- Grey Gardens (musical)
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Grey Gardens 
Cover of Broadway original cast recording of Grey GardensMusic Scott Frankel Lyrics Michael Korie Book Doug Wright Basis 1975 Documentary Grey Gardens Productions 2006 Off-Broadway
2006 BroadwayGrey Gardens is an American musical with book by Doug Wright, music by Scott Frankel, and lyrics by Michael Korie, based on the 1975 documentary of the same title about the lives of Edith Ewing Bouvier Beale ("Big Edie") and her daughter Edith Bouvier Beale ("Little Edie") by Albert and David Maysles. The Beales were Jacqueline Kennedy's aunt and cousin, respectively. Set at Grey Gardens, the Bouviers' mansion in East Hampton, New York, the musical tracks the progression of their lives from their original status as rich and socially polished aristocrats to their eventual largely isolated existence in a home overrun by cats and cited for repeated health code violations. However, its more central purpose is to untangle the complicated dynamics of their dysfunctional mother/daughter relationship.
The show takes place in two acts, the first of which is a speculative take on what their lives might have been like in their glory days and the second of which hews closely to the 1975 documentary in its portrayal of their lives in later years. In the first act, which takes place in 1941, Little Edie is 24 and Big Edie is 47; in the second act, taking place in 1973, Little Edie is 56 and Big Edie is 79. The same actress who plays Big Edie in the first act plays Little Edie in the second act.
Contents
Productions
The musical opened off-Broadway at Playwrights Horizons on February 10, 2006 and ran through April 30, 2006. Directed by Michael Greif with choreography by Jeff Calhoun, it starred Christine Ebersole, Mary Louise Wilson, and John McMartin.
It received mixed reviews, but attracted particularly good reviews for Ebersole and Wilson. It earned five Lucille Lortel Award nominations and twelve Drama Desk Award nominations. The Off-Broadway cast album was released on August 22, 2006. Christine Ebersole received the Obie Award, Drama Desk Award, Outer Critics Circle Award, a Special Citation from the New York Drama Critics' Circle, and the Drama League Award for Performance of the Year for her dual roles of Edith and Edie Beale in the Off-Broadway production of Grey Gardens.
The show opened, with some revisions, on Broadway on November 2, 2006 at the Walter Kerr Theatre and closed on July 29, 2007, after 307 performances and 33 previews.
The Broadway production was enthusiastically received by the critics. Time Magazine named Grey Gardens as the Number One show of 2006.[1] The production was nominated for 10 Tony Awards in 2007, winning three, including awards for both Ebersole and Wilson in leading and featured actress categories, respectively.
The Original Broadway Cast album was released on March 27, 2007 through PS Classics. It was nominated for a 2008 Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album.
Documentary
A documentary, Grey Gardens: From East Hampton to Broadway, about the making of the musical, was screened on October 18, 2007, at the Hamptons International Film Festival Long Island,[2] and was later shown on television on PBS stations.
Cast
Prologue (1973)
- Edith Bouvier Beale — Mary Louise Wilson
- "Little" Edie Beale — Christine Ebersole
- Act I (1941)
- Edith Bouvier Beale — Christine Ebersole
- George Gould Strong — Bob Stillman
- Brooks, Sr. — Michael Potts
- Jacqueline Bouvier — Sarah Hyland
- Lee Bouvier — Audrey Twitchell (Kelsey Fowler on Broadway)
- "Little" Edie Beale — Sara Gettelfinger (Erin Davie on Broadway)
- Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. — Matt Cavenaugh
- J.V. "Major" Bouvier — John McMartin
- Act II (1973)
- Edith Bouvier Beale — Mary Louise Wilson
- "Little" Edie Beale — Christine Ebersole
- Brooks, Jr — Michael Potts
- Jerry — Matt Cavenaugh
- Norman Vincent Peale — John McMartin
Song List
Off-Broadway Broadway Prologue (1973) "Toyland" — Edith & Edie "The Girl Who Has Everything" — Edith & Edie Act One (1941) "The Five-Fifteen" — Edith, Gould, Brooks, Jackie, Lee "The Five-Fifteen" — Edith, Gould, Brooks, Jackie, Lee "Body Beautiful Beale" — Gould, Edith, Brooks, Edie, Jackie, Lee, Joe "Mother, Darling" — Edie, Edith, Gould "Mother, Darling" — Edie, Edith, Gould "Better Fall Out of Love" — Joe & Edie "Going Places" — Joe & Edie "Being Bouvier" — Major Bouvier, Brooks, Jackie, Lee, Edie "Marry Well" — Major Bouvier, Brooks, Jackie, Lee, