.gif)
Babes in Toyland (operetta)
Encyclopedia
Babes in Toyland is an operetta
composed by Victor Herbert
with a libretto by Glen MacDonough
(1870–1924), which wove together various characters from Mother Goose
nursery rhymes into a Christmas-themed musical extravaganza. The creators wanted to cash in on the extraordinary success of The Wizard of Oz
, which was produced in New York beginning in January 1903, under producer Fred R. Hamlin, and directed by Julian P. Mitchell. MacDonough had helped Mitchell with revisions to the Oz libretto by L. Frank Baum
. Babes in Toyland features some of Herbert's most famous songs–among them "Toyland", "March of the Toys", "Go To Sleep, Slumber Deep", and "I Can't Do The Sum". The theme song "Toyland" and "March of the Toys" occasionally show up on Christmas compilations.
The original production opened at the Chicago Grand Opera house on June 17, 1903, produced by Hamlin and directed by Mitchell, and toured to East Coast cities before opening in New York on October 13, 1903 and ran for 192 performances. This was followed by many successful tours and revivals. The piece was so popular that it spawned other "fairy-tale" shows over the next decade.
After a three-month tryout beginning in June 1903 at the Grand Opera House in Chicago, followed by a tour to East Coast cities, the original New York production opened on October 13, 1903 at the Majestic Theatre
at Columbus Circle
in Manhattan
(where The Wizard of Oz had played) and closed after 192 performances on March 19, 1904. Large audiences were drawn to the musical by the spectacular settings and opulent sets (e.g., the Floral Palace of the Moth Queen, the Garden of Contrary Mary) of Toyland. A return engagement on Broadway opened on January 2, 1905 at the Majestic and closed on January 21, 1905, followed by another tour.
A Broadway revival opened on December 23, 1929 at Jolson's 59th Street Theatre, closing on January 11, 1930. It was directed by Milton Aborn. Another Broadway revival opened on December 20, 1930 at the Imperial Theatre, closing in January 1931. It was directed by Aborn and choreographed by Virginie Mauret.
A new book and lyrics for the show were written for the Light Opera of Manhattan
(LOOM) in 1975 by Alice Hammerstein Mathias (the daughter of Oscar Hammerstein II
) and the company's director-producer William Mount-Burke. LOOM played this operetta as a Christmas show for six to eight weeks each year thereafter for 13 seasons with considerable success, and the rewritten book and lyrics has since been used by other companies, including Troupe America. The ensemble becomes a mechanical militia of toys for the "March of the Toys", and children from the audience are brought up to help "wind-up" the toy dancers.
In 2003, in celebration of the 100th anniversary of the operetta, Hampton, Virginia
-based Rainbow Puppet Productions created a touring puppet version of the show entitled "Toyland!" The new script was adapted by David Messick, Jr. Prerecorded puppet voices were created, featuring Mickey Rooney
as the Master Toymaker and his wife Jan Rooney as Mother Goose. The program has toured annually since that time. In this version, Little Bo Peep
has lost her sheep, and her evil Uncle Barnaby is to blame. She travels through the Spider Forest to seek help from the kind Master Toymaker.
Act 2
Act 3
Cut Numbers (Chicago, 1903)
Additional numbers, 1904–1905
Orphans Alan and Jane are the wards of their wicked Uncle Barnaby, who wants to steal their inheritance. He arranges with two sailors, Gonzorgo and Roderigo, for them to be shipwrecked and lost at sea, but they are rescued by gypsies and returned to Contrary Mary's garden. Contrary Mary, the eldest daughter of the Widow Piper, believing her beloved Alan is dead, has run away with her brother, Tom-Tom, rather than agree to marry Barnaby. After a second attempt on their lives, Alan and Jane are abandoned in the Forest of No Return. In the Spider's Den, they are protected by the Moth Queen. Old Mother Hubbard's shoe is threatened with foreclosure by Baranaby.
