''Jerry's Girls'' 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 ...

based on the songs of

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...

lyric Lyric may refer to: * Lyrics, the words, often in verse form, which are sung, usually to a melody, and constitute the semantic content of a song * Lyric poetry is a form of poetry that expresses a subjective, personal point of view * Lyric, from t ...

ist

Jerry Herman Gerald Sheldon Herman (July 10, 1931December 26, 2019) was an American composer and lyricist, known for his work in Broadway theatre. One of the most commercially successful Broadway songwriters of his time, Herman was the composer and lyricist ...

Production history

Created by Herman and Larry Alford in 1981, the show originated as a modest presentation at Onstage, a

nightclub A nightclub or dance club is a club that is open at night, usually for drinking, dancing and other entertainment. Nightclubs often have a Bar (establishment), bar and discotheque (usually simply known as disco) with a dance floor, laser lighti ...

located in the

Theater District A theater district (also spelled theatre district) is a common name for a neighborhood containing a city's theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences ...

Midtown Manhattan Midtown Manhattan is the central portion of the New York City borough of Manhattan, serving as the city's primary central business district. Midtown is home to some of the city's most prominent buildings, including the Empire State Building, the ...

, New York City. The revue consisted of four actresses and Herman. Writing in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', John S. Wilson called it "a brilliantly lively and scintillating evening of

cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, casino, hotel, restaurant, or nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or drinking, ...

." After '' La Cage aux Folles'' opened to rave reviews two years later, producer

Zev Buffman Zev Buffman (born Ze'ev Bufman) (October 11, 1930 – April 1, 2020) was a Broadway producer who served as president and CEO of Ruth Eckerd Hall in Clearwater, Florida. He produced more than 40 Broadway shows. He partnered with Elizabeth Taylo ...

approached the pair and suggested they mount a full-scale, all-star version. On February 28, 1984, the expanded ''Jerry's Girls'' premiered at the Royal Poinciana Playhouse in

Palm Beach, Florida Palm Beach is an incorporated town in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. Located on a barrier island in east-central Palm Beach County, the town is separated from West Palm Beach, Florida, West Palm Beach and Lake Worth Beach, Florida, ...

, with

Carol Channing Carol Elaine Channing (January 31, 1921 – January 15, 2019) was an American actress, comedian, singer and dancer who starred in Broadway and film musicals. Each of her characters typically possessed a fervent expressiveness and an easily ide ...

, Andrea McArdle, and

Leslie Uggams Leslie Marian Uggams (; born May 25, 1943) is an American actress and singer. After beginning her career as a child in the early 1950s, she garnered acclaim for her role in the Broadway theatre, Broadway musical ''Hallelujah, Baby!'', winning a T ...

, backed by an all-female chorus, recreating scenes and songs from Herman's hits, including '' Hello, Dolly!'', ''

Mame MAME (formerly an acronym of Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator) is a free and open-source emulator designed to emulate the hardware of arcade games, video game consoles, old computers and other systems in software on modern personal computers and ...

'', and '' Mack and Mabel''. ''Jerry's Girls'', the show's opening number set to the music of "It's Today" from ''Mame'', enumerated the many actresses who had appeared in Herman's shows over the years. The show then toured, playing at the

Kennedy Center The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, commonly known as the Kennedy Center, is the national cultural center of the United States, located on the eastern bank of the Potomac River in Washington, D.C. Opened on September 8, ...

's Eisenhower Theater for six weeks in June 1984. The revue went on to play engagements in 1984: in Kansas City, Missouri, Seattle, Vancouver, British Columbia, San Francisco, Denver, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and New Orleans. An

original cast recording A cast recording is a recording of a stage musical that is intended to document the songs as they were performed in the show and experienced by the audience. An original cast recording or OCR, as the name implies, features the voices of the sho ...

was released by

Polydor Records Polydor Limited, also known as Polydor Records, is a British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in ...

. The revue premiered 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 Stre ...

, directed by Alford and

choreographed Choreography is the art 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 creates choreographies thr ...

Wayne Cilento Wayne Louis Cilento (born August 28, 1949) is an American director, choreographer, actor and dancer. He is best known for originating the role of Mike in the Broadway show ''A Chorus Line'', and later becoming one of Broadway's most prolific ch ...

, on December 18, 1985 at the St. James Theatre, where it ran for 141 performances and 14 previews. Uggams was joined by new cast members

Dorothy Loudon Dorothy Loudon (September 17, 1925 – November 15, 2003) was an American actress and singer. She won the Tony Award for Best Lead Actress in a Musical in 1977 for her performance as Miss Hannigan in '' Annie''. Loudon was also nominated for T ...

and

Chita Rivera Dolores Conchita Figueroa del Rivero (January 23, 1933 – January 30, 2024), known professionally as Chita Rivera, was an American actress, singer, and dancer. Rivera received numerous accolades including two Tony Awards, two Drama Desk Awa ...

