Funny Girl (musical)

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For the film of the same name, see Funny Girl (film).
Funny Girl
Original Cast Album
Music Jule Styne
Lyrics Bob Merrill
Book Isobel Lennart
Based upon The life of Fanny Brice
Productions 1964 Broadway
1966 West End
1968 Film

Funny Girl is a musical with a book by Isobel Lennart, music by Jule Styne, and lyrics by Bob Merrill.

The semi-biographical plot is based on the life and career of Broadway and film star and comedienne Fanny Brice and her stormy relationship with entrepreneur and gambler Nicky Arnstein. Its original title was My Man.

After seventeen previews, the Broadway production, directed by Garson Kanin and choreographed by Carol Haney under the supervision of Jerome Robbins, opened on March 26, 1964 at the Winter Garden Theatre, subsequently transferring to the Majestic Theatre and the Broadway Theatre to complete its total run of 1348 performances. The original cast included Barbra Streisand, Sydney Chaplin, Kay Medford, Danny Meehan, Jean Stapleton, and Lainie Kazan, who also served as Streisand's understudy. Later in the run, Streisand and Chaplin were replaced by Mimi Hines and Johnny Desmond, and Hines' husband and comedy partner Phil Ford also joined the cast.

The musical was produced by Ray Stark, who was Brice's son-in-law via his marriage to her daughter Frances. The production was nominated for eight Tony Awards, but facing tough competition from Hello, Dolly!, it failed to win in any categories.

The 1966 West End production at the Prince of Wales Theatre, starring Streisand, was directed by Lawrence Kasha.

Contents

[edit] Film version

Main article: Funny Girl (film)

The 1968 screen adaptation, directed by William Wyler, paired Streisand with Omar Sharif in the role of Arnstein. Medford repeated her stage role, and Walter Pidgeon was cast as Flo Ziegfeld. The film won Streisand the Academy Award for Best Actress, an honor she shared with Katharine Hepburn for The Lion in Winter, and won her the Golden Globe. The film was nominated for Best Picture, and a host of other awards. The film was a huge hit in theaters, and became the top grossing film of 1968.

[edit] Synopsis

The musical is set in and around New York City just prior to and following World War I. Ziegfeld Follies star Fanny Brice, awaiting the return of husband Nick Arnstein from prison, reflects on their life together, and their story is told as a flashback.

Fanny is shown as a stage-struck teen who gets her first job in vaudeville. Her success as both a comedienne and a singer leads her to meeting the sophisticated Nick Arnstein. They soon become romantically involved and marry. As Fanny becomes a major star with Ziegfield, Nick's business ventures fail and he is arrested for embezzlement.

The musical ends where it started: Nick arrives, and he and Fanny decide to separate.

[edit] Recordings

Barbra Streisand's label, Columbia Records, passed on making the cast album, so Capitol Records picked it up, and it became a Gold Record. The recording was issued on CD in 1992 on EMI's Broadway Angel label.

The movie soundtrack was issued by Columbia Records, with its cover trumpeting five new songs that were not in the Broadway stage production. While this was true, what isn't noted is that seven songs were dropped from the movie version.

[edit] Song list

Act I
  • If a Girl Isn't Pretty  – Mrs. Strakosh, Mrs. Brice, Eddie Ryan and People
  • I'm the Greatest Star  – Fanny Brice
  • Cornet Man  – Fanny Brice, Snub Taylor and Keeney Chorus
  • Who Taught Her Everything?  – Mrs. Brice and Eddie Ryan
  • His Love Makes Me Beautiful  – Ziegfeld Tenor, Ziegfeld Girls and Fanny Brice
  • I Want to Be Seen With You Tonight  – Nick Arnstein and Fanny Brice
  • Henry Street  – Henry Street Neighbors
  • People  – Fanny Brice
  • You Are Woman, I Am Man  – Nick Arnstein and Fanny Brice
  • Don't Rain on My Parade  – Fanny Brice
Act II
  • Sadie, Sadie  – Fanny Brice and Friends
  • Find Yourself a Man  – Mrs. Strakosh, Mrs. Brice and Eddie Ryan
  • Rat-Tat-Tat-Tat  – Ziegfeld Company and Fanny Brice
  • Who Are You Now?  – Fanny Brice
  • The Music That Makes Me Dance  – Fanny Brice
  • Don't Rain on My Parade (Reprise)  – Fanny Brice

[edit] Tony Award nominations

  • Best Musical
  • Best Composer and Lyricist
  • Best Actor in a Musical (Sydney Chaplin)
  • Best Actress in a Musical (Barbra Streisand)
  • Best Featured Actor in a Musical (Danny Meehan)
  • Best Featured Actress in a Musical (Kay Medford)
  • Best Choreography (Carol Haney)
  • Best Producer of a Musical (Ray Stark)

Hello, Dolly! won most of these awards, and the show failed to win in any categories.

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Bob Merrill musicals
v • d • e
Jule Styne musicals