The Golden Apple (musical)
Encyclopedia
The Golden Apple is a musical adaptation of parts of each of the Iliad
and Odyssey
epics of Homer
, with music by Jerome Moross
and lyrics by John Treville Latouche. The musical premiered Off-Broadway
in 1954 and then transferred to Broadway
.
at the The Phoenix Theatre, where it opened on March 11, 1954. The musical transferred to Broadway on April 20, 1954 at the Alvin Theater where the cerebral and through-sung musical played for only 125 performances despite rave reviews. The original production starred Kaye Ballard
as Helen, and Stephen Douglass
as Ulysses
. It was the first Off-Broadway show to win the Best Musical award from the New York Drama Critics' Circle
. Latouche's lyrics are much praised; Steven Suskin wrote: "The Golden Apple benefits from imaginative theatricality in all departments but it was the more-than-glorious score that carried this brilliant musical theatre experiment from Off Broadway to the Alvin."
The musical is entirely through-composed and exhibits features similar to more operatic musicals like Porgy and Bess
, Candide
, and The Most Happy Fella
. Jerome Moross
was a classical composer of concert music, ballets, as well as a highly appreciated film score. The musical has developed a cult
following, even though the full score has never been commercially recorded and the show has never been revived on Broadway. The musical is remembered in part for introducing the standard "Lazy Afternoon", sung by Ballard, and its fantastical, suggestive settings by William and Jean Eckart
.
The piece continues to receive occasional productions. For example, a 1990 production by the York Theater Company in New York featured Muriel Costa-Greenspon
. The work was produced in 1995 by Light Opera Works
in Chicago, Illinoisand in 2006 by the 42nd Street Moon
Company in San Francisco, California
. The Shaw Festival
, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario
, Canada, presented a staged concert in October 2006. The complete piano-vocal score was published for the first time in 2009, by Alfred Music Publishing.
state of Washington, near Mt. Olympus, at the turn of the 20th century, the small town of Angel’s Roost is thrown into confusion when old Menelaus
's fancy-free wife, Helen, runs off with a traveling salesman named Paris
. He's in town to judge an apple pie bake-off. Ulysses, just returned from the Spanish-American War
, is already restless and goes to retrieve Helen, leaving his wife Penelope
for a ten-year adventure.
Act II
√ Note: During the Broadway run of the show, the finale was replaced on the insistence of the producers with a more mainstream reprise of "Coming Home Together" with the chorus. This finale was recorded for the cast album, but subsequently replaced in the published score by the original ending.
Iliad
The Iliad is an epic poem in dactylic hexameters, traditionally attributed to Homer. Set during the Trojan War, the ten-year siege of the city of Troy by a coalition of Greek states, it tells of the battles and events during the weeks of a quarrel between King Agamemnon and the warrior Achilles...
and Odyssey
Odyssey
The Odyssey is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is, in part, a sequel to the Iliad, the other work ascribed to Homer. The poem is fundamental to the modern Western canon, and is the second—the Iliad being the first—extant work of Western literature...
epics of Homer
Homer
In the Western classical tradition Homer , is the author of the Iliad and the Odyssey, and is revered as the greatest ancient Greek epic poet. These epics lie at the beginning of the Western canon of literature, and have had an enormous influence on the history of literature.When he lived is...
, with music by Jerome Moross
Jerome Moross
Jerome Moross was an American-born composer for the stage, and a composer, conductor and orchestrator for motion pictures.-Biography:...
and lyrics by John Treville Latouche. The musical premiered 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...
in 1954 and then transferred to 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...
.
Productions
The Golden Apple was one of the first musicals produced Off-BroadwayOff-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 the The Phoenix Theatre, where it opened on March 11, 1954. The musical transferred to Broadway on April 20, 1954 at the Alvin Theater where the cerebral and through-sung musical played for only 125 performances despite rave reviews. The original production starred Kaye Ballard
Kaye Ballard
Kaye Ballard is an American musical theatre and television actress, comedienne, and singer.-Life and career:Ballard was born as Catherine Gloria Balotta in Cleveland, Ohio, to an Italian American family, the daughter of Lena and Vincent James Balotta.Ballard established herself as a musical...
as Helen, and Stephen Douglass
Stephen Douglass
Stephen Douglass is an American actor-singer.Born Stephen Fitch in Mount Vernon, Ohio, Douglass has had a distinguished theatrical career and has appeared occasionally on television. He was the last performer to play Billy Bigelow in the original Broadway production of Carousel and he created the...
as Ulysses
Odysseus
Odysseus or Ulysses was a legendary Greek king of Ithaca and the hero of Homer's epic poem the Odyssey. Odysseus also plays a key role in Homer's Iliad and other works in the Epic Cycle....
