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1958 In a year dominated by the arrival of My Fair Lady and West Side Story, the British musical seemed content to keep in the shadows, but there was interesting work. Irma La Douce proved again that a show of British origins could have a commercial success, even if the piece had originally come from France, with music by a French composer. It made a star, finally, of Elisabeth Seal, who never again had a role that came anywhere near it. The stirrings of an earthier type of British musical were felt in Expresso Bongo, a small-scale affair with a satiric bite about the underbelly of Tin Pan Alley and Soho from the pens of Wolf Mankowitz, Monty Norman, David Heneker and Julian More (More, Norman and Heneker had done the English adaptation of Irma La Douce) - names that would play a great part in British musicals of the period. The appearance of so distinguished an actor as Paul Scofield gave the production credibility, suggesting that British musicals might be more relevant than had been imagined. There was obvious intelligence and good taste, and a deal of invention, in Sandy Wilson's idiosyncratic Valmouth, taken from the novel of Ronald Firbank, but it couldn't find enough audience to get a decent run - perhaps the public simply didn't appreciate 'camp' theatre in 1958. The cast was superb, the songs neat and appropriate in the usual Wilson manner, and the production small but opulent. But the show's real life was really lived out in legend after it closed. The generally short runs continued. A snappy little show with an attractive score from Robb Stewart, Chrysanthemum, was mounted for a London production with the husband and wife team of Hubert Gregg and Pat Kirkwood, but it didn't succeed. It wasn't helped by the various indispositions of its stars. A period musical, School, with music by Christopher Whelen, had been applauded at Birmingham, but by the time it reached London all hope was lost and an interesting piece lost its footing almost immediately. During the proceedings, Eleanor Drew had impressed with something called 'The Letter Song'. The creators of the revue Cranks tired their hand with a musical, Keep Your Hair On, a quick flop. Starring Frankie Howerd, Mr Venus, about the arrival on earth of an extra-terrestrial, had a dismal press and sank without trace. Its composer would later find fame as the pianist Russ Conway. Leslie Bricusse and Robin Beaumont wrote the music for Lady at the Wheel, which featured Bernard Cribbins, Lucille Mapp, Peter Gilmore and Maggie Fitzgibbon, but it had only a short visit to London. The Players Theatre presented a musical by Marion Hart, Gentleman's Pastime, which never moved on. From Ireland, The Heart's a Wonder almost qualified as a musical. Joining the two great Broadway blockbusters in the year was Frank Loesser's happy adaptation of the old farce Charley's Aunt. Norman Wisdom scored a great personal success, helping Where's Charley? to a year's run. The American black musical Simply Heavenly hardly opened before it closed, but its libretto, by Langston Hughes, must have made it worth seeing. Bertice Reading played Miss Mamie, 'a plump domestic'. It was a rewarding year for the British intimate revue. From the Peter Myers stable there was the ebullient For Adults Only, and, with an even longer run, the glorious Living for Pleasure which showcased the talents of Dora Bryan and proved her to be an outstanding exponent of the genre. Richard Addinsell's score showed that good theatre music could still be written for revue. |