Charlotte Sweet
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| Charlotte Sweet | |
|---|---|
| The Love of Ludlow Ladd | |
Charlotte Sweet Album Cover Art | |
| Music | Gerald Jay Markoe |
| Lyrics | Michael Colby |
| Basis | Sequel to Ludlow Ladd (musical by Colby & Markoe) |
| Premiere | August 12, 1982: Westside Arts Center/Cheryl Crawford Theatre |
| Productions | 1982: Chernuchin Theatre/A.T.A., Off-Off-Broadway 1982: Cheryl Crawford Theatre, Off-Broadway |
Charlotte Sweet is an all-sung, all-rhymed original musical with a libretto by Michael Colby and music by Gerald Jay Markoe.
The musical is a sequel to Ludlow Ladd, a comic Christmas musical that Colby and Markoe created Off-off Broadway for The Lyric Theater of New York in 1979.[1]
Set in Victorian England, Charlotte Sweet spotlights Charlotte, a girl with one of the highest and most beautiful soprano voices in the world. Because of her father's debts, she is forced to leave Ludlow Ladd, her Liverpool sweetheart, and join Barnaby Bugaboo's “Circus of Voices”: a troupe of freak voices including low-voiced Katinka Bugaboo, fast-voiced Harry Host, bubble-voiced Cecily Macintosh, and Skitzy Scofield (with dual personalities and voices).
Becoming the troupe's biggest sensation, Charlotte is mercilessly exploited by Barnaby until she has a vocal breakdown. Thereupon, Barnaby and his wife Katinka addict Charlotte to helium balloons in order to maintain her high notes. Only Ludlow Ladd can rescue her.[2]
Musical numbers
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Production history
Off-Off Broadway
Charlotte Sweet began as an Off-Off-Broadway showcase, playing 20 performances (April 13 - May 1, 1982) at the Chernuchin Theatre/American Theatre of Actors.[3]
Off-Broadway
Receiving enthusiastic reviews, it was optioned by Power Productions/Stan Raiff, moving Off-Broadway on August 12, 1982 to the Westside Arts Center/Cheryl Crawford Theatre. It played 102 performances and eight previews, closing November 7, 1982.[4]
Other productions
Charlotte Sweet has enjoyed various regional productions, including at the New American Theater in Rockford, IL, in repertory with Ludlow Ladd.[5]
Cast and crew
With direction by Edward Stone and choreography by Dennis Dennehy, the musical featured Mara Beckerman, Alan Brasington, Merle Louise, Michael McCormick, Polly Pen, Christopher Seppe, Sondra Wheeler, and Nicholas Wyman. Merle Louise and Nicholas Wyman respectively took over for Virginia Seidel and Michael Dantuono, who were in the showcase. Scenery was designed by Holmes Easley, costumes by Michele Reisch, and lighting by Jason Kantrowitz, with musical direction by Jan Rosenberg.[6]
Recording
The original production cast recording was released by John Hammond Records in 1983, reissued by DRG Records, and is now available on Jay Records. The cast album features original cast members as well as Jeff Keller, Lynn Eldredge, and Timothy Landfield (who succeeded Brasington, Wheeler, and Wyman).[7]
Critical response
John Corry of The New York Times wrote that "Charlotte Sweet mixes the adorable and the strange, and it is delectable."[6] The New York Post called it “a heartwarming echo of the music hall in turn-of-the-century England”.[8] It was championed by artist Al Hirschfeld[9] and Leonard Cohen who said he "loved the show".[10]
Charlotte Sweet was nominated for three Drama Desk Awards, including "Outstanding Actress in a Musical", "Outstanding Music", and "Outstanding Lyrics".[11]