(Born Madeline Gail Wolfson, 1942–1999.) Comic actress who played Goldie in Two by Two (1970), topping her song “The Golden Ram” with a memorable high C, and Lily Garland in On the Twentieth Century (1978). She is also known for her work on film, including her rendition of “Ah, Sweet Mystery of Life” (from Victor Herbert’s Naughty Marietta) in Young Frankenstein (1974).
Hungarian operetta composer whose works often appeared on Broadway, in English-language adaptations, in the first third of the 20th century. His shows (with the years of their Broadway productions) include The Gay Hussars (1909), Sari (1914, 1930), Countess Maritza (1926, 1928), and The Circus Princess (1927).
Composer who, with longtime lyricist Fred Ebb, made his Broadway debut in 1965 with Flora, the Red Menace, which starred Liza Minnelli, an actress whose career has been strongly linked to songs and shows by Kander and Ebb. The songwriting team’s first major hit was Cabaret (1966), followed by The Happy Time (1968), 70, Girls, 70 (1971), Chicago (1975), The Act (1977), Woman of the Year (1981), The Rink (1984), Kiss of the Spider Woman—The Musical (1993, starring Chita Rivera), and Steel Pier (1997). Although Kander writes convincingly in many idioms, he is particularly strong when it comes to evoking musical styles of the 1920s and 1930s in more contemporary contexts. Several works appeared after Ebb’s 2004 death.
(23 December 1915, 45th Street, 220 performances.) Music by Rudolf Friml, book and lyrics by Otto Harbach, produced by Arthur Hammerstein. An operetta in the Central European mold, Katinka featured a romance between two Russians (Katinka [May Naudain] and Ivan [Samuel Ash]), European settings (Yalta, Stamboul, and Vienna), mistaken identities, and Orientalist features. Extended dance specialties appear in each of the three acts, and the musical score includes “Allah’s Holiday” with its mainly pentatonic melody, Ivan’s lyrical “My Paradise,” Katinka and Ivan’s romantic waltz “’Tis the End,” and the title character’s lighthearted “Rackety-Coo.”
In his varied career as a writer, actor, and director, Kaufman directed several important musicals, including Animal Crackers, Of Thee I Sing, and Guys and Dolls.
(Born David Daniel Kaminski, 1913–1987.) Although known principally for his work on film and television, the comic actor, singer, and dancer dazzled audiences with his performance of “Tchaikovsky” in Kurt Weill and Ira Gershwin’s Lady in the Dark (1941), in which he recited the names of 54 Russian composers in 38 seconds. Other Broadway credits include The Straw Hat Revue (1939), Jerry Walker in Let’s Face It! (1941), and Noah in Two by Two (1970).
Dramatic soprano with a comic flair and wide-ranging abilities who won Tony Awards for her portrayals of opera diva Carlotta in The Phantom of the Opera (1998) and Estonia Dulworth, the Duchess of Woodford, in Nice Work if You Can Get It (2012). She also appeared as Emma Goldman in Ragtime (1998), Rosie in Mamma Mia! (2001), questionable soprano Florence Foster Jenkins in the play Souvenir (2005), a replacement Mrs. Lovett in John Doyle’s actor-musician production of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2006 and 2007) on Broadway and national tour, and a replacement Fairy Godmother in Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella (2014). She is known for playing strong female roles.
Comic actor who created the role of Nicely-Nicely Johnson in Guys and Dolls, stopping the show with “Sit Down, You’re Rockin’ the Boat.” He reprised the role in the 1955 film version. Kaye also created the part of Marryin’ Sam in Lil’ Abner to tremendous popular and critical success.
After playing a replacement Sir Lancelot in Monty Python’s Spamalot in 2006, the multifaceted actor and singer starred as Bill Starbuck in the 2007 revival of 110 in the Shade opposite Audra McDonald. He created the role of Guy in the off-Broadway and Broadway productions of Once, winning a Tony Award. Kazee has also appeared on television and in film.
