Something for the Boys

SAN FRANCISCO (27 July 1994) -- Hailed as "An instant success in its debut season" by the San Francisco Chronicle, the acclaimed Lost Musicals Series, produced by 42nd St. Moon, opens its fourth season of presenting musical theater's buried treasures. First on the boards is a Cole Porter musical with book by siblings Herbert and Dorothy Fields, SOMETHING FOR THE BOYS, a tale of three brassy New York cousins who tackle Texas and turn the U.S. Army on its ear, to be presented at the New Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco, September 8 - 18, 1994.

SOMETHING FOR THE BOYS was originally titled Jenny Get Your Gun and opened at Broadway's Alvin Theatre on January 7, 1943, where it ran for more than 400 performances. Gun-toting gal Ethel Merman (who went immediately from Jenny Get Your... to Annie Get Your Gun) lent her considerable pipes to the role of cousin Blossom Hart, a "New Yawk chorus goil" who becomes a war-time defense worker, reluctant Texas ranch owner and unwitting heroine when she receives Army radio communications through her tooth fillings. In SOMETHING FOR THE BOYS Merman introduced such Porter tunes as "Hey, Good Lookin'", "By the Mississiniwah". "Something for the Boys" and "Leader of a Big-Time Band". This was Merman's fifth and final Porter musical in a collaboration that began with Anything Goes in 1934.

Beach Blanket Babylon alumna Meg Mackay (expanding her lungs even as we speak) steps into the Mermanesque role of Blossom Hart. Mackay has been seen nationally in the touring company of Torch Song Trilogy and locally in And What, Give Up Showbiz? and in her acclaimed cabaret act with husband Billy Philadelphia.

Starring as the other two Hart cousins are Lesley Hamilton as Chiquita, a sassy nightclub entertainer and Jim Friedman as fast-talking sidewalk pitch-man, Harry Hart. Hamilton has previously been seen in the Lost Musicals Series as Molly in One Touch of Venus. Other local appearances include Party of One and the role of Young Sally in San Jose Civic Light Opera's critically acclaimed Follies. Friedman performed with 42nd St. Moon in 50 Million Frenchmen and Du Barry was a Lady and has also appeared with San Francisco Shakespeare Festival, PCPA Theaterfest and Marin Theatre Company.

Greg MacKellan and Stephanie Rhoads, co-founders of 42nd St. Moon, chose SOMETHING FOR THE BOYS for its World War II theme, coinciding this year with 50th anniversary celebrations of D-Day. The production is directed by MacKellan, with musical direction by Pat Parr.

42nd St. Moon presents the Lost Musicals Series as staged readings. Sets and costumes are kept to a minimum in order to highlight the story and especially the musical numbers, which are sung and danced as they would be in a full-scale production. Says MacKellan, "There are so many wonderful musicals by classic composers that don't get done anymore due to prohibitive economics. Our budget-conscious approach allows us to be a part of keeping America's musical theatre history alive."

42nd St. Moon, named after a 1920's song about the lights on Broadway, is a collaboration that began in 1993. Rhoads, a long-time performer on the Bay Area scene, has been seen in the national tour of Some Like it Cole and in Beach Blanket Babylon. Actor/director MacKellan has also produced six compact discs of forgotten show tunes. "Greg and I were both profoundly influenced by the romance of Broadway's past," says Rhoads. "The Lost Musicals Series is the result of that shared love." The company presents two series per year, with three musicals in each series.

Back to the 1994 Season