''Two Gentlemen of Verona'' is a

rock musical A rock musical is a musical theatre work with rock music. The genre of rock musical may overlap somewhat with album musicals, concept albums and song cycles, as they sometimes tell a story through the rock music, and some album musicals and concept ...

, with a book by

John Guare John Guare ( ;; born February 5, 1938) is an American playwright and screenwriter. He is best known as the author of ''The House of Blue Leaves'' and ''Six Degrees of Separation''. Early life He was raised in Jackson Heights, Queens.Druckman, ...

and

Mel Shapiro Mel Shapiro is an American theatre director and writer, college professor, and author. Trained at Carnegie-Mellon University, Shapiro began his professional directing career at the Pittsburgh Playhouse and then as resident director at Arena Stage i ...

, lyrics by Guare and music by

Galt MacDermot Arthur Terence Galt MacDermot (December 18, 1928 – December 17, 2018) was a Canadian-American composer, pianist and writer of musical theater. He won a Grammy Award for the song " African Waltz" in 1960. His most-successful musicals were ''Hai ...

, based on the

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 ...

comedy of the same name. The original

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 ...

production, in 1971, won the

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 ...

s for Best Musical and Best Book of a Musical. A London production followed in 1973. The

Public Theater The Public Theater is a New York City arts organization founded as the Shakespeare Workshop in 1954 by Joseph Papp, with the intention of showcasing the works of up-and-coming playwrights and performers.Epstein, Helen. ''Joe Papp: An American Li ...

revived the piece in 2005.

Synopsis

Proteus and Valentine, lifelong friends, each leave their rural hometown of

Verona Verona ( , ; vec, Verona or ) is a city on the Adige River in Veneto, Northern Italy, Italy, with 258,031 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region. It is the largest city Comune, municipality in the region and the ...

to experience life in the city of

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

. Valentine strikes out on his own, arriving first; he falls in love with Sylvia, and makes plans to win her hand. However, her father, the Duke of Milan, has betrothed her to the wealthy but undesirable Thurio. Antonio, a Veronese nobleman, then decides to send his son Proteus to the Duke's court in Milan, to experience a more well-rounded life. After his arrival in Milan, Proteus also sets his sights on Sylvia, disregarding his loyalty to both Valentine and Julia (his sweetheart back home). Valentine admits his own plans to elope with Sylvia. Proteus tells the Duke of their plans, gaining favor for himself - and causing Valentine's banishment from the court. Meanwhile, in Verona, Julia asks her maid Lucetta for help, in deciding upon which of the two she should fall in love with. Julia disguises herself as a man (Sebastian, a

page Page most commonly refers to: * Page (paper), one side of a leaf of paper, as in a book Page, PAGE, pages, or paging may also refer to: Roles * Page (assistance occupation), a professional occupation * Page (servant), traditionally a young m ...

) so she can travel to Milan to be reunited with Proteus. After arriving at court, she witnesses Proteus and Thurio wooing Silvia. While traveling to

Mantua Mantua ( ; it, Mantova ; Lombard language, Lombard and la, Mantua) is a city and ''comune'' in Lombardy, Italy, and capital of the Province of Mantua, province of the same name. In 2016, Mantua was designated as the Italian Capital of Culture ...

, the exiled Valentine is kidnapped by outlaws, who have been banished also. They demand that Valentine become their king, but if he refuses, they intend to kill him; Valentine accepts. In Milan, Julia (disguised as Sebastian) delivers to Silvia the ring Proteus gave her, on his behalf (not realizing the page was actually his Veronese girlfriend). Silvia enlists her friend Sir Eglamour to help her escape her betrothal to Thurio, and to find Valentine instead. However, while traveling through the forest, they are overtaken by a band of outlaws. Eglamour runs away, leaving Silvia to fend for herself. By then, the Duke, Proteus, and Thurio, along with the disguised Julia, organize a search party for Silvia. Proteus wrests Silvia away from the outlaws. Proteus demands that Silvia give him some sign of her favor for freeing her, but she refuses. He tries to rape her, but the hidden Valentine emerges and stops him. Proteus apologizes, and Valentine offers to give him Silvia as a token of their friendship. Then "Sebastian" (Julia) faints, revealing her true identity. Proteus decides he really loves Julia more than Silvia, taking her instead. The Duke realizes that Thurio is a thug, and recognizes Valentine is much nobler and should marry Silvia. Valentine asks for clemency for the outlaws, and suggests that his marriage to Silvia and Proteus' marriage to Julia should take place on the same day.

