''The Passing Show'' was a musical

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

in three acts, billed as a "topical extravaganza", with a book and lyrics by Sydney Rosenfeld and music by

Ludwig Engländer Ludwig Engländer (October 20, 1853 Vienna, Austria – September 13, 1914) was an Austrian-born American composer of more than 30 musicals. He was born in Vienna, Austria.Passport application available in the series ''U.S. Passport Applications, ...

and various other composers. It featured spoofs of theatrical productions of the past season. The show was presented in 1894 by George Lederer at the Casino Theatre. It was one of the first musical revues 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 ...

and led the fashion for such productions. The Casino Theatre produced a revue each summer thereafter for several seasons. In 1912, Lee and Jacob J. Shubert began an annual series of elaborate Broadway revues using the name ''The Passing Show of 19XX'', designed to compete with the popular

Ziegfeld Follies The ''Ziegfeld Follies'' was a series of elaborate theatrical revue productions on Broadway in New York City from 1907 to 1931, with renewals in 1934 and 1936. They became a radio program in 1932 and 1936 as ''The Ziegfeld Follies of the Ai ...

Original 1894 version

Although a few entertainments that could be called revues had already been presented by such showmen as

John Brougham John Brougham (9 May 1814 – 7 June 1880) was an Irish-American actor and dramatist. Biography He was born at Dublin. His father was an amateur painter, and died young. His mother was the daughter of a Huguenot, whom political adversity had f ...

, ''The Passing Show'' was the first American revue to use the term, spelling it "review". Its now-familiar structure was to use a thin story line to link together songs and sketches."The Passing Show", ''American Theater Guide, The Oxford Companion to American Theatre'' (2004) Oxford University Press The show was choreographed by Barney Fagan and Augusto Francioli. The revue opened at the Casino Theatre on May 12, 1894 and ran for 145 performances before touring in the US. The piece burlesqued theatrical productions of the past season. Among many other sketches, Paul Arthur spoofed Henry Miller,

Adele Ritchie Adele Ritchie (December 21, 1874 – April 24, 1930) was an American prima donna of comic opera and star of Edwardian musical comedies and vaudeville. Her career began in the early 1890s and continued for nearly twenty-five years. She killed a f ...

portrayed the singer Rosamund, Gus Pixley parodied Rummel, Grace Filkins parodied

Rose Coghlan Rosamond Marie Coghlan (March 18, 1851 – April 2, 1932) was an English actress. Coghlan was born in Peterborough, England, to author Francis Coghlan, and Anna Marie, ''née'' Kirby. Her elder brother (or half-brother) was the actor Charle ...

, Mrs. Kendal and Ada Rehan, and Mabel Stephenson appeared as Hannele in a parody of the Kilyani films. John E. Henshaw and Queenie Vassar (later replaced by Madge Lessing) played, respectively, the character Laf Quickstep and Chollie Keal. The songs (by Rosenfeld and Englander, except as noted) included: *Old Before His Time *Leader of De Company B (music and lyrics by Dave Reed, Jr.) *Riding in the Heavenly Rowboat (music and lyrics by Barney Fagan) *Some Time Ago – Laf Quickstep *The Fellow That Played the Drum – Laf Quickstep *Hot Tamales – Chollie Keal, Members of the Dawdle Club and Ensemble *Coxey's Army – Armand St. Julien Faversham Annesley, The Judge, District Attorney, Mr. Rowe and Mr. Rummel *Round the Operas in Twenty Minutes (music by Mascagni, Verdi, Bizet and

Gounod Charles-François Gounod (; ; 17 June 181818 October 1893), usually known as Charles Gounod, was a French composer. He wrote twelve operas, of which the most popular has always been ''Faust (opera), Faust'' (1859); his ''Roméo et Juliette'' (18 ...

) *L'Enfant Prodigue *The Phalanx of Phidias ''

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 d ...

'' review of the show noted, "We do not know what a topical extravaganza is; neither do they." The paper wrote that the show contained "elements of amusement" and "a momentary glance at most of the interesting entertainments" of the winter season. "There was a good deal of really pretty music by Mr. Englander, and some of Mr. Rosenfeld's lines were bright. But there were great wearisome spaces of emptiness...."

