude)
* Johnny's Oath
* Song of the Goddess
* Song of the Wounded Frenchmen
* Tea Song
* Cowboy Song
* Johnny's Dream
* Song of the Guns
* Music of the Stricken Redeemer
;Act 2
* Mon Ami My Friend
* Allied High Command
* The Laughing Generals
* The Battle
* Prayer: In Times of War and Tumults
* No Man's Land
* Song of the Goddess (Reprise)
* The Psychiatry Song
* Hymn to Peace
* Johnny Johnson's Song
* How Sweetly Friendship Binds
* Oh Heart of Love (Reprise)
* Johnny's Melody
See also
*
List of anti-war songs
Some anti-war songs lament aspects of wars, while others satirize war. Most promote peace in some form, while others sing out against specific armed conflicts. Still others depict the physical and psychological destruction that warfare causes to ...
References
External links
Donald Oenslager set design and diagrams for Johnny Johnson, 1936 held by the Billy Rose Theatre Division,
New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center, at 40 Lincoln Center Plaza, is located in Manhattan, New York City, at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts on the Upper West Side, between the Metro ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnny Johnson
1936 musicals
Broadway musicals
Musicals by Kurt Weill
Musicals based on novels