Naughty Marietta (television)
Encyclopedia
Naughty Marietta is a television version of the operetta "Naughty Marietta
". The music for the operetta
was composed by Victor Herbert
. The book and the lyrics were written by Rida Johnson Young
.
First telecast live in the United States on January 15, 1955, the conductor
for the production was Charles Sanford. The television version, which is slightly different from the operetta, was made twenty years after the film version with Jeanette MacDonald
and Nelson Eddy
.
"Naughty Marietta" marked the first musical television appearance by Alfred Drake
.
Le Grange, on official business.
Captain Warrington finds the Governor at the casino, where Le Grange's girlfriend, Yvonne, is an entertainer ("We're the Love of Old New Orleans"). When Warrington asks Le Grange for permission to search for the French pirate Bras Priqué, who has been robbing American ships, the Governor refuses the request and orders Captain Warrington and his men to leave New Orleans.
Meanwhile, the pretty and vivacious Marietta has joined the casquette girls who have come to New Orleans, each with a dowry of 500 francs
from the King, to marry the colonists. When the ship arrives in port, the casquette girls are eager to leave the ship and meet their future husbands. One of the sailors tries to get Marietta to marry him. However, Marietta refuses him and states to the casquette girls that she wants to choose the man she marries ("Naughty Marietta").
After the casquette girls disembark from the ship and meet their future husbands, the captain of the ship comments that Marietta has escaped and orders people to search for her. All of the people then leave, including the ship's captain, just as Captain Warrington arrives on the wharf with two of his men. Having been prevented from searching for Bras Priqué on land, Warrington has decided to search for the pirate at sea and wants to charter a ship in which to do so. Because the ship's captain is away from his ship, Captain Warrington sits down to await his return. Hearing 'psst!' a couple of times, he turns around and discovers that the sound is coming from a lady hiding in a large trunk
on the wharf. Marietta asks Captain Warrington to help her escape, stating that she would not marry him. When Captain Warrington informs her that he is an American, she asks him to take her to America so that she can be free to marry whom she wishes. Captain Warrington says that he does not intend to get married either and he and Marietta decide to be friends ("It Never Can Be Love"). Observing this, from a position of hiding, is the sailor who had been rejected by Marietta.
The ship's captain arrives to see the Governor. Le Grange explains to Yvonne, his girlfriend, that the captain gives him all of the maps showing the routes where English and American ships were sailing in New Orleans' waters. However, this time the captain informs Le Grange that he had something more valuable — a casquette girl, Marietta, who was actually the Count
ess d'Altena, who has fled from France to escape a forced marriage with an aged Duke
who she had left toddering at the altar. Le Grange is pleased to hear this and asks where the captain has hidden her. When the captain states that Marietta had escaped from the ship and that he did not know where she was, Le Grange becomes furious and demands that she be searched for. Governor Le Grange, who is really the pirate Bras Priqué, has decided that he will marry Marietta so that, as her husband, he can receive a pardon for his piracy from the French King (he is also looking forward to receiving the 500 francs which the King had given to her as her casquette girl dowry). Yvonne, who is in love with Le Grange, is very upset that Le Grange wants to marry Marietta instead of her ("Neath the Southern Moon").
Warrington takes Marietta to a gypsy camp so that she can hide with the gypsies as part of their group, and asks their leader, Rudolfo, to help. Marietta gives Rudolfo her dowry money of 500 francs, and he teaches Marietta how to handle the strings of a marionette. Unbeknown to them, the sailor (who Marietta had refused) had followed Warrington and Marietta there. Marietta handles the marionette's strings very well and Rudolfo is pleased with her. Rudolfo then gives Marietta some boys' clothes to wear, so that she can disguise herself as a gypsy boy, and says that Marietta can change inside the enclosed wagon. While waiting for Marietta, Warrington realises that he is falling in love with Marietta — and Marietta realises that she is falling in love with Warrington ("I'm Falling In Love With Someone").
Le Grange and the ship's captain then arrive at the gypsy camp to look for Marietta, the captain having been told, by the sailor, that she can be found there. As the Governor of New Orleans, Le Grange arranges to see the gypsies perform and Marietta sings ("Italian Street Song"). After advising the other men to ("Marry a Marionette"), Le Grange unmasks Marietta's disguise, informing her that, under French Law, he was claiming her, 'Marietta, the casquette girl', as his wife, and stating that they would marry on the following day. Warrington tries to save her, saying that he had a previous claim because he chose her first, but is thwarted by Le Grange, who comments that the law only applies to French people. Le Grange orders his men to take the struggling Marietta away — while the reluctant Warrington
is dragged away in the other direction.
