''Songbook'' (New York title ''The Moony Shapiro Songbook'') is a musical with music by

Monty Norman Monty Norman (''né'' Noserovitch; 4 April 1928 – 11 July 2022) was a British composer, musician and singer. A contributor to West End musicals in the 1950s and 1960s, he is best known for composing the " James Bond Theme", first heard in t ...

and book and lyrics by Monty Norman and Julian More. The musical tells the improbable life story of a fictional songwriter, born in Liverpool in 1908, who has a colourful career with extraordinary successes and setbacks, loves and losses, and brushes with celebrities and historic events; he dies celebrated. It premiered at the

Gielgud Theatre The Gielgud Theatre is a West End theatre, located on Shaftesbury Avenue, at the corner of Rupert Street, in the City of Westminster, London. The house currently has 986 seats on three levels. The theatre was designed by W. G. R. Sprague and ...

in London on 25 July 1979, where it ran for 208 performances.

Synopsis

Through a series of witty pastiches, the musical tells the life story of a fictional songwriter, Mooney Shapiro, born Liverpool 1908, who emigrates to New York's Lower East Side, before finding Broadway and Hollywood success (cue Gershwin and deSylva/Brown/Henderson spoofs), marrying a Swedish film star and writing for early Busby Berkeley film musicals. Mooney flees the Depression for Europe, where he joins the expat Paris scene (cue Piaf spoof) and falls for an English aristocrat, whose sister is a close friend of Hitler (cue Berlin Olympics 1936). Returning to the US, Mooney scores an Andrews Sisters style hit, then returns to write patriotic numbers for Blitz-ed London (cue Cicely Courtneidge & Marlene Dietrich spoofs). After WW2, Mooney is back in the USA writing returning-GI hits (cue Como/Sinatra spoof) and hoe-down, mid-West feelgood Broadway musical before falling foul of McCarthyism. This brings him back to his native Liverpool (1960) where (surprise, surprise) he writes for a new pop group and a new generation (cue Beatles spoof)! The Swinging Sixties come and go, leaving Mooney stranded again, losing wife and lover, a teenage singer, who conquers the charts with an old Shapiro number reworked as a disco hit. Back on top again, the aged Mooney dies, rich in honours, with a parting song 'Nostalgia'. half-celebrating, half-mocking his long songwriting career.

Song list

* "Songbook" * "East River Rhapsody" * "Talking Picture Show" * "Mister Destiny" * "Your Time is Different to Mine" * "Pretty Face" * "Je Vous Aime Milady" * "Les Halles" * "Olympics Song (1936)" * "Nazi Party Pooper" * "I'm Gonna Take Him Home to Momma" * "Bumpity Bump" * "The Girl In the Window / Victory V" * "April in Wisconsin" * "Vocal Gems from musical Happy Hickory: a) Happy Hickory b) Lovely Sunday Mornin' c) Rusty's Dream Ballet d) A Storm In My Heart e) The Pokenhatchit Public Protest Committee f) Happy Hickory (reprise)" * "I Accuse" * "Messages" * "I Found Love" * "Don't Play That Love Song Any More" * "Golden Oldie" * "I found Love" * "Climbin' * "Nostalgia"

Productions

It premiered at the

(then called "Globe Theatre"), in London on 25 July 1979 and ran for 208 performances. The production was directed by

Jonathan Lynn Jonathan Lynn (born 3 April 1943) is an English stage and film director, producer, writer, and actor. He is known for directing the comedy films such as '' Clue'', '' Nuns on the Run'', ''My Cousin Vinny'', and '' The Whole Nine Yards''. He als ...

with musical staging by

Gillian Lynne Dame Gillian Barbara Lynne (née Pyrke; 20 February 1926 – 1 July 2018) was an English ballerina, dancer, choreographer, actress, and theatre-television director, noted for her theatre choreography associated with two of the longest-runnin ...

. On 23 September 1979 the cast performed for one night at the Georgian

Angles Theatre The Angles Theatre is a theatre and historic Georgian playhouse in the market town of Wisbech, Isle of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England. It is among the oldest of Britain's theatres. The current premises consists of the original theatre building an ...

, Wisbech,

Isle of Ely The Isle of Ely () is a historic region around the city of Ely in Cambridgeshire, England. Between 1889 and 1965, it formed an administrative county. Etymology Its name has been said to mean "island of eels", a reference to the creatures th ...

, relocating from the Gielgud Theatre for the single performance. This event was arranged by cast member and president of the Angles Theatre

Anton Rodgers Anthony "Anton" Rodgers (10 January 1933 – 1 December 2007) was an English actor and occasional director. He performed on stage, in film, in television dramas and sitcoms. He starred in several sitcoms, including ''Fresh Fields'' (ITV, ...

. The musical opened on Broadway at the Morosco Theatre on 3 May 1981 and closed after the 1 performance and 15 previews. Helmed again by Jonathan Lynn with musical staging by

George Faison 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 Presid ...

, the musical featured

Gary Beach Gary Beach (October 10, 1947 – July 17, 2018) was an American actor of stage, film and television. His roles included Roger De Bris in both the stage and film productions of ''The Producers'', which won him a Tony Award, and Lumiere in the st ...

Jeff Goldblum Jeffrey Lynn Goldblum (; born October 22, 1952) is an American actor and musician. He has starred in some of the highest-grossing films of his era, such as ''Jurassic Park'' (1993) and ''Independence Day'' (1996), as well as their sequels. ...

Judy Kaye Judy Kaye (born October 11, 1948) is an American singer and actress. She has appeared in stage musicals, plays, and operas. Kaye has been in long runs on Broadway in the musicals ''The Phantom of the Opera'', ''Ragtime'', '' Mamma Mia!'', and ...

and Timothy Jerome as "Mooney Shapiro". All of the cast members played several characters, one of which was their real-life name. The musical received a

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 ce ...

nomination for Best Book of a Musical.

Reception

''Songbook'' received the Olivier Award for the Best New Musical in 1979. In his review for ''

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 d ...

'',

Frank Rich Frank Hart Rich Jr. (born 1949) is an American essayist and liberal op-ed columnist, who held various positions within ''The New York Times'' from 1980 to 2011. He has also produced television series and documentaries for HBO. Rich is curren ...

wrote that "There's the germ of a funny, spiffy satirical revue in ''The Moony Shapiro Songbook,'' the forlorn little musical at the Morosco."Rich, Frank
"Theater:'Moony Shapiro Songbook"
''The New York Times'', 4 May 1981

References

External links

*

{{OlivierAward Musical 1976–2000 1979 musicals Laurence Olivier Award-winning musicals British musicals West End musicals Musicals set in the 20th century Musicals set in Liverpool Musicals set in Paris Musicals set in the United States