Side Show is a musical about Daisy and Violet Hilton

Daisy and Violet Hilton

Daisy Hilton and Violet Hilton were a pair of conjoined twins who toured in the U.S. sideshow and vaudeville circuit in the 1930s.-Early life:...

, conjoined twins

Conjoined twins

Conjoined twins are identical twins whose bodies are joined in utero. A rare phenomenon, the occurrence is estimated to range from 1 in 50,000 births to 1 in 100,000 births, with a somewhat higher incidence in Southwest Asia and Africa. Approximately half are stillborn, and a smaller fraction of...

 who make a change from being a circus act to becoming famous stage performers in the 1930s. The show was written by Bill Russell

Bill Russell (lyricist)

Bill Russell is an American librettist and lyricist. Russell's works include Side Show Playbill Critics Circle , Elegies for Angels, Punks and Raging Queens , and Pageant .Russell received a Tony...

 (book and lyrics) and Henry Krieger

Henry Krieger

Henry Krieger is an American composer.Krieger wrote the music for the Broadway shows Dreamgirls , The Tap Dance Kid , and Side Show , as well as other works of musical theatre.He was nominated for the Tony Awards for Best Score for both Dreamgirls and Side Show, won a Grammy...

 (music). The show starred Alice Ripley as Violet and Emily Skinner

Emily Skinner

Emily Skinner is an American musical theatre actress and singer. She has performed in such Broadway shows as Side Show, James Joyce's The Dead, The Full Monty, Dinner at Eight and, currently, in Billy Elliot...

 as Daisy. It 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...

 on October 16, 1997, and ran for 91 performances at the Richard Rodgers Theatre

Richard Rodgers Theatre

The Richard Rodgers Theatre, is a Broadway theater in New York City, built by Irwin Chanin in 1925. When it was first opened, it was called Chanin's 46th Street Theatre. Chanin almost immediately leased it to the Shuberts, who bought the building outright in 1931 and renamed it the 46th Street...

. Despite receiving some positive reviews, the show closed on January 4, 1998. It was later nominated for four Tony Awards in 1998.

Although Side Show won none of these awards, it was the first and only time that two actresses were co-nominated for Best Actress in a Musical as a team (if they had won, they would have won together). At the Tony Awards ceremony, the two stars performed the show's most popular number, "I Will Never Leave You". The other show-stopping number was "Who Will Love Me As I Am?", the closing number of Act 1. Audiences loved the harmonious blend of Alice Ripley and Emily Skinner's voices so much that the two actresses successfully released two albums of duets (Duets and Unsuspecting Hearts).

Other members of the cast who have gone on to successful endeavors on Broadway include Jeff McCarthy

Jeff McCarthy

-Television:He made guest star appearances on television shows such as Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Ed, Designing Women, Cheers, Freddy's Nightmares, Matlock, and In the Heat of the Night. McCarthy was the voice of the Chuck Jones' creation, Michigan J. Frog, for the WB television network...

 (Urinetown

Urinetown

Urinetown: The Musical is a satirical comedy musical, with music by Mark Hollmann, lyrics by Hollmann and Greg Kotis, and book by Kotis. It satirizes the legal system, capitalism, social irresponsibility, populism, bureaucracy, corporate mismanagement, and municipal politics...

), Hugh Panaro

Hugh Panaro

-Life and career:Panaro was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and resided in the East Oak Lane section of the city with his family. As a schoolchild, he attended St. Helena’s parochial school in the adjoining Philadelphia neighborhood of Olney. He played organ for the parish church from age twelve...

 (The Phantom of Opera

The Phantom of the Opera (1986 musical)

The Phantom of the Opera is a musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on the French novel Le Fantôme de l'Opéra by Gaston Leroux.The music was composed by Lloyd Webber, and most lyrics were written by Charles Hart, with additional lyrics by Richard Stilgoe. Alan Jay Lerner was an early collaborator,...

, Lestat

Lestat (musical)

Lestat is a Broadway musical inspired by Anne Rice's The Vampire Chronicles. The score is by Elton John and Bernie Taupin, book by Linda Woolverton and directed by Robert Jess Roth with musical staging by Matt West...

), Norm Lewis

Norm Lewis

Norm Lewis is an American actor and baritone singer. He has appeared on Broadway as well as in regional theatre.-Life:Lewis was born in Tallahassee, Florida and grew up in Eatonville, Florida...

