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Breakfast at Tiffany's (musical)
Encyclopedia
Breakfast at Tiffany's is a legendary flop
in Broadway
musical
history. The musical is based on the Truman Capote
novella
and 1961 film of the same name about a free spirit named Holly Golightly. The musical played four previews on Broadway
but never officially opened.
Edward Albee
and a score composed by the equally notable Bob Merrill
. The cast, directed by Joseph Anthony
, included Mary Tyler Moore
, Richard Chamberlain, Sally Kellerman
, Larry Kert
, and Priscilla Lopez
. It was designed by Oliver Smith
, choreographed by Michael Kidd
with assistance from Tony Mordente
, and produced by David Merrick
.
Despite the impressive list of collaborators involved in the production, the project never gelled. It underwent constant and massive changes in its script and score during out-of-town tryouts. The original book by Abe Burrows
was scrapped completely and Edward Albee, an unlikely choice, was hired to re-write. Burrows was also the director but left when Albee was brought in. On a daily basis, the cast was given new material hours before curtain time. Burrows' departure put a damper on the proceedings, resulting in low morale among cast members, and Moore was convinced Merrick planned to fire her soon after opening night.
It was not uncommon for the show to run nearly four hours.
Its original title, Holly Golightly, was changed when it started previews on December 12, 1966 on Broadway at the Majestic Theatre. Despite a healthy advance sale and much audience anticipation, it closed four nights later without having officially opened. According to Merrick, in an infamous ad he placed in The New York Times
, he shut down the production "rather than subject the drama critics and the public to an excruciatingly boring evening."
The show's failure is legendary among theater historians and buffs. It has been said that if as many people who have claimed to have seen Breakfast at Tiffany's really had, it would have run forever.
In 2001, a studio recording with Faith Prince
, John Schneider
, Hal Linden
, Patrick Cassidy
, and original cast member Kellerman was released on the Original Cast
label.
Act II
Failure
Failure refers to the state or condition of not meeting a desirable or intended objective, and may be viewed as the opposite of success. Product failure ranges from failure to sell the product to fracture of the product, in the worst cases leading to personal injury, the province of forensic...
in Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
musical
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
history. The musical is based on the Truman Capote
Truman Capote
Truman Streckfus Persons , known as Truman Capote , was an American author, many of whose short stories, novels, plays, and nonfiction are recognized literary classics, including the novella Breakfast at Tiffany's and the true crime novel In Cold Blood , which he labeled a "nonfiction novel." At...
novella
Breakfast at Tiffany's (novella)
Breakfast at Tiffany's is a novella by Truman Capote published in 1958. The main character, Holly Golightly, is one of Capote's best-known creations and an American cultural icon.-Plot:...
and 1961 film of the same name about a free spirit named Holly Golightly. The musical played four previews on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
but never officially opened.
Production history
The musical had a book by illustrious playwrightPlaywright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
Edward Albee
Edward Albee
Edward Franklin Albee III is an American playwright who is best known for The Zoo Story , The Sandbox , Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? , and a rewrite of the screenplay for the unsuccessful musical version of Capote's Breakfast at Tiffany's . His works are considered well-crafted, often...
and a score composed by the equally notable Bob Merrill
Bob Merrill
Bob Merrill was an American songwriter, theatrical composer, lyricist, and screenwriter.Merrill was born Henry Merrill Levan in Atlantic City, New Jersey and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Following a stint with the Army during World War II, he moved to Hollywood, where he worked as a...
. The cast, directed by Joseph Anthony
Joseph Anthony
Joseph Anthony was an American playwright, actor, and director. He made his film acting debut in the 1934 film Hat, Coat, and Glove and his theatrical acting debut in a 1935 production of Mary of Scotland...
, included Mary Tyler Moore
Mary Tyler Moore
Mary Tyler Moore is an American actress, primarily known for her roles in television sitcoms. Moore is best known for The Mary Tyler Moore Show , in which she starred as Mary Richards, a 30-something single woman who worked as a local news producer in Minneapolis, and for her earlier role as...
, Richard Chamberlain, Sally Kellerman
Sally Kellerman
Sally Clare Kellerman is an American actress and singer known for her role as Major Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan in the film MASH , for which she was nominated for an Oscar for Best Actress in a Supporting Role.-Early life:...
, Larry Kert
Larry Kert
Larry Kert was an American actor, singer, and dancer. He is best known for creating the role of Tony in the original Broadway version of West Side Story.-Early life:...
, and Priscilla Lopez
Priscilla Lopez
Priscilla Lopez is an American singer, dancer, and actress.-Early life:Lopez was born in the Bronx, New York to Francisco Lopez, a hotel banquet foreman and Laura , who were moved to New York from their native Puerto Rico...