Productions

Broadway

After tryouts at the

Delacorte Theater The Delacorte Theater is a 1,800-seat open-air theater in Central Park, in the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is home to the Public Theater's free Shakespeare in the Park productions. Over five million people have attended more than 15 ...

Central Park Central Park is an urban park in New York City located between the Upper West Side, Upper West and Upper East Sides of Manhattan. It is the List of New York City parks, fifth-largest park in the city, covering . It is the most visited urban par ...

in the summer of 1971 and twenty previews, the

production, directed by

and

choreographed Choreography is the art or practice of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which motion or form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design itself. A choreographer is one who cr ...

Jean Erdman Jean Erdman (February 20, 1916 – May 4, 2020) was an American dancer and choreographer of modern dance as well as an avant-garde theater director. Biography Early years and background Erdman was born in Honolulu. Erdman's father, John Piney ...

replaced by Dennis Nahat for Broadway and London productions, opened on December 1, 1971 at the St. James Theatre, where it ran for 614 performances. The cast included

Raul Julia Raúl Rafael Carlos Juliá y Arcelay (March 9, 1940 – October 24, 1994) was a Puerto Rican actor. Born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, he took an interest in acting while still in school and pursued the career upon completion of his studies. After ...

Clifton Davis Clifton Duncan Davis (born October 4, 1945) is an American actor, singer, songwriter, minister, and author. Davis wrote The Jackson 5's No. 2 hit " Never Can Say Goodbye" in 1971. He appeared on Broadway in the musicals '' Two Gentlemen of Vero ...

Jonelle Allen Jonelle Allen (born July 18, 1944) is an American actress, singer, and dancer from Harlem, New York, United States. Beginning her professional career in the late 1960s, Allen has co-starred in films, Broadway productions, and television. In 19 ...

and Diana Davila in the leads;

Stockard Channing Stockard Channing (born Susan Antonia Williams Stockard; February 13, 1944) is an American actress. She is known for playing Betty Rizzo in the film '' Grease'' (1978) and First Lady Abbey Bartlet in the NBC television series ''The West Wing'' ( ...

and

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. ...

(in his first Broadway performance) were in the chorus.''Two Gentlemen of Verona''
Internet Broadway Database, accessed January 16, 2009 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 ...

'',

Clive Barnes Clive Alexander Barnes (13 May 1927 – 19 November 2008) was an English writer and critic. From 1965 to 1977, he was the dance and theater critic for ''The New York Times'', and, from 1978 until his death, ''The New York Post.'' Barnes had sign ...

wrote, "What I really love about ''Two Gentlemen'' is its simplicity. Beneath all the multicolored gimmicks and extravagances, there are real people living and loving, and this I find very moving." The musical won two

Tony Awards 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 ...

including Best Musical over such shows as ''Grease'' and ''

Follies ''Follies'' is a Musical theater, musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a book by James Goldman. The plot takes place in a crumbling Broadway theater, now scheduled for demolition, previously home to a musical revue (based on t ...

''. The original Broadway cast album was released on

ABC Records ABC Records was an American record label founded in New York City in 1955. It originated as the main popular music label operated by the Am-Par Record Corporation. Am-Par also created the Impulse! jazz label in 1960. It acquired many labels befo ...

in the US at the time; through merger and acquisition over the years, the

Universal Music Group Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...

now owns the rights. The master tapes were restored for digital release through the

Decca Broadway Decca Broadway is an American record label specializing in musical theater recordings founded in 1999 by Decca Records and is a unit of Universal Music Group. Decca Broadway issued both new original cast albums as well as reissues of classic music ...

label in 2002.

Australia

An Australian production was presented at

Her Majesty's Theatre Her Majesty's Theatre is a West End theatre situated on Haymarket, London, Haymarket in the City of Westminster, London. The present building was designed by Charles J. Phipps and was constructed in 1897 for actor-manager Herbert Beerbohm Tree, ...

in Melbourne, opening on March 31, 1973. The production featured

John Waters John Samuel Waters Jr. (born April 22, 1946) is an American filmmaker, writer, actor, and artist. He rose to fame in the early 1970s for his Cinema of Transgression, transgressive cult films, including ''Multiple Maniacs'' (1970), ''Pink Flamin ...