Alan and Jane arrive in Toyland, where they find Contrary Mary and Tom-Tom and seek protection from the Master Toymaker, an evil genius who plots with Barnaby to create toys that kill and maim. The demonically possessed dolls turn on the Toymaker, killing him, and Barnaby uses the information to have Alan sentenced to death. Contrary Mary agrees to marry him in exchange for Alan's pardon, but Barnaby marries her, denounces Alan again, and dies, after drinking a wine glass filled with poison meant for Alan. Tom-Tom reveals that an old law of Toyland permitting marriage between a widow and a condemned man on condition that he supports her may save Alan from the gallows. Alan is now free to marry Contrary Mary.
, is more sentimental than the original. Two unhappy children, Jane and Alan, run away from home. Their parents, who are always putting work and discipline before fun, are too busy for them, so the young siblings set out for a place where they will be understood. The children believe that Toyland, a magical land of spirited toys, will deliver them from their hardships. When they arrive, the kindly Toymaker welcomes them with open arms. He warns them not to become too caught up in the fantasy, but soon the toys of Toyland draw them in with their singing and dancing.
The busy parents must find a way to bring the young runaways back home. They send a private eye to search for their children, but he sees an opportunity for personal gain in his trip to Toyland; he forces Jane and Alan to help him steal the Toymaker's plans for a new marching toy soldier. When the parents arrive in Toyland via hot air balloon, they too fall under the spell of the mystical land. Arguments break out, toys are wounded, and Jane and Alan get lost and frightened in the dark woods outside of Toyland. As the parents and toys search for the children, the characters and audience alike discover the true meaning of Christmas.
recorded ten selections (on five 10-inch 78-RPM records) in 1944. The recording featured Kenny Baker and Karen Kemple with a chorus and orchestra conducted by Alexander Smallens
. This album was reissued on a 10-inch LP in 1949, and by reducing the selections from ten to six, Decca re-released it on one side of a 12-inch LP (The Red Mill
was on the reverse) in 1957. This edition stayed in print until 1969. After a long absence from the catalogue, Decca Broadway
reissued the complete album on CD (again paired with The Red Mill) in 2002.
The Walt Disney film version
, released in 1961, was given two recordings released in the same year. The first was a cover version
featuring only Ed Wynn
from the film, supported by a cast of singers unidentified on the album. This version was released by Disneyland Records
. The second used the original vocal tracks from the soundtrack
of the film; however, the musical accompaniments were not those heard in the film, but those heard on the cover version. The choral arrangements were, likewise, those heard on the cover version, not those heard in the actual film. This album was released on Buena Vista Records and features Ray Bolger
, Henry Calvin
, Kevin Corcoran
, Annette Funicello
, Ann Jillian
, Tommy Sands
and Ed Wynn
. Neither one of these albums has been issued on CD.
A stereo recording was made by Reader's Digest
for their 1962 album Treasury of Great Operettas. Each of the 24 operettas in the set is condensed to fill one LP side. The Babes in Toyland selections have not been re-released on CD. The recording was conducted by Lehman Engel
and featured Sara Endich, Patricia Kelly, Peter Palmer, Mary Ellen Pracht, Jeanette Scovotti, and Mallory Walker. A 1963 recording of several of the songs was released together with numbers from The Wizard of Oz (1963 MGM Studio Cast). A compilation album was released on CD in 1997.
A recording of the complete score, with the original orchestrations restored and conducted by John McGlinn
with the London Sinfonietta, was apparently made in 2001, but it has never been released.
A cast recording of the 2003 production of "Toyland!" was released in 2007, featuring the voice of Mickey Rooney
as the Master Toymaker. His wife, Jan Rooney is Mother Goose.
's 1934 film version
of Babes in Toyland (reissued as March of the Wooden Soldiers) includes only five of Herbert's songs and almost none of the original book. It features Charlotte Henry
.
During the early days of television, there were three versions within a ten year span. A 1950 television version starred Dennis King
as a new villain called Dr. Electron. A 1954 adaptation for television featured Wally Cox
, Barbara Cook
, Dave Garroway
, and Jack E. Leonard
, and a 1960 adaptation for television featured Shirley Temple
as the old gypsy Floretta, Angela Cartwright
as Jane, and Jonathan Winters
as Barnaby. It was shown as an episode on the anthology series The Shirley Temple Show.