The following day, festivities are in full swing in New Orleans at the news of the forthcoming marriage between the Governor and Marietta. Later, a ball is to be held to celebrate their wedding. Marietta, who is very unhappy, is determined that the marriage won't go ahead. In this she is aided by Yvonne, who informs Marietta that Le Grange is the pirate Bras Priqué, and also that she knew where Captain Warrington was. Yvonne also tells Marietta that she will tell Warrington where Bras Priqué can be found.
Marietta is therefore very happy at the ball, much to the surprise of Le Grange, who comments on her change in attitude to their marriage. When Le Grange reveals that he knows that she is the Countess d'Altena, she reveals the knowledge that he is Bras Priqué. Unbeknown to Le Grange, Warrington has arrived at the ball and he and Le Grange then fight a duel, during which Le Grange informs Warrington that Marietta is really a Countess. When the surprised Warrington asks what Marietta is doing in New Orleans, Le Grange explains that Marietta had left France to escape from a forced marriage with an 80-year-old nobleman — to which Warrington comments that Marietta had bad luck with her prospective husbands. Warrington wins the duel, and proves that the Governor is the pirate, following which Le Grange is led away. Although Warrington is in love with Marietta, he is hesitant to ask her to marry him because she is a Countess. However, Marietta persuades him to change his mind and Warrington happily relents ("Ah! Sweet Mystery of Life").
The DVD Production Coorindator was Robert Scott.
Naughty Marietta (operetta)
Naughty Marietta is an operetta in two acts, with libretto by Rida Johnson Young and music by Victor Herbert. Set in New Orleans in 1780, it tells how Captain Richard Warrington is commissioned to unmask and capture a notorious French pirate calling himself "Bras Priqué" – and how he is helped and...
". The music for the operetta
Operetta
Operetta is a genre of light opera, light in terms both of music and subject matter. It is also closely related, in English-language works, to forms of musical theatre.-Origins:...
was composed by Victor Herbert
Victor Herbert
Victor August Herbert was an Irish-born, German-raised American composer, cellist and conductor. Although Herbert enjoyed important careers as a cello soloist and conductor, he is best known for composing many successful operettas that premiered on Broadway from the 1890s to World War I...
. The book and the lyrics were written by Rida Johnson Young
Rida Johnson Young
Rida Johnson Young was an American playwright, songwriter and librettist. In her career, Young wrote over thirty plays and musicals, and over 500 songs. She was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970...
.
First telecast live in the United States on January 15, 1955, the conductor
Conducting
Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...
for the production was Charles Sanford. The television version, which is slightly different from the operetta, was made twenty years after the film version with Jeanette MacDonald
Jeanette MacDonald
Jeanette MacDonald was an American singer and actress best remembered for her musical films of the 1930s with Maurice Chevalier and Nelson Eddy...
and Nelson Eddy
Nelson Eddy
Nelson Ackerman Eddy was an American singer and actor who appeared in 19 musical films during the 1930s and 1940s, as well as in opera and on the concert stage, radio, television, and in nightclubs. A classically trained baritone, he is best remembered for the eight films in which he costarred...
.
"Naughty Marietta" marked the first musical television appearance by Alfred Drake
Alfred Drake
Alfred Drake was an American actor and singer.-Biography:Born as Alfred Capurro in New York City, the son of parents emigrated from Recco, Genoa, Drake began his Broadway career while still a student at Brooklyn College...
.
Cast members
- Marietta (Countess d'Altena) — Patrice MunselPatrice MunselPatrice Munsel is an American coloratura soprano, the youngest singer who ever starred at the Metropolitan Opera, nicknamed "Princess Pat"....
- Captain Richard Warrington — Alfred DrakeAlfred DrakeAlfred Drake was an American actor and singer.-Biography:Born as Alfred Capurro in New York City, the son of parents emigrated from Recco, Genoa, Drake began his Broadway career while still a student at Brooklyn College...
- Lieutenant Governor Le Grange — John Conte
- Yvonne — Gale SherwoodGale SherwoodGale Sherwood was a Canadian singer and actress best known as the singing partner of Nelson Eddy from 1953 until his death in 1967.Sherwood was born in Hamilton, Ontario and graduated from High School in 1945....
- Louis D'Arc — Donn Driver
- Captain of Ship — Robert Gallagher
- Rudolfo — William LeMassenaWilliam LeMassenaWilliam LeMassena was an American stage and television actor who appeared in occasional films.Mr. LeMassena was a graduate of NYU. His first Broadway job was with the Theatre Guild, appearing in the 1939 production of The Taming of the Shrew, starring the Lunts...
- Dancers — Bambi LinnBambi LinnBambi Linn is an American dancer, choreographer, and actress.Linn trained extensively with noted choreographer Agnes de Mille. At the age of seventeen, she made her Broadway debut in the original production of Oklahoma!...
and Rod Alexander - Charles Dagmar and his Punch & Judy.
Plot
It is 1790 and Captain Richard Warrington, of the United States Army, arrives with his infantry in New Orleans ("Tramp! Tramp! Tramp!"), where Warrington wants to see Lieutenant GovernorGovernor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
Le Grange, on official business.
Captain Warrington finds the Governor at the casino, where Le Grange's girlfriend, Yvonne, is an entertainer ("We're the Love of Old New Orleans"). When Warrington asks Le Grange for permission to search for the French pirate Bras Priqué, who has been robbing American ships, the Governor refuses the request and orders Captain Warrington and his men to leave New Orleans.
Meanwhile, the pretty and vivacious Marietta has joined the casquette girls who have come to New Orleans, each with a dowry of 500 francs
French franc
The franc was a currency of France. Along with the Spanish peseta, it was also a de facto currency used in Andorra . Between 1360 and 1641, it was the name of coins worth 1 livre tournois and it remained in common parlance as a term for this amount of money...
from the King, to marry the colonists. When the ship arrives in port, the casquette girls are eager to leave the ship and meet their future husbands. One of the sailors tries to get Marietta to marry him. However, Marietta refuses him and states to the casquette girls that she wants to choose the man she marries ("Naughty Marietta").
After the casquette girls disembark from the ship and meet their future husbands, the captain of the ship comments that Marietta has escaped and orders people to search for her. All of the people then leave, including the ship's captain, just as Captain Warrington arrives on the wharf with two of his men. Having been prevented from searching for Bras Priqué on land, Warrington has decided to search for the pirate at sea and wants to charter a ship in which to do so. Because the ship's captain is away from his ship, Captain Warrington sits down to await his return. Hearing 'psst!' a couple of times, he turns around and discovers that the sound is coming from a lady hiding in a large trunk
Trunk (luggage)
A trunk, also known as a travelling chest, is a large cuboid container for holding clothes and other personal belongings, typically about wide, and each deep and high. They were most commonly used for extended periods away from home, such as for boarding school, or long trips abroad...
on the wharf. Marietta asks Captain Warrington to help her escape, stating that she would not marry him. When Captain Warrington informs her that he is an American, she asks him to take her to America so that she can be free to marry whom she wishes. Captain Warrington says that he does not intend to get married either and he and Marietta decide to be friends ("It Never Can Be Love"). Observing this, from a position of hiding, is the sailor who had been rejected by Marietta.
The ship's captain arrives to see the Governor. Le Grange explains to Yvonne, his girlfriend, that the captain gives him all of the maps showing the routes where English and American ships were sailing in New Orleans' waters. However, this time the captain informs Le Grange that he had something more valuable — a casquette girl, Marietta, who was actually the Count
Count
A count or countess is an aristocratic nobleman in European countries. The word count came into English from the French comte, itself from Latin comes—in its accusative comitem—meaning "companion", and later "companion of the emperor, delegate of the emperor". The adjective form of the word is...
ess d'Altena, who has fled from France to escape a forced marriage with an aged Duke
Duke
A duke or duchess is a member of the nobility, historically of highest rank below the monarch, and historically controlling a duchy...
who she had left toddering at the altar. Le Grange is pleased to hear this and asks where the captain has hidden her. When the captain states that Marietta had escaped from the ship and that he did not know where she was, Le Grange becomes furious and demands that she be searched for. Governor Le Grange, who is really the pirate Bras Priqué, has decided that he will marry Marietta so that, as her husband, he can receive a pardon for his piracy from the French King (he is also looking forward to receiving the 500 francs which the King had given to her as her casquette girl dowry). Yvonne, who is in love with Le Grange, is very upset that Le Grange wants to marry Marietta instead of her ("Neath the Southern Moon").