 (The Wild Party

The Wild Party (LaChiusa musical)

The Wild Party is a musical with a book by Michael John LaChiusa and George C. Wolfe and music and lyrics by LaChiusa. It is based on the 1928 Joseph Moncure March narrative poem of the same name...

, Dessa Rose

Dessa Rose (musical)

Dessa Rose is a musical based on the book by Sherley Anne Williams with book and lyrics by Lynn Ahrens and music by Stephen Flaherty. It tells the story of a young black woman and a young white woman and their journey to acceptance in 1847 in the ante-bellum South, as they tell their story to their...

, Les Misérables

Les Misérables (musical)

Les Misérables , colloquially known as Les Mis or Les Miz , is a musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg, based on the novel of the same name by Victor Hugo....

, The Little Mermaid

The Little Mermaid

"The Little Mermaid" is a popular fairy tale by the Danish poet and author Hans Christian Andersen about a young mermaid willing to give up her life in the sea and her identity as a mermaid to gain a human soul and the love of a human prince...

) and J. Robert Spencer

J. Robert Spencer

Robert John Spencer is an American actor and singer, who was nominated for a Tony Award for his work in the Broadway musical Next to Normal....

 (Jersey Boys

Jersey Boys

Jersey Boys is a jukebox musical with music by Bob Gaudio, lyrics by Bob Crewe and book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice. It is a documentary-style musical, based on one of the most successful 1960s rock 'n roll groups, the Four Seasons...

, Next to Normal).

The show has had several successful regional productions throughout the country, and has attained a loyal "cult" following. One notable regional premiere

Premiere

A premiere is generally "a first performance". This can refer to plays, films, television programs, operas, symphonies, ballets and so on. Premieres for theatrical, musical and other cultural presentations can become extravagant affairs, attracting large numbers of socialites and much media...

 was the 1999 Denver production by the Physically Handicapped Actors & Musical Artists League

PHAMALy

The Physically Handicapped Actors & Musical Artists League, or PHAMALY, is a theater group and touring company formed in 1989 by a group of former students of the Boettcher School in Denver, Colorado...

. While many were initially uncomfortable with the idea of disabled actors portraying "freaks

Freak show

A freak show is an exhibition of biological rarities, referred to as "freaks of nature". Typical features would be physically unusual humans, such as those uncommonly large or small, those with both male and female secondary sexual characteristics, people with other extraordinary diseases and...

", the production was ultimately well received and was presented with several awards, including the Denver Mayor's

Wellington Webb

Wellington E. Webb is a former mayor of Denver, Colorado. He is a graduate of the city's Manual High School. He was Denver's first African-American Mayor.Webb served as mayor of Denver for 12 years, from 1991 to 2003...

 Award for Excellence in the Arts.

An abridged version of Side Show was presented at the Kennedy Center in Washington DC October 2–5, 2008 as part of their Broadway: Three Generations

Broadway: Three Generations

Broadway: Three Generations is a musical composed of abridged versions of three other musicals, Girl Crazy, Bye Bye Birdie, and Side Show. It was presented October 2–5, 2008 at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC....

production. Jenn Colella

Jenn Colella

Jennifer Lin Colella is an American actress and singer, best known for her work in Broadway musicals.Jenn Colella has been a familiar face in the New York theatre scene since starring as Sissy in Urban Cowboy on Broadway, for which she received an Outer Critic's Circle Award Nomination.Since then,...

 and Lisa Brescia

Lisa Brescia

Lisa Brescia, born in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, is an American musical theatre actress who has performed as lead and understudy in several Broadway shows. Raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Lisa went on to pursue acting and graduated from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts...

 played Daisy and Violet, respectively, Bobby Steggert

Bobby Steggert

Bobby Steggert is an American theatre, musical theatre, television, and film actor.-Biography and training:Bobby Steggert was born in Frederick, Maryland...

 played Buddy, and Max von Essen

Max von Essen

Max von Essen is an American musical theatre actor and vocalist.A son of Rita and Thomas Von Essen, who was the New York City Fire Commissioner during the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, he is the youngest of four children.Von Essen is a 1992 graduate of South Side High School,...

 played Terry.

