Gypsy: A Musical Fable

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This article is about the stage musical. For the source book, see Gypsy: A Memoir. For the film, see Gypsy (1962 film)

Gypsy: A Musical Fable is the full title of a 1959 musical with music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a book by Arthur Laurents. (It is usually referred to as simply Gypsy.) Gypsy is loosely based on the memoirs of Gypsy Rose Lee, the famous striptease artist, and focuses on her struggle with her mother, Mama Rose, whose name has become synonymous with "the ultimate show business mother." It contains many songs that became popular standards, including "Small World," Everything's Coming up Roses, "You'll Never Get Away from Me," and "Let Me Entertain You."

Gypsy has been referred to as the greatest American musical by numerous critics and writers, among them Ben Brantley^[1] and Frank Rich;^[2] Rich even goes so far as to call it the American musical theatre's answer to King Lear. Theater critic Clive Barnes wrote that "Gypsy is one of the best of musicals..."

The character of Rose was described by Barnes as "one of the few truly complex characters in the American musical...bossy, demanding, horrific..."^[3] Rose was described by Rich as "a monster".^[2] Critic Walter Kerr points out that though Rose is a monster, she must be liked and understood.^[4]

Contents 1 Plot summary 2 Stage productions 3 Film 4 Notable Stage Casts 5 Songs 6 Tony Awards and Nominations 7 Trivia 8 External links 9 References and footnotes

[edit] Plot summary

The musical follows Rose and her two daughters, June and Louise, as they play the vaudeville circuit around the United States during the Depression. Rose has an enormous personality and pushes her children to perform, and in the early scenes it is clear that Louise is shy, and June is the talented star. Rose meets a man named Herbie and persuades him to become their manager (with the song "Small World"). When June tires of life on the road and her mother's smothering pushiness, she runs away with one of the "boys" in the act. Rose then vows that she will make Louise a star, proclaiming, in the Act I closing song, that "Everything's Coming Up Roses."

As a young lady, Louise and the girls in the act wind up at a burlesque house as a last resort, as the vaudeville circuit is drying up. Herbie proposes to Rose and asks her to break up the act and let Louise have a normal life. Rose is on the verge of accepting, but she cannot resist the urge to give Louise another nudge toward stardom, and she volunteers Louise to do a strip as a last-minute replacement. Although reluctant, Louise wants to please her mother; she goes on, shy and hesitant, singing the silly song ("Let me entertain you") that the kiddie act had used. She removes only her glove. The audience goes wild, and this becomes Louise's "gimmick". In the months that follow she becomes secure, always following her mother's advice to "Make 'em beg for more and then don't give it to them!" - this is demonstrated in a montage in which the song becomes brasher and brassier, and more and more articles of clothing come off. Ultimately Louise becomes a major burlesque star and does not need her mother any more. Herbie has walked out on them, and Rose, sad and feeling useless, asks "Why did I do it? When is it my turn?" in the final song, "Rose's Turn". She fantasizes her own lit up runway and cheering audience, but finally admits "I did it for me." Mother and daughter tentatively step toward reconciliation at the end.

In real life, June took the name June Havoc; Louise became Gypsy Rose Lee.

[edit] Stage productions

• 1959 Original Broadway Production
  • The original production opened on May 21, 1959, at The Broadway Theatre, moved to the Imperial Theatre, and ran for 702 performances after 2 previews. Produced by David Merrick it starred Ethel Merman, Jack Klugman, Maria Karnilova, and Sandra Church in the title role. Direction and choreography were by Jerome Robbins; critic Frank Rich has referred to Robbins' work as one of the most influential stagings of a musical in American theatrical history.^[2]

• 1974 Revival
  • Opened on September 23, 1974, at the Winter Garden Theatre and ran for 120 performances after 4 previews. This was based on a London production, where it opened on May 29, 1973 at the Piccadilly Theatre and played for 300 performances. The director of both productions was Arthur Laurents. It starred Angela Lansbury as Rose, with Zan Charisse and Rex Robbins.

• 1989 Revival
  • Opened on November 16, 1989, at the St. James Theatre, moved to the Marquis Theatre, and ran for 476 performances after 23 previews. Laurents again directed. Tyne Daly played Rose (later replaced by Linda Lavin), with Jonathan Hadary and Crista Moore.

• 2003 Revival
  • Opened on May 1, 2003, at the Shubert Theatre and ran for 451 performances after 33 previews. Sam Mendes was the director. Bernadette Peters starred; her performance was called the first "to have broken the Merman mold."^[1] Tammy Blanchard (Louise/Gypsy) and John Dossett (Herbie) co-starred. This production became somewhat controversial when Peters missed performances during previews and early in the run, and the show closed at a loss despite running more than a full season.^[5]

• 1998 Paper Mill Playhouse Production
  • A 1998 production featuring Betty Buckley and Deborah Gibson at the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, New Jersey was rumored to be Broadway bound, but a production did not materialize.

• 2006 Ravinia Festival (Chicago) Production
  • From August 11-13, 2006, Patti LuPone played Mama Rose in Chicago's Ravinia Festival semi-staged production.

• 2007 Encores! City Center (New York) Production
  • Gypsy will be presented by Encores! from July 9 to 29, with Patti LuPone playing Rose, and direction by Arthur Laurents. (http://www.nycitycenter.org/events/event_detail.cfm?event_code=STP08)

This article contains information about an upcoming Broadway play or musical. The content is expected to change as more information becomes available and/or it has its official opening night.

[edit] Film

• 1962 film
  • Rosalind Russell, Karl Malden, and Natalie Wood starred in the 1962 Warner Bros. film version. Rosalind Russell won the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture Actress - Musical/Comedy.

