''Set to Music'' 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 Character (arts), charac ...

revue A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatre, theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketch comedy, sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural pre ...

with sketches, music and lyrics by

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time (magazine), Time'' called "a sense of personal style, a combination of c ...

. Produced by John C. Wilson, the Broadway production opened on January 15, 1939 at the

Music Box Theatre The Music Box Theatre is a Broadway theatre, Broadway theater at 239 West 45th Street (George Abbott Way) in the Theater District, Manhattan, Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. Opened in 1921, the Music Box ...

, where it ran for 129 performances. Directed by Coward, the revue starred Beatrice Lillie. This show originated in 1932 under the title of '' Words and Music'', with a London production at the Adelphi Theatre. It consisted of a series of sketches, some with songs. Seven years later, it was revised for Broadway as ''Set to Music''. The song " Mad Dogs and Englishmen", one of Coward's best-known songs,, Noël Coward Music Index. Retrieved 9 March 2009. was dropped, and four new songs were added. The sketches included "A Fragonard Impression", and "Midnight Matinée".

Sketches

Beatrice Lillie sang a parody about being a successful singer in "Rug of Persia" while "weaving an oriental arras." The song ends with a reference to the popular

Cole Porter Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became Standard (music), standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found success on Broadway the ...

song "My Heart Belongs to Daddy". Playing an actress who becomes progressively more drunk, Lillie sang "I Went to a Marvellous Party". Lillie played Mrs. John Illsworth-Poindexter in the sketch "Madame Dines Alone", leading into the song "Never Again". She was also The Countess in a railway station with Sarah Burton, Kenneth Carton, Victor Cutrar, Ray Dennis, Sanders Draper, Hugh French, Gladys Henson, Robert Shackelton, and Gilbert Wilson in "Secret Service."Atkinson, Brooks. "Beatrice Lillie in Noel Coward's 'Set to Music' With an English Accent", ''The New York Times'', January 19, 1939, p. 23 Maidie Andrews was La Marquise De Sauriole while

Richard Haydn Richard Haydn (10 March 1905 – 25 April 1985) was a British comedian. Early life George Richard Haydon was born in 1905 in Camberwell, in the London Borough of Southwark. After working as a music hall entertainer and overseer of a Jamaica, J ...

appeared as Edwin Carp, a fish mimic in a mad vaudeville act ("Fish Mimicry"). John Hopper Mathews played the minor role of Lady Patricia Gainton.''Set to Music'' (1939)
Broadwayworld.com, accessed 11 October 2020

Songs

* The Stately Homes of England (from '' Operette'') - Kenneth Carton, Hugh French, Angus Menzies, Anthony Pelissier * Never Again * The Party's Over Now * Three Little Débutantes * Mad About the Boy - Beatrice Lillie (as a schoolgirl), Laura Duncan (A Girl of the Town), Gladys Henson (A Housemaid), Moya Nugent (School Girl's Younger Sister), Rosemary Lomax (Society Woman's Friend) * I Went to a Marvellous Party‡ - Beatrice Lillie * Children of the Ritz * (I'm So) Weary of It All ‡ - Beatrice Lillie (as Marion Day), Ray Dennis * Rug of Persia ‡ - Beatrice Lillie * Three White Feathers ‡ - Beatrice Lillie ‡ this number was not included in ''Words and Music'' The Noël Coward Society's website, drawing on performing statistics from the publishers and the Performing Rights Society, names "Mad About the Boy" as Coward's most popular song. "The Stately Homes of England" (originally from Coward's '' Operette'') was also among the top ten most performed Coward songs. "The Party's Over Now" and "...Marvellous Party" rank in the top thirty Coward songs.

Notes

External links

''Set to Music'' at the Internet Broadway DatabaseSold on Song
bbc.co.uk, accessed January 6, 2009 {{DEFAULTSORT:Set To Music 1939 musicals Broadway musicals Revues Musicals by Noël Coward