'' My Darlin’ Aida '' is a 1952

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 play Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movement ...

with music by

Giuseppe Verdi Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the h ...

, lyrics by Charles Friedman, based on Verdi's opera,

Aida ''Aida'' (or ''Aïda'', ) is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni. Set in the Old Kingdom of Egypt, it was commissioned by Cairo's Khedivial Opera House and had its première there on 24 December ...

. It was produced by Robert L. Joseph.

Production

''My Darlin’ Aida'' 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 October 27, 1952, and closed on January 10, 1953, after 89 performances. It was staged by Charles Friedman; supervised and lighted by

Hassard Short Hubert Edward Hassard Short (15 October 1877 – 9 October 1956), usually known as Hassard Short, was an actor, stage director, set designer and lighting designer in musical theatre Kenrick, JohnWho's Who in Musicals: Short, HassardMusicals101. ...

(his last show); production designed and costumed by

Lemuel Ayers Lemuel Ayers (January 22, 1915, New York City, New York - August 14, 1955, New York City) was an American costume designer, scenic designer, lighting designer, and producer who had a prolific career on Broadway from 1939 until his death from cance ...

; choreography by

Hanya Holm Hanya Holm (born Johanna Eckert; 3 March 1893 – 3 November 1992) is known as one of the "Big Four" founders of American modern dance. She was a dancer, choreographer, and above all, a dance educator. Early life, connection with Mary Wigman Bo ...

; music director

Franz Allers Franz Allers (August 6, 1905 - January 26, 1995) was a European-American conductor of ballet, opera, Broadway musicals, film scores, and symphony orchestras. Early life Franz Allers was born in Carlsbad, Austria-Hungary (now Czech Republic) in 1 ...

; and choral director Robert Shaw. The company starred (evenings)

Dorothy Sarnoff Dorothy Sarnoff (May 25, 1914 – December 20, 2008) was an American operatic soprano, musical theatre actress, and self-help guru. She had an active performing career from the late 1930s through the 1950s, during which time she sang in sev ...

and

Elaine Malbin Elaine Malbin (born May 24, 1929 in New York City) is an American soprano who had a prolific international career singing in operas, musicals, and concerts from the 1940s through the 1960s. She made her Town Hall debut at the age of 14. She appea ...

and featured William Ovis, Howard Jarratt, William Wilderman, William Dillard, and many others. As

Brooks Atkinson Justin Brooks Atkinson (November 28, 1894 – January 14, 1984) was an American theatre critic. He worked for ''The New York Times'' from 1922 to 1960. In his obituary, the ''Times'' called him "the theater's most influential reviewer of his ...

of ''

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 ...

'' stated, “Verdi’s music in “My Darlin’ Aida,” . . . is romantically Italian. Charles Friedman’s new libretto is American, with a strong dash of “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” seasoning. Despite the beauty of the singing by Dorothy Sarnoff and Elaine Milbin, there is no way of avoiding the fact that the music and the libretto have nothing in common, except, perhaps, a certain shoddiness of style.”New York Times, Tuesday, October 28, 1952, p. 36.

Musical Numbers

;Act I * “My Darlin’ Aida” * “Love Is Trouble” * “Me and Lee” * “March on for Tennessee” * “Why Ain’t We Free?” * “Knights of the White Cross” * “Jamboree” * “Dance” * “Letter Duet” * “Homecoming” * “When You Grow Up” * “Soldier’s March” * “Ballet” * “King Called Cotton” * “Gotta Live Free” * “Master and Slave” * “Sing! South! Sing!” ;Act II * “Spiritual” * “I Want to Pray” * “Alone” * “Three Stones to Stand On” * “You’re False” * “They’ll Have to Be Changes Made” * “Away” * “Land of Mine” * “Ballet” * “I Don’t Want You” * “The Trial” * “You are My Darlin’ Bride” * “Oh, Sky, Goodbye”

References

External links

* * {{Playbill production, my-darlin-aida-winter-garden-theatre-vault-0000011591 1952 musicals Broadway musicals Musicals based on operas