1954 PETER PAN Mary Martin Broadway Version Cyril Ritchard Comden Green Robbins - $80 - (Eureka Springs, AR)
This souvenir program for PETER PAN appears to be from the pre-Broadway tryout tour of the revised version that played the West Coast earlier in 1954. That version, not a full-scale musical but an adaptation of the James M. Barrie play, included tunes by Carolyn Leigh and Mark "Moose" Charlap, and it was not a hit. Richard Halliday, husband of Mary Martin, acquired the rights and brought it to the Main Stem -- first having sold the show to NBC Television for later broadcast. Jerome Robbins was hired to stage and choreograph the show, and Adolph Green and Betty Comden provided additional songs; Trude Ritman composed the dance music. The memorable cast included MARY MARTIN in the title role; CYRIL RITCHARD as Captain Hook and Mr. Darling; Kathleen (Kathy) Nolan as Wendy, Margalo Gilmore as Mrs. Darling, Sondra Lee as Tiger Lily; Joe E. Marks as Smee; as well as Martin's daughter Heller Halliday, Robert Harrington, Joseph (Bucko) Stafford, David Bean, Stanley Stenner, Darryl Duran, Alan Sutherland, Ian Tucker, and Paris Theodore. The paucity of production photographs indicates that no picture call had been held prior to the publication of the souvenir book; all such photos appear on the back cover and are from the West Coast production. The show was a hit when it reached Broadway's Winter Garden Theater, earning Tony Awards for both Martin and Ritchard. The run was legitimately limited to 152 performances because of the broadcast commitment to NBC, and played profitably to good houses through the final Main Stem performance. The show was broadcast live for three successive years -- oldsters like me will remember it as an Easter-afternoon treat from childhood -- until the advent of videotape ended the necessity for live reprises of the work. Condition: There are considerable creasing, shmutz, and a few stains, mainly on the covers. Otherwise, it is sturdy and intact.
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