Musical (1988)


Musique: *** Divers
Paroles: *** Divers
Livret: Alistair Beaton • Ned Sherrin
Production à la création:

This is not so much a biography musical as a musical using all the hallmarks of a Ziegfeld revue - colourful costumes, beautiful girls, spectacular scenery and a melodious score from musical numbers by masters of the genre.

1 Ziegfeld peut-être considéré comme un Flop musical


This extravaganza boasted 22 six-foot tail showgirls, a total cast of 60, costumes worth over £1 million and purported to tell the tale of legendary Broadway impresario, Florenz Ziegfeld. Sadly, Ziegfeld himself was a man forever surrounded by dozens of beautiful girls yet unable to build a coherent relationship with any one of them; he was surrounded by millions of his own box-office dollars yet unable to spend it on anything but outer surfaces. He had hit shows but few of the writers and choreographers would stay with him, since he was an impresario with no real idea of
anything beyond spectacle. Since the story of the man himself could not provide any “heart” or plot to the show, it came over as nothing more than a hugely over-the-top fashion parade from the museum of show business. Magnificent to look at - but nothing more.

Within a few weeks of the opening, following a critical mauling and backstage rows, both the director and the leading man left the show. Tommy Steele was called in to re-structure the show and until a new lead was signed up, Marc Urqhart, the understudy, took over the title role. After some re-writing the role of Ziegfeld was played by Topol, but not even he could save this glitteringly expensive musical. It closed on October 1st with losses estimated at some £3 million…


1.Overture - Orchestra
2. A Pretty Girl is Like a Melody - Ziegfeld and male chorus
3. I Wonder What's the Matter With My Eyes - Anna Heald
4. Who? / It Had To Be You - Anna Heald and Ziegfeld
5.How You Gonna Keep 'Em Down on the Farm? - Ziegfeld and Company
6. Nobody - Narrator
7.Shine On Harvest Moon - Lillian
8.My Man - Anna Heald
9.Half Caste Woman - Lillian Lorraine
10.Finale Act I - Billie, Ziegfeld, Clergyman, Marilyn & Company
11.Entr'acte - Orchestra
12.A Girl For Each Month of the Year - Ziegfeld, Goldie & Struggling Writer
13.Mister Gallagher and Mister Shean - Writer & Goldie
14.More Than You Know - Billie
15.Delightful To Be Married - Anna Heald
16.When You Want 'Em - Ziegfeld and Girls
17.He Didn't Wanna - Ziegfeld and Chorus
18.Hot and Bothered - Orchestra
19.I'm Always Chasing Rainbows - Ziegfeld
20.Make Believe - Ziegfeld and Girls
21.(I'll Build) A Stariway to Paradise - The Company

Aucun dossier informatif complémentaire concernant Ziegfeld

Aucun dossier informatif complémentaire concernant Ziegfeld


Version 1

Ziegfeld (1988-04-Palladium Theatre-London)

Type de série: Original
Théâtre: Palladium Theatre (Londres - Angleterre)

Durée : 5 mois 1 semaine
Nombre :
Première Preview : Inconnu
Première: 26 April 1988
Dernière: 01 October 1988
Mise en scène : Joe Layton
Chorégraphie : Joe Layton
Producteur :
Star(s) :
Avec: Len Cariou (.Florenz Ziegfeld), Louise Gold (Goldie), Jaynee & Michelle Jordan (The Dolly Sisters), Fabienne Guyon {Anna Held), Aliki Georgiou (Lillian Lorraine), Haydn Gwynne (Billie Burke), Amanda Rickard (Marilyn Miller)
Commentaires : Although the major revamp occurred on 2 August 1988. There had been a mini-revamp on the 16 May 1988, when Len Cariou resigned, and was replaced (at that afternoon’s matinee) as Ziegfeld by his understudy Marc Urquhart (until Topol took over the role on 2 August 1988). Meanwhile on the same day, director Joe Layton was replaced by Tommy Steele. In addition there were endless changes throughout the show’s infamous seven month run.

According to The Guinness Book Of Records, Ziegfeld’s losses of around £3 million are equal to those of King (a musical about Martin Luther King that ran for 6 weeks in London ending on 2 June 1990), and are the joint second greatest theatrical losses. First place for this record goes to Carrie produced in New York in May 1988, which lost around £4.2 million.

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