Wednesday, April 20, 2011

FROM STAGE TO SCREEN … THE BAND WAGON

 

Adele04 Fred and Adele Astaire in “The Band Wagon”

The Band Wagon, (1931).

Music by Arthur Schwartz; lyrics by Howard Dietz;

sketches by George S. Kaufman & Dietz.

SONGS: “It Better Be Good,” “Sweet Music,” “Hoops,” “High and Low,” “Confession,” ‘~New Sun in the Sky,” “Miserable with You,” “I Love Louisa,” “Dancing in the Dark,” “Where Can He Be~. ,“ “The Beggar Waltz,” “White Heat.”

NEW YORK: June 3, 1931

NEW AMSTERDAM THEATRE; 260 performances.

CAST: Fred & Adele Astaire, Frank Morgan, Helen Broderick, Tilly Losch, Philip Loch, John Barker.

A follow-up to Three’s a Crowd, but with a different cast, the revue had the same producer, composer, lyricist, director, choreographer, and designers. Like its predecessor, it was celebrated for its stylish, artistic approach to the revue form. It was the first production to use a double revolving stage as an integral part of the songs and sketches. The most famous sketch,“The Pride of the Claghornes,” depicted the consternation of a proud southern patriarch when he discovers his daughter is a virgin. It was after the NY run that Adele Astaire retired from the stage.

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MGM, 1953, Color, 112 minutes

Produced by: Arthur Freed
Associate Producer: Roger Edens
Directed by: Vincente Minnelli
Assistant Director: Jerry Thorpe
Story and Screen Play: Betty Comden and Adolph Green
Songs by: Howard Dietz and Arthur Schwartz
Dances and Musical Numbers Staged by: Michael Kidd
Music Direction: Adolph Deutsch
Orchestrations: Conrad Salinger, Skip Martin and Alexander Courage
Set Decorations: Edwin B. Willis, Keogh Gleason
Costumes by: Mary Ann Nyberg

Cast:
Fred Astaire (Tony Hunter),
Cyd Charisse (Gaby Berard),
Oscar Levant (Lester Marton),
Nanette Fabray (Lily Marton),
Jack Buchanan (Jeffrey Cordova),
James Mitchell (Paul Byrd),
Ava Gardner (herself),
LeRoy Daniels (Shoe Shine Boy)

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1 Main title
2 By myself
3 Penny arcade
4 A shine on your shoes
5 Oedipus bridge
6 That's entertainment
7 Is it all a dream
8 Sweet music
9 You have everything
10 Got a bran' new suit
11 Sweet music
12 Carriage in the park/High and low
13 Dancing in the dark
14 Two-faced woman
15 You and the night and the music
16 The egg
17 Something to remember you by
18 I love Louisa
19 New sun in the sky
20 I guess i'll have to change my plan
21 Louisiana hayride
22 Triplets
23 The girl hunt ballet
24 By myself
25 For he's a jolly good fellow
26 That's entertainment
27 Two-faced woman
28 That's entertainment
29 Main title

1 comment:

  1. Is there anywhere to get the original lyrics to the 1931 version of "I Love Louisa"? I have always wanted to translate the original German stanza, and the 1953 movie version is just not right.

    -Ursid

    ReplyDelete