Original Broadway Cast

• Emily Skinner
  Emily Skinner
  Emily Skinner is an American musical theatre actress and singer. She has performed in such Broadway shows as Side Show, James Joyce's The Dead, The Full Monty, Dinner at Eight and, currently, in Billy Elliot...
  
   as Daisy Hilton
• Alice Ripley as Violet Hilton
• Norm Lewis
  Norm Lewis
  Norm Lewis is an American actor and baritone singer. He has appeared on Broadway as well as in regional theatre.-Life:Lewis was born in Tallahassee, Florida and grew up in Eatonville, Florida...
  
   as Jake
• Jeff McCarthy
  Jeff McCarthy
  -Television:He made guest star appearances on television shows such as Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Ed, Designing Women, Cheers, Freddy's Nightmares, Matlock, and In the Heat of the Night. McCarthy was the voice of the Chuck Jones' creation, Michigan J. Frog, for the WB television network...
  
   as Terry Connor
• Hugh Panaro
  Hugh Panaro
  -Life and career:Panaro was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and resided in the East Oak Lane section of the city with his family. As a schoolchild, he attended St. Helena’s parochial school in the adjoining Philadelphia neighborhood of Olney. He played organ for the parish church from age twelve...
  
   as Buddy Foster
• Ken Jennings
  Ken Jennings (actor)
  Ken Jennings is an actor most famous for his 1979 role as Tobias Ragg in Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street...
  
   as The Boss

First Post-Broadway Regional Production

In 1998, TheatreWorks, a critically acclaimed professional theater company on the San Francisco Peninsula, produced the first post-Broadway production of Side Show at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts. TheatreWorks received national attention within the theatrical community for being the first regional theater to gain access to the rights to mount the production, closely on the heels of the recently closed Broadway production. TheatreWorks' production was a critical and popular success, receiving the Garland Award (Los Angeles) and various Dean Goodman Critics Choice Awards (San Francisco). The production afforded TheatreWorks its largest first day of ticket sales on their records for a single production. Subsequently, 2 extra performances were added to meet the demand.

TheatreWorks' production was directed by Robert Kelley and Bick Goss (Goss also choreographed) with musical direction by Lita Libaek. In an interesting twist, the production featured actress Kristin Behrendt playing the role of Daisy. Behrendt had been the standby for (and performed) the role of Violet (Daisy's other "half") in the original Broadway cast.

Principals in the TheatreWorks production:

• Kristin Behrendt as Daisy
• Debra Wiseman as Violet
• AJ Vincent as Terry Connor
• Pierce Peter Brandt as Buddy Foster
• Stephonne Smith as Jake
• Ron Josef Meier as The Boss

Songs

Act I

• Come Look At The Freaks – The Boss and Company
• Like Everyone Else – Daisy Hilton and Violet Hilton
• You Deserve A Better Life – Terry Connor and Buddy Foster
• Crazy, Deaf and Blind – The Boss
• The Devil You Know – Jake and Company
• More Than We Bargained For – Terry Connor and Buddy Foster
• Feelings You've Got To Hide – Daisy Hilton and Violet Hilton
• When I'm By Your Side – Daisy Hilton and Violet Hilton
• Say Goodbye To The Freak Show – Company
• Overnight Sensation – Terry Connor and Reporters
• Leave Me Alone – Daisy Hilton and Violet Hilton
• We Share Everything – Daisy Hilton, Violet Hilton and Vaudevillian
• The Interview – Daisy Hilton, Violet Hilton and Reporters
• Who Will Love Me As I Am? – Daisy Hilton, Violet Hilton, and Company

Act II

• Rare Songbirds On Display – Company
• New Year's Day – Terry Connor, Buddy Foster, Jake, Daisy Hilton, Violet Hilton and Company
• Private Conversation – Terry Connor and Daisy Hilton
• One Plus One Equals Three – Buddy Foster, Daisy Hilton, Violet Hilton, and the Vale Sisters
• You Should Be Loved – Jake and Violet Hilton
• Tunnel Of Love – Terry Connor, Buddy Foster, Daisy Hilton, Violet Hilton, and Company
• Beautiful Day For A Wedding – The Boss and Hawkers
• Marry Me, Terry – Terry Connor and Daisy Hilton
• I Will Never Leave You – Daisy Hilton and Violet Hilton
• Finale – Company

Reception

At the 1998 Tony Awards Side Show received nominations for Best Musical

Tony Award for Best Musical

This 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...

, Best Book of a Musical

Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical

The Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical is awarded to librettists of the spoken, non-sung dialogue, and storyline of a musical play. Eligibility is restricted to works with original narrative framework; plotless revues and revivals are ineligible...

, and Best Original Musical Score

Tony Award for Best Original Score

The 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...

. Alice Ripley and Emily Skinner received a joint nomination for Best Actress in a Musical

Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical

The Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical is the Tony Awards award given to the actress who was voted as the best leading actress in a musical, whether a new production or a revival...

.