. It was the first Off-Broadway show to win the Best Musical award from the New York Drama Critics' Circle
New York Drama Critics' Circle
The New York Drama Critics' Circle is made up of 24 drama critics from daily newspapers, magazines and wire services based in the New York City metropolitan area. The organization was founded in 1935 at the Algonquin Hotel by a group that included Brooks Atkinson, Walter Winchell, and Robert Benchley...
. Latouche's lyrics are much praised; Steven Suskin wrote: "The Golden Apple benefits from imaginative theatricality in all departments but it was the more-than-glorious score that carried this brilliant musical theatre experiment from Off Broadway to the Alvin."
The musical is entirely through-composed and exhibits features similar to more operatic musicals like Porgy and Bess
Porgy and Bess
Porgy and Bess is an opera, first performed in 1935, with music by George Gershwin, libretto by DuBose Heyward, and lyrics by Ira Gershwin and DuBose Heyward. It was based on DuBose Heyward's novel Porgy and subsequent play of the same title, which he co-wrote with his wife Dorothy Heyward...
, Candide
Candide
Candide, ou l'Optimisme is a French satire first published in 1759 by Voltaire, a philosopher of the Age of Enlightenment. The novella has been widely translated, with English versions titled Candide: or, All for the Best ; Candide: or, The Optimist ; and Candide: or, Optimism...
, and The Most Happy Fella
The Most Happy Fella
The Most Happy Fella is a 1956 musical with a book, music, and lyrics by Frank Loesser. The story, about a romance between an older man and younger woman, is based on the play They Knew What They Wanted by Sidney Howard...
. Jerome Moross
Jerome Moross
Jerome Moross was an American-born composer for the stage, and a composer, conductor and orchestrator for motion pictures.-Biography:...
was a classical composer of concert music, ballets, as well as a highly appreciated film score. The musical has developed a cult
Cult
The word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...
following, even though the full score has never been commercially recorded and the show has never been revived on Broadway. The musical is remembered in part for introducing the standard "Lazy Afternoon", sung by Ballard, and its fantastical, suggestive settings by William and Jean Eckart
William and Jean Eckart
William and Jean Eckart were a husband-and-wife team of theatre designers in the 1950s and '60s. They designed sets, costumes, and lighting for many productions, including Mame, Here's Love, Damn Yankees, Once Upon a Mattress, The Fig Leaves Are Falling, and The Golden Apple.William Eckart was born...
.
The piece continues to receive occasional productions. For example, a 1990 production by the York Theater Company in New York featured Muriel Costa-Greenspon
Muriel Costa-Greenspon
Muriel Costa-Greenspon was an American mezzo-soprano who had a lengthy career at the New York City Opera between 1963-1993...
. The work was produced in 1995 by Light Opera Works
Light Opera Works
Light Opera Works is a resident professional not-for-profit musical theatre company in Evanston, Illinois. It was founded in 1980 by Philip Kraus, Bridget McDonough , and Ellen Dubinsky....
in Chicago, Illinoisand in 2006 by the 42nd Street Moon
42nd Street Moon
42nd Street Moon is a professional theatre company in San Francisco, California. The company specializes in the preservation and presentation of early and lesser-known works by Rodgers & Hammerstein, Rodgers & Hart, Cole Porter, Irving Berlin, Kurt Weill, George and Ira Gershwin, Jerome Kern,...
Company in San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
. The Shaw Festival
Shaw Festival
The Shaw Festival is a major Canadian theatre festival in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, the second largest repertory theatre company in North America...
, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada, presented a staged concert in October 2006. The complete piano-vocal score was published for the first time in 2009, by Alfred Music Publishing.
Roles and original cast
- Helen (mezzo-sopranoMezzo-sopranoA mezzo-soprano is a type of classical female singing voice whose range lies between the soprano and the contralto singing voices, usually extending from the A below middle C to the A two octaves above...
