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Years ago, while teaching college courses in the History of American Musical Theatre, my research exposed numerous instances of innovation in the art form (“this was the first time…”) as theatrical technologies, along with musical styles and forms, evolved. I began to “collect” such phrases, which later included people, theatrical venues and other occasional oddities, into the collection and organized the data chronologically. |
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At this site, we focus on historical firsts. Innovation creates history, and this is a collection of innovative events, decisions and inventions. Among other things, the collection includes initial appearances of popular shows, songs and performers. Here, you’ll find descriptions of theatrical firsts in America from 1665 to 2000. Each “historical first” appears in bold type. |
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Generally, the New York opening is considered the finished form of any work (even if subsequent changes occur during the New York run). For the sake of maintaining some historical perspective, this site covers events through the 1999-2000 season. |
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Ongoing additions to the site include textual entries and pictures of people and theatrical venues. One project will soon offer links to audio files of songs in the public domain; other improvements may occur as they are invented or suggested. |
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We owe much to those who have assisted in the development and presentation of this material. Please see our “Cast & Crew” page. To everyone who appears there, I offer my deepest thanks. |
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Perhaps you will find something here that will initiate your own research. You might want to have an item considered for inclusion at the site (if so, please contact me). You might wish to correct an error that you find here (if so, by all means contact me). You may even find items that will pique your curiosity and motivate you to seek answers. We hope that this site will bring you closer to the theatrical art form that has proven time and again to be our most beloved: the musical. |
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Wayne Hamilton, MFA 2009 |
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Thank you for visiting FirstOnStage.com, a web site that was literally decades in the making. We hope you find the information here useful in your classes, in your research or in exercising your intellectual curiosity. If so, we hope you’ll make a donation to help support FirstOnStage. This information comes to you quickly and easily without the cost of expensive textbooks or hours of searching for the proverbial needle in the digital haystack. Your gift will enable site developers to provide ongoing enhancements, including additional textual content, pictures and audio files. PayPal will safely and securely process the transaction. Thanks for your interest and your generous support! |
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000078657 |
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In 1944, Jerome Robbins and a young composer friend named Leonard Bernstein (1918 - 1990) created a ballet called Fancy Free. Convinced that the ballet had the makings of a full-fledged musical, the two collaborated with their friends Adolph Green and Betty Comden. The result was Bernstein's first score for Broadway, On The Town, which opened in December of 1944 and was later made into a film. It was also the Broadway debut for Adolph Green and Betty Comden. George Abbott directed and a memorable song came from the score: "New York, New York." Theatre World, an annual publication edited by John Willis, offered its first Theatre World Award for the 1944-45 theatre season to Betty Comden in 1945. The award is given every year to performers making notable, reviewable debuts in Broadway and Off-Broadway theater. The award criteria were obviously developed after the first award was granted, as Comden had already contributed to the success of numerous shows by that time. In June of 1952, Wonderful Town appeared. The show introduced "Ohio" and "One Hundred Easy Ways To Lose A Man," its most popular tunes. Leonard Bernstein provided the music. Joseph Fields (son of Lew Fields and brother of Dorothy Fields and Herbert Fields) and Jerome Chodorov wrote the book, adapting the play they had written (My Sister Eileen) to the purpose. Lyrics were from Adolph Green and Betty Comden. Edith Adams played Eileen and Rosalind Russell (1908 - 1976) performed the role of her sister Ruth. Wonderful Town was also the Broadway musical debut for another performer in the cast, future director and choreographer Joe Layton (1931 - 1994). Peter Pan, starring Mary Martin and Cyril Ritchard (1898 - 1977), opened in New York in October of 1954 after its creation and initial run in California. Jerome Robbins directed; Mark Charlap and Carolyn Leigh, respectively, wrote the California music and lyrics, including two of the shows best songs: "I'm Flying" and "I've Got To Crow." By the time it reached New York, Peter Pan had additional songs with lyrics by Adolph Green and Betty Comden and music by Jule Styne. This was the first Broadway show for Charlap and Leigh, and it was Ritchard's Broadway debut in a book musical. The producer, Edwin Lester, made musical theatre history when he sold television rights to the show and the second TV performance was videotaped. As a result, American viewers have the first opportunity to see an original Broadway cast perform in a musical years after it closed. Bells Are Ringing premiered on Broadway in November of 1956. Jule Styne wrote the score and Adolph Green and Betty Comden wrote the libretto. The star was Judy Holliday. Three hit songs were introduced in this production: "Just In Time," "It's A Perfect Relationship" and "The Party's Over." Future TV star Hal Linden (Barney Miller) had his Broadway debut as an understudy for Sydney Chaplin. Five days after Bells Are Ringing opened, Linden assumed Chaplin's role. Linden went on to perform in 8 additional musicals, along with other Broadway plays, films and TV shows in his career. The day after Christmas in 1960, Do Re Mi opened. It offered "Make Someone Happy," a new hit song. Jule Styne wrote the music and Adolph Green and Betty Comden wrote the lyrics. Garson Kanin wrote the book. Phil Silvers and Nancy Walker starred. Hallelujah, Baby! opened in April of 1966, providing a Broadway debut vehicle for Leslie Uggams. For her performance, Uggams won a Tony award for Best Actress in a Musical in 1967 and a Theatre World award in 1968. The book was by Arthur Laurents, the music by Jule Styne and lyrics by Adolph Green and Betty Comden. No hit songs came from the show. Lauren Bacall led the cast when Applause opened in March of 1970. It was Bacall's Broadway musical debut, for which she won a Tony for Best Actress in a Musical. The show won an additional three Tonys. Len Cariou also had his musical debut in this production and went on to star in four more lyric shows on Broadway. Cariou won the 1970 Theatre World award for his work in Applause. The story is about the theatre and its denizens, and how an ambitious starlet gets her name in lights on the marquee. The libretto was by Adolph Green and Betty Comden, while the score was by Charles Strouse (music) and Lee Adams (lyrics). Only the title song became popular, but the show ran for almost 900 performances. During the run of Applause, Arlene Dahl made her Broadway debut as a replacement player. The Will Rogers Follies boasted several veterans on its creative staff: book by Peter Stone, music by Cy Coleman, lyrics by Adolph Green and Betty Comden, directed and choreographed by Tommy Tune. The show opened in May of 1991 and ran for nearly a thousand performances, winning six Tonys, including Best Musical, plus the Drama Critics and Drama Desk awards for Best Musical. Keith Carradine, who had been a replacement player in the original production of Hair, played the title role. Gregory Peck recorded his voice in the role of Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr., which was featured in performances. Although Peck had appeared in three straight plays on Broadway during the 1940s, this was his first non-appearance in a Broadway musical.
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In 1944, Jerome Robbins and a young composer friend named Leonard Bernstein (1918 - 1990) created a ballet called Fancy Free. Convinced that the ballet had the makings of a full-fledged musical, the two collaborated with their friends Adolph Green and Betty Comden. The result was Bernstein's first score for Broadway, On The Town, which opened in December of 1944 and was later made into a film. It was also the Broadway debut for Adolph Green and Betty Comden. George Abbott directed and a memorable song came from the score: "New York, New York."