''Portofino'' 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 Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the characters are interwo ...

with a book by

Richard Ney Richard Maximilian Ney (November 12, 1916 – July 18, 2004) was an American actor, author, and investment counselor. Life and career Ney was born in New York City, the son of Erwin Maximilian Ney (1893-1968), an insurance salesman, and Charlott ...

(who also served as producer), lyrics by Ney and

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

Louis Bellson Louie Bellson (born Luigi Paulino Alfredo Francesco Antonio Balassoni, July 6, 1924 – February 14, 2009), often seen in sources as Louis Bellson, although he himself preferred the spelling Louie, was an American jazz drummer. He was a composer, ...

and

Will Irwin William Henry Irwin (September 14, 1873 – February 24, 1948) was an American author, writer and journalist who was associated with the muckrakers. Early life Irwin was born in 1873 in Oneida, New York. In his early childhood, the Irwin fam ...

.''Portofino''
Internet Broadway Database, accessed September 25, 2018 Set in a

piazza A town square (or square, plaza, public square, city square, urban square, or ''piazza'') is an open public space, commonly found in the heart of a traditional town but not necessarily a true geometric square, used for community gatherings. ...

in the Italian resort town of

Portofino Portofino (; ) is a ''comune'' located in the Metropolitan City of Genoa on the Italian Riviera. The town is clustered around its small harbour, and is known for the colourfully painted buildings that line the shore. Since the late 19th century ...

, the convoluted plot involves auto-racing

duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are r ...

Nicky; his

Texan Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by b ...

rival Kitty; his granddaughter Angela, a practicing

witch Witchcraft traditionally means the use of Magic (supernatural), magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In Middle Ages, medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually ...

; the local padre; and his look-alike Guido, an emissary from the devil.Mandelbaum, p. 28 When critics crucified the show during its

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. Since ...

tryout, Ney, the producer, democratically left it to the cast to decide if they should continue to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. They voted to go. The

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, directed by Karl Genus 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 ...

Charles Weidman Charles Weidman (July 22, 1901 – July 15, 1975) was a renowned choreographer, modern dancer and teacher. He is well known as one of the pioneers of modern dance in America. He wanted to break free from the traditional movements of dance for ...

and Ray Harrison with lighting by

Lee Watson Leland H. "Lee" Watson (1926 – December 8, 1989)7 was a Broadway and television lighting designer and theatre educator.5 His 1990 bio states that he worked "extensively in nearly all fields of lighting design."6 Early life and education Wa ...

, opened on February 21, 1958 at the

Adelphi Theatre The Adelphi Theatre is a West End theatre, located on the Strand in the City of Westminster, central London. The present building is the fourth on the site. The theatre has specialised in comedy and musical theatre, and today it is a receivin ...

, where it ran for three performances. The cast included

Georges Guétary Georges Guétary (), born Lambros Vorloou ( el, Λάμπρος Βορλόου ; February 8, 1915 – September 13, 1997) was a French singer, dancer, cabaret performer and film actor, best known for his role in the 1951 musical ''An American ...

as Nicky,

Helen Gallagher Helen Gallagher (born July 19, 1926) is an American actress, dancer, and singer. She is the recipient of three Emmy Awards, two Tony Awards, and a Drama Desk Award. Early years Born in Brooklyn, she was raised in Scarsdale, New York, and the Br ...

as Kitty, Jan Chaney as Angela, and Robert Strauss as both the padre and Guido. It got a number of negative reviews.Maney, Richard. "Why Can't They Tell It's a Turkey?", New York Times, 8 March 1959.

Songs

;Act I * Come Along * No Wedding Bells for Me * Come Along (Reprise) * Red-Collar Job * Here I Come * New Dreams for Old * A Dream for Angela * Isn't It Wonderful? * Dance of the Whirling Wimpus * Under a Spell ;Act II * Under a Spell (Reprise) * That's Love * Too Little Time for Love * Guido's Tango * It Might Be Love * Here I Come (Reprise) * Bacchanale * Morning Prayer * Kitty Car Ballet * The Grand Prix of Portofino * Portofino * I'm in League with the Devil * Why Not for Marriage * Portofino (Reprise)

References

Sources

''Not Since Carrie: Forty Years of Broadway Musical Flops'' by

Ken Mandelbaum Ken Mandelbaum is a Jewish American columnist, critic, and author whose primary field of expertise is musical theatre. Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, Mandelbaum was introduced to Broadway musical theatre by his parents and grandparents a ...

, published by St. Martin's Press (1991) ()

External links

* {{ibdb show, id=7192, title=Portofino
Cast album
1958 musicals Broadway musicals Musicals by Sheldon Harnick