| Oh, What a Lovely War! | |
|---|---|
| Music | various |
| Lyrics | various |
| Book | Joan Littlewood and Theatre Workshop |
| Basis | The Donkeys by Alan Clark |
| Productions | 1963 Stratford and West End 1964 Broadway 2010 UK Tour |
Oh, What a Lovely War! is an epic musical originated by Charles Chilton as a radio play, The Long Long Trail in December 1961,[1][2] and transferred to stage by Gerry Raffles in partnership with Joan Littlewood and her Theatre Workshop in 1963.[3] It is based on The Donkeys by military historian (and future Conservative politician) Alan Clark, with some scenes adapted from The Good Soldier Švejk by Czech humorist Jaroslav Hašek; It is a satire on World War I (and by extension against war in general). The title is derived from the music hall song "Oh! It's a Lovely War," which is one of the major numbers in the production.
The musical premiered at the Theatre Royal Stratford East on 19 March 1963; according to Charles Chilton, Joan Littlewood was unconvinced until the show actually opened. The official censor did not grant permission for performance in the West End until Princess Margaret attended a performance and commented to the Lord Chamberlain, Lord Cobbold, that "What you've said here tonight should have been said long ago, don't you agree, Lord Cobbold?"; at this point the transfer was more or less assured despite the objections of the family of Field Marshal Haig. It was an ensemble production featuring members of the theatre's regular company, which included Brian Murphy, Victor Spinetti and Glynn Edwards, all of whom played multiple roles. The sets were designed by John Bury. The production subsequently transferred to Wyndham's Theatre in June of the same year.[4] The production was a surprise hit, and the musical was adapted by the BBC for radio several times.
The musical premiered in the United States on Broadway at the Broadhurst Theatre on 30 September 1964 and closed on 16 January 1965 after 125 performances; it was seen here by former subaltern Basil Rathbone, who wrote to Charles Chilton that "we were duped, it was a disgusting war". Directed by Littlewood, the cast featured Spinetti and Murphy, plus Barbara Windsor. It received four Tony Award nominations, including Best Musical, and Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical (for Windsor). Spinetti won the Theatre World Award.
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The show is usually performed in pierrot costumes and features such World War I-era songs as "It's a Long Way to Tipperary," "Pack up Your Troubles" and "Keep the Home Fires Burning." Harsh images of war and shocking statistics are projected onto the backdrop, providing a contrast with the comedy of the action taking place before it.
The song "Oh! It's a Lovely War" was written by J. P. Long and Maurice Scott in 1917 and was part of the repertoire of music hall star and male impersonator Ella Shields.[5] The lyrics of first verse and the chorus are as follows:
Two renditions of the song, one from 1918, can be heard at firstworldwar.com. Almost all of the songs featured in the musical also appear on the CD41 album series Oh! It's A Lovely War (four volumes)[6]
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The musical was taken by a later generation of conservative historians, such as Gary Sheffield, as a key example of what they regarded as a false view of the war, unfair on generals and on the British Empire.
Other Appearances
Several Australian World War I movies and miniseries ('The Lighthorsemen', 'Gallipoli') have used these songs to give a stronger sense of period to them; the 80's series, 'ANZACs' used 'Oh, it's a lovely war' as one of the numbers while the credits rolled; 'I wore a tunic' was performed as part of an entertainment piece while the characters were on easy duties - 'Keep the home fires burning' was another credit number and 'The Bells of Hell' was sung by Tony Bonner and Andrew Clarke.