''Gay's the Word'' is a musical with book and music by

Ivor Novello Ivor Novello (born David Ivor Davies; 15 January 1893 – 6 March 1951) was a Welsh actor, dramatist, singer and composer who became one of the most popular British entertainers of the first half of the 20th century. He was born into a musical ...

and lyrics by Alan Melville. The musical is a backstage comedy that parodies Novello's own swashbuckling Ruritanian romance plots. The story centres on Gay Daventry, a bankrupt

operetta Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs and including dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, and length of the work. Apart from its shorter length, the oper ...

producer who opens a drama school at her country house. This also turns out to be unsuccessful, but it leads to a theatrical comeback for Gay. The musical premiered at the

Palace Theatre, Manchester The Palace Theatre is one of the main theatres in Manchester, England. It is situated on Oxford Street, on the north-east corner of the intersection with Whitworth Street. The Palace and its sister theatre the Opera House on Quay Street are ope ...

, England on 17 October 1950. It transferred to the

Saville Theatre The Saville Theatre building is a former West End theatre and cinema at 135 Shaftesbury Avenue in the London Borough of Camden. The theatre opened in 1931, and became a music venue during the 1960s. In 1970, it became a cinema, most recently a ...

in London, opening there on 16 February 1951, where it ran for 504 performances and starred

Cicely Courtneidge Dame Esmerelda Cicely Courtneidge (1 April 1893 – 26 April 1980) was an Australian-born British actress, comedian and singer. The daughter of the producer and playwright Robert Courtneidge, she was appearing in his productions in the West End ...

as Gay, Lizbeth Webb as Linda, and

Thorley Walters Thorley Swinstead Walters (12 May 1913 – 6 July 1991) was an English actor. He played comedy roles in films including '' Carlton-Browne of the F.O.'' (1959) and ''Two-Way Stretch'' (1960). Early life Walters was born in Teigngrace, Devon, th ...

. While it embraced the new style of

musical theatre Musical theatre is a form of theatre, 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, ...

from America, it also contained traditional British humour for Courtneidge and glamorous soprano solos for Webb. ''The British Theatre Guide'' concludes: "The musical was never that good and without ourtneidgeit would most certainly have failed. But with her, thanks to her indefatigable vitality, the show was a hit."Tanitch, Robert
''Gay's the Word''
The British Theatre Guide, April 9, 2012 This was Ivor Novello's last musical, and he died a month after it opened, aged 58. The musical was revived in 2012 at the

Finborough Theatre The Finborough Theatre is a fifty-seat theatre in the West Brompton area of London (part of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea) under artistic director Neil McPherson. The theatre presents new British writing, as well as UK and world p ...

, London, with a book revised by Richard Stirling, directed and choreographed by Stewart Nicholls."Spring Season: ''Gay's the Word''"
Finborough Theatre, accessed November 9, 2011

Synopsis

;Act 1 Gay Daventry, a producer and stage star, goes bankrupt when her new London operetta, similar to a Ruritanian Ivor Novello musical, is a disappointing failure. She agrees with the show's

ingénue The ''ingénue'' (, , ) is a stock character in literature, film and a role type in the theater, generally a girl or a young woman, who is endearingly innocent. ''Ingénue'' may also refer to a new young actress or one typecast in such role ...

, Linda, to open a drama school with Linda's money at Gay's country house in

Folkestone Folkestone ( ) is a coastal town on the English Channel, in Kent, south-east England. The town lies on the southern edge of the North Downs at a valley between two cliffs. It was an important harbour, shipping port, and fashionable coastal res ...

. She teaches her students that "vitality" is the secret to success. Meanwhile, two smugglers hope to use the school as a front for their illegal activities. ;Act 2 At the Town Hall, the end-of-term show is to be performed, and Gay must go on stage as a Greek dancer, because the dance teacher of the school has resigned. The school is failing financially, and Gay disguises herself as an auctioneer, to sell off the contents of her basement; and one of the items up for bid is a trunk that turns out to conceal the smugglers' goods. Finally Gay, Linda and her boyfriend return to the professional stage with their students in a hit show.

Musical numbers

*Ruritania *Guards of the Parade *Bees are Buzzin' *An Englishman in Love *Everything Reminds Me of You *Father Thames *Finder, Please Return *Gaiety Glad *If Only He'd Looked My Way *It's Bound To Be Right On the Night *Matter of Minutes *On Such A Night As This *Vitality *Sweet Thames

References

External links

''Gay's the Word'' — The Guide to Musical Theatre
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gay's The Word (Musical) 1950 musicals West End musicals Musicals by Ivor Novello British musicals Musicals set in England