Jean Seberg (musical)
Encyclopedia
Jean Seberg is a musical
biography
with a book by Julian Barry
, lyrics by Christopher Adler, and music by Marvin Hamlisch
. It is based on the life of the late American actress
.
The plot covers her life and career from her first screen appearance in the 1957 Otto Preminger
film Saint Joan
to her acclaim in France
prompted by her appearance in Breathless to her support of the Black Panthers
to her mysterious 1979 death in Paris at the age of forty.
The production underwent major problems and faced criticism during its developmental and rehearsal stages. The original choreographer was fired and two of the stars suffered ankle injuries. One of them was replaced, resulting in the opening being delayed. Supporters of the National Theatre
were dismayed that it was staging the premiere of what was primarily an American
musical, and rumors that it was a disaster spread through London
.
In an interview with Stephen Holden
of The New York Times
, Hamlisch said, "A project like Jean seems awfully risky to a producer. . . . I have to keep reminding myself that A Chorus Line was initially considered weird and off the wall. It was A Chorus Line that convinced me that if you give an audience a theatrical moment, whether it's funny or mean or satiric, they'll accept it as long as it's theatrical. You mustn't underestimate an audience's intelligence." http://www.enotes.com/contemporary-musicians/hamlisch-marvin-biography
Directed by Peter Hall, Jean Seberg opened on December 1, 1983, with Kelly Hunter and Elizabeth Counsell as the younger and older actress, respectively.
In his review in the Daily Telegraph, John Barber described it as "a very big musical for someone who seems to have been a very small girl". Milton Shulman
in the Evening Standard
compared the songs to "penny whistles at a state funeral", while Robert Cushman of The Observer
felt "Marvin Hamlisch's score is the best he has written for the theater."
An article in the January 12, 1984 edition of The New York Times http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9A00E5DF1138F931A25752C0A962948260 reported that the National, citing "disappointing reception by the critics" and poor box office
, would close the show on April 4. It has never been produced on Broadway
.
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...
biography
Biography
A biography is a detailed description or account of someone's life. More than a list of basic facts , biography also portrays the subject's experience of those events...
with a book by Julian Barry
Julian Barry
Julian Barry is an American screenwriter and playwright best known for his Oscar-nominated script for the film Lenny about comedian Lenny Bruce, which Barry adapted from his successful Broadway play of the same name...
, lyrics by Christopher Adler, and music by Marvin Hamlisch
Marvin Hamlisch
Marvin Frederick Hamlisch is an American composer. He is one of only thirteen people to have been awarded Emmys, Grammys, Oscars, and a Tony . He is also one of only two people to EGOT and also win a Pulitzer Prize...
. It is based on the life of the late American actress
Jean Seberg
Jean Dorothy Seberg was an American actress. She starred in 37 films in Hollywood and in France, including Breathless , the musical Paint Your Wagon and the disaster film Airport ....
.
The plot covers her life and career from her first screen appearance in the 1957 Otto Preminger
Otto Preminger
Otto Ludwig Preminger was an Austro–Hungarian-American theatre and film director.After moving from the theatre to Hollywood, he directed over 35 feature films in a five-decade career. He rose to prominence for stylish film noir mysteries such as Laura and Fallen Angel...
film Saint Joan
Saint Joan (1957 film)
Saint Joan is a 1957 British-American film adapted from the George Bernard Shaw play of the same title about the life of Joan of Arc. The restructured screenplay by Graham Greene, directed by Otto Preminger, begins with the play's last scene, which then becomes the springboard for a long flashback,...
to her acclaim in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
prompted by her appearance in Breathless to her support of the Black Panthers
Black Panther Party
The Black Panther Party wasan African-American revolutionary leftist organization. It was active in the United States from 1966 until 1982....
to her mysterious 1979 death in Paris at the age of forty.
The production underwent major problems and faced criticism during its developmental and rehearsal stages. The original choreographer was fired and two of the stars suffered ankle injuries. One of them was replaced, resulting in the opening being delayed. Supporters of the National Theatre
Royal National Theatre
The Royal National Theatre in London is one of the United Kingdom's two most prominent publicly funded theatre companies, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company...
were dismayed that it was staging the premiere of what was primarily an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
musical, and rumors that it was a disaster spread through 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...
.
In an interview with Stephen Holden
Stephen Holden
Stephen Holden is an American writer, music critic, film critic, and poet.Holden earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Yale University in 1963...
of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, Hamlisch said, "A project like Jean seems awfully risky to a producer. . . . I have to keep reminding myself that A Chorus Line was initially considered weird and off the wall. It was A Chorus Line that convinced me that if you give an audience a theatrical moment, whether it's funny or mean or satiric, they'll accept it as long as it's theatrical. You mustn't underestimate an audience's intelligence." http://www.enotes.com/contemporary-musicians/hamlisch-marvin-biography
Directed by Peter Hall, Jean Seberg opened on December 1, 1983, with Kelly Hunter and Elizabeth Counsell as the younger and older actress, respectively.
In his review in the Daily Telegraph, John Barber described it as "a very big musical for someone who seems to have been a very small girl". Milton Shulman
Milton Shulman
Milton Shulman was a Canadian author, film and theatre critic.-Early life:He was born in Toronto, Ontario, the son of a successful shopkeeper. His parents were born in Ukraine and were driven out of the Russian Empire by poverty and the pogroms against the Jews...
in the Evening Standard
Evening Standard
The Evening Standard, now styled the London Evening Standard, is a free local daily newspaper, published Monday–Friday in tabloid format in London. It is the dominant regional evening paper for London and the surrounding area, with coverage of national and international news and City of London...
compared the songs to "penny whistles at a state funeral", while Robert Cushman of The Observer
The Observer
The Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-Origins:The first issue,...
felt "Marvin Hamlisch's score is the best he has written for the theater."
An article in the January 12, 1984 edition of The New York Times http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9A00E5DF1138F931A25752C0A962948260 reported that the National, citing "disappointing reception by the critics" and poor box office
Box office
A box office is a place where tickets are sold to the public for admission to an event. Patrons may perform the transaction at a countertop, through an unblocked hole through a wall or window, or at a wicket....
, would close the show on April 4. It has never been produced 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...
.