Robinson Crusoe, Jr. is a musical with a book by Edgar Smith, lyrics by Harold Atteridge, and music by Sigmund Romberg and James Hanley.
| Robinson Crusoe, Jr. | |
|---|---|
 Sheet music cover (cropped) | |
| Music | Sigmund Romberg and James Hanley |
| Lyrics | Harold Atteridge |
| Book | Edgar Smith |
| Productions | 1916 Broadway |
Production
editRobinson Crusoe, Jr. was an extravaganza that opened at the Winter Garden Theatre on 17 February 1916.[1] The original Broadway production was produced by Lee Shubert and Jacob J. Shubert, directed by J. C. Huffman and choreographed by Helen Tamiris.[citation needed] Music was by Sigmund Romberg and the book and lyrics were by Harold R. Atteridge.[2] The show was the last major musical that Jacob J. Shubert staged during World War I, and he instructed Romberg to avoid any of his Austro-Hungarian musical idioms.[3]
The cast included Al Jolson, Kitty Doner, Claude Flemming, and Isabelle Rodrigues.[4] The show was built around Jolson, and was a vehicle for Jolson.[5][a] A company of two hundred supported Al Jolson in ten major scenes.[2] The show included songs from a number of sources, including some written by Jolson. He often added or removed songs from one show to another. Atteridge created a simple framing story that unified the acts.[1] The show ran on Broadway for 139 performances.[7] It then went on the road in the fall. Jolson sometimes performed twice or three times in one day in one city before moving on.[2]
Synopsis
edit
Setting: Long Island, New York and Robinson Crusoe's Island
Hiram Westbury, a millionaire, is exhausted by some film makers who want to use his estate as a film location. He falls asleep. In his dream, he imagines he is Robinson Crusoe, Jr. His chauffeur, played by Al Jolson, is his Good Friday.[1] Jolson played the chauffeur in blackface.[2] The dreams make up most of the show.[8] After the opening scene the pair travel to Crusoe's island, which is given a haunted forest, and to a pirate ship crewed by chorus girls.[9] The "glittering galaxies of gorgeous, glorious, gladsome girlies mirthfully monopolized the mad, merry hours and the ten tremendous tumultuous scenes of Robinson Crusoe, Jr."[10] At one point in the story trees woke up and began to sway to the music. Jolson has comic interactions with a goat and a crocodile.[11] The shorter second act was set back in the millionaire's home.[10]
There were 27 musical numbers in the show, including five specialty dances. Many of the huge cast danced in Minstrel Days. Jolson himself did not play a major role in the musical numbers, and was always alone on the stage when he sang.[10] According to Jolson's biographer Michael Freedland, Robinson Crusoe, Jr. was "the nearest Jolson had yet come to a show with a real plot ... although from opening night on, it was quite plain that the story was not going to interfere with his domination on stage."[11]
Songs
edit- Where Did Robinson Crusoe Go with Friday on Saturday Night? (Sam M. Lewis & Joe Young (w), George W. Meyer (m))
- Yaaka Hula Hickey Dula (E. Ray Goetz & Joe Young (w), Pete Wendling (m))
- Where the Black-Eyed Susans Grow (by Dave Radford and Richard Whiting)
References
editNotes
- ^ Al Jolson's roots in show business came from performing in a carnival and a traveling circus, and then in vaudeville. He mostly worked in blackface, a convention that originated with minstrel shows. His breakthrough came with La Belle Paree in 1911.[6]
Citations
- ^ a b c Everett 2008, p. 62.
- ^ a b c d Hirsch 2000, p. 103.
- ^ Hirsch 2000, p. 118.
- ^ "Internet Broadway Database". ibdb.com. Retrieved February 3, 2019.
- ^ Mordden 1988, p. 32.
- ^ Browne & Browne 2001, p. 445.
- ^ Everett 2008, p. 297.
- ^ Everett 2008, p. 64.
- ^ Hirsch 2000, p. 103-104.
- ^ a b c Hirsch 2000, p. 104.
- ^ a b Bordman 2010, p. 363.
Sources
- Bordman, Gerald Martin (2010). American Musical Theatre: A Chronicle. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-972970-8. Retrieved 2014-06-03.
- Browne, Ray Broadus; Browne, Pat (2001). The Guide to United States Popular Culture. Popular Press. ISBN 978-0-87972-821-2.
- Everett, William A. (2008-10-01). Sigmund Romberg. Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-13835-1. Retrieved 2014-06-03.
- Hirsch, Foster (2000-09-05). The Boys from Syracuse: The Shuberts' Theatrical Empire. Cooper Square Press. ISBN 978-1-4616-9875-3. Retrieved 2014-06-03.
- Mordden, Ethan (1988). Broadway Babies. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-536375-3. Retrieved 2014-06-03.