Dearest Enemy (1925), a musical comedy by Herbert Fields (book), Richard Rodgers (music), Lorenz Hart (lyrics). [Knickerbocker Theatre, 286 perf.] When the British General Howe (Harold Crane) stops at the home of New Yorker Mrs. Robert Murray (Flavia Arcaro) for some rest and refreshment, the good lady contrives to delay him and his associates until the American troops of General Putnam (Percy Woodley) have time to escape and join Washington (H. E. Eldridge) at Harlem Heights. The delay allows Mrs. Murray's niece, Betsy Burke (Helen Ford), to fall in love with British Captain Sir John Copeland (Charles Purcell). The romance seems to fall apart when Copeland believes Betsy has signaled the Americans, but after the war he reconsiders and returns to consummate the courtship. Notable songs: Bye and Bye; Here in My Arms; I Beg Your Pardon. Hailed by Arthur Hornblow in Theatre as “something very akin to a genuine comic opera,” the musical was Rodgers and Hart's first book show following their success with Garrick Gaieties. It united the pair with Herbert Fields, thus creating a new team that for several seasons gave promise of rivaling the great Princess Theatre trio of Bolton‐ Wodehouse‐ Kern.
Dearest Enemy
| American Theater Guide: Dearest Enemy |
| Wikipedia: Dearest Enemy |
| Dearest Enemy | |
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| Sheet music cover (cropped) | |
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| Music | Richard Rodgers |
| Lyrics | Lorenz Hart |
| Book | Herbert Fields |
| Basis | A true Revolutionary War incident |
| Productions | 1925 Broadway |
Dearest Enemy is a musical with a book by Herbert Fields, lyrics by Lorenz Hart, and music by Richard Rodgers. This was the first of eight book musicals written by the songwriting team of Rodgers and Hart and writer Herbert Field. [1] The musical takes place in 1776, during the Revolutionary War.
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Production and background
Herbert Fields, Rodgers and Hart first took their musical to Herbert's father, Lew Fields, to produce, but he declined, thinking the Revolutionary War story would not be commercial. Ultimately George Ford, husband of Helen Ford, the star of the show, agreed to produce it. The musical had been variously described as an operetta and a genuine comic opera in the press.[2]
The Broadway production opened on September 18, 1925 at the Knickerbocker Theatre, and closed on May 22, 1926, after 286 performances. Directed by John Murray Anderson, the cast included Flavia Arcaro as Mary, Helen Spring as Jane, John Seymour as Harry, Helen Ford as Betsy, Charles Purcell as Sir John, and H. E. Eldridge as Washington.
A television musical special featuring Cyril Ritchard, Anne Jeffreys, Robert Sterling, and Cornelia Otis Skinner as Mrs. Murray was broadcast on November 26, 1955.[3]A cast recording of that broadcast was released on compact disc in 1997.
Plot
Based on a true Revolutionary War incident, its heroine is Mary Lindley Murray who, under orders from General Washington, detained British troops by serving them cake and wine in her Kips Bay, Manhattan home long enough for some 4,000 American soldiers to reassemble in Washington Heights in September 1776. Reality gives way to fanciful fictionalization with the addition of a pair of love stories, one involving Mary's daughter Jane and British General Tyron's son Harry, the other focusing on the on-again, off-again relationship between Mary's Irish niece Betsy Burke and British Capt. Sir John Copeland. Also playing a role in the plot is a houseful of beautiful young ladies eager to engage the enemy in more than just conversation, and a group of handsome young men happy to forget their patriotic duty for refreshments, music, and flirtations at the Murray mansion.
Songs
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Critical response
There was a "well-sustained attempt" to match the music to the plot and period. The ballads were "dainty, charming pieces."[2]
The Telegram reviewer wrote that "We have a glimmering notion that someday they will form the American counterpart of the once great triumvirate of Bolton, Wodehouse, and Kern."[2]
References
- ^ Green, Kay. Broadway musicals, show by show (1996, Edition:5), Hal Leonard Corporation, ISBN 0793577500, p. 48
- ^ a b c Green, Stanley. The world of musical comedy (1984), Da Capo Press, ISBN 0306802074, pp 116-117
- ^ Listingimdb.com, accessed April 8, 2009
External links
- Dearest Enemy at IBDB
- Overview of show, lorenzhart.org
- Dearest Enemy plot and production information, Guide To Musical Theatre
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
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Copyrights:
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 | American Theater Guide. The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. Copyright © 2004 by Oxford University Press, Inc. All rights reserved. Read more |
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| Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Dearest Enemy". Read more |
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Mentioned in
- nearest and dearest (Idiom)
- Herbert Fields (Author)
- Charles Purcell (American Theater)
- Helen [Isabel] Ford (American theater)
- John Murray Anderson (American Theater)
- Lorenz [Milton] Hart (American Theater)
- Dearest Enemy [Original Television Soundtrack] (1997 Album by Original Television Soundtrack)
- Sunny, musical in 2 acts (Classical Work)
- Lorenz Hart (Vocal Music Artist, '20s, '30s)
- Richard [Charles] Rodgers (American Theater)
- Wars in American Drama (American Theater)
- My Dearest Enemy
- Here in My Arms
- Richard Rodgers (Soundtrack Artist, '20s-'70s)