Walt Disney
's Technicolor
1961 film production
starred Ray Bolger
, Tommy Sands
and Annette Funicello
. This had a heavily revised plot, but much of the Herbert music was included, although some of it was played in an entirely different tempo from that intended by the composer, and the songs had completely new lyrics. A musical version of Babes in Toyland , with a plotline very similar to the Disney adaptation, has a book by Rebecca Ryland and music and lyrics by Bill Francoeur
.
A 1986 made for television version
featured Drew Barrymore
, Pat Morita
, and Keanu Reeves
, only two songs from the Victor Herbert score, a new plot, and many new songs by Leslie Bricusse
.
An animated film version
, with a new plot and only one of the original songs, was released in 1997 by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
featuring the voices of Christopher Plummer
, James Belushi
, Bronson Pinchot
, and Lacey Chabert
.
Operetta
Operetta is a genre of light opera, light in terms both of music and subject matter. It is also closely related, in English-language works, to forms of musical theatre.-Origins:...
composed by Victor Herbert
Victor Herbert
Victor August Herbert was an Irish-born, German-raised American composer, cellist and conductor. Although Herbert enjoyed important careers as a cello soloist and conductor, he is best known for composing many successful operettas that premiered on Broadway from the 1890s to World War I...
with a libretto by Glen MacDonough
Glen MacDonough
Glen MacDonough was a US American writer, lyricist and librettist. He was the son of theater manager Thomas B. MacDonough and actress/author Laura Don...
(1870–1924), which wove together various characters from Mother Goose
Mother Goose
The familiar figure of Mother Goose is an imaginary author of a collection of fairy tales and nursery rhymes which are often published as Mother Goose Rhymes. As a character, she appears in one "nursery rhyme". A Christmas pantomime called Mother Goose is often performed in the United Kingdom...
nursery rhymes into a Christmas-themed musical extravaganza. The creators wanted to cash in on the extraordinary success of The Wizard of Oz
The Wizard of Oz (1902 stage play)
The Wizard of Oz was a 1902 musical extravaganza based on The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum, which was originally published in 1900...
, which was produced in New York beginning in January 1903, under producer Fred R. Hamlin, and directed by Julian P. Mitchell. MacDonough had helped Mitchell with revisions to the Oz libretto by L. Frank Baum
L. Frank Baum
Lyman Frank Baum was an American author of children's books, best known for writing The Wonderful Wizard of Oz...
. Babes in Toyland features some of Herbert's most famous songs–among them "Toyland", "March of the Toys", "Go To Sleep, Slumber Deep", and "I Can't Do The Sum". The theme song "Toyland" and "March of the Toys" occasionally show up on Christmas compilations.
The original production opened at the Chicago Grand Opera house on June 17, 1903, produced by Hamlin and directed by Mitchell, and toured to East Coast cities before opening in New York on October 13, 1903 and ran for 192 performances. This was followed by many successful tours and revivals. The piece was so popular that it spawned other "fairy-tale" shows over the next decade.
Productions
Majestic Theatre (Columbus Circle)
The Majestic Theatre was a now demolished theatre located at 5 Columbus Circle, the present site of the Time Warner Center. Designed in 1903 by John H. Duncan, the architect of Grant's Tomb, that theatre hosted original musicals, including The Wizard of Oz and Babes in Toyland, and briefly served...
at Columbus Circle
Columbus Circle
Columbus Circle, named for Christopher Columbus, is a major landmark and point of attraction in the New York City borough of Manhattan, located at the intersection of Eighth Avenue, Broadway, Central Park South , and Central Park West, at the southwest corner of Central Park. It is the point from...
in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
(where The Wizard of Oz had played) and closed after 192 performances on March 19, 1904. Large audiences were drawn to the musical by the spectacular settings and opulent sets (e.g., the Floral Palace of the Moth Queen, the Garden of Contrary Mary) of Toyland. A return engagement on Broadway opened on January 2, 1905 at the Majestic and closed on January 21, 1905, followed by another tour.
A Broadway revival opened on December 23, 1929 at Jolson's 59th Street Theatre, closing on January 11, 1930. It was directed by Milton Aborn. Another Broadway revival opened on December 20, 1930 at the Imperial Theatre, closing in January 1931. It was directed by Aborn and choreographed by Virginie Mauret.