(Born Eugene Curran Kelly, 1912–1996.) Dancer, actor, singer, director, choreographer, and producer known for his athletic dancing style and likable screen characters. He made his Broadway debut as the Secretary to Mr. Goodhue in Leave It to Me! (1938) and achieved tremendous fame as Joey Evans in Pal Joey (1940). He choreographed Best Foot Forward (1941) and directed Flower Drum Song (1958). Classic film musicals in which he starred and for which he provided choreography include Anchors Aweigh (1945) and Singin’ in the Rain (1952).
Archetypal composer whose work exemplifies many of the innovations apparent in the Broadway musicals of the 1910s, 1920s, and 1930s. His song “They Didn’t Believe Me” from The Girl from Utah (1914) garnered him great fame. With Guy Bolton and P. G. Wodehouse, he created the so-called Princess Theatre musicals, a group of musical comedies (including Oh, Boy! [1917]) that strove for intimacy and immediate appeal. He made Broadway history in 1927 with Show Boat (lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II), a work that integrated aspects of musical comedy, revue, and operetta in both plot and music. He continued to write shows that fused different approaches to musical theater during the early 1930s, such as The Cat and the Fiddle (1931), Music in the Air (1932), and Roberta (1933). While working in Hollywood, he wrote Very Warm for May (1939) for Broadway; although the show itself was not a success, it included the classic “All the Things You Are.” Kern’s songs span the gamut of styles, from the sprightly “Look for the Silver Lining” (from Sally [1920]) to the haunting “Ol’ Man River” from Show Boat and the same show’s classic operetta waltz “You Are Love.” Kern’s melodies demonstrate a natural ease and grace that make them extremely popular with singers of all styles as well as with jazz musicians.
Theater critic, librettist, and director. He became theater critic for the New York Herald Tribune in 1951 and wrote theater reviews for the New York Times from 1966 to 1983. He received the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism in 1978. He was also active as a creator on Broadway. Kerr wrote the books for the revues Count Me In (1942), Sing Out, Sweet Land (1944), and Touch and Go (1949) and also directed Sing Out, Sweet Land and Touch and Go. He created the book and the lyrics for the musical comedy Goldilocks (1958), which he also directed. In 1990, the Ritz Theater at 219 West 48th Street was renamed in his honor.
(Born Frederick Lawrence Kert, 1930–1991.) Before creating the role of Tony in West Side Story (1957), Kert appeared in the revues Tickets, Please! (1950) and John Murray Anderson’s Almanac (1953). He took over the role of Robert from Dean Jones in the original production of Company (1970) soon after the show opened and became the first replacement cast member to be nominated for a Tony Award.
(31 December 1923, Earl Carroll, 479 performances.) Music by Harry Tierney, lyrics by Joseph McCarthy, book by William Anthony McGuire and Otto Harbach, produced by Florenz Ziegfeld. A vehicle for Eddie Cantor, Kid Boots was the tale of a caddy master (Cantor) at a Palm Beach golf club who is also a bootlegger and a purveyor of less-than-honest golf balls. The club champion ends up using one of the “special” balls in an important match. Much of the unsigned New York Times review was about Cantor, who seemed “a bit more fervent and wide-eyed than he ever has before.” The critic reported that Tierney’s score included “winners,” but no truly popular songs emerged from the show.
Director-choreographer, dancer, and producer who appeared as the Gangster in the one-act ballet Filling Station (1939) and other dance roles before choreographing Finian’s Rainbow in 1947 and beginning a career as a choreographer, director-choreographer, or director that lasted until The Goodbye Girl in 1993. Credits include Love Life (1948), Guys and Dolls (1950), Can-Can (1953), Wildcat (1960), The Rothschilds (1970), and the 1980 revival of The Music Man, but many consider his greatest creative success to be Li’l Abner (1956) with its exuberant Sadie Hawkins’ Day scene.
Actor with a resonant baritone voice who created The Caliph in Kismet (1953), Tom Baxter in Redhead (1959), David Jordan in No Strings (1962), and Stan the Shpieler in I Had a Ball (1964) before immortalizing Don Quixote/Cervantes in Man of La Mancha (1965). He reprised the landmark role in 1972 and 1977 Broadway revivals. He won Tony Awards for Redhead and Man of La Mancha.
(Born Dennis Pratt, 1897–1971.) English-born singing actor with a resonant baritone voice who created the male leads in Rudolf Friml’s three principal operettas from the 1920s: Jim Kenyon in Rose Marie (1924), François Villon in The Vagabond King (1925), and D’Artagnan in The Three Musketeers (1928). He also created Count Willy Palarffi in Rodgers and Hart’s I Married an Angel (1938) and appeared onstage and on-screen in numerous nonmusical roles.
(29 March 1951, St. James, 1,246 performances.) Music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics and book by Oscar Hammerstein II, choreographed by Jerome Robbins, produced by Rodgers and Hammerstein. The King and I was Rodgers and Hammerstein’s fifth show and one of their greatest successes. The story was based on the Margaret Lowens novel Anna and the King of Siam and two memoirs by Anna Leonowens, the English teacher who worked at the court of King Mongkut. Gertrude Lawrence brought the idea for a show based on Leonowens’s life to Rodgers and Hammerstein, asking them to make it into a star vehicle for her. The show also needed a strong male lead, and they offered the part to Alfred Drake, Noel Coward, and Rex Harrison, each of whom turned it down. Finally, Rodgers and Hammerstein found their king in Yul Brynner, a Russian/Mongolian folksinger with a fierce stage presence. In out-of-town tryouts, The King and I score went through numerous alterations, including the elimination of three songs and the addition of four others.
The story is of British schoolteacher Anna Leonowens, who journeys with her son, Louis, to teach the children of King Mongkut. Both Anna and the King are strong-willed and match wits over issues including slavery and polygamy. The show ends with the King’s death, surrounded by his wives, children, and Anna. The tragic subplot of Tuptim, the King’s newest concubine, and her lover, Lun Tha, balances the lightheartedness created by the vast array of children. The King and I opened on Broadway to enthusiastic reviews. Brooks Atkinson of the New York Times found it “an original and beautiful excursion into the rich splendors of the Far East” that had a romantic score and exquisite dancing. Gertrude Lawrence played Anna until she became too ill to continue; she died at the age of 54, 17 months into the run. Brynner became intrinsically associated with the role of the King for 34 years, reprising it in the 1956 film version and numerous revivals. He played the role in 4,625 performances and won both a Tony and an Oscar for his portrayal.
The score is filled with exquisite songs, including Anna’s “I Whistle a Happy Tune” and “Getting to Know You,” precursors of “My Favorite Things” and “Do, Re, Mi” in The Sound of Music. She also sings the waltz “Hello Young Lovers,” where she compares the young love of Tuptim and Lun Tha to her relationship with her dead husband. Since the show was a vehicle for Gertrude Lawrence, the actress sang most of the show’s fine solo numbers. “The Small House of Uncle Thomas,” based on Uncle Tom’s Cabin, is an imaginative ballet with Asian overtones created by Jerome Robbins and dance arranger Trude Rittmann that is extremely important in the narrative because of its slavery-related theme. Anna and the King meet as intellectual and emotional equals in “Shall We Dance?” The two leads never kiss in the show; instead, they meet in the world of the dance. Rodgers and Hammerstein used music to define characters in extremely impressive ways. For example, the King never really sings—he intones his songs, with the melody played in the orchestra, as in “A Puzzlement.” Furthermore, the Siamese culture is represented by the orchestra itself—no words or songs but rather sounds. The original cast also included Dorothy Sarnoff playing the Crown Prince Chulalongkorn’s mother, Lady Thiang, who sang the vocally demanding “Something Wonderful,” along with Doretta Morrow as Tuptim and Larry Douglas as Lun Tha, who sang the haunting duet “We Kiss in a Shadow.”
The plot of The King and I has been scrutinized for its inaccurate and largely unfavorable impression of Siam and its great kings Mongkut and Chulalongkorn and has also been interpreted as an allegory for Western influence in Asia. The musical has been revived several times. Yul Brynner reprised his iconic role in 1977 (opposite Constance Towers) and again in 1985 (opposite May Beth Peil). Donna Murphy and Lou Diamond Phillips starred in the 1996 revival, as did Kelli O’Hara and Ken Watanabe in 2015.
(4 April 2013, Hirschfeld, 859 performances as of 26 April 2015.) An energetic musical based on the 2005 British film of the same title that includes a memorable score by longtime pop star Cyndi Lauper in her Broadway songwriting debut. Harvey Fierstein’s book concerns a down-and-out British shoe factory that prospers by making fetish footwear for flamboyant drag queens, a new product line that challenges the more conservative factory workers. In the end, they accept their new clients and business prospers. Director and choreographer Jerry Mitchell marshaled his forces in satisfying dance numbers and provided each member of the ensemble with an individual persona. Lauper’s “love- and heat-seeking score” (New York Times) varied from high-octane production numbers such as “Sex Is in the Heel” and the finales of each act to more nuanced songs for the primary love interests, Charlie Price (Stark Sands) and Lauren (Annaleigh Ashford). Billy Porter gave a striking performance as the head drag queen, Lola. Although described by the New York Times as “a shameless emotional button pusher,” Kinky Boots brought together sufficient thrills and memorable music to ensure a long run.
(3 December 1953, Ziegfeld, 583 performances.) Music by Alexander Borodin, musical adaptation and lyrics by Robert Wright and George Forrest, book by Charles Lederer and Luther Davis, choreography by Jack Cole. Based on Edward Knoblock’s 1911 play of the same name, Kismet starred Alfred Drake as “A Public Poet” named Hajj, who in a single day becomes an Emir and sees his daughter Marsinah (Doretta Morrow) marry the Caliph (Richard Kiley). New York Times critic Brooks Atkinson was not amused, feeling that the show was “assembled from a storehouse of spare parts,” which is “no substitute for creation.” He savaged the lyrics, calling them “some of the most fearful poetry of our time.” Wright and Forrest created Kismet’s score from the melodies of Russian composer Alexander Borodin, similar to what they had done for Song of Norway with Edvard Grieg’s music. What Atkinson might have missed in his opening-night review is the beauty of Borodin’s exotic melodies, which make songs like “Strangers in Paradise” and “Baubles, Bangles, and Beads” some of the loveliest ever heard on the Broadway stage.
(30 December 1948, New Century, 1,077 performances.) Music and lyrics by Cole Porter, book by Bella and Samuel Spewack, choreography by Hanya Holm. A fine musical combining Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew with a plot involving the performers appearing in it, Kiss Me, Kate was the highlight of the latter part of Porter’s career. With a tuneful, varied score; a wonderful book; and lively dances, Kiss Me, Kate was one of the best-integrated musical plays of the period. Each of the characters seemed to be a living, breathing person who brought realistic (if humorous) reactions to situations. Alfred Drake played Fred Graham/Petruccio, the lead and director in a musical adaptation of The Taming of the Shrew that is opening that day in Baltimore. Kiss Me, Kate shifts between the production itself and the backstage antics. The female lead is his ex-wife Lilli Vanessi/Katherine (Patricia Morison). They still love each other but constantly argue, and Lilli is now engaged to someone else. Following dictates of musical comedy, the secondary pair of lovers are Bill Calhoun (Harold Lang) and Lois Lane (Lisa Kirk), both of whom are actors in the troupe. Bill has lost all of his money while gambling and signed Fred’s name to an IOU. Two gangsters come to the theater to collect their money. In the end, Lilli and Fred recognize their love for each other, as do Bill and Lois, and the gangsters announce that their boss has been killed, erasing the debt, and confess their new interest in Shakespeare. Porter’s score includes the energetic opening number, “Another O’p’nin’, Another Show,” the sultry “Too Darn Hot,” the operetta-style waltz “So in Love,” and the riotous “Brush Up Your Shakespeare.” Songs that take place within the musical version of The Taming of the Shrew include Katherine’s “I Hate Men” and “I Am Ashamed That Women Are So Simple,” Petruccio’s “Were Thine That Special Face” and “Where Is the Life That Late I Led,” and the ensemble numbers “I’ve Come to Wive It Wealthily in Padua” and “Kiss Me, Kate.” Brian Stokes Mitchell and Marin Mazzie starred in the 1999 Broadway revival.
