''Kwamina'' is a musical with the libretto by

Robert Alan Aurthur Robert Alan Aurthur (June 10, 1922 – November 20, 1978) was an American screenwriter, film director, and film producer. Many of his works examined race relations and featured black actor and director Sidney Poitier. Early life Raised in Freep ...

and music and lyrics by

Richard Adler Richard Adler (August 3, 1921 – June 21, 2012) was an American lyricist, writer, composer and producer of several Broadway shows. Life and career Adler was born in New York City, the son of Elsa Adrienne (née Richard) and Clarence Adler. His ...

Production

The musical opened in out of town tryouts in Toronto, where, as noted by

Ken Mandelbaum Ken Mandelbaum is a Jewish American columnist, critic, and author whose primary field of expertise is musical theatre. Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, Mandelbaum was introduced to Broadway musical theatre by his parents and grandparents at ...

"The reviews were promising",Mandelbaum, Ken
''Kwamina''
''Not Since Carrie: Forty Years of Broadway Musical Flops'', Macmillan, 1992, , p. 126 and then ran in Boston. ''Kwamina'' premiered 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

54th Street Theatre The Adelphi Theatre (1934–1940 and 1944–1958), originally named the Craig Theatre, opened on December 24, 1928. The Adelphi was located at 152 West 54th Street in Manhattan, with 1,434 seats. Internet Broadway Database''Adelphi Theatre''(Ret ...

on October 23, 1961 and closed on November 18, 1961 after 32 performances. It starred

Sally Ann Howes Sally Ann Howes (20 July 1930 – 19 December 2021) was an English actress and singer. Her career on screen, stage and television spanned six decades. She is best known for the role of Truly Scrumptious in the 1968 musical film ''Chitty Chitt ...

Terry Carter Terry Carter (born John Everett DeCoste; December 16, 1928) is an American actor and filmmaker, known for his roles as Sgt. Joe Broadhurst on the TV series '' McCloud'' and as Colonel Tigh on the original '' Battlestar Galactica''. Early life ...

Robert Guillaume Robert Guillaume (born Robert Peter Williams; November 30, 1927 – October 24, 2017) was an American actor and singer, known for his role as Benson DuBois in the ABC television series ''Soap'' and its spin-off, ''Benson'', as well as for voici ...

, and

Brock Peters Brock Peters (born George Fisher; July 2, 1927 – August 23, 2005) was an American actor and singer, best known for playing the villainous "Crown" in the 1959 film version of ''Porgy and Bess'', and the wrongfully convicted Tom Robinson in th ...

, and was directed by Robert Lewis and choreographed by

Agnes de Mille Agnes George de Mille (September 18, 1905 – October 7, 1993) was an American dancer and choreographer. Early years Agnes de Mille was born in New York City into a well-connected family of theater professionals. Her father William C. deMill ...

." 'Kwamina' Broadway"
Playbill, accessed June 6, 2016 Mandelbaum noted that the Broadway reviews were "mixed but mostly negative", but did praise de Mille, her dancers, and the set.

Synopsis

The son of an African tribal chief returns home after attending medical school in London and finds his modern methods conflict with his village's traditions. He also butts heads with the village's white female doctor, but he ultimately falls in love with her.

Original cast album

The original cast album was recorded for Capitol Records on Monday, November 20, 1961 following the Saturday close two days earlier. A cast album had already been planned based on hopes that the show would be a hit, but Capitol Records, despite the extremely short run of the show, went ahead and made and released the album, and it has since reached a cult status. It has recently been made available for online download on iTunes and Amazon (UK). Jazz pianist

Billy Taylor Billy Taylor (July 24, 1921 – December 28, 2010) was an American jazz pianist, composer, broadcaster and educator. He was the Robert L. Jones Distinguished Professor of Music at East Carolina University in Greenville, and from 1994 was the ...

released '' The Original Jazz Score of Kwamina'' in 1961.

Songs

;Act I * The Cocoa Bean Song *Welcome Home *The Sun is Beginning to Crow *Did You Hear That? *You're As English As *Seven Sheep, Four Red Shirts, and a Bottle of Gin *Nothing More To Look Forward To *What's Wrong With Me? *Something Big *Ordinary People *A Man Can Have No Choice *What Happened to me Tonight? ;Act II *One Wife - Mammy Trader, Alla, Singers and Dancers *Nothing More to Look Forward To (Reprise - Naii *Something Big (Reprise) - The Company *Another Time, Another Place - Eve *Fetish - Obitsebi and Dancers

References

Notes

* ''You Gotta Have Heart'' by

. 1990 * ''Sing Out Louise!'' by Dennis McGovern & Deborah Grace Winer. Schirmer Books, 1993. * ''Not Since Carrie: Forty Years of Broadway Musical Flops'' by Ken Mandelbaum. St. Martin's Press, 1991 * ''Slings and Arrows: Theatre in My Life'' by Robert Lewis, Stein & Day, 1984.

External links

* Broadway musicals 1961 musicals Musicals by Richard Adler {{musical-theat-stub