Floyd Collins (musical)
Encyclopedia
Floyd Collins is a musical based on the death of Floyd Collins
near Cave City, Kentucky
in the winter of 1925. The book is by Tina Landau
, with music and lyrics by Adam Guettel
and additional lyrics by Landau.
Floyd Collins opened Off-Broadway
at Playwrights Horizons
, New York City, on February 9, 1996 and closed on March 24, 1996 after 25 performances. Directed by Landau, the cast included Christopher Innvar as Floyd Collins, Martin Moran as Skeets Miller, Jason Danieley
as Homer Collins, and Theresa McCarthy as Nellie Collins, as well as Cass Morgan, Brian d'Arcy James
, Matthew (Matt) Bennett and Michael Mulheren
. The musical won the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Musical, and the 1995-1996 OBIE Award
for its score. In 2003, a reunion concert was held at Playwrights Horizons with Romain Frugé as Floyd Collins and most of the original cast.
The show toured the United States
and made its London
debut at the Bridewell Theatre in July 1999, with Nigel Richards as Floyd, Anna Francolini
as Nellie and Craig Parnell as Homer. The production was directed by Clive Paget.
The finale song is the title track of Audra McDonald
's 2000 album How Glory Goes
, and was also included on Brian Stokes Mitchell
's 2006 self-titled album.
Floyd Collins, exploring Sand Cave, uses the echoes of his voice to sound out the region, and falls through a tight passageway when his foot became trapped, wedged in position by a small rock. His family and his fellow cavers try to free him; when it becomes clear that his rescue will not be easy, his brother Homer spends the night in the cave with him. William Burke "Skeets" Miller, a small man, is able to squeeze through and visit with Floyd, relaying stories which were printed in the news.
Despite efforts by miners, the National Guard
and the Red Cross, attempts at rescue fail, and the crowd grows outside the cave as a media circus ensues.
Seventeen days after Floyd had entered the cave, a shaft finally reaches him. He had died three days earlier.
The play's musical style is drawn from bluegrass
, Americana
, and "more complex musical forms that have their antecedents in the likes of Bartok, Janacek and Stravinsky".
ACT II
on March 18, 1997.
The following songs are not included on the recording:
Floyd Collins
William Floyd Collins was a celebrated pioneer cave explorer in central Kentucky, an area that is the location of hundreds of miles of interconnected caves, including the Mammoth Cave National Park...
near Cave City, Kentucky
Cave City, Kentucky
Cave City is a city in Barren County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 1,880 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Glasgow Micropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Cave City is located at ....
in the winter of 1925. The book is by Tina Landau
Tina Landau
Tina Landau is an American playwright and theatre director.Born in New York City to film and television producers Edie and Ely Landau, Landau moved with her family to Beverly Hills, California, where she graduated from Beverly Hills High School before attending Yale University, where she directed...
, with music and lyrics by Adam Guettel
Adam Guettel
Adam Guettel is an American composer-lyricist of musical theater and opera . He is best known for the musical The Light in the Piazza, for which he won two Tony Awards, for Best Score and Best Orchestrations, and two Drama Desk Awards, for Best Music and Best Orchestrations.-Early years:Guettel...
and additional lyrics by Landau.
Productions
The musical premiered at the American Music Theater Festival, New York City, in 1994.Floyd Collins opened Off-Broadway
Off-Broadway
Off-Broadway theater is a term for a professional venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, and for a specific production of a play, musical or revue that appears in such a venue, and which adheres to related trade union and other contracts...
at Playwrights Horizons
Playwrights Horizons
Playwrights Horizons is a not-for-profit Off-Broadway theater located in New York City dedicated to the support and development of contemporary American playwrights, composers, and lyricists, and to the production of their new work....
, New York City, on February 9, 1996 and closed on March 24, 1996 after 25 performances. Directed by Landau, the cast included Christopher Innvar as Floyd Collins, Martin Moran as Skeets Miller, Jason Danieley
Jason Danieley
Jason D. Danieley is an American actor, singer, concert performer and recording artist. He is married to fellow Broadway star, Marin Mazzie-Biography:...
as Homer Collins, and Theresa McCarthy as Nellie Collins, as well as Cass Morgan, Brian d'Arcy James
Brian d'Arcy James
Brian d'Arcy James is an American actor and musician.-Personal life:James was born in Saginaw, Michigan, the son of Mary , a seller of children's books, and a lawyer father, Thomas F. James. Brian's maternal grandfather was Harry F. Kelly, former Governor of the state of Michigan...
, Matthew (Matt) Bennett and Michael Mulheren
Michael Mulheren
- Theatre :Mulheren's Broadway debut was in 1995 in On the Waterfront, after previously appearing in The Fantastickss off-Broadway run in the 1960s. He also appeared in the 1997 production of Broadway's The Titanic. Other Broadway credits include The Boy from Oz and La Cage aux Folles; his...
. The musical won the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Musical, and the 1995-1996 OBIE Award
Obie Award
The Obie Awards or Off-Broadway Theater Awards are annual awards given by The Village Voice newspaper to theatre artists and groups in New York City...
for its score. In 2003, a reunion concert was held at Playwrights Horizons with Romain Frugé as Floyd Collins and most of the original cast.