Warrington takes Marietta to a gypsy camp so that she can hide with the gypsies as part of their group, and asks their leader, Rudolfo, to help. Marietta gives Rudolfo her dowry money of 500 francs, and he teaches Marietta how to handle the strings of a marionette. Unbeknown to them, the sailor (who Marietta had refused) had followed Warrington and Marietta there. Marietta handles the marionette's strings very well and Rudolfo is pleased with her. Rudolfo then gives Marietta some boys' clothes to wear, so that she can disguise herself as a gypsy boy, and says that Marietta can change inside the enclosed wagon. While waiting for Marietta, Warrington realises that he is falling in love with Marietta — and Marietta realises that she is falling in love with Warrington ("I'm Falling In Love With Someone").
Le Grange and the ship's captain then arrive at the gypsy camp to look for Marietta, the captain having been told, by the sailor, that she can be found there. As the Governor of New Orleans, Le Grange arranges to see the gypsies perform and Marietta sings ("Italian Street Song"). After advising the other men to ("Marry a Marionette"), Le Grange unmasks Marietta's disguise, informing her that, under French Law, he was claiming her, 'Marietta, the casquette girl', as his wife, and stating that they would marry on the following day. Warrington tries to save her, saying that he had a previous claim because he chose her first, but is thwarted by Le Grange, who comments that the law only applies to French people. Le Grange orders his men to take the struggling Marietta away — while the reluctant Warrington
is dragged away in the other direction.
The following day, festivities are in full swing in New Orleans at the news of the forthcoming marriage between the Governor and Marietta. Later, a ball is to be held to celebrate their wedding. Marietta, who is very unhappy, is determined that the marriage won't go ahead. In this she is aided by Yvonne, who informs Marietta that Le Grange is the pirate Bras Priqué, and also that she knew where Captain Warrington was. Yvonne also tells Marietta that she will tell Warrington where Bras Priqué can be found.
Marietta is therefore very happy at the ball, much to the surprise of Le Grange, who comments on her change in attitude to their marriage. When Le Grange reveals that he knows that she is the Countess d'Altena, she reveals the knowledge that he is Bras Priqué. Unbeknown to Le Grange, Warrington has arrived at the ball and he and Le Grange then fight a duel, during which Le Grange informs Warrington that Marietta is really a Countess. When the surprised Warrington asks what Marietta is doing in New Orleans, Le Grange explains that Marietta had left France to escape from a forced marriage with an 80-year-old nobleman — to which Warrington comments that Marietta had bad luck with her prospective husbands. Warrington wins the duel, and proves that the Governor is the pirate, following which Le Grange is led away. Although Warrington is in love with Marietta, he is hesitant to ask her to marry him because she is a Countess. However, Marietta persuades him to change his mind and Warrington happily relents ("Ah! Sweet Mystery of Life").
Songs
- Tramp! Tramp! Tramp! — Warrington, Ensemble
- We're the Love of Old New Orleans — Yvonne, Ensemble
- Naughty Marietta — Marietta
- It Never Can Be Love — Warrington, Marietta
- Neath the Southern Moon — Yvonne, Le Grange
- I'm Falling In Love With Someone — Warrington, Marietta
- Italian Street Song — Marietta, Ensemble
- Marry a Marionette — Le Grange, Ensemble
- Ah! Sweet Mystery of Life — Warrington, Marietta
DVD release
The live telecast was released on DVD on November 11, 2003 by VAI (Video Artists International). The format of the DVD is 4:3 Black and White, the aspect ratio: is 1.33.1 and the Region Code is 0 (all regions). The DVD number is ASIN: B0000E1WJ4.The DVD Production Coorindator was Robert Scott.
External links
- Max Liebman Presents: Naughty Marietta at the Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
- "Naughty Marietta" — Patrice Munsel
- "Naughty Marietta" — Royal Opera House DVDs
- "Naughty Marietta" — Overview — AllMovie