Description
This is a rare souvenir program from the May 5th, 1925 Royal Matinee Performance of the VINCENT YOUMANS, FRANK MANDEL, OTTO HARBACH and IRVING CAESAR musical comedy hit "NO, NO, NANETTE" at the Palace Theatre in London, England. (Following an ambitious tour which began in Detroit, Michigan in April 1923 and included a full year in Chicago, the production opened September 16th, 1925 at the Globe Theatre in New York City and ran for 321 performances before mounting tours throughout the country and abroad. The London production opened even before New York, beginning March 11th, 1925 at the Palace Theatre in London where it ran for 665 performances.) ..... "NO, NO, NANETTE" not only introduced the song "Tea For Two", one of the most popular show tunes of the twentieth century, but was responsible in large part for Baseball's legendary "Curse of the Bambino". Producer Harry Frazee (1881-1929) was a successful entertainment entrepreneur who in 1917 purchased the Boston Red Sox baseball team. He sold his star pitcher, slugger BABE RUTH to the New York Yankees in 1920 for the then unheard of price of 5,000 to finance his new Broadway musical, "No, No, Nanette". This initiated the so-called "Curse of the Bambino", the third longest drought in World Series titles (1918 - 2004) which finally came to an end with Boston's 2004 championship. Neophyte British producers JACK WALLER and HERBERT CLAYTON visited America in 1924 in search of novelties to launch their careers. Among the four musicals they were sold the rights to produce in London was "No, No, Nanette" ..... This special performance was presented with KING GEORGE V and QUEEN MARY in attendance. The musical starred BINNIE HALE in the title role and included GRACE LEIGH, MARIE HEMINGWAY, GEORGE GROSSMITH, IRENE BROWNE, SEYMOUR BEARD, JOSEPH COYNE, JOAN BARRY, FLORENCE BAYFIELD and VERA PEARCE ..... LONDON CREDITS: Book by FRANK MANDEL and OTTO HARBACH; Lyrics by OTTO HARBACH and IRVING CAESAR; Music by VINCENT YOUMANS; Sets designed by F. L. LYNDHURST; Choreographed by P. A. LEONARD; Staged by WILLIAM MOLLISON; Produced by HERBERT CLAYTON and JACK WALLER by arrangement with H. H. FRAZEE ..... DETAILS: The oversized program measures 8 1/2" X 11" inches and includes a heavy red cover with a raised metal image of King George V in the center with the interior pages held by the original cord. The program includes twenty pages with production credits, cast list, scenes, list of musical numbers and wonderful vintage advertising, but no cast photos or bios ..... CONDITION: With the exception of spotting to the cover and light edge wear, this program is in excellent condition and will make a wonderful addition to the collection of any musical theatre aficionado or historian. This item will be carefully packaged in a protective sleeve and backed by stiff cardboard.
