''Boy Meets Boy'' is a

musical comedy 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, movemen ...

with music and lyrics by Bill Solly, and book by Bill Solly and

Donald Ward Donald Ward (born – death unknown) was an English professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1930s and 1940s, and Coach (sport), coached in the 1950s. He played at club level for Dewsbury Rams, Dewsbury, Bradford Bulls, Bradford ...

. It opened on Sep. 17, 1975 at the

off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

Actor's Playhouse in

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. It was produced by Christopher Larkin and

Edith O'Hara The Thirteenth Street Repertory Theatre (13th St Rep) is an Off-Off Broadway theater in New York City founded in 1972 by Edith O'Hara. It is home to the longest running play in Off-Off Broadway history, Israel Horovitz's ''Line'' which began its ru ...

in association with Lee Barton. The show is a fast-paced, light-hearted musical-comedy, featuring a 1930s style Astaire/Rogers romance between two men, and a

same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same Legal sex and gender, sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being ...

. The world of the play posits that in 1936,

same-sex relationship A same-sex relationship is a romantic or sexual relationship between people of the same sex. ''Same-sex marriage'' refers to the institutionalized recognition of such relationships in the form of a marriage; civil unions may exist in countries w ...

s are considered as normal as

heterosexual Heterosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction or sexual behavior between people of the opposite sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, heterosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to ...

ones. The play begins against the background of the abdication of

Edward VIII Edward VIII (Edward Albert Christian George Andrew Patrick David; 23 June 1894 – 28 May 1972), later known as the Duke of Windsor, was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Empire and Emperor of India from 20 January 19 ...

and ends with the Duke of Windsor's (and the protagonists') June 1937 weddings. This is appropriate, as one of the major themes is "Giving it Up for Love". The action occurs in the

Savoy Hotel The Savoy Hotel is a luxury hotel located in the Strand in the City of Westminster in central London, England. Built by the impresario Richard D'Oyly Carte with profits from his Gilbert and Sullivan opera productions, it opened on 6 August 188 ...

, a few elegant nightspots in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, a bar in

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

, and a black-sheep aunt's disreputable establishment in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

. The original New York cast included David Gallegly as Guy Rose, Joe Barrett as Casey O’Brien and Raymond Wood as Clarence Cutler. The show had its London premiere in December 2012. The cast included

Olivier Award The Laurence Olivier Awards, or simply the Olivier Awards, are presented annually by the Society of London Theatre to recognise excellence in professional theatre in London at an annual ceremony in the capital. The awards were originally known as ...

winner Stephen Ashfield as Casey O'Brien with Johnjo Flynn as Guy Rose and Ben Kavanagh as Clarence Cutler.

Critical reception

The original production at the Actor's Playhouse in New York received admiring reviews - save for a criticism in the New York Times by Mel Gussow (about the acceptance of gay marriage in the 30s, he wrote, "So much for thirties realism."). “The brightest, tunefullest, wittiest, most elegant, refined, gracious and entertaining musical in years!" wrote Carll Tucker in

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. In

New York magazine ''New York'' is an American biweekly magazine concerned with life, culture, politics, and style generally, and with a particular emphasis on New York City. Founded by Milton Glaser and Clay Felker in 1968 as a competitor to ''The New Yorker'', ...

Alan Rich Alan Rich (June 17, 1924 – April 23, 2010) was an American music critic who served on the staff of many newspapers and magazines on both coasts. Originally from Brookline, Massachusetts, he first studied medicine at Harvard University before tur ...

wrote that the play had “an uncommonly light and antic touch. The first of its kind that could happily play in an old ladies’ home in Dubuque...delightful”; while

Robert Patrick Robert Hammond Patrick (born November 5, 1958) is an American actor. Known for portraying villains and honorable authority figures, he is a Saturn Award winner with four other nominations. Patrick dropped out of college when drama class sparked ...

said that "it rewrites the past and presents it just as entertainment, not in the Orwellian sense of trying to convince anyone the past was like that but saying that it ought to have been”. The production ran for two years. Subsequent productions in

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and

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

received positive reactions. It has often been revived regionally. The 2012 production at the

Jermyn Street Theatre Jermyn Street Theatre is a performance venue situated on Jermyn Street, in London's West End. It is an off-west end studio theatre. History Jermyn Street Theatre opened in August 1994. It was formerly the changing rooms for staff at a Spaghetti ...

in London was well received by the

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in the

Times Time is the continued sequence of existence and events, and a fundamental quantity of measuring systems. Time or times may also refer to: Temporal measurement * Time in physics, defined by its measurement * Time standard, civil time specific ...

called it “Funny, silly and, with gay marriage on the horizon, slyly topical." Emma Slater wrote that it was "an unexpected gem of a musical. The score is varied in style and form, the lyrics clever, and the script highly intelligent and very funny. Both the script and lyrics have elements of Wilde’s wit and Coward’s charm. A festive treat – highly recommended!”. Meanwhile, in the

New Statesman The ''New Statesman'' is a British political and cultural magazine published in London. Founded as a weekly review of politics and literature on 12 April 1913, it was at first connected with Sidney and Beatrice Webb and other leading members ...

, Ryan Gibely thought that while "in 1975 this lithe blasé vision of an alternative reality must have felt subversive hesurprise is that it still does."

Musical numbers

; Prologue: * "Boy Meets Boy" - Chorus * “Party in Room 203” - Chorus ; Act I: * "Giving it Up for Love" - Casey, Andrew * "Me" - Clarence * "The English Rose" - Reporters * "Marry an American" - Waitresses * "Marry an American" - Waiters * “It’s a Boy’s Life” - Casey, Guy * "Does Anybody Love You?" - Guy * "You’re Beautiful" - Guy * "Let's!" - Guy, Casey ; Act II: * “Paris” - Josephine, Guy (song added for London production) * "Just My Luck" - Clarence, Casey * "It's a Dolly" - Josephine, Chorus * "What Do I Care" - Guy * “In Love Never” - Casey (song added for London production) * “Clarence’s Turn - Clarence * “It’s a Dolly: Reprise” - Josephine, Chorus * "Does Anybody Love You: Reprise" - Guy, Casey * "Finale" - Cast

References

External links

*
Queer Music Heritage article on the playCast Album on AllMusic.com
1975 musicals Off-Broadway musicals Original musicals LGBT-related musicals Musicals set in hotels Musicals set in London Musicals set in Spain Musicals set in Paris Musicals set in the 1930s {{musical-theat-stub