. It was designed by Oliver Smith
Oliver Smith (designer)
Oliver Smith was an American scenic designer.Born in Waupun, Wisconsin, Smith attended Penn State, after which he moved to New York City and began to form friendships that blossomed into working relationships with such talents as Leonard Bernstein, Jerome Robbins, Carson McCullers, and Agnes de...
, choreographed by Michael Kidd
Michael Kidd
Michael Kidd was an American film and stage choreographer.-Life and career:Born Milton Greenwald in New York City on the Lower East Side, the son of Abraham Greenwald, an immigrant barber, and his wife Lillian, Michael Kidd moved to Brooklyn with his family and attended New Utrecht High School there...
with assistance from Tony Mordente
Tony Mordente
Tony Mordente is an American dancer, choreographer, and television director.Born in New York City, Mordente attended the High School of Performing Arts and made his professional dance debut at the Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival in Massachusetts...
, and produced by David Merrick
David Merrick
David Merrick was a prolific Tony Award-winning American theatrical producer.-Life and career:Born David Lee Margulois to Jewish parents in St. Louis, Missouri, Merrick graduated from Washington University, then studied law at the Jesuit-run Saint Louis University School of Law...
.
Despite the impressive list of collaborators involved in the production, the project never gelled. It underwent constant and massive changes in its script and score during out-of-town tryouts. The original book by Abe Burrows
Abe Burrows
Abe Burrows was a Tony and Pulitzer-winning American humorist, author, and director for radio and the stage.-Early years:...
was scrapped completely and Edward Albee, an unlikely choice, was hired to re-write. Burrows was also the director but left when Albee was brought in. On a daily basis, the cast was given new material hours before curtain time. Burrows' departure put a damper on the proceedings, resulting in low morale among cast members, and Moore was convinced Merrick planned to fire her soon after opening night.
It was not uncommon for the show to run nearly four hours.
Its original title, Holly Golightly, was changed when it started previews on December 12, 1966 on Broadway at the Majestic Theatre. Despite a healthy advance sale and much audience anticipation, it closed four nights later without having officially opened. According to Merrick, in an infamous ad he placed in The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, he shut down the production "rather than subject the drama critics and the public to an excruciatingly boring evening."
The show's failure is legendary among theater historians and buffs. It has been said that if as many people who have claimed to have seen Breakfast at Tiffany's really had, it would have run forever.
Recordings
Just prior to closing, a live recording was made of the musical numbers, excerpts of which eventually were released on LP.In 2001, a studio recording with Faith Prince
Faith Prince
Faith Prince is an American actress and singer known primarily for her work on Broadway. Prince has won the Tony Award as Best Actress in a Musical and received three Tony nominations.-Life and career:...
, John Schneider
John Schneider (television actor)
John Richard Schneider III is an American actor and singer. He is best known for his portrayal of Bo Duke in the 1980s American television series The Dukes of Hazzard, and as Jonathan Kent on Smallville, a 2001 television adaptation of Superman.Alongside his acting career, Schneider performed as a...
, Hal Linden
Hal Linden
Hal Linden is an American stage and television actor and television director, best known for his role in the television comedy series Barney Miller and as presenter on the ABC educational series Animals, Animals, Animals....
, Patrick Cassidy
Patrick Cassidy (actor)
Patrick Cassidy is an American actor best known for his roles in musical theatre and television.-Personal life:...
, and original cast member Kellerman was released on the Original Cast
Original Cast (record label)
Original Cast Records is a record label based in Georgetown, Connecticut, that specialises in obscure theatre recordings, primarily cast albums from little-known Broadway, off-Broadway, off-off-Broadway and other stage productions, but also theatre-related film scores, cabaret, concert and solo...
label.
Musical numbers
Act I- "Holly Golightly" - Jeff
- "Breakfast at Tiffany's" - Holly
- "When Daddy Comes Home" - Holly
- "Freddy Chant" - Holly
- "Lament for Ten Men" - Holly, Guests
- "Lament for Ten Men" (Reprise) - Guests
- "Home for Wayward Girls" - Holly, Mag
- "Who Needs Her?" - Jeff
- "You've Never Kissed Her" - Doc
- "Lulamae" - Jeff
Act II
- "Who Needs Her?" (Reprise) - Holly, Jeff
- "Dance" - Holly, Three Bar Patrons
- "Stay With Me" - Carlos
- "I'm Not the Girl" - Holly, Jeff
- "Grade "A" Treatment" - Holly, Carlos
- "Ciao, Compare" - Giovanni, His Girlfriends
- "Breakfast at Tiffany's" (Reprise) - Holly
- "Better Together" - Jeff
- "Same Mistakes" - Holly
- "Holly Golightly" (Reprise) - Jeff