Rose Marie (operetta)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Rose Marie is an operetta-style musical play by Rudolf Friml and Herbert Stothart, with a libretto by Otto Harbach and Oscar Hammerstein II.
The work was first produced on Broadway on September 2, 1924, running for a very successful 557 performances. It was then produced at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in London in 1925, enjoying another extraordinary run of 581 performances. The original West End production had a chorus of eighty. A touring company premiered the work in Canada on January 12, 1925 at the Royal Alexandra Theatre in Toronto. Other Canadian productions have been given by the Variétés lyriques in 1937 and another in 1945, in French; by Theatre Under the Stars in 1940, by Melody Fair in 1951 and by the Eaton Operatic Society in 1959.
The best-known song from the musical is Indian Love Call. It became Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy's "signature" song. Several other numbers have also become standards, including the title song.
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[edit] Subsequent adaptations, productions, parodies etc.
The show has been filmed at least four times, including twice in 1928 in the silent era. Joan Crawford starred in one of these versions, alongside James Murray. Their version was filmed on location at Yosemite National Park. Crawford later remarked, "Rose Marie was surprisingly good without the music, but I felt uneasy as a French Canadian, but the critics didn't notice."
The best known version was that of 1936, which starred Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy. However, the original plot and most of the songs were dropped in this version. Nonetheless, it was a huge success and became MacDonald and Eddy's best-known film. In 1954, MGM produced an Eastmancolor version in Cinemascope, which (more or less) followed the original plot, but still dropped most of Friml's songs. This version starred Ann Blyth, Howard Keel, and Fernando Lamas, with Bert Lahr and Marjorie Main as comic relief and was choreographed by Busby Berkeley.
Rose Marie has been produced professionally in recent decades, including by the Shaw Festival in Canada in 1981, the Light Opera of Manhattan several times in the 1970s and 1980s, in 1987 by Light Opera Works of Illinois and by Ohio Light Opera in 2003.
The work is the main (but by no means the only) target of the satirical musical Little Mary Sunshine, which parodies elements of the plot as well as the style of several of the songs. In particular, the song "Colorado Love Call" from Little Mary Sunshine is a parody of "Indian Love call" from Rose Marie.
[edit] Synopsis
Act I
In Fond du Lac, Saskatchewan, Canada, trappers, hunters, and travellers gather at Lady Jane's hotel ("Vive la Canadienne"). Mountie Sergent Malone is flirting with Lady Jane, while city man Edward Hawley is watching a French Canadian girl, Rose Marie La Flamme, even though she's miner Jim Kenyon's sweetheart. Rose Marie's brother, Èmile, is searching for her, fearing she is alone with Jim. Wanda, a half-blooded Indian, dances particularly close to Hawly, enraging her Indian lover, Black Eagle. Lady Jane's man, "Hard-Boiled Herman" arrives at the bar. Black Eagle is found knifed to death in his cabin, and Jim falls under suspicion.
Jim escapes to his mountain lodge, and he sends messages to Rose Marie by using the Indian love call. Emile knows Jim's route and uses the knowledge to try to blackmail his sister into marrying a rich Quebec man named Hawley. Rose Marie tells Emile that she has begun to doubt Jim's innocence and that she will marry Hawley, but she has secret plans to run off with Jim. Sergeant Malone and the Mounties arrive to arrest Jim for murder, and Rose Marie warns Jim to run for the border, using the Indian love call; he leaves alone.
Act II
Rose Marie is about to marry Hawley in Quebec, believing that Jim was the killer. Jim returns, bringing a half-indian woman named Wanda, the real killer. Wanda jealously threatens Hawley, who had witnessed the murder. Sergeant Malone prepares to arrest Jim, who is hiding in Kootenay Pass. In the middle of the wedding ceremony, Wanda confesses and declares her love for Hawley. Everyone rushes to Jim's lodgings, and Rose Marie goes to the pass to return Jim's Indian love call – the lovers are finally united.
[edit] Musical numbers
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[edit] Recordings
The operetta has been recorded a number of times, including in 1958 (RCA Victor LSO-1001) by a cast starring Julie Andrews and Giorgio Tozzi.
[edit] References
- Information from Musical Theatre Guide
- Information from The Canadian Encyclopedia
- Information from Stageagent.com
- Synopsis of the show
[edit] External links
- Information about the 1928 Joan Crawford version
- Rose Marie (1936) at Jeanette Macdonald and Nelson Eddy: A Tribute
- Information about the 1936 film
- Information about the 1954 film
- NY Times review of the 1954 film
- IBDB listing for the Broadway production
