''Hot Spot'' is a musical with the book by

Jack Weinstock Jack Weinstock (died 23 May 1969 in New York City, New York) was an American author and playwright who is best known for writing the musical book for ''How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying''.Willie Gilbert Willie Gilbert (24 February 1916 – 2 December 1980) was an American author and playwright. Born William Gomberg in Cleveland, Ohio, Gilbert's proclivity for creating gags emerged as the humor writer for the Glenville High School ''Torch' ...

, lyrics by

Martin Charnin Martin Charnin (November 24, 1934 – July 6, 2019) was an American lyricist, writer, and theatre director. Charnin's best-known work is as conceiver, director, and lyricist of the musical ''Annie.'' Life and career Charnin was born in New York C ...

, music by

Mary Rodgers Mary Rodgers (January 11, 1931 – June 26, 2014) was an American composer, screenwriter, and author who wrote the novel '' Freaky Friday'', which served as the basis of a 1976 film starring Jodie Foster, for which she wrote the screenplay, as ...

, and additional lyrics and music by

Stephen Sondheim Stephen Joshua Sondheim (; March 22, 1930November 26, 2021) was an American composer and lyricist. One of the most important figures in twentieth-century musical theater, Sondheim is credited for having "reinvented the American musical" with sho ...

. It had a brief run on

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 ...

in 1963. The musical is a political satire.

Background

Peace Corps The Peace Corps is an independent agency and program of the United States government that trains and deploys volunteers to provide international development assistance. It was established in March 1961 by an executive order of President John F. ...

volunteer in newly independent

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

, Marjorie Michelmore, caused a furor because she had written a postcard on October 13, 1961, describing the primitive living conditions there. Nigerians were indignant, and some accused the volunteers of being

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

spies. This led to a public relations crisis for the fledgling Peace Corps.

Production

''Hot Spot'' began out-of-town try-outs on February 11, 1963, at the National Theater,

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

,"Hot Spot listing
sondheimguide.com, retrieved February 21, 2010 and on February 28 at the Shubert Theatre,

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, Pennsylvania.Suskin, Steven. ''The Sound of Broadway Music: A Book of Orchestrators and Orchestrations'' (2009). Oxford University Press US, , p. 432 The musical premiered on Broadway at the Majestic Theater on April 19, 1963, and closed on May 25, 1963, after 43 performances and 5 previews. (Although reporting 5 "official" previews, according to ''The New York Times'', "the musical expects to run up 36

reviews A review is an evaluation of a publication, product, service, or company or a critical take on current affairs in literature, politics or culture. In addition to a critical evaluation, the review's author may assign the work a rating to indic ...

at the Majestic by the time it opens".) Scenic and costume design was by

Rouben Ter-Arutunian Rouben Ter-Arutunian(Ռուբէն Տէր-Յարութիւնեան) (July 24, 1920 – October 17, 1992) was an American-Armenian costume and scenic designer for dance, opera, theater and television. Anderson, JackRouben Ter-Arutunian, 72, Dies ...

, and lighting design by John Harvey. At least five directors worked on the show: the original director was

Morton DaCosta Morton DaCosta (March 7, 1914 – January 26, 1989) was an American theatre and film director, film producer, writer, and actor. Career Born Morton Tecosky in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, DaCosta began his career as an actor in the Broadway produ ...

, followed by

, Robert Fryer,

Richard Quine Richard Quine (November 12, 1920June 10, 1989) was an American director, actor, and singer. He began acting as a child in radio, vaudeville, and stage productions before being signed to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in his early twenties. When his acting ...

Arthur Laurents Arthur Laurents (July 14, 1917 – May 5, 2011) was an American playwright, theatre director, film producer and screenwriter. After writing scripts for radio shows after college and then training films for the U.S. Army during World War II, ...

, and

Herbert Ross Herbert David Ross (May 13, 1927 – October 9, 2001) was an American actor, choreographer, director and producer who worked predominantly in theater and film. He was nominated for two Academy Awards and a Tony Award. He is known for directing ...

. The original choreographer was

Onna White Onna White (March 24, 1922 – April 8, 2005) was a Canadian choreographer and dancer, nominated for eight Tony Awards. Early life and career Born in Inverness, Nova Scotia, White began taking dance lessons at the age of twelve, and eventual ...