The show toured the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and made its London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
debut at the Bridewell Theatre in July 1999, with Nigel Richards as Floyd, Anna Francolini
Anna Francolini
Anna Francolini is an English actress of the stage and screen. She was born in Chertsey, Surrey and studied theatre at the University of Warwick...
as Nellie and Craig Parnell as Homer. The production was directed by Clive Paget.
The finale song is the title track of Audra McDonald
Audra McDonald
Audra Ann McDonald is an American actress and singer. She currently stars in the ABC television drama Private Practice as Dr. Naomi Bennett. She has appeared on the stage in both musicals and dramas, such as Ragtime and A Raisin in the Sun...
's 2000 album How Glory Goes
How Glory Goes
How Glory Goes is the second album from Audra McDonald, released in 2000. Unlike her debut album Way Back to Paradise, which featured songs from younger composers, this album contains a mixture of new and old songs, mostly from musical theatre...
, and was also included on Brian Stokes Mitchell
Brian Stokes Mitchell
Brian Stokes Mitchell is an American stage, film and television actor. A powerful baritone, he has been one of the central leading men of the Broadway theatre since the early 1990s...
's 2006 self-titled album.
Plot summary
As originally written, the character list included Floyd Collins, Homer Collins, Nellie Collins, and Johnnie Gerald; as rewritten the role of Johnnie Gerald was merged with that of Homer Collins. As currently performed, the roles include Bee Doyle, Dr Hazlett, three reporters, a Con Man, Lee Collins, Homer Collins, Floyd Collins, Clif Rony, Jewlle Estes, Nellie Collins, Skeets Miller, Miss Jane, H. T. Carmichael and Ed Bishop.Floyd Collins, exploring Sand Cave, uses the echoes of his voice to sound out the region, and falls through a tight passageway when his foot became trapped, wedged in position by a small rock. His family and his fellow cavers try to free him; when it becomes clear that his rescue will not be easy, his brother Homer spends the night in the cave with him. William Burke "Skeets" Miller, a small man, is able to squeeze through and visit with Floyd, relaying stories which were printed in the news.
Despite efforts by miners, the National Guard
United States National Guard
The National Guard of the United States is a reserve military force composed of state National Guard militia members or units under federally recognized active or inactive armed force service for the United States. Militia members are citizen soldiers, meaning they work part time for the National...
and the Red Cross, attempts at rescue fail, and the crowd grows outside the cave as a media circus ensues.
Seventeen days after Floyd had entered the cave, a shaft finally reaches him. He had died three days earlier.
The play's musical style is drawn from bluegrass
Bluegrass music
Bluegrass music is a form of American roots music, and a sub-genre of country music. It has mixed roots in Scottish, English, Welsh and Irish traditional music...
, Americana
Americana (music)
Americana is an amalgam of roots musics formed by the confluence of the shared and varied traditions that make up the American musical ethos; specifically those sounds that are merged from folk, country, blues, rhythm and blues, rock and roll and other external influential styles...
, and "more complex musical forms that have their antecedents in the likes of Bartok, Janacek and Stravinsky".
Songs
Act I- Ballad of Floyd Collins - Company
- The Call - Floyd
- It Moves - Floyd
- Time to Go - Floyd
- Lucky – Nellie and Miss Jane
- 'Tween a Rock An' a Hard Place (replaced by "Where a Man Belongs" in 1999) – Family and locals
- Daybreak – Homer and Floyd
- Ballad of Floyd Collins (reprise) - Jewell
- I Landed on Him – Skeets Miller
- And She'd Have Blue Eyes - Floyd
- Heart An' Hand - Miss Jane and Lee
- Riddle Song – Homer and Floyd
ACT II
- Is That Remarkable? – reporters and company
- Carnival – Floyd and company
- Through the Mountain - Nellie
- Git Comfortable - Homer
- Ballad of Floyd Collins (reprise) - Jewell
- The Dream - Floyd, Nellie, Homer and company
- How Glory Goes - Floyd
Critical response
The New York Times wrote that "Mr. Guettel establishes himself as a young composer of strength and sophistication..", but that the show is "only half realized..." John Simon, writing for New York Magazine, was much more enthusiastic about the show. Simon proclaimed that Floyd Collins was "the original and daring musical of our day[.]" Simon also wrote that "Floyd Collins reestablishes America's sovereignty in a genre it created, but has since lost hold of: it is the modern musical's true and exhilarating ace in the hole."Recordings
The original cast recording was released on NonesuchNonesuch Records
Nonesuch Records is an American record label, owned by Warner Music Group and distributed by Warner Bros. Records.-Company history:Nonesuch was founded in 1964 by Jac Holzman to produce "fine records at the same price as a trade paperback", which would be half the price of a normal LP...
on March 18, 1997.
The following songs are not included on the recording:
- And She'd Have Blue Eyes
- The Ballad of Floyd Collins (reprise) (act 1)
- Where a Man Belongs