No Strings
Encyclopedia
No Strings is a musical
drama
with a book by Samuel A. Taylor
and words and music by Richard Rodgers
, his only Broadway score written without a collaborator
. The musical opened on Broadway
in 1962 and ran for 580 performances. It received the nomination for Tony Award
, Best Musical.
The musical opened on March 15, 1962, at the 54th Street Theatre. It ran for slightly more than six months before transferring to the Broadhurst Theatre
, where it continued until August of the following year, for a total of 580 performances and one preview. Joe Layton
was both director and choreographer, with Diahann Carroll and Richard Kiley starring. Barbara McNair
and Howard Keel
replaced them later in the run.
In December 1963, an equally successful London
production, starring Art Lund
and Beverly Todd
, opened at Her Majesty's Theatre
.
In 2003, a staged concert production was held at New York's City Center as a part of its Encores!
series. This production starred James Naughton
and Maya Days and was directed and choreographed by Ann Reinking
.
—voter registration for blacks, integration, and fairness and equality in the workplace—was starting to gain momentum in the United States in the early 1960s, but it was a topic largely absent on Broadway
. Neither the book nor score make specific mention of race, nor does it impact upon any decisions made by the couple, but Rodgers has addressed the issue, as stated in the Block book. Other than the model's reference to growing up north of Central Park
(seemingly an allusion to Harlem
), there is nothing in the script to suggest she's African-American. It was only in the casting of Carroll and Richard Kiley as the star-crossed lovers that the subject of interracial romance surfaced, but any production of the show easily could be cast with two leads of the same race without changing the content in any significant way. Nevertheless, the casting was socially progressive at the time.
As related by Geoffrey Block, Rodgers got the idea for casting a black actress in the star role after viewing Diahann Carroll on The Tonight Show
. "He felt that the casting spoke for itself and any specific references to race in the play were unnecessary. Rodgers said: 'Rather than shrinking from the issue of race, such an approach would demonstrate our respect for the audience's ability to accept our theme free from rhetoric or sermons' " However, The characters' reluctance to discuss race was controversial.
Barbara Woodruff, living in Paris, France, meets and falls in love with expatriate
American David Jordan, a Pulitzer Prize
-winning novelist who has suffered from an intense case of writer's block
since his arrival in France. She attempts to restore his confidence in his creativity, but the easy life he's enjoying, flitting about Monte Carlo
, Honfleur
, Deauville
and St. Tropez, is too much of a distraction. Concluding that he can work only if he returns home to Maine
, he invites her to go with him but, realizing they have no future together, they part with "no strings" attached.
Act II
In keeping with the title of the show, the score was arranged and orchestrated without string instruments.
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
with a book by Samuel A. Taylor
Samuel A. Taylor
Samuel A. Taylor was an American playwright and screenwriter.Born Samuel Albert Tanenbaum, in a Jewish family, in Chicago, Illinois, Taylor made his Broadway debut as author of the play The Happy Time in 1950. He wrote the play Sabrina Fair in 1953 and co-wrote its film adaptation the following year...
and words and music by Richard Rodgers
Richard Rodgers
Richard Charles Rodgers was an American composer of music for more than 900 songs and for 43 Broadway musicals. He also composed music for films and television. He is best known for his songwriting partnerships with the lyricists Lorenz Hart and Oscar Hammerstein II...
, his only Broadway score written without a collaborator
Collaboration
Collaboration is working together to achieve a goal. It is a recursive process where two or more people or organizations work together to realize shared goals, — for example, an intriguing endeavor that is creative in nature—by sharing...
. The musical opened on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
in 1962 and ran for 580 performances. It received the nomination for Tony Award
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
, Best Musical.
Productions
The world premiere of No Strings was at the O'Keefe Centre (now the Sony Centre for the Performing Arts) in Toronto. The U.S. premiere was at the Fisher Theater in Detroit, where the show ran from January 15 to February 3, 1962.The musical opened on March 15, 1962, at the 54th Street Theatre. It ran for slightly more than six months before transferring to the Broadhurst Theatre
Broadhurst Theatre
The Broadhurst Theatre is a legitimate Broadway theatre located at 235 West 44th Street in midtown Manhattan.It was designed by architect Herbert J. Krapp, a well-known theatre designer who had been working directly with the Shubert brothers; the Broadhurst opened 27 September 1917...
, where it continued until August of the following year, for a total of 580 performances and one preview. Joe Layton
Joe Layton
Joe Layton was an American director and choreographer known primarily for his work on Broadway.-Biography:Born Joseph Lichtman in Brooklyn, New York, Layton began his career as a dancer in Wonderful Town , and he appeared uncredited in the ensemble of the original live TV production of Rodgers and...
was both director and choreographer, with Diahann Carroll and Richard Kiley starring. Barbara McNair
Barbara McNair
Barbara McNair was an African American singer and actress.Born Barbara Jean McNair in Chicago, Illinois and raised in Racine, Wisconsin, McNair studied music at the American Conservatory of Music in Chicago...
and Howard Keel
Howard Keel
Harold Clifford Keel , known professionally as Howard Keel, was an American actor and singer. He starred in many film musicals of the 1950s...
replaced them later in the run.
In December 1963, an equally successful 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...
production, starring Art Lund
Art Lund
Art Lund was an American baritone singer, initially with bandleaders Benny Goodman and Harry James, and was also a television and stage actor.-Biography:...
and Beverly Todd
Beverly Todd
Beverly Todd is an American actress, producer and writer. Todd gained major work during the 1970s, appearing in notable films such as The Lost Man , They Call Me MISTER Tibbs! , Brother John and A Piece of the Action . This eventually led to other distinguished and more important work...
, opened at Her Majesty's Theatre
Her Majesty's Theatre
Her Majesty's Theatre is a West End theatre, in Haymarket, City of Westminster, London. The present building was designed by Charles J. Phipps and was constructed in 1897 for actor-manager Herbert Beerbohm Tree, who established the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art at the theatre...
.
In 2003, a staged concert production was held at New York's City Center as a part of its Encores!
Encores!
Encores! Great American Musicals in Concert is a program that has been presented by New York City Center since 1994. Encores! is dedicated to performing the full score of musicals that rarely are heard in New York City...
series. This production starred James Naughton
James Naughton
James Naughton is an American director, theater, film and television actor.-Early life:Naughton was born in Middletown, Connecticut, the son of Rosemary and Joseph Naughton, both of whom were teachers He is the brother of actor David Naughton.-Career:Naughton graduated from Brown University and...
and Maya Days and was directed and choreographed by Ann Reinking
Ann Reinking
Ann Reinking is an American actress, dancer, and choreographer. She has worked extensively in musical theatre, both as a dancer and choreographer, as well as appearing in film.-Biography:...
.
Background
The issue of civil rightsCivil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
—voter registration for blacks, integration, and fairness and equality in the workplace—was starting to gain momentum in the United States in the early 1960s, but it was a topic largely absent on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
. Neither the book nor score make specific mention of race, nor does it impact upon any decisions made by the couple, but Rodgers has addressed the issue, as stated in the Block book. Other than the model's reference to growing up north of Central Park
Central Park
Central Park is a public park in the center of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The park initially opened in 1857, on of city-owned land. In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the Greensward Plan...
(seemingly an allusion to Harlem
Harlem
Harlem is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, which since the 1920s has been a major African-American residential, cultural and business center. Originally a Dutch village, formally organized in 1658, it is named after the city of Haarlem in the Netherlands...
), there is nothing in the script to suggest she's African-American. It was only in the casting of Carroll and Richard Kiley as the star-crossed lovers that the subject of interracial romance surfaced, but any production of the show easily could be cast with two leads of the same race without changing the content in any significant way. Nevertheless, the casting was socially progressive at the time.
As related by Geoffrey Block, Rodgers got the idea for casting a black actress in the star role after viewing Diahann Carroll on The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. It is the longest currently running regularly scheduled entertainment program in the United States, and the third longest-running show on NBC, after Meet the Press and Today.The Tonight Show has been hosted by...
. "He felt that the casting spoke for itself and any specific references to race in the play were unnecessary. Rodgers said: 'Rather than shrinking from the issue of race, such an approach would demonstrate our respect for the audience's ability to accept our theme free from rhetoric or sermons' " However, The characters' reluctance to discuss race was controversial.
Synopsis
Fashion modelModel (person)
A model , sometimes called a mannequin, is a person who is employed to display, advertise and promote commercial products or to serve as a subject of works of art....
