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[edit] Thoroughly Modern Millie (musical)

Thoroughly Modern Millie
Window card for original Broadway production
Music Jeanine Tesori
Lyrics Dick Scanlan
Book Richard Morris
Dick Scanlan
Based upon 1967 film Thoroughly Modern Millie
Productions 2002 Broadway production
2003 US tour
2003 West End production
2005 UK tour
Awards 2002 Tony Award Best Musical
2002 Drama Desk Award Outstanding New Musical
This article is about the stage musical. For information about the 1967 musical film starring Julie Andrews, see Thoroughly Modern Millie.

Thoroughly Modern Millie is a Tony Award-winning[1] musical with music by Jeanine Tesori, lyrics by Dick Scanlan, and a book by Richard Morris and Scanlan.[2] Based on the 1967 film of the same name[3], Thoroughly Modern Millie tells the story of a small-town girl, Millie Dillmount, who comes to New York City to marry for money instead of love – a thoroughly modern aim in 1922, when women were just entering the workforce. Millie soon begins to take to delight in the the flapper lifestyle, but problems arise when she checks into a hotel owned by the leader of a white slavery ring in China.[4]

The original production of the comic pastiche, directed by Michael Mayer, underwent several workshops in New York[5] and previews at the La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego, California[6] before ultimately opening on Broadway on April 15, 2002.[2] The production subsequently won six 2002 Tony Awards, including Best Musical.[1] Due to the success of the original Broadway production, both a United States tour[7] and a West End production[8] launched in 2003, followed by a United Kingdom tour in 2005.[9]

[edit] History

In the spring of 1998, Michael Leavitt of Fox Theatricals first announced plans to bring a Michael Mayer-directed stage version of the 1967 musical film Thoroughly Modern Millie, which stars Julie Andrews, Mary Tyler Moore, and Carol Channing, to Broadway.[3] The spoof of 1920's musicals[6], vaguely reminiscent of Andrews's first Broadway show, The Boy Friend[10], was a success, receiving seven Academy Award nominations, including composer Elmer Bernstein's win for Best Original Score.[11]

The musical maintains the basic story line of the original film but, in an effort to be politically correct, tones down many of the stereotypical traits associated with the Asian characters in the film.

[edit] Synopsis

Millie Dillmount escapes to New York City from Salina, Kansas determined to marry her wealthy boss - whoever he may be. Bobbing her hair and assuming the modern look of a "flapper," she takes a room at the Priscilla Hotel for Women and gets a job as a stenographer at the Sincere Trust Insurance Company. In short time, she finds herself involved with Jimmy Smith, a poor but fun-loving paper clip salesman; Miss Dorothy Brown, a genteel aspiring actress who never seems to have spare change but turns out to be a wealthy heiress (and several other stagestruck young women staying at the hotel); and Muzzy van Hossmere, a madcap Manhattan cabaret singer and heiress with a zest for the high life and a glamorous penthouse.

Millie's pompous but wealthy boss, whom she intends to marry, is Trevor Graydon III. But trouble comes in several respects. First, Millie is falling for Jimmy, but Jimmy seems to be having a fling with Millie's new friend, Miss Dorothy. In addition, the hotel proprietress, the mysterious and sinister Mrs. Meers, employs two chinese henchmen, Ching Ho and Bun Foo. They must help her to kidnap any orphans checking into her hotel as part of her dealings in white slavery, so that they can bring their elderly mother to America. One of the potential kidnap victims is Miss Dorothy. Millie tries to seduce Mr. Graydon, until she finds out that Dorothy and Mr. Graydon are in love. Ching Ho also falls in love with Miss Dorothy.

Jimmy finally declares his feelings for Millie. Millie, Jimmy, and Mr. Graydon realize what Mrs. Meers is up to. They persuade Muzzy to pose as a new orphan in town. Mrs. Meers takes the bait and is exposed as the mastermind of the slavery ring. But Ching Ho has already rescued Miss Dorothy and won her heart. Jimmy proposes to Millie, and, poor as he is, she accepts, "because if it's marriage I've got in mind, love has everything to do with it." Jimmy turns out to be Herbert J. Van Hossmere III — Muzzy's stepson, Miss Dorothy's brother and one of the most eligible bachelors in the world.

[edit] Productions

In the early 2000s, the film was adapted for the stage at the La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego, California. Critical reaction was favorable enough to warrant a move to Broadway. Prior to opening, Sutton Foster was plucked from the chorus to assume the title role, a move that propelled her to stardom.

At the Marquis Theatre, 2003
At the Marquis Theatre, 2003

After thirty-two previews, the production, directed by Michael Mayer and choreographed by Rob Ashford, opened on April 18, 2002 at the Marquis Theatre, where it ran for 903 performances. The original cast included Sutton Foster as Millie, Marc Kudisch as Trevor, Angela Christian as Dorothy, Gavin Creel as Jimmy, Harriet Harris as Mrs. Meers, Sheryl Lee Ralph as Muzzy Van Hossmere, Ken Leung as Ching Ho, and Francis Jue as Bun Foo.

Replacements later in the run included Susan Egan as Millie, Delta Burke and Dixie Carter as Mrs. Meers, and Christian Borle as Jimmy. At the April 2, 2003 performance, Meredith Vieira appeared in three minor roles for a segment later broadcast on her daytime talk show The View.

