George Gershwin "PORGY and BESS" Todd Duncan / Anne Brown 1936 Philadelphia

Description

This is a rare January 27th, 1936 program (playbill) from the first stop on the Post-Broadway tour of the GEORGE GERSHWIN, IRA GERSHWIN and DU BOSE HEYWARD American Folk Opera "PORGY AND BESS" at the Forrest Theatre in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (The musical opened October 10th, 1935 at the Alvin Theatre in New York City and closed January 25th, 1936 after a disappointing 124 performances.) ..... Despite its early demise, this Gershwin masterwork remains one of the greatest of all American musicals and musical theatre scores. It wasn't until years later, after GEORGE GERSHWIN's untimely death that the work received the acclamation it deserved. The Original Broadway principals included TODD DUNCAN as "Porgy", ANNE BROWN as "Bess", JOHN W. BUBBLES as "Sportin' Life" and WARREN COLEMAN as "Crown". Others in the cast included HELEN DOWDY, FORD L. BUCK, ABBIE MITCHELL, EDWARD MATTHEWS, GEORGETTE HARVEY, OLIVE BALL, RUBY ELZY, HENRY DAVIS, JACK CARR, GUS SIMONS, ALEXANDER CAMPBELL, HAROLD WOOLF, CHARLES HOLDEN, JOHN GARTH, J. ROSAMOND JOHNSON, GEORGE LESSEY, RAY YEATES, GEORGE CARLETON and THE EVA JESSYE CHOIR ..... CREDITS: Book by DU BOSE HEYWARD founded on the play "Porgy" by DU BOSE and DOROTHY HEYWARD; Music by GEORGE GERSHWIN ("Girl Crazy", "Lady, Be Good!", "Oh, Kay!", "Funny Face", "Rosalie", "Of Thee I Sing", "Porgy and Bess", "George White's Scandals"); Lyrics by DU BOSE HEYWARD and IRA GERSHWIN; Sets designed by SERGEI SOUDEIKINE; Costumes supervised by JEAN TATE; Directed by ROUBEN MAMOULIAN; Produced by THE THEATRE GUILD ..... DETAILS: The four page playbill measures 6" X 9" inches and includes full production credits, cast list, synopsis of scenes and list of musical numbers, but no cast photos or bios ..... CONDITION: With the exception of light age discoloration, some creasing and minor edge wear, this rare playbill 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, carded sleeve and backed by stiff cardboard.
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