A new book and lyrics for the show were written for the Light Opera of Manhattan
Light Opera of Manhattan
Light Opera of Manhattan, known as LOOM, was an Off-Broadway repertory theatre company that produced light operas, including the works of Gilbert and Sullivan and European and American operettas, 52 weeks per year, in New York City between 1968 and 1989....
(LOOM) in 1975 by Alice Hammerstein Mathias (the daughter of Oscar Hammerstein II
Oscar Hammerstein II
Oscar Greeley Clendenning Hammerstein II was an American librettist, theatrical producer, and theatre director of musicals for almost forty years. Hammerstein won eight Tony Awards and was twice awarded an Academy Award for "Best Original Song". Many of his songs are standard repertoire for...
) and the company's director-producer William Mount-Burke. LOOM played this operetta as a Christmas show for six to eight weeks each year thereafter for 13 seasons with considerable success, and the rewritten book and lyrics has since been used by other companies, including Troupe America. The ensemble becomes a mechanical militia of toys for the "March of the Toys", and children from the audience are brought up to help "wind-up" the toy dancers.
In 2003, in celebration of the 100th anniversary of the operetta, Hampton, Virginia
Hampton, Virginia
Hampton is an independent city that is not part of any county in Southeast Virginia. Its population is 137,436. As one of the seven major cities that compose the Hampton Roads metropolitan area, it is on the southeastern end of the Virginia Peninsula. Located on the Hampton Roads Beltway, it hosts...
-based Rainbow Puppet Productions created a touring puppet version of the show entitled "Toyland!" The new script was adapted by David Messick, Jr. Prerecorded puppet voices were created, featuring Mickey Rooney
Mickey Rooney
Mickey Rooney is an American film actor and entertainer whose film, television, and stage appearances span nearly his entire lifetime. He has won multiple awards, including an Honorary Academy Award, a Golden Globe and an Emmy Award...
as the Master Toymaker and his wife Jan Rooney as Mother Goose. The program has toured annually since that time. In this version, Little Bo Peep
Little Bo Peep
"Little Bo Peep" or "Little Bo Peep has lost her sheep" is a popular English language nursery rhyme. It has a Roud Folk Song Index number of 6487.-Lyrics:As with most products of oral tradition, there are many variations to the rhyme...
has lost her sheep, and her evil Uncle Barnaby is to blame. She travels through the Spider Forest to seek help from the kind Master Toymaker.
Characters
- Alan, nephew of Barnaby
- Jane, his sister
- Uncle Barnaby, a rich miser
- The Widow Piper, a widow with fourteen children
- Tom Tom, her eldest son
- Contrary Mary, her eldest daughter
- Little Bo-Peep
- Jack and Jill
- Peter
- Tommy Tucker
- Sallie Waters
- Little Miss Muffet
- Curly Locks
- Red Riding Hood
- Bobby Shaftoe
- Simple Simon
- Boy Blue
- Hilda, the Widow Piper's maid
- Grumio, apprentice to the Master Toymaker
- Gonzorgo, a ruffian
- Roderigo, his partner
- Inspector Marmaduke, of the Toyland Police
- The Master Toymaker
- The Spirit of the Pine
- The Spirit of the Oak
- The Moth Queen
- Gertrude, a peasant
Musical numbers
Act 1- Prologue - Alan, Jane, Uncle Barnaby, Gonzorgo and Roderigo
- Don't Cry, Bo-Peep (Never Mind, Bo-Peep, We Will Find Your Sheep) – Bo-Peep, Tom-Tom and Widow Piper's Children
- Floretta – Alan and Chorus
- Mary Mary – Chorus
- Barney O'Flynn – Contrary Mary and Chorus
- I Can't Do the Sum – Jane and Widow Piper's Children
- Go to Sleep, Slumber Deep – Alan, Jane and Wood Spirits
Act 2
- Christmas Fair Waltz: Hail to Christmas – Chorus
- The Legend of the Castle (Our Castle in Spain) – Gertrude and Chorus
- Song of the Poet (introducing "Rock-a-bye Baby") – Alan and Chorus
- March of the Toys – Ensemble
- Military Ball – Ensemble
- In The Toymakers Workshop – Male Chorus
- Toyland – Tom-Tom and Male Chorus
- My Rag Doll Girl (Eccentric Dance) – Grumio and Jill
Act 3
- An Old-Fashioned Rose – Tom-Tom
- Before and After – Alan and Contrary Mary
- Jane – Jane, Grumio, Gonzorgo and Chorus