In 2003, the original creative team reunited to stage the show in London's West End Shaftesbury Theatre, a venue notorious for consistently housing flops. It began previews on October 11 and opened on October 21. Starring in the title role was well-known TV personality Amanda Holden, with Maureen Lipman as Mrs. Meers and Sheila Ferguson as Muzzy Van Hossmere. Mrs. Meers subsequently was played by Anita Dobson, and when Holden was forced to take time off due to illness, her understudy Donna Steele took over the role to great acclaim. Despite positive reviews and booking periods extended to January 2005, Thoroughly Modern Millie failed to catch the UK public's attention and closed prematurely on June 26, 2004.

A UK tour beginning in March 2005 fared much better and successfully toured many of the country's major theatres until November, when it closed as planned in Nottingham. The tour starred Steele as Millie, Lesley Joseph as Mrs. Meers, and Grace Kennedy as Muzzy Van Hossmere.

[edit] Song list

Cast album cover
Cast album cover

Songs are by Tesori and Scanlan, unless otherwise noted.

Act I

  • Not for the Life of Me - Millie
  • Thoroughly Modern Millie - Millie and Ensemble (Lyrics by Sammy Cahn, Music by Jimmy Van Heusen)
  • Not for the Life of Me - The Hotel Girls (Reprise)
  • How the Other Half Lives - Millie and Miss Dorothy
  • Not for the Life of Me - Bun Foo and Ching Ho (Reprise)
  • The Speed Test (music from the patter song "My Eyes Are Fully Open" from Gilbert and Sullivan's Ruddigore) - Trevor Graydon, Millie, Stenographers, Office Singers
  • They Don't Know - Mrs. Meers
  • The Nuttycracker Suite (derived from music by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky)
  • What Do I Need with Love? - Jimmy
  • Only in New York - Muzzy
  • Jimmy - Millie (Lyrics by Jay Thompson and Scanlan, Music By Thompson and Tesori)

Act II

  • Forget About the Boy - Millie, Flannery, Office Singers, Stenographers
  • I'm Falling in Love with Someone - Trevor Graydon and Miss Dorothy (Lyrics by Rida Johnson Young, Music by Victor Herbert)
  • I Turned the Corner - Millie, Jimmy, Miss Dorothy, Trevor Graydon
  • Muqin - Mrs. Meers, Bun Foo, Ching Ho (Lyrics by Sam M. Lewis, Joe Young, Walter Donaldson, and Scanlan, Music by Lewis, Young, and Donaldson)
  • Long as I'm Here with You - Muzzy and Muzzy's Boys
  • Gimme Gimme - Millie
  • Thoroughly Modern Millie - Company (Reprise)

An original Broadway cast recording is available on the RCA Victor label.

[edit] Awards and nominations

  • Tony Award for Best Musical (winner)
  • Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical (Foster, winner)
  • Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical (Harris, winner)
  • Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical (Creel, nominee)
  • Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical (Kudisch, nominee)
  • Tony Award for Best Costume Design (winner)
  • Tony Award for Best Choreography (winner)
  • Tony Award for Best Orchestrations (winner)
  • Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical (nominee)
  • Tony Award Best Original Musical Score (nominee)
  • Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical (nominee)
  • Drama Desk Award for Outstanding New Musical (winner)
  • Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical (Foster, winner)
  • Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical (Harris, winner)
  • Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical (Kudisch, nominee)
  • Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Direction of a Musical (winner)
  • Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Orchestrations (winner)
  • Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Book of a Musical (nominee)
  • Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Choreography (nominee)
  • Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lyrics (nominee)
  • Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music (nominee)
  • Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Set Design of a Musical (nominee)
  • Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Costume Design (nominee)

[edit] Notes and references

  1. ^ a b The American Theatre Wing's Tony Awards - Official Site by IBM. IBM Corp., Tony Awards Productions. Retrieved on 2007-06-18.
  2. ^ a b Internet Broadway Database: Thoroughly Modern Millie. The League of American Theatres and Producers. Retrieved on 2007-06-18.
  3. ^ a b Lefkowitz, David (April 17, 1998). Report: Bridge's Michael Mayer To Modernize Millie For B'way. Playbill, Inc. Retrieved on 2007-06-21.
  4. ^ The Guide to Musical Theatre: Thoroughly Modern Millie. David Lewis. Retrieved on 2007-06-21.
  5. ^ Jones, Kenneth and Robert Simonson (October 8, 2000). Millie Wows La Jolla Audience in Makeshift Concert Reading Oct. 6. Playbill, Inc. Retrieved on 2007-06-21.
  6. ^ a b Jones, Kenneth and Christine Ehren (October 14, 1999). Modern Millie Will Sing in NYC Workshop Reading Oct. 15. Playbill, Inc. Retrieved on 2007-06-21.
  7. ^ Jones, Kenneth (July 15, 2003). Beat the Drums, Here Comes Millie on Tour, Starting July 15. Playbill, Inc. Retrieved on 2007-06-21.
  8. ^ Simonson, Robert (September 24, 2003). Full Cast of London Millie Announced; Begins Oct. 11. Playbill, Inc. Retrieved on 2007-06-21.
  9. ^ Jones, Kenneth (June 20, 2004). Thoroughly Modern Millie Ends Broadway Run; National Tour Continues and U.K. Tour Expected. Playbill, Inc. Retrieved on 2007-06-21.
  10. ^ Internet Broadway Database: Julie Andrews Credits on Broadway. The League of American Theatres and Producers. Retrieved on 2007-06-22.
  11. ^ The American Theatre Wing's Tony Awards - Official Site by IBM. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Retrieved on 2007-06-23.

[edit] External links