. (Channing had other commitments and Chita Rivera was cast for her strong dancing.) A chorus of eight singers was added. Some reviewers praised the revue, with

Clive Barnes Clive Alexander Barnes (13 May 1927 – 19 November 2008) was an English writer and critic. From 1965 to 1977, he was the dance and theater critic for ''The New York Times'', and, from 1978 until his death, the ''New York Post''. Barnes had sign ...

writing "It can stay at the St. James Theatre forever, at the very least." In a critical review,

Frank Rich Frank Hart Rich Jr. (born June 2, 1949) is an American essayist and liberal op-ed columnist, who held various positions within ''The New York Times'' from 1980 to 2011. He has also produced television series and documentaries for HBO. Rich is ...

of ''The New York Times'' wrote "The only thing that ''Jerry's Girls'' has in common with a bona fide Jerry Herman musical is that it occupies the St. James, the theater where Dolly once promised she'd never go away again... Whatever the point of the all-female cast, one must still wonder why the show's particular female stars were chosen. None of them have been associated with Mr. Herman's musicals. Only one (Miss Uggams) is primarily a singer. All three have strident mannerisms that the director, Larry Alford, takes sadistic glee in calling to our attention." Chita Rivera received a nomination for the

Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical The Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical is an honor presented at the Tony Awards, a ceremony established in 1947 as the Antoinette Perry Awards for Excellence in Theatre, to actresses for quality leading roles in a m ...

International productions

An Australian production featuring

Debbie Byrne Debra Anne Byrne (born 30 March 1957), formerly billed as Debbie Byrne, is an Australian pop singer, variety entertainer, theatre and TV actress and writer, director and choreographer of cabaret. From April 1971 to March 1975 she was a founding ...

, Judi Connelli, Marcia Hines and Jeanne Little played in Sydney and Melbourne in 1987. It was staged by Alford with set and costume design by Roger Kirk. The revue was presented in London at the St. James Studio in March 2015, Produced by Katy Lipson for Aria Entertainment and Guy James, starring Anna-Jane Casey, Ria Jones and Sarah-Louise Young, with direction by Kate Golledge and choreography by Matthew Cole. The revue transferred to the Off-West End

Jermyn Street Theatre Jermyn Street Theatre is a performance venue situated on Jermyn Street, in London's West End. It is an Off West End studio theatre. History Jermyn Street Theatre opened in August 1994. It was formerly the changing rooms for staff at a Spaghet ...

for a 3-week run in May 2015, with Emma Barton, Ria Jones and Sarah-Louise Young. The reviewer of the Jermyn Street Theatre production wrote: "When all three are singing and dancing together, the production cannot be faulted. The harmonies are strong and secure, and give real substance to Herman’s magnificent tunes."

The Production Company The Production Company was an Australian not-for-profit theatre company that staged a series of usually three musicals at the Arts Centre Melbourne each year. It was launched in 1999 by Jeanne Pratt AC with the goal of providing "professional o ...

presented the revue at the Playhouse, Arts Centre, Melbourne, Australia from 21 November to 6 December 2015. This production included eleven leading actresses. The director Dean Bryant set the revue in a rehearsal hall.Mattarelli, Vito
''Jerry's Girls''
australianstage.com.au, 22 November 2015

Original cast album song list

;Act I *Jerry's Girls *It Takes a Woman/Put On Your Sunday Clothes (from ''Hello, Dolly!'') *It Only Takes a Moment (from ''Hello, Dolly!'') *Wherever He Ain't (from ''Mack & Mabel'') *We Need a Little Christmas (from ''Mame'') *I Won't Send Roses (from ''Mack & Mabel'') *Tap Your Troubles Away (from ''Mack & Mabel'') *Two-a-Day (from ''

Parade A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, floats, or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually some variety ...

'') *Bosom Buddies (from ''Mame'') *The Man in the Moon (from ''Mame'') *So Long Dearie (from ''Hello, Dolly!'') *Take It All Off *Two-a-Day (reprise) *Shalom (from ''Milk and Honey'') *Milk and Honey (from ''Milk and Honey'') *Show Tune (from ''

'') *If He Walked Into My Life (from ''Mame'') *Hello Dolly! (from ''Hello, Dolly!'') ;Act II *Entr'acte *Just Go to the Movies (from ''A Day in Hollywood/A Night in the Ukraine'') *Movies Were Movies (from ''Mack & Mabel'') *Look What Happened to Mabel (from ''Mack & Mabel'') *Nelson (from ''A Day in Hollywood/A Night in the Ukraine'') *Just Go to the Movies (reprise) *Time Heals Everything (from ''Mack & Mabel'') *It's Today (from ''Mame'') *Mame ( from ''Mame'') *Kiss Her Now (from ''Dear World'') *That's How Young I Feel (from ''Mame'') *Open A New Window (from ''Mame'') *Gooch's Song (from ''Mame'') *Before the Parade Passes By (from ''Hello, Dolly!'') *I Don't Want To Know (from ''Dear World'') *Song On the Sand (from ''La Cage aux Folles'') *I Am What I Am (from ''La Cage aux Folles'') *The Best of Times (from ''La Cage aux Folles'') *Jerry's Turn (Jerry Herman and his Girls)

References

External links

* {{Jerry Herman 1984 musicals Broadway musicals Revues