- Maybe the Moon Will Help You Out – Bo-Peep
Cut Numbers (Chicago, 1903)
- With Downcast Eye – Tom-Tom and Chorus
- The Men – Contrary Mary
- The Healthfood Man – Gonzorgo and Roderigo
- If I Were a Man Like That – Gonzorgo, Roderigo, Widow Piper
- Mignonette – Tom-Tom
Additional numbers, 1904–1905
- Beatrice Barefacts – Contrary Mary and Inspector Marmaduke
- He Won't Be Happy Till He Gets It – Jane, Grumio, Gonzorgo and Chorus
- Don't Be a Villain – Gonzorgo and Roderigo
1903 version
Alan and Jane arrive in Toyland, where they find Contrary Mary and Tom-Tom and seek protection from the Master Toymaker, an evil genius who plots with Barnaby to create toys that kill and maim. The demonically possessed dolls turn on the Toymaker, killing him, and Barnaby uses the information to have Alan sentenced to death. Contrary Mary agrees to marry him in exchange for Alan's pardon, but Barnaby marries her, denounces Alan again, and dies, after drinking a wine glass filled with poison meant for Alan. Tom-Tom reveals that an old law of Toyland permitting marriage between a widow and a condemned man on condition that he supports her may save Alan from the gallows. Alan is now free to marry Contrary Mary.
1970s version
The 1970s version, first produced by the Light Opera of ManhattanLight Opera of Manhattan
Light Opera of Manhattan, known as LOOM, was an Off-Broadway repertory theatre company that produced light operas, including the works of Gilbert and Sullivan and European and American operettas, 52 weeks per year, in New York City between 1968 and 1989....
, is more sentimental than the original. Two unhappy children, Jane and Alan, run away from home. Their parents, who are always putting work and discipline before fun, are too busy for them, so the young siblings set out for a place where they will be understood. The children believe that Toyland, a magical land of spirited toys, will deliver them from their hardships. When they arrive, the kindly Toymaker welcomes them with open arms. He warns them not to become too caught up in the fantasy, but soon the toys of Toyland draw them in with their singing and dancing.
The busy parents must find a way to bring the young runaways back home. They send a private eye to search for their children, but he sees an opportunity for personal gain in his trip to Toyland; he forces Jane and Alan to help him steal the Toymaker's plans for a new marching toy soldier. When the parents arrive in Toyland via hot air balloon, they too fall under the spell of the mystical land. Arguments break out, toys are wounded, and Jane and Alan get lost and frightened in the dark woods outside of Toyland. As the parents and toys search for the children, the characters and audience alike discover the true meaning of Christmas.
Recordings
Decca RecordsDecca Records
Decca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades....
recorded ten selections (on five 10-inch 78-RPM records) in 1944. The recording featured Kenny Baker and Karen Kemple with a chorus and orchestra conducted by Alexander Smallens
Alexander Smallens
Alexander Smallens was a Russian-born American conductor and music director.Smallens was born in Saint Petersburg, Russia, and emigrated to the United States as a child, becoming an American citizen in 1919...
. This album was reissued on a 10-inch LP in 1949, and by reducing the selections from ten to six, Decca re-released it on one side of a 12-inch LP (The Red Mill
The Red Mill
The Red Mill is an operetta written by Victor Herbert, with a libretto by Henry Blossom. It premiered on Broadway on September 24, 1906 at the Knickerbocker Theatre and ran for 274 performances, starring comedians Fred Stone and David Montgomery. It was revived on October 16, 1945, opening at the...
was on the reverse) in 1957. This edition stayed in print until 1969. After a long absence from the catalogue, Decca Broadway
Decca Broadway
Decca Broadway Records is an American record label specializing in musical theater recordings founded in 1999 by Decca Records and is a unit of Universal Music Group....
reissued the complete album on CD (again paired with The Red Mill) in 2002.