) - Kaye BallardKaye BallardKaye Ballard is an American musical theatre and television actress, comedienne, and singer.-Life and career:Ballard was born as Catherine Gloria Balotta in Cleveland, Ohio, to an Italian American family, the daughter of Lena and Vincent James Balotta.Ballard established herself as a musical... - Lovey Mars (altoAltoAlto is a musical term, derived from the Latin word altus, meaning "high" in Italian, that has several possible interpretations.When designating instruments, "alto" frequently refers to a member of an instrumental family that has the second highest range, below that of the treble or soprano. Hence,...
) - Bibi Osterwald - Penelope (sopranoSopranoA soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
) - Priscilla Gillette - Ulysses Spelvin (baritoneBaritoneBaritone is a type of male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek , meaning deep sounding, music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C Baritone (or...
)- Stephen DouglassStephen DouglassStephen Douglass is an American actor-singer.Born Stephen Fitch in Mount Vernon, Ohio, Douglass has had a distinguished theatrical career and has appeared occasionally on television. He was the last performer to play Billy Bigelow in the original Broadway production of Carousel and he created the... - Paris (dancing role) - Jonathan Lucas
- Hector Charybdis (basso) - Jack Whiting
- Menelaus (tenorTenorThe tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
) - Dean Michener - Mrs. Juniper (mezzo-soprano) - Geraldine Viti
- Miss Minerva Oliver (soprano) - Portia Nelson
- Mother Hare (alto) - Nola Day
Synopsis
In the U.S.United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
state of Washington, near Mt. Olympus, at the turn of the 20th century, the small town of Angel’s Roost is thrown into confusion when old Menelaus
Menelaus
Menelaus may refer to;*Menelaus, one of the two most known Atrides, a king of Sparta and son of Atreus and Aerope*Menelaus on the Moon, named after Menelaus of Alexandria.*Menelaus , brother of Ptolemy I Soter...
's fancy-free wife, Helen, runs off with a traveling salesman named Paris
Paris (mythology)
Paris , the son of Priam, king of Troy, appears in a number of Greek legends. Probably the best-known was his elopement with Helen, queen of Sparta, this being one of the immediate causes of the Trojan War...
. He's in town to judge an apple pie bake-off. Ulysses, just returned from the Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
, is already restless and goes to retrieve Helen, leaving his wife Penelope
Penelope
In Homer's Odyssey, Penelope is the faithful wife of Odysseus, who keeps her suitors at bay in his long absence and is eventually reunited with him....
for a ten-year adventure.
Musical numbers
Act I- Overture
- Nothin' Ever Happens in Angel's Roost - Helen, Lovey Mars, Mrs. Juniper and Miss Minerva Oliver
- My Love Is on the Way - Penelope
- It Was a Glad Adventure - Ulysses and the Heroes
- Come Along, Boys - The Heroes and Ensemble
- It's the Going Home Together - Ulysses and Penelope
- Helen Is Always Willing - The Heroes
- Introducin' Mr. Paris - Paris and Ensemble
- The Judgement of Paris - Mother Hare, Miss Minerva, Mrs. Juniper, Lovely Mars, Paris
- Lazy Afternoon - Helen and Paris
- Departure for Rhododendron - Ensemble
Act II
- My Picture in the Papers - Helen, Paris and Male Ensemble
- Taking Rhododendron - Ulysses and the Heroes, Citizens
- Hector's Song - Hector
- Windflowers - Penelope
- Store-bought Suit - Ulysses
- Madame Calypso - Mrs. Juniper and Ensemble
- Scylla and Charybdis - Hector and Scylla
- By Goona-Goona Lagoon - Lovey Mars
- Doomed, Doomed, Doomed - Miss Minerva
- Circe, Circe - Circe, Mother Hare and the Ensemble
- Ulysses's Soliloquy - Ulysses and Chorus
- Busy Little Sewing Bee - Penelope and Ensemble
- Penelope's Tirade - Penelope
- We've Just Begun √ - Ulysses and Penelope
- Curtain Call: It's the Coming Home Together
√ Note: During the Broadway run of the show, the finale was replaced on the insistence of the producers with a more mainstream reprise of "Coming Home Together" with the chorus. This finale was recorded for the cast album, but subsequently replaced in the published score by the original ending.