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Kismet
the Book by Charles Lederer and Luther Davies: based on a play by
Edward Knoblock: Music and Lyrics by Robert Wright and George Forrest
from the themes of Alexander Borodin
Ziegfeld
Theatre, Broadway - 3 December, 1953 (583 perfs)
Stoll Theatre, London, 20 April, 1955 (648 perfs)
Synopsis:
A
day in the life of a glib-tongued street poet in old Baghdad. He
accidentally inherits the city's most lucrative begging site, is
captured by brigands from whom he tricks a small fortune in gold, hands
most of it to his beloved daughter to spend on baubles, bangles and
beads, purchases slave-girls and bids for a palace, gets arrested for
theft and condemned to have his right hand lopped off, briefly
reconciles an erring father and a hard-hearted son, thus winning a
reprieve-and the lustful affection of the shapely wife of the Wazir of
Police-undertakes to prevent the marriage of a love-sick Caliph, no
less, and finally murders the aforementioned Wazir. Since he finds
himself about to become the Caliph's father-in-law, he pronounces the
only fitting sentence for such a crime, and is banished to a lonely
oasis with Lalume, the Wazir's recent, willing widow, to spend the rest
of his days compensating for her deprivation. For a street poet in old
Baghdad, some days were like that.
For
the Chorus
An
exciting and dynamic score includes a fair amount of chorus work
demanding careful rehearsal. There is enough work to keep dancers
happily busy, and there is colourful crowd work throughout. The chorus
appear as muezzins, beggars, worshippers at a mosque, citizens of
Baghdad, brigands, tribesmen and shoppers, street-market hawkers,
policemen, slaves and slave-masters, Asiatic maidens, merchants,
members of the Wazir's household, officials, guards, prosecutors and
prosecuted, and women of the harem.
Singing
Principals
Marsinah,
the poet's daughter
Lalume.
An Ayah to Princess Zubbediya.
The Poet.
The Caliph.
The Wazir.
The Bangle Man.
Straight
Roles
Omar,
another poet.
Jawan, a bandit.
Smaller
Roles
Three
Princesses of Ababu,
Princess Zubbediya of Damascus,
Princess Samaris of Bangalore,
auditionees for the hand of the Caliph.
Widow Yussef.
Several 2/3 line roles, some including short singing solos.
The
Edwin Lester production of KISMET was first presented by Charles Lederer
at the Ziegfeld Theatre, New York City, on December 3, 1953, the first
London performance was at the Stoll Theatre on April 2o, 1955.
Cast:
MUEZZINS
… LEE KENTON, LOUIS HENRY, EMLYN LEWIS, TOM SWIFT
DOORMAN … COLIN THOMAS
FIRST BEGGAR … COLIN CUNNINGHAM
SECOND BEGGAR … HUMPHREY HEATHCOTE
THIRD BEGGAR … DAVID DULAK
DERVISHES … RAYMOND RAY, JOHN BLYSDAEL
OMAR … DONALD ECCLES
A PUBLIC POET, later called HADJ … ALFRED DRAKE
MARSINAH, his daughter … DORETTA MORROW
TAMAN J … OSEPH SEALEY
HASSAN-BEN … ALISTER WILLIAMSON
JAWAN … STANLEY VAN BEERS
STREET DANCER … JOSEPHINE BLAKE
AKBAR … MALCOLM GODDARD
ASSIZ … NIGEL BURKE
THE BANGLEMAN … COLIN THOMAS
CHIEF POLICEMAN … HUMPHREY HEATHCOTE
SECOND POLICEMAN … ALISTER WILLIAMSON
THIRD POLICEMAN … JOSEPH SEALEY
THE WAZIR OF POLICE … PAUL WHITSUN-JONES
WAZIR'S GUARDS … KEN RICHMOND, GEORGE SWALES
LALUME … JOAN DIENER
ATTENDANTS … GORDON PETRIE, HARRY BAIRD
SERVANT … COLIN CUNNINGHAM
THE PRINCESSES OF ABABU … SHEILA O'NEILL, MURIEL ALI, DOREEN RIDER
THE CALIPH … PETER GRANT
SLAVE GIRLS … JUDITH SHERGOLD, PAMELA BUTLER, SHEILA BRADLEY, OLGA
ROMAN
A PEDDLER … COLIN CUNNINGHAM
PRINCESS ZUBBEDIYA OF DAMASCUS … CLAIRE WARNER
AVAH TO ZUBBEDIYA … JUNE GRANT
PRINCESS SAMARIS OF BANGALORE
AYAH TO SAMARIS … BARBARA ALLARD
STREET WOMEN … ANNE MARTIN, JANE WALKER
THE WIDOW YUSSEF … BARBARA ULRIC
EXECUTIONER … ROBERT GARCIA
SINGERS: Janet Yorke, Jane Walker, Gloria Wenlock, Mary
Burgess, Barbara Allard, Barbara Ulric, Anne Martin, Ruth Silvester,
Frank Olegario, Alister William-son, Joseph Sealey, George Slack, Emlyn
Lewis, Louis Henry, Robert Garcia, James Phillips, George Kazanzi, Lee
Kenton, Tom Swift.
DANCERS
: Josephine Blake, Juliet Prowse, Norma Dunbar, Ann Tyrell, Sally Webb,
Maureen Sims, Elizabeth Wright, Margaret Kovac, Ann Thomas, Malcolm
Goddard, Nigel Burke, John Blysdael, Raymond Ray
Scenes
and Settings
Act
I
The
steps of the Mosque.
Desert Encampment.
The Bazaar of Caravans.
A side street (front drop).
Widow Yussef's garden.
A street (front gauze).
The Wazir's throne room
Act
II
Along
the route of the Caliph's procession.
The garden.
Ante-room of the Wazir's harem.
A terrace, atop the harem.
Anteroom to the harem.
Hall of the Caliph's palace
Orchestration
Piano,
Violin A-C, Violin B-D, Viola, Cello, Bass, Flute, Oboe, lst and 2nd
Clarinets, Bass Clarinet, Bassoon, 2 Horns. 3 Trumpets, 1st and 2nd
Trombones, Tuba, 2 Percussion, Harp
Musical
Numbers:
ACT
ONE
-
OVERTURE
and SANDS OF TIME - Imam and Muezzins
-
RHYMES
HAVE I - Hadj with Marsinah
-
FATE
- Hadj
-
THE
HAND OF FATE
-
FATE—REPRISE
-
BAZAAR
OF THE CARAVANS - Bangleman, Townswomen and Townsmen
-
ENTRANCE
OF LALUME
-
ABABU
DANCE I
-
NOT
SINCE NINEVEH - Lalume
-
NOT
SINCE NINEVEH—DANCE - with Townspeople
-
EXIT
AFTER NINEVEH and STOLEN ORANGES
-
BAUBLES,
BANGLES AND BEADS - Marsinah, Bangle Man, Merchants, Silk
Merchants, Caliph, Townspeople
-
THE
POET AND THE SLAVE GIRLS
-
SLAVE
GIRL - Lute Solo
-
THE
POETS ARREST—PARADISE GARDEN
-
STRANGER
IN PARADISE - Marsinah, Caliph
-
THE
ABABUS GO SHOPPING
-
HE'S
IN LOVE - Policemen
-
THE
WAZIR'S PALACE
-
THE
WAZIR'S COUNCIL
-
GESTICULATE
- Wazir, Lalume, Hadj, Council
-
THE
CALIPHS NEWS - 3 Fanfares
-
FATE—FINALE
ACT I - Company
ACT
TWO
-
ENTR'ACTE
-
NIGHT
OF MY NIGHTS - Caliph, Chorus
-
STRANGER
IN PARADISE—REPRISE - Marsinah
-
BAUBLES,
BANGLES AND BEADS—REPRISE - Caliph
-
HE'S
IN LOVE—REPRISE -Entourage and Omar
-
THE
EMPTY LITTER and THE WAZIR'S SPIES - Entourage and Caliph
-
WAS
I WAZIR? - Wazir
-
RAHADLAKUM
- Lalumewith Hadj
-
AND
THIS IS MY BELOVED - Hadj, Marsinah, Wazir, Caliph
-
THE
POETS MEET
-
THE
OLIVE TREE - Hadj
-
THE
WAZIR'S WEDDING
-
THE
CALIPHS DIWAN
-
ZUBBEDIYA
- Ayah, Male Guests
-
SAMARIS'
DANCE
-
ABABU
DANCE II
-
FROM
THE RUBAIYAT
-
THE
WAZIR IS DEAD
-
FINALE
ACT II - Company
Kismet
Girls - Brilliant new London
based girl group
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