The Museum presents Musicals on Television
Monday, August 8, 2005
New York, NY—The Museum of Television & Radio will once again participate in the New York Musical Theatre Festival (September 12 to October 2, 2005) by offering a sampler of musicals from the Museum's permanent collection. Of special note, included in this year's offerings is a rediscovered and digitally restored Ruggles of Red Gap starring Michael Redgrave (in the title role), Peter Lawford, Imogene Coca, David Wayne, and Jane Powell, with songs by Jule Styne and Leo Robin. Musicals on Television will run at the New York Museum from September 22 to 25, 2005, with additional screenings through October 30 of two of the featured programs, Ruggles of Red Gap and Our Town.
The screening schedule follows:
Thursday, September 22 at 5:30 p.m.
NBC Opera Theatre: Trouble in Tahiti (1952)
Leonard Bernstein's jazzy, satiric opera—a crossover work "which seemed designed with television in mind," according to one critic—offers a glimpse into the lives of an unhappily married suburban couple, played by Beverly Wolff and David Atkinson. Conducted by Bernstein and directed by Kirk Browning. (45 minutes)
Thursday, September 22 at 6:30 p.m.
Bell Telephone Hour: The Music of Harold Arlen (1965)
Performers include Dinah Shore, Duke Ellington, Gordon MacRae, Leslie Uggams, Gretchen Wyler, and (from the New York City Ballet) Edward Villella and Patricia McBride. In the finale, composer Arlen joins the entire cast for "Over the Rainbow." (60 minutes)
Friday, September 23 at 1:00 p.m.
Once Upon a Mattress (1964)
The first television production of the 1959 Broadway musical by Mary Rodgers, starring Carol Burnett as Princess Winnifred Woebegone and featuring Joseph Bova, Jane White, Jack Gilford, Bill Hayes, Shani Wallis, and Elliott Gould. (90 minutes)
Friday, September 23 at 2:30 p.m.
Celebrating Sondheim at 75: "Follies" and More
From the 1975 Tony Awards, Alexis Smith sings "The Story of Lucy and Jessie"; Yvonne DeCarlo sings "I'm Still Here" in a 1978 special, Hollywood's Diamond Jubilee; the cast of the original Broadway production of Follies joins the creative team on The David Frost Show in 1971; and from 1985, Great Performances: Follies in Concert, with Lee Remick, Barbara Cook, Mandy Patinkin, George Hearn, Carol Burnett, and Elaine Stritch. Plus, a 1973 featurette with Sondheim and Anthony Perkins on the making of the feature film The Last of Sheila; and a 2003 Chicago Tonight segment on Bounce. (180 minutes)
Saturday, September 24 to Sunday, October 30 at 1 p.m.
Producers' Showcase: Our Town (1955)
A musical version of the Thornton Wilder play, with a score by James Van Heusen and Sammy Cahn (with songs including "Love and Marriage" and "Look to Your Heart"); a cast featuring Frank Sinatra, Eva Marie Saint, and Paul Newman; and direction by Delbert Mann. (80 minutes)
A rediscovered television musical!
Saturday, September 24 to Sunday, October 30 at 2:30 p.m.
Ruggles of Red Gap (1957)
A long-lost live television musical, not seen since its initial airing, with music by Jule Styne and lyrics by Leo Robin, about a perfect English butler who finds himself transported to a small American town in the early 1900s. Songs include "A Ride on a Rainbow" and "I'm in Pursuit of Happiness" (which two years later was recycled for Styne's Broadway musical Gypsy, with a new title—"You'll Never Get Away from Me"—and new lyrics by Stephen Sondheim). Starring Michael Redgrave (as Ruggles), Jane Powell, David Wayne, Imogene Coca, and Peter Lawford. Staged by Charles Friedman and directed for television by Clark Jones. The program was located and digitally restored by Alexander Kogan, Jr., the owner of Showcase Productions Inc., which produced the original 1957 program. (90 minutes)
Admission to Musicals on Television is included with the Museum's suggested contribution: Members free; $10.00 for adults; $8.00 for senior citizens and students; and $5.00 for children under fourteen.
The Museum of Television & Radio, with locations in New York and Los Angeles, is a nonprofit organization founded by William S. Paley to collect and preserve television and radio programs and advertisements and to make them available to the public. Since opening in 1976, the Museum has organized exhibitions, screening and listening series, seminars, and education classes to showcase its collection of over 100,000 television and radio programs and advertisements. Programs in the Museum's permanent collection are selected for their artistic, cultural, and historic significance.
The Museum of Television & Radio in New York, located at 25 West 52 Street in Manhattan, is open Tuesdays through Sundays from noon to 6:00 p.m. and until 8:00 p.m. on Thursdays. The Museum of Television & Radio in California, located at 465 North Beverly Drive in Beverly Hills, is open Wednesdays through Sundays from noon to 5:00 p.m. Both Museums are closed on New Year's Day, Independence Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. Suggested contribution: Members free; $10.00 for adults; $8.00 for senior citizens and students; and $5.00 for children under fourteen. Admission is free in Los Angeles. The public areas in both Museums are accessible to wheelchairs, and assisted listening devices are available. Programs are subject to change. You may call the Museum in New York at (212) 621-6800, or in Los Angeles at (310) 786-1000. Visit the Museum's website at www.mtr.org.