''Tenderloin'' 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 a book by

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 Y ...

and

Jerome Weidman Jerome Weidman (April 4, 1913, New York City – October 6, 1998, New York City) was an American playwright and novelist. He collaborated with George Abbott on the book for the musical '' Fiorello!'' with music by Jerry Bock, and lyrics by Sh ...

, lyrics by

Sheldon Harnick Sheldon Mayer Harnick (born April 30, 1924) is an American lyricist and songwriter best known for his collaborations with composer Jerry Bock on musicals such as '' Fiorello!'' and ''Fiddler on the Roof''. Early life Sheldon Mayer Harnick was ...

, and music by

Jerry Bock Jerrold Lewis Bock (November 23, 1928November 3, 2010) was an American musical theater composer. He received the Tony Award for Best Musical and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama with Sheldon Harnick for their 1959 musical '' Fiorello!'' and the Ton ...

, their follow-up to the highly successful

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had ma ...

-winning ''

Fiorello! ''Fiorello!'' is a musical about New York City mayor Fiorello La Guardia, a reform Republican, which debuted on Broadway in 1959, and tells the story of how La Guardia took on the Tammany Hall political machine. The book is by Jerome Weidman an ...

'' a year earlier. The musical is based on a 1959 novel by

Samuel Hopkins Adams Samuel Hopkins Adams (January 26, 1871 – November 16, 1958) was an American writer who was an investigative journalist and muckraker. Background Adams was born in Dunkirk, New York. Adams was a muckraker, known for exposing public-health injus ...

. Set in the Tenderloin, a

red-light district A red-light district or pleasure district is a part of an urban area where a concentration of prostitution and sex-oriented businesses, such as sex shops, strip clubs, and adult theaters, are found. In most cases, red-light districts are partic ...

in 1890s

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the List of counties in New York, origin ...

, the show's story focuses on Reverend Brock, a character loosely based on American

clergyman Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

and

social reformer A reform movement or reformism is a type of social movement that aims to bring a social or also a political system closer to the community's ideal. A reform movement is distinguished from more radical social movements such as revolutionary move ...

Charles Henry Parkhurst Charles Henry Parkhurst (April 17, 1842 – September 8, 1933) was an American clergyman and social reformer, born in Framingham, Massachusetts. Although scholarly and reserved, he preached two sermons in 1892 in which he attacked the polit ...

Productions

After six previews, the Broadway production, directed by Abbott and choreographed by

Joe Layton Joe Layton (May 3, 1931 – May 5, 1994) was an American director and choreographer known primarily for his work on Broadway.Dunning, Jennifer. (9 May 1994). Page B7.'Joe Layton, Choreographer And Director, Is Dead at 64' Obituary. New York Tim ...

, opened on October 17, 1960, at the

46th Street Theatre The Richard Rodgers Theatre (formerly Chanin's 46th Street Theatre and the 46th Street Theatre) is a Broadway theater at 226 West 46th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1925, it was designed by Her ...

, where it ran for 216 performances. The cast included Maurice Evans (better known as a

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

an actor than a musical performer) as Reverend Brock and

Ron Husmann Ron Husmann (born June 30, 1937) is a retired American actor who primarily acted in musicals. In 1961, he was nominated for a Tony Award and won a Theatre World Award for his performance in the original production of '' Tenderloin''. Biograp ...

as Tommy.

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 cer ...

nominations went to Evans for Best Actor in a Musical, Husmann for Best Featured Actor in a Musical, and Cecil Beaton for Best Costume Design in a Musical, and Husmann won the

Theatre World Award The Theatre World Award is an American honor presented annually to actors and actresses in recognition of an outstanding New York City stage debut performance, either on Broadway or Off-Broadway. It was first awarded for the 1945–1946 theatre se ...

for his performance. An original cast recording was released by

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...

, and

Bobby Darin Bobby Darin (born Walden Robert Cassotto; May 14, 1936 – December 20, 1973) was an American musician and actor. He performed jazz, pop, rock and roll, folk, swing, and country music. He started his career as a songwriter for Connie Fr ...

's recording of "Artificial Flowers" reached #20 on the

Billboard charts The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in ''Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ''Billboard'' charts, pr ...

. The musical was produced in

New York City Center New York City Center (previously known as the Mecca Temple, City Center of Music and Drama,. The name "City Center for Music and Drama Inc." is the organizational parent of the New York City Ballet and, until 2011, the New York City Opera. and th ...

's ''

Encores! Encores! is a Tony-honored concert series dedicated to performing rarely heard American musicals, usually with their original orchestrations. Presented by New York City Center since 1994, Encores! has revived shows by Irving Berlin, Rodgers & H ...