Gilbert Price Gilbert Price (September 10, 1942 – January 2, 1991) was an American operatic baritone and actor. Price was a protégé of Langston Hughes. He was a life member of New York's famed Actors Studio. Price first gained notice in 1964, for his ...

Gail Boggs Gail Charlene Boggs (born August 10, 1951) is an American actress. She played Louise Brown in the 1990 film '' Ghost''. Career Gail Boggs, the daughter of Willie Boggs, a tree surgeon, and Alice, a dietitian, described having always dreamed of ...

and Judd Jones.

West End

A West End production was mounted at the Phoenix Theatre beginning on April 26, 1973 and ran for 237 performances. Mel Shapiro directed with Dennis Nahat staging and choreography. The original London cast included

B. J. Arnau Brenda Arnaud (born Brenda Burton; June 1941 – November 1989), known as B. J. Arnau, was an American-born female singer and actor active in the UK and the US from the late 1960s to the early 1980s. Biography Very little is known about the a ...

(Silvia), Ray C. Davis (Proteus), Jean Gilbert (Julia),

Derek Griffiths Derek Griffiths (born 15 July 1946) is a British actor, singer, and voice artist who appeared in numerous British children's television series in the 1960s to present and has more recently played parts in television drama. Career Griffiths was ...

(Thurio),

Benny Lee Benny Lee (11 August 1916 – 9 December 1995) was a Scottish comedy actor and singer. He started his career in stage roles, and developed a television and film career. Early life Lee was born on 11 August 1916 to a Jewish family in The G ...

(Launce), Michael Staniforth (Speed), and Samuel E. Wright (Valentine).

Revivals

The

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

Shakespeare Festival revived the piece in 1996, directed by Robert Duke and starring Philip Hernandez, Dana M. Reeve, and Keith Byron Kirk. The musical was revived by the

in their ''

Shakespeare in the Park Shakespeare in the Park is a term for outdoor festivals featuring productions of William Shakespeare's plays. The term originated with the New York Shakespeare Festival in New York City's Central Park, originally created by Joseph Papp. This conc ...

'' series for a limited run, from August 28, 2005, to September 11, 2005, at the Delacorte Theater.

Kathleen Marshall Kathleen Marshall (born September 28, 1962) is an American director, choreographer, and creative consultant. Life and career Born in Madison, Wisconsin, she graduated from Taylor Allderdice High School in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1980 and S ...

directed and choreographed, and the cast featured

Norm Lewis Norm Lewis (born June 2, 1963) is an American actor and singer. He has appeared in Europe, on Broadway, in film, television, recordings and regional theatre. Productions that he has been involved in include '' Dessa Rose'', ''Miss Saigon'', '' T ...

(Valentine),

Oscar Isaac Óscar Isaac Hernández Estrada (born March 9, 1979) is a Guatemalan-born American actor. Known for his versatility, he has been credited with breaking stereotypes about Latino characters in Hollywood. He was named the best actor of his gener ...

(Proteus),

Rosario Dawson Rosario Isabel Dawson (born May 9, 1979) is an American actress. She made her feature-film debut in the 1995 independent drama ''Kids''. Her subsequent film roles include '' He Got Game'' (1998), ''Josie and the Pussycats'' (2001), ''Men in Bl ...

(Julia),

Renée Elise Goldsberry Renée Elise Goldsberry (born January 2, 1971) is an American actress and singer known for originating the role of Angelica Schuyler in the Broadway musical ''Hamilton'', for which she won the 2016 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musica ...

(Silvia),

Paolo Montalban Paolo Montalban (born May 21, 1973) is a Filipino-American actor and singer best known for his performance in the 1997 Disney television film, '' Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella'' as Prince Christopher, opposite Brandy as Cinderella. He repris ...

(Eglamour), Mel Johnson Jr. (Duke of Milan) and

John Cariani John Edward Cariani (born July 23, 1969) is an American actor and playwright. Cariani is best known as the unwavering forensic expert Julian Beck in ''Law & Order''. On stage, he earned a Tony Award nomination for his role as Motel the Tailor in t ...