Barbara Woodruff, living in Paris, France, meets and falls in love with expatriate
Expatriate
An expatriate is a person temporarily or permanently residing in a country and culture other than that of the person's upbringing...
American David Jordan, a Pulitzer Prize
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
-winning novelist who has suffered from an intense case of writer's block
Writer's block
Writer's block is a condition, primarily associated with writing as a profession, in which an author loses the ability to produce new work. The condition varies widely in intensity. It can be trivial, a temporary difficulty in dealing with the task at hand. At the other extreme, some "blocked"...
since his arrival in France. She attempts to restore his confidence in his creativity, but the easy life he's enjoying, flitting about Monte Carlo
Monte Carlo
Monte Carlo is an administrative area of the Principality of Monaco....
, Honfleur
Honfleur
Honfleur is a commune in the Calvados department in northwestern France. It is located on the southern bank of the estuary of the Seine across from le Havre and very close to the exit of the Pont de Normandie...
, Deauville
Deauville
Deauville is a commune in the Calvados département in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.With its racecourse, harbour, international film festival, marinas, conference centre, villas, Grand Casino and sumptuous hotels, Deauville is regarded as the "queen of the Norman beaches" and...
and St. Tropez, is too much of a distraction. Concluding that he can work only if he returns home to Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
, he invites her to go with him but, realizing they have no future together, they part with "no strings" attached.
Song list
Act I- The Sweetest SoundsThe Sweetest Sounds (song)"The Sweetest Sounds" is a popular song, written by Richard Rodgers for the musical No Strings, in 1962....
- How Sad
- Loads of Love
- The Man Who Has Everything
- Be My Host
- La La La
- You Don't Tell Me
- Love Makes the World Go
- Nobody Told Me
Act II
- Look No Further
- Maine
- An Orthodox Fool
- Eager Beaver
- No Strings
- Maine (Reprise)
- The Sweetest Sounds
In keeping with the title of the show, the score was arranged and orchestrated without string instruments.
Awards and nominations
- Tony Award for Best MusicalTony Award for Best MusicalThis is a list of winners and nominations for the Tony Award for Best Musical, first awarded in 1949. This award is presented to the producers of the musical.-1940s:* 1949: Kiss Me, Kate – Music and lyrics by Cole Porter, book by Samuel and Bella Spewack...
- Book by Samuel Taylor; Music by Richard Rodgers; Lyrics by Richard Rodgers; Produced by Richard Rodgers; Produced in association with Samuel Taylor - Tony Award for Best Composer and LyricistTony Award for Best Original ScoreThe Tony Award for Best Original Score is the Tony Award given to the composers and lyricists of the best original score written for a musical in that year. The score consists of music and lyrics...
- Richard Rodgers (WINNER) - Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical - Richard Kiley
- Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical - Diahann Carroll (WINNER)
- Tony Award for Best Scenic Design - David Hays
- Tony Award for Best Costume DesignTony Award for Best Costume DesignThese are the winners and nominees for the Tony Award for Best Costume Design. The award was first presented in 1947 and included both plays and musicals...
- Donald Brooks - Tony Award for Best ChoreographyTony Award for Best Choreography-1940s:* 1947: Agnes de Mille – Brigadoon / Michael Kidd – Finian's Rainbow* 1948: Jerome Robbins – High Button Shoes* 1949: Gower Champion – Lend An Ear-1950s:* 1950: Helen Tamiris – Touch and Go* 1951: Michael Kidd – Guys and Dolls...
- Joe Layton (WINNER) - Tony Award for Best Direction of a MusicalTony Award for Best Direction of a MusicalThis is a list of winners and nominations for the Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical. Prior to 1960, category for direction included plays and musicals.-1950s:Note: this category was for both dramatic and musical productions...
- Joe Layton - Tony Award for Best Conductor and Musical DirectorTony Award for Best Conductor and Musical DirectorThe Tony Award for Best Conductor and Musical Director was first presented in 1948, and later discontinued after 1964.-1940s:* 1948: Milton Rosenstock – Finian's Rainbow* 1949: Max Meth – As the Girls Go-1950s:...
- Peter MatzPeter MatzPeter Matz was an award winning American musician, composer, arranger and conductor. His musical career in film, theater, television and studio recording spanned fifty years, and he worked with a number of prominent artists, including Marlene Dietrich, Noël Coward and Barbra Streisand...