Opening the 1999 Encores! Season at New York City Center, Babes in Arms ran from February 11-14, directed by Kathleen Marshall with musical direction by Rob Fisher. The cast featured Donna McKechnie, Thommie Walsh, Don Correia and Priscilla Lopez as the parents of the “babes,” with the principle roles played by David Campbell, Erin Dilly, Melissa Rain Anderson, Christopher Fitzgerald, … Read More
1939 Motion Picture
MGM’s film adaptation of Babes in Arms was released nationwide on October 13, 1939. Loosely based on the stage musical by Rodgers & Hart, the film dispensed with most songs from the original and replaced them with songs by other writers. (Only two Rodgers & Hart songs, the title number and “Where or When,” remained; “The Lady is a Tramp” … Read More
1937 Original Broadway Production
On April 14, 1937, just two weeks after its final preview in Boston, Rodgers and Hart’s Babes in Arms premiered on Broadway, introducing a trove of songs that would later be considered integral to the Great American Songbook. Directed by Robert B. Sinclair, choreographed by George Balanchine, and featuring Alfred Drake, Mitzi Green, Dana Hardwick, Ray Heatherton and the Nicholas … Read More
2016 West End Revival
After premiering at Sheffield Crucible in December 2015, Daniel Evans’ epic production of Show Boat transferred to the West End, where it opened at the New London Theatre on April 25, 2016. Critically hailed as “exceptional” by The Guardian, this special return to the London stage featured performances by Gina Beck, Emmanuel Kojo, Michael Xavier and more.
1994 Broadway Revival
For this remarkable return to Broadway, Harold Prince helmed what the New York Times called a “gloriously bold re-examination of the indestructible classic.” Show Boat previewed in Toronto in 1993 before gliding into Broadway’s Gershwin Theatre. With choreography by Susan Stroman, the seventy-person cast featured Broadway’s best talent, including Michel Bell as Joe, Rebecca Luker as Magnolia, Lonette McKee as … Read More
1983 Broadway Revival
Show Boat returned to Broadway for a short but notable run when it opened at the Uris Theatre on April 24, 1983. On June 5, in the middle of Show Boat‘s run, the theatre was renamed the Gershwin Theatre. Originally produced by The Houston Grand Opera, this production was directed by Michael Kahn with choreography by Dorothy Danner and musical … Read More
1971 West End Revival
Making its third West End appearance, Show Boat returned to London at the Adelphi Theatre with a sparking new production by Wendy Toye. Starring Cleo Laine, Derek Royle, Ena Cabayo, Pearl Hackney and more, this revival played a stunning 910 performances, running for over two years.
1966 Lincoln Center Revival
This critically acclaimed limited run at New York’s Lincoln Center boasted some of Broadway’s best talent, including Barbara Cook, Constance Towers, Stephen Douglass and David Wayne, under the music direction of Franz Allers.
1951 Motion Picture
Presented by MGM with a “visual splendor and richness of [the] musical score,” this new film adaptation of Show Boat hit theatres across the country on September 24, 1951. Starring Kathryn Grayson, Ava Gardner, Howard Keel and William Warfield, this fresh adaptation of Kern and Hammerstein’s stage musical leaned into the drama of its central characters and away from much … Read More
1946 Broadway Revival
After its stellar 1943 production in London, Show Boat returned to Broadway for its second revival. Staged by Hassard Short and choreographed by Helen Tamiris, with “book directed by” Oscar Hammerstein II, the production opened on January 5, 1946 at the Ziegfeld Theatre, where it played 418 performances. The opening night cast featured Carol Bruce as Julie, Jan Clayton as … Read More