• 1993 television movie
  • The musical was also adapted as a television movie in 1993 with Bette Midler playing Rose, and directed by Emile Ardolino. Cynthia Gibb portrayed Louise and Jennifer Beck portrayed Dainty June. Bette Midler won the Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for TV; Michael Rafter won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Music Direction.

• Rumored new movie version
  • In 2006, columnists Liz Smith and Michael Riedel wrote about rumors that producer Harvey Weinstein and director Rob Marshall were interested in a remake of the film. Various names were mentioned for Rose and Gypsy Rose Lee, among them Meryl Streep, Barbara Streisand, and Catherine Zeta-Jones.^[6] (See: http://www.playbill.com/news/article/100357.html; New York Post, November 22, 2006) Nothing further has been heard.

[edit] Notable Stage Casts

The following table shows the principal casts of the major professional productions of Gypsy:

Cast of various productions of Gypsy

	Rose	Louise	June	Herbie	Director
Original 1959 Broadway Production	Ethel Merman	Sandra Church	Lane Bradbury	Jack Klugman	Jerome Robbins
1974 Broadway Revival	Angela Lansbury	Zan Charisse	Maureen Moore	Rex Robbins	Jerome Robbins
1989 Broadway Revival	Tyne Daly	Christa Moore	Tracy Venner	Jonathan Hadary	Arthur Laurents
1998 Paper Mill Playhouse Production	Betty Buckley	Deborah Gibson
2003 Broadway Revival	Bernadette Peters	Tammy Blanchard	Kate Reinders	John Dossett	Sam Mendes
2006 Ravinia Festival Chicago Production	Patti LuPone	Jessica Boevers		Jack Willis	Lonny Price

[edit] Songs

ACT 1

1. "Overture" - Orchestra
2. "May We Entertain You" - Baby June and Baby Louise
3. "Some People" - Rose
4. "Small World" - Rose and Herbie
5. "Baby June and Her Newsboys" - Baby June and newsboys
6. "Mr. Goldstone" - Rose, Herbie, ensemble
7. "Little Lamb" - Louise
8. "You'll Never Get Away From Me" - Rose and Herbie
9. "Dainty June and Her Farmboys" - June and farmboys
10. "If Momma Was Married" - June and Louise
11. "All I Need is the Girl" - Tulsa and Louise
12. "Everything's Coming Up Roses" - Rose

ACT 2

1. "Madame Rose's Toreadorables" - Rose, Louise and the Hollywood Blondes
2. "Together Wherever We Go" - Rose, Herbie, and Louise
3. "You Gotta Get a Gimmick" - Mazeppa, Electra, and Tessie Tura
4. "Let Me Entertain You" - Louise
5. "Rose's Turn" - Rose

During the pre-Broadway tryout tour in 1959, "If Momma Was Married" was written to replace a similar song, "Mama's Talkin' Soft," which was recorded by Petula Clark and released as a single in the UK in 1959.

[edit] Tony Awards and Nominations

1959 Original Production

• Tony Award for Best Musical Nominee
• Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical (Ethel Merman) Nominee
• Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical (Jack Klugman) Nominee
• Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical (Sandra Church) Nominee
• Tony Award for Best Scenic Design of a Musical Nominee
• Tony Award for Best Costume Design of a Musical Nominee
• Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical Nominee
• Tony Award for Best Conductor and Musical Director Nominee

• (The Best Musical was won by Fiorello and The Sound of Music, the latter of which which dominated the Awards.)

1974 Revival

• Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical (Angela Lansbury) WINNER
• Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical (Zan Cherrisee) Nominee
• Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical Nominee
  • The show was awarded Tony's for the year of 1975

1989 Revival

• Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical (Tyne Daly) WINNER
• Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical (Jonathan Hardary) Nominee
• Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical (Christa Moore) Nominee
• Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical WINNER
  • The show was awarded Tony's for the year of 1990

2003 Revival

• Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical (Bernadette Peters) Nominee
• Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical (John Dossett) Nominee
• Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical (Tammy Blanchard) Nominee
• Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical Nominee

[edit] Trivia

• Stephen Sondheim often said that the book is strong enough to stand on its own, but book writer Arthur Laurents is quoted as saying that the character of Mamma Rose is too big to exist without the addition of music.

• The original Broadway cast album is notable as Ethel Merman's first recording in the then-new stereophonic sound technology. (Motion pictures recorded in stereo had been steadily made since 1953, and stereo was first used on magnetic tape in 1954, but it was not until 1958, a year before Gypsy opened, that it became possible to use this technology on records.)

• It is frequently considered one of the crowning achievements of the mid-20th century's conventional musical theatre art form, often called the "book musical."

[edit] External links

• Internet Broadway Database for Gypsy
• Gypsy at sondheim.com http://sondheim.com/shows/gypsy/
• Internet Movie Database for Gypsy, 1962
• Internet Movie Database for Gypsy, 1993 TV movie

[edit] References and footnotes

1. ^ ^{a b} Brantley, Ben. New Momma Takes Charge. New York Times.2 May 2003. Available here
2. ^ ^{a b c} Rich, Frank. The Hot Seat. Random House, 1998.
3. ^ Barnes, Clive. Gypsy Bounces Back With Zest and Lilt. New York Times. 24 September 1974.
4. ^ Kerr, Walter. Two Musicals We Need Have Checked In New York Times. 17 December 1989
5. ^ The production lost little less than half of its $8 million capitalization according to the New York Times, February 3, 2004, p. E5
6. ^ Smith, Liz. Syndicated, New York Post June 13, 2006.