(3 May 1993, Broadhurst, 906 performances.) Music by John Kander, lyrics by Fred Ebb, book by Terrence McNally, directed by Harold Prince. Based on the novel by Manuel Puig (which also was the basis for the 1985 film starring William Hurt), Kiss of the Spider Woman told the story of the homosexual window dresser Molina (Brent Carver) and the political revolutionary Valentin (Anthony Crivello), a character similar to Che Guevara in Evita, who are held in the same prison cell in an unnamed Latin American country. To escape the horrors of his reality, Molina retreats into his imagination and dreams about a female film star, Aurora (Chita Rivera), whose central role was as a spider woman with a fatal kiss. The plot shifts between the prison and Molina’s dream world. Gradually, Molina and Valentin become friends and eventually lovers. On his release, Molina agrees to try to get a message to Valentin’s fellow rebels, but he is caught, tortured, and shot. In the final scene, which takes place in his imagination, he dances a tango with the Spider Woman and receives her kiss as the real-life bullet hits him. Frank Rich wrote a long, thoughtful review for the New York Times in which he was captivated by “the love affair that Mr. Prince masterminds between Chita Rivera and the audience.” Rivera’s showstopping numbers included “Where You Are” and “Kiss of the Spider Woman.” Extremely effective duets between Molina and his muse, such as “Morphine Tango” and “Gimme Love,” demonstrated Prince’s innovative approach to staging. The theme of social justice, an important dimension of the show, is strongest in the anthem “The Day after That,” the progeny of “One Day More” from Les Misérables.
The theatrical production partnership of attorney Marcus Klaw (1858–1936) and entrepreneur A. L. Erlanger (1859–1930) began as a theatrical booking agency in 1886 before expanding into producing plays and musicals. They became part of the Theatrical Syndicate in 1896. The team was especially known for its fanciful farces, extravaganzas, and operetta-like fare, including Maid Marian (1902), Robin Hood (1902 revival), Humpty Dumpty (1904), Little Nemo (1908), and The Pink Lady (1911).
Lyricist for A Chorus Line (1975), a show that won Tony Awards, the Pulitzer Prize, and other honors. In 2000, the musical A Class Act, a musical biography of Kleban featuring songs with music and lyrics by its subject, opened at the Manhattan Theatre Club. It transferred to Broadway in 2001, and 14 years after his death, Kleban received a Tony nomination for Best Original Score.
Actor whose performance in the 1981 revival of The Pirates of Penzance earned him a Tony Award. Other musical credits include Jamie Lockhart in The Robber Bridegroom (1975) and Bruce Granit in On the Twentieth Century (1978). He played Cole Porter in the 2004 biopic De-Lovely.
(19 October 1938, Ethel Barrymore, 168 performances.) Music by Kurt Weill, lyrics and book by Maxwell Anderson, staged by Joshua Logan. Based on Washington Irving’s The History of New York by Diedrich Knickerbocker, Knickerbocker Holiday is most famous today for the hit “September Song.” Anderson was a fine playwright (High Tor) but seems to have lacked the necessary lightness of spirit for musical comedy. Knickerbocker Holiday starred Walter Huston as Pieter Stuyvesant, the famed governor of 17th-century Manhattan. He is part of a love triangle and at the end lets the woman leave with the other man, whom he has saved from the gallows. The character of Washington Irving (Ray Middleton) appeared as a narrator. The book took satirical views of the New Deal and the rise of fascism, and according to Brooks Atkinson in the New York Times, Weill’s score was “lively and theatre-wise.”
Classically trained soprano who played several roles in The Mystery of Edwin Drood (1985) and Bella Cohen in Rags (1986) before creating Cosette on Broadway in Les Misérables (1987) and receiving a Tony Award nomination. She reprised the role in the 10th Anniversary Concert production at the Royal Albert Hall in London. Kuhn also played Florence in Chess (1988), Amalia Blash in the 1993 revival of She Loves Me, and Helen Bechdel in Fun Home (2015).