''The Passing Show'', 1912 to 1924

The title of the show was later used by Lee and Jacob J. Shubert for an annual series of Broadway revues from 1912 to 1924 (except 1920). These were elaborate productions designed to compete with the popular

, which had begun in 1907. Several of these featured music of

Sigmund Romberg Sigmund Romberg (July 29, 1887 – November 9, 1951) was a Hungarian-born American composer. He is best known for his musicals and operettas, particularly '' The Student Prince'' (1924), '' The Desert Song'' (1926) and '' The New Moon'' (1928). E ...

George Gershwin George Gershwin (; born Jacob Gershwine; September 26, 1898 – July 11, 1937) was an American composer and pianist whose compositions spanned popular, jazz and classical genres. Among his best-known works are the orchestral compositions ' ...

, Al Sherman or

Herman Finck Herman Finck (November 4, 1872 – April 21, 1939) was a British composer and conductor of Dutch extraction. Born Hermann Van Der Vinck in London, he began his studies training at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and established a care ...

and were presented at the Winter Garden Theatre.

Willie and Eugene Howard Willy or Willie is a masculine, male given name, often a diminutive form of William or Wilhelm, and occasionally a nickname. It may refer to: People Given name or nickname * Willie Aames (born 1960), American actor, television director, and scree ...

starred in many editions of the series. Other stars included

Charlotte Greenwood Frances Charlotte Greenwood (June 25, 1890 – December 28, 1977) was an American actress and dancer. Born in Philadelphia, Greenwood started in vaudeville, and starred on Broadway, movies and radio. Standing almost six feet tall (some sour ...

Marilyn Miller Marilyn Miller (born Mary Ellen Reynolds; September 1, 1898 – April 7, 1936) was one of the most popular Broadway musical stars of the 1920s and early 1930s. She was an accomplished tap dancer, singer and actress, and the combination of these ...

Ed Wynn Isaiah Edwin Leopold (November 9, 1886 – June 19, 1966), better known as Ed Wynn, was an American actor and comedian. He was noted for his ''Perfect Fool'' comedy character, his pioneering radio show of the 1930s, and his later career as a d ...

De Wolf Hopper William DeWolf Hopper (March 30, 1858September 23, 1935) was an American actor, singer, comedian, and theatrical producer. A star of vaudeville and musical theater, he became best known for performing the popular baseball poem "Casey at the Bat". ...

, Charles Winninger,

Fred Astaire Fred Astaire (born Frederick Austerlitz; May 10, 1899 – June 22, 1987) was an American dancer, choreographer, actor, and singer. He is often called the greatest dancer in Hollywood film history. Astaire's career in stage, film, and tele ...

and his sister

Adele Adele Laurie Blue Adkins (, ; born 5 May 1988), professionally known by the mononym Adele, is an English singer and songwriter. After graduating in arts from the BRIT School in 2006, Adele signed a rec ...

, Marie Dressler and Fred Allen. Among the famous songs first sung in the series were "

Pretty Baby Pretty Baby may refer to: * ''Pretty Baby'' (1950 film), a comedy film featuring Dennis Morgan and Betsy Drake * ''Pretty Baby'' (1978 film), a drama film featuring Brooke Shields ** ''Pretty Baby'' (soundtrack), a soundtrack album from the film ...

" (1916) and "

I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles "I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles" is a popular American song written in 1918, released in late 1919, becoming a number one hit for Ben Selvin's Novelty Orchestra. It has been revived and adapted over the years, serving as the anthem of Premier Leag ...

" (1918). A planned revival of the series in the 1940s did not make it out of tryouts. Most of the librettos for the series were written by Harold R. Atteridge, the Shuberts' in‐house librettist, who created over forty musicals for them (many starring

Al Jolson Al Jolson (born Eizer Yoelson; June 9, 1886 – October 23, 1950) was a Lithuanian-American Jewish singer, comedian, actor, and vaudevillian. He was one of the United States' most famous and highest-paid stars of the 1920s, and was self-billed ...

). Most of the Shubert shows were staged by

J. C. Huffman Jesse C. Huffman (1869–1935) was an American theatrical director. Between 1906 and 1932 he directed or staged over 200 shows, mostly for the Shubert Brothers. Many of them were musical revues, musicals or operettas. He is known for ''The Passi ...

Notes

External links

''The Passing Show''
at the IBDB database
Notes about ''The Passing Show''
at the Shubert Archive {{DEFAULTSORT:Passing Show 1894 musicals Broadway musicals

Original 1894 version

''The Passing Show'', 1912 to 1924

See also

Notes

External links