. There was no credit given to either director or choreographer, although the ''New York Times'' review credits read "staged by Herbert Ross". Stephen Sondheim, a friend of Rodgers, was brought onto the creative team, resulting in the show's opening and closing number, "Don't Laugh" and the song "That's Good, That's Bad". The cast starred

Judy Holliday Judy Holliday (born Judith Tuvim, June 21, 1921 – June 7, 1965) was an American actress, comedian and singer.Obituary ''Variety'', June 9, 1965, p. 71. She began her career as part of a nightclub act before working in Broadway plays and music ...

and included

Conrad Bain Conrad Stafford Bain (February 4, 1923 – January 14, 2013) was a Canadian-American comedian and actor. His television credits include a leading role as Phillip Drummond in the sitcom ''Diff'rent Strokes'', as Dr. Arthur Harmon on '' Maude'', ...

, Joe Bova,

Joseph Campanella Joseph Anthony Campanella (November 21, 1924 – May 16, 2018) was an American character actor. He appeared in more than 200 television and film roles from the early 1950s to 2009. Campanella was best remembered for his roles as Joe Turino on ' ...

Mary Louise Wilson Mary Louise Wilson (born November 12, 1931) is an American actress, singer, and comedian. In a career that has spanned more than 50 years, she has appeared in a number of plays, films and television shows. Wilson's most notable work includes a ...

, Carmen De Lavallade, Charles Braswell and

George Furth George Furth (born George Schweinfurth; December 14, 1932 – August 11, 2008) was an American librettist, playwright, and actor. Life and career Furth was born in Chicago, Illinois, the son of George and Evelyn (née Tuerk) Schweinfurth. He was ...

. This marked Judy Holliday's final stage performance. (She was quoted as saying "You can only live through one or two Hot Spots in your life.") One of Broadway's most well-known flops, it had 58 "preview" performances, setting a record by cancelling its official opening four times, and then running for only 43 "official" performances. According to Steven Suskin, "it was one of those big-budget, big-advance-sale bonanzas which go wrong and turn into highly public busts." According to the review in ''Billboard'', "Predictions of failure preceded the show and these were confirmed when the New York Critics Circle passed a unanimous negative judgement."

Synopsis

volunteer, hygiene teacher "Sally Hopwinder", is stationed in a fictional nation, "D'hum" with decent living conditions. She concocts a plan to obtain U.S. aid for D'hum by convincing the Pentagon that Russia is about to invade it.

Songs

;Act 1 *Don't Laugh – Sally Hopwinder *Don't Laugh (Reprise) – Sally Hopwinder and Peace Corps *Welcome – D'humians *This Little Yankee – Gabrel Snapper *Smiles – Sally Hopwinder, Deva, Minister of State, Howard Mason, Rami and Members of the Ensemble *A Little Trouble – Sally Hopwinder, Shim, The Nadir of D'hum and D'humians *You'd Like Nebraska – Vernon Breen and Iram *Hey Love – Sally Hopwinder *I Had Two Dregs – Sally Hopwinder, Shim, Sumner Tubb, Sr. and D'humians *Rich, Rich, Rich – Shim, Sue Ann, Peace Corps and D'humians ;Act 2 *That's Good-That's Bad – Sally Hopwinder *I Think the World of You – Sue Ann and Shim *Gabie – Sally Hopwinder *A Matter of Time – Gabrel Snapper and Sally Hopwinder *Gabie (Reprise) – Gabrel Snapper *Big Meeting Tonight – Rami, Grobanykov and Ensemble *A Far, Far Better Way – Sally Hopwinder *Don't Laugh (Reprise) – Sally Hopwinder, Gabrel Snapper and Ensemble

Recording

A CD was released by Blue Pear Records in 2004, taken from a cassette recording made from the audience. In addition to the original Broadway cast, the disc has composer demos, featuring Charnin and Rodgers, as well as several recordings commercially released on 45 rpm."Hot Spot recording listing"
castalbumcollector.com, retrieved February 21, 2010

Notes

References

*Mandelbaum, Ken, ''Not Since Carrie: 40 Years of Broadway Musical Flops'', St. Martin's Press, New York, 1991 , pp. 63ff.

External links

* {{Mary Rodgers 1963 musicals Broadway musicals