'' staged concert series in March 2000, directed by

Walter Bobbie Walter Bobbie (born November 18, 1945) is an American theatre director, choreographer, and occasional actor and dancer. Bobbie has directed both musicals and plays on Broadway and Off-Broadway, and was the Artistic Director of the New York City ...

and choreographed by

Rob Ashford Rob Ashford (born November 19, 1959) is an American stage director and choreographer. He is a Tony Award, Olivier Award, Emmy Award, Drama Desk Award, and Outer Critics Circle Award winner. Early life and education Born in Orlando, Florida and ...

. The cast included

David Ogden Stiers David Allen Ogden Stiers ( ; October 31, 1942 – March 3, 2018) was an American actor and conductor. He appeared in numerous productions on Broadway, and originated the role of Feldman in '' The Magic Show'', in which he appeared for four ...

(Brock), Debbie Gravitte (Nita), Tom Alan Robbins (Joe), Patrick Wilson (Tommy), Sarah Uriarte Berry (Laura), Kevin Conway (Lt. Schmidt), and Jessica Stone (Margie). A concert cast recording was released by DRG Records.

Synopsis

Reverend Brock, a single-minded 1890s social reformer works to sanitize the Tenderloin, a red-light neighborhood in western Manhattan. He is foiled by everyone associated with the district, including the corrupt politicians and police who are taking their cut from the earnings of the

prostitutes Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-penet ...

who work the streets there. Tommy Howatt, a writer for the local scandal sheet ''Tatler'', infiltrates the minister's church and proceeds to play one side against the other, eventually framing Brock by revealing to the authorities his plan to raid the brothels, but ultimately saving him by siding with him at his trial. As a result, the Tenderloin is shut down and Brock, asked to resign from his church, heads for

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...

with the hope of succeeding there as well.

Songs

;Act I * Bless This Land – Chorus * Little Old New York – Nita, Gertie, Girls, All * Dr. Brock – Brock * Artificial Flowers – Tommy, Jessica, All * What's in it for You? – Tommy, Brock * Reform – Girls * Tommy, Tommy – Laura * The Picture of Happiness – Tommy, Margie, Chorus * My Miss Mary – Company * Dear Friend – Brock, Group * The Army of The Just – Martin, Tommy, Brock, Men * How the Money Changes Hands – Company ;Act II * Good Clean Fun – Brock, Chorus * My Miss Mary – Tommy, Laura, Chorus * My Gentle Young Johnny – Nita * The Trial – Company * The Tenderloin Celebration – Frye, Gertie, Company * Reform (Reprise) – Liz, Nellie, Margie, Girls * Tommy, Tommy (Reprise) – Laura * Little Old New York (Reprise) – Company

Characters

*Reverend Brock – an idealistic old preacher *Tommy Howatt – an ambitious young reporter *Laura Crosbie – a society girl who falls for Tommy *Ellington Dupont Smythe II – Laura's elegant young suitor *Purdy – Laura's wealthy uncle *Bridget – Purdy's maid *Frye – a detective *Gertie – a vivacious young prostitute *Joe Kovack – a farmer who discovered coal on his land *Nita – escapes prostitution when she falls in love with Joe *Margie – one of the girls Tommy shares a musical act with *Jessica Havemeyer – clerk at the church Parish House *Martin – a prudish church choirmaster *Mrs. Barker – a church lady and friend of Rev. Brock *Chairman – officiates over the trial of the Tenderloin *Deacon – an old man who Tommy hires to take pictures *Rooney – a police officer *Sergeant – collects the money all the derelicts give the police *Schmidt – a corrupt police lieutenant *Derelicts; Prostitutes at Clark's tavern (Pearl, Maggie, Nellie, Liz)

Background

William William is a male Male (symbol: ♂) is the sex of an organism that produces the gamete (sex cell) known as sperm, which fuses with the larger female gamete, or ovum, in the process of fertilization. A male organism cannot reproduce sex ...

and

James Goldman James Goldman (June 30, 1927 – October 28, 1998) was an American playwright and screenwriter. He won an Academy Award for his screenplay '' The Lion in Winter'' (1968). His younger brother was novelist and screenwriter William Goldman. Biog ...

were called in to doctor the show. "We'd been writing those other things and somebody must have read it and liked it and we were probably cheap and they asked us to do it," recalls William Goldman. Goldman also said the writer they replaced would not leave the project. "It was terrifying."

References

External links

* *
Tenderloin
' at the

Music Theatre International Music Theatre International (MTI) is a theatrical licensing agency based in New York City. Description MTI was founded in 1952 by American composer and lyricist Frank Loesser and orchestrator Don Walker. Along with the licensing rights to Lo ...

website {{William Goldman 1960 musicals Broadway musicals Musicals based on novels Musicals by George Abbott Musicals by Jerry Bock Musicals by Sheldon Harnick Plays set in New York City