A Show That Intoxicates!

Hello! For July's 1st blog post, an especial topic's in-store for ya. Musical theatre fans typically have shows that they deem underappreciated. For instance, 2 of my examples consist of 2000's Seussical the Musical and 2008's 13. Quite recently, I discovered fondness for another unsuccessful-on-Broadway show. The musical is Sherry, a 1967 musical telling of Moss Hart and George S. Kauffman's The Man Who Came To Dinner.

I had heard of Sherry!, but obtained limited information. After obtaining additional info about it, I ordered its 2004, premiere studio recording in June. It arrived and was listened to. I now classify as a diehard fan of the piece.

Despite its unfavorable notices and 72 performance run, It's an engaging, breezy, chic show. Structurally, it is like a 2 layer cake. Act I acts as a foundation for the story. Act II finishes it promptly. I admire a majority of its score, with lyrics by television personality James Lipton and music by composer Laurence Rosenthal. My only complaints are that the overture's too lengthy (seriously, South Pacific has a shorter one) and act I's Crockfield drags on. The remaining songs obtain my approval (especially its the title-song). They're thoroughly zippy and sundry, with detailed words and able melodies. Lipton and Rosenthal were apt at telling the play's story with musical numbers (1 outdated line is easily removable, though). They catered to the characters, particularly ones inspired by 1930s celebrities. Their material actually appeased people with ties to Hart and Kauffman. To me, overtly negative critiques of the show are so dismaying.

I'm dismayed by Sherry!'s lack of an original Broadway cast recording. Advertisements for an album exist, so fall through must've occurred. Limited photographs from the '67 production are accessible online. We've got an Al Hirschfeld caricature and archival footage. There's audio recordings of Delores Gray's Loraine Sheldon bringing down the house (with assistance from Clive Revill as Sheridan Whiteside, Jon Cypher's Bert Jefferson and the show's male chorus). I'm grateful for all that, but they're not preferable to a cast recording. A OBC recording would've provided an experience and a major sense of the production. It should be noted that we missed out on concrete preservation of expertly cast performers, too. Aside from the previously mentioned people, the production had Twilight Zone alumni Elizabeth Allen as Maggie Cutler, a pertinently suited Eddie Lawrence as Banjo, English character actor Byron Webster as Beverly Carleton and Janet Fox (someone from Kauffman's Dinner at Eight) as Miss Preen.

Thank God for the '04 recording. I'm ecstatic at its mere existence. It might not have existed. One reason for Sherry!'s obscurity is the fact that its score vanished and remained obscured for years. Thankfully, it was eventually rediscovered. James, Laurence and record producer Robert Sher officiated the recording. It is a crown jewel of my cast recordings collection. It's orchestrations are lush, the musicians aced it and Marvin Laird was a deft musical director. An eclectic, consummated treasure trove of a cast was assembled, too.

Since becoming a fan of Sherry!, I purchased the original Broadway playbill and frequently listened to the Christine Baranski-Jonathan Freeman version of the title-song. Banjo's a quirky addition to my roster of dreamroles. He's actually my #1 dream role now. Unlike the shows noted in my initial paragraph, Sherry! hasn't obtained a contemporary stage production. That is saddening. Sherry! doesn't resemble inferior flops. Frankly, it's preferable to some shows that actually obtained ubiquity.

Let's rectify matters. The writers' estates would probably unleash rights if they were asked to (Lipton was interesting in mounting a production after the '04 recording's release). That'd allow Community theatre productions to transpire! I'd give a kidney to the mafia to enact a staging of it around Christmastime. Sherry! is territory worthy of Encores and The Muny, too. Hopefully this article leads to materialization.