The Walt Disney film version
Babes in Toyland (1961 film)
Babes in Toyland is a 1961 Christmas musical film in Technicolor, directed by Jack Donohue, produced by Walt Disney, and distributed to theatres by Buena Vista Distribution. It stars Ray Bolger as Barnaby, Annette Funicello as Mary Contrary, Tommy Sands as Tom Piper, and Ed Wynn as the Toymaker.The...
, released in 1961, was given two recordings released in the same year. The first was a cover version
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
featuring only Ed Wynn
Ed Wynn
Ed Wynn was a popular American comedian and actor noted for his Perfect Fool comedy character, his pioneering radio show of the 1930s, and his later career as a dramatic actor....
from the film, supported by a cast of singers unidentified on the album. This version was released by Disneyland Records
Disneyland Records
Disneyland Records is the original name of the Walt Disney Company's record company.After long associations with primarily RCA Victor Records, with a few select titles on Capitol, Disneyland Records was established by the Disney studio in 1956 with its first release entitled A Child's Garden of...
. The second used the original vocal tracks from the soundtrack
Soundtrack
A soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...
of the film; however, the musical accompaniments were not those heard in the film, but those heard on the cover version. The choral arrangements were, likewise, those heard on the cover version, not those heard in the actual film. This album was released on Buena Vista Records and features Ray Bolger
Ray Bolger
Raymond Wallace "Ray" Bolger was an American entertainer of stage and screen, best known for his portrayal of the Scarecrow and Kansas farmworker Hank in The Wizard of Oz.-Early life:...
, Henry Calvin
Henry Calvin
Henry Calvin was an American comic actor best known for his role as Sergeant Garcia on Walt Disney's live-action television series Zorro .-Early life:...
, Kevin Corcoran
Kevin Corcoran
Kevin Anthony "Moochie" Corcoran is an American director, producer, and former child actor. He appeared in numerous Disney projects between 1957 and 1963, frequently as an irrepressible character with the nickname Moochie...
, Annette Funicello
Annette Funicello
Annette Joanne Funicello is an American singer and actress. She was Walt Disney's most popular cast member of the original Mickey Mouse Club, and went on to appear in a series of beach party films.-Early life and early stardom:...
, Ann Jillian
Ann Jillian
Ann Jillian is an American actress, who started acting at age 10. Her career reached its zenith in the 1980s, with her best-known role being that of waitress Cassie Cranston on the sitcom It's a Living.-Early life and career:...
, Tommy Sands
Tommy Sands
Tommy Adrian Sands is an American pop music singer and actor.-Early life:Born into a musical family in Chicago, Illinois, Sands' father was a pianist and his mother a big-band singer. While still young, he moved with his family to Shreveport, Louisiana...
and Ed Wynn
Ed Wynn
Ed Wynn was a popular American comedian and actor noted for his Perfect Fool comedy character, his pioneering radio show of the 1930s, and his later career as a dramatic actor....
. Neither one of these albums has been issued on CD.
A stereo recording was made by Reader's Digest
Reader's Digest
Reader's Digest is a general interest family magazine, published ten times annually. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, its headquarters is now in New York City. It was founded in 1922, by DeWitt Wallace and Lila Bell Wallace...
for their 1962 album Treasury of Great Operettas. Each of the 24 operettas in the set is condensed to fill one LP side. The Babes in Toyland selections have not been re-released on CD. The recording was conducted by Lehman Engel
Lehman Engel
Lehman Engel was an American composer and conductor of Broadway musicals, television and film.-Work in theatre, television and films:...
and featured Sara Endich, Patricia Kelly, Peter Palmer, Mary Ellen Pracht, Jeanette Scovotti, and Mallory Walker. A 1963 recording of several of the songs was released together with numbers from The Wizard of Oz (1963 MGM Studio Cast). A compilation album was released on CD in 1997.