(Speed). Critic

Ben Brantley Benjamin D. Brantley (born October 26, 1954) is an American theater critic, journalist, editor, publisher and writer. He served as the chief theater critic for ''The New York Times'' from 1996 to 2017, and as co-chief theater critic from 2017 to ...

, in ''

'', compared the "festive production" to "a fruity sangría", praising the cast but concluding that the work has not held up well. He wrote that the play's "wayward" characters were "not without parallels among the lotus-eating youth of the post-Woodstock years – a comparison that Messrs. Shapiro, Guare and MacDermot made canny use of. They also scaled down Shakespeare's passages of poetic pain for an approach that emphasized an easygoing, multicultural exuberance over wistful poetry and nonsense over sensibility.... utMacDermot's songs... lack the variety of his score for ''

Hair Hair is a protein filament that grows from follicles found in the dermis. Hair is one of the defining characteristics of mammals. The human body, apart from areas of glabrous skin, is covered in follicles which produce thick terminal and f ...

''.... And the lyricism Mr. Guare is known for as a playwright is rarely in evidence in his clunky work here as a lyricist".

Songs

;Act I * Summer, Summer - Ensemble * I Love My Father - Ensemble * That's a Very Interesting Question - Proteus and Valentine * I'd Like to Be a Rose - Proteus and Valentine * Thou, Julia, Thou Hast Metamorphosed Me - Proteus * Symphony - Proteus and Ensemble * I Am Not Interested in Love - Julia * Love, Is That You? - Vissi D'Amore * Thou, Proteus, Thou Hast Metamorphosed Me - Julia * What Does a Lover Pack? - Julia, Proteus and Ensemble * Pearls - Launce * I Love My Father (Reprise) - Proteus * Two Gentlemen of Verona - Julia, Lucetta and Ensemble * Follow the Rainbow - Valentine, Speed, Proteus, Launce, Julia and Lucetta * Where's North? - Valentine, Speed, Duke of Milan, Silvia, Thurio and Ensemble * Bring All the Boys Back Home - Duke of Milan, Thurio and Ensemble * Love's Revenge - Valentine * To Whom It May Concern Me - Silvia and Valentine * Night Letter - Silvia and Valentine * Love's Revenge - Valentine, Proteus, Speed and Launce * Calla Lily Lady - Proteus ;Act II * Land of Betrayal - Lucetta * Thurio's Samba - Thurio, Duke of Milan and Ensemble * Hot Lover - Launce and Speed * What a Nice Idea - Julia * Who Is Sylvia? - Proteus, Tavern Host and Ensemble * Love Me - Silvia and Ensemble * Eglamour - Eglamour and Ensemble * Kidnapped - Julia, Duke of Milan, Proteus, Thurio and Ensemble * Mansion † - Valentine * Eglamour (Reprise) - Silvia and Eglamour * What's a Nice Girl Like Her - Proteus * Dragon Fight - Dragon, Eglamour, Proteus and Valentine * Don't Have the Baby - Julia, Lucetta, Speed and Launce * Love, Is That You? (Reprise) - Thurio and Lucetta * Milkmaid - Launce and Milkmaid * I Love My Father (Reprise) - Full Company * Love Has Driven Me Sane - Full Company † This number was replaced in the original London production by the song "Howl", due to concerns that the lyric to "Mansion" was too New York-centric, with references to rent control, sublets, and other uniquely urban concerns. For 1971 Broadway audiences, which were more New Yorkers than tourists (the reverse of Broadway audiences today), these references would have been both commonly understood and very funny in this faux-Shakespearean context. Theaters producing the show now have a choice between using "Howl" or "Mansion."Inside Two Gents by Scott Miller
/ref>

Awards and nominations

Original Broadway production

References

External links

*

{{Navboxes , title = Awards for ''Two Gentlemen of Verona'' , list = {{TonyAwardBestMusical 1947-1975 {{TonyAward MusicalBook 1947-1975 1971 musicals Broadway musicals Plays and musicals based on The Two Gentlemen of Verona Rock musicals Musicals by Galt MacDermot Tony Award for Best Musical Tony Award-winning musicals