A recording of the complete score, with the original orchestrations restored and conducted by John McGlinn
John McGlinn
John Alexander McGlinn III was an American conductor and musical theatre archivist. He was one of the principal proponents of authentic studio cast recordings of Broadway musicals, using original orchestrations and vocal arrangements.-Biography:John Alexander McGlinn III was born in Bryn Mawr,...
with the London Sinfonietta, was apparently made in 2001, but it has never been released.
A cast recording of the 2003 production of "Toyland!" was released in 2007, featuring the voice of Mickey Rooney
Mickey Rooney
Mickey Rooney is an American film actor and entertainer whose film, television, and stage appearances span nearly his entire lifetime. He has won multiple awards, including an Honorary Academy Award, a Golden Globe and an Emmy Award...
as the Master Toymaker. His wife, Jan Rooney is Mother Goose.
Adaptations
Laurel and HardyLaurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy were one of the most popular and critically acclaimed comedy double acts of the early Classical Hollywood era of American cinema...
's 1934 film version
Babes in Toyland (1934 film)
Babes in Toyland is a Laurel and Hardy musical film released in November 1934. The film is also known by its alternate titles Laurel and Hardy in Toyland, Revenge Is Sweet , March of the Wooden Soldiers and Wooden Soldiers .Based on Victor Herbert's popular 1903 operetta Babes in Toyland, the film...
of Babes in Toyland (reissued as March of the Wooden Soldiers) includes only five of Herbert's songs and almost none of the original book. It features Charlotte Henry
Charlotte Henry
Charlotte Henry was an American actress who is best remembered for her roles in Alice in Wonderland and Babes in Toyland . She also starred in the Frank Buck serial Jungle Menace.-Early years:...
.
During the early days of television, there were three versions within a ten year span. A 1950 television version starred Dennis King
Dennis King (actor)
Dennis King was an English actor and singer.Born in Coventry as Dennis Pratt, King had a stage career in both drama and musicals. He emigrated to the USA in 1921 and went on to a successful career on the Broadway stage. He appeared in two musical films and played non-singing roles in two other...
as a new villain called Dr. Electron. A 1954 adaptation for television featured Wally Cox
Wally Cox
Wallace Maynard Cox was an American comedian and actor, particularly associated with the early years of television in the United States. He appeared in the U.S. TV series Mr. Peepers , plus several other popular shows, and as a character actor in over 20 films...
, Barbara Cook
Barbara Cook
Barbara Cook is an American singer and actress who first came to prominence in the 1950s after starring in the original Broadway musicals Candide and The Music Man among others, winning a Tony Award for the latter...
, Dave Garroway
Dave Garroway
David Cunningham "Dave" Garroway was the founding host of NBC's Today from 1952 to 1961. His easygoing, relaxed, and relaxing style belied a battle with depression that may have contributed to the end of his days as a leading television personality—and, eventually, his life...
, and Jack E. Leonard
Jack E. Leonard
Jack E. Leonard was an American comedian who made frequent appearances on television variety and game shows.-Biography:...
, and a 1960 adaptation for television featured Shirley Temple
Shirley Temple
Shirley Temple Black , born Shirley Jane Temple, is an American film and television actress, singer, dancer, autobiographer, and former U.S. Ambassador to Ghana and Czechoslovakia...
as the old gypsy Floretta, Angela Cartwright
Angela Cartwright
Angela Margaret Cartwright is an English-born American actress primarily known for her roles in movies and television...
as Jane, and Jonathan Winters
Jonathan Winters
-Early life:Winters was born in Bellbrook, Ohio, the son of Alice Kilgore , a radio personality, and Jonathan Harshman Winters II, an investment broker. He is a descendant of Valentine Winters, founder of the Winters National Bank in Dayton, Ohio...
as Barnaby. It was shown as an episode on the anthology series The Shirley Temple Show.
Walt Disney
Walt Disney
Walter Elias "Walt" Disney was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist, well-known for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. Along with his brother Roy O...
's Technicolor
Technicolor
Technicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...
1961 film production
Babes in Toyland (1961 film)
Babes in Toyland is a 1961 Christmas musical film in Technicolor, directed by Jack Donohue, produced by Walt Disney, and distributed to theatres by Buena Vista Distribution. It stars Ray Bolger as Barnaby, Annette Funicello as Mary Contrary, Tommy Sands as Tom Piper, and Ed Wynn as the Toymaker.The...
starred Ray Bolger
Ray Bolger
Raymond Wallace "Ray" Bolger was an American entertainer of stage and screen, best known for his portrayal of the Scarecrow and Kansas farmworker Hank in The Wizard of Oz.-Early life:...
, Tommy Sands
Tommy Sands
Tommy Adrian Sands is an American pop music singer and actor.-Early life:Born into a musical family in Chicago, Illinois, Sands' father was a pianist and his mother a big-band singer. While still young, he moved with his family to Shreveport, Louisiana...
and Annette Funicello
Annette Funicello
Annette Joanne Funicello is an American singer and actress. She was Walt Disney's most popular cast member of the original Mickey Mouse Club, and went on to appear in a series of beach party films.-Early life and early stardom:...
. This had a heavily revised plot, but much of the Herbert music was included, although some of it was played in an entirely different tempo from that intended by the composer, and the songs had completely new lyrics. A musical version of Babes in Toyland , with a plotline very similar to the Disney adaptation, has a book by Rebecca Ryland and music and lyrics by Bill Francoeur
Bill Francoeur
Bill Francoeur is a musical theatre composer and actor, who has produced over 75 musicals for the amateur theatre market in a career spanning over 25 years....
.
A 1986 made for television version
Babes in Toyland (1986 film)
Babes in Toyland is a 1986 television film directed by Clive Donner which stars Drew Barrymore and Keanu Reeves. It was broadcast on NBC on December 19, 1986 and subsequently released on VHS. The European theatrical version was shortened to 94 minutes—this version was released worldwide on...
featured Drew Barrymore
Drew Barrymore
Drew Blyth Barrymore is an American actress, film director, screenwriter, producer and model. She is a member of the Barrymore family of American actors and granddaughter of John Barrymore. She first appeared in an advertisement when she was 11 months old. Barrymore made her film debut in Altered...
, Pat Morita
Pat Morita
Noriyuki "Pat" Morita was an American actor of Japanese descent who was well-known for playing the roles of Matsuo "Arnold" Takahashi on Happy Days and Mr. Miyagi in the The Karate Kid movie series, for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in 1984.-Early life:Pat...
, and Keanu Reeves
Keanu Reeves
Keanu Charles Reeves is a Canadian actor. Reeves is perhaps best known for his roles in Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, Speed, Point Break and the science fiction-action trilogy The Matrix...
, only two songs from the Victor Herbert score, a new plot, and many new songs by Leslie Bricusse
Leslie Bricusse
Leslie Bricusse is an English composer, lyricist, and playwright.Although best known for his partnership with Anthony Newley, Bricusse has worked with many other composers. He was educated at University College School in London and Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge...
.
An animated film version
Babes in Toyland (1997 film)
Babes in Toyland is a 1997 American animated musical film based on the original story. The animated feature stars Joseph Ashton, Lacey Chabert, Raphael Sbarge, Cathy Cavadini, Christopher Plummer, and Charles Nelson Reilly.-Plot:...
, with a new plot and only one of the original songs, was released in 1997 by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of films and television programs. MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation and Louis B. Mayer...
featuring the voices of Christopher Plummer
Christopher Plummer
Arthur Christopher Orne Plummer, CC is a Canadian theatre, film and television actor. He made his film debut in 1957's Stage Struck, and notable early film performances include Night of the Generals, The Return of the Pink Panther and The Man Who Would Be King.In a career that spans over five...
, James Belushi
James Belushi
James Adam "Jim" Belushi is an American actor, comedian, and musician. He is the younger brother of comic actor John Belushi.-Early life:Belushi was born in Chicago...
, Bronson Pinchot
Bronson Pinchot
Bronson Alcott Pinchot is an American actor. He has appeared in several feature films, including Risky Business, Beverly Hills Cop , The First Wives Club, True Romance, Courage Under Fire and It's My Party...
, and Lacey Chabert
Lacey Chabert
Lacey Nicole Chabert is an American actress and voice actress, known for her roles as Claudia Salinger in the television drama Party of Five and as Gretchen Wieners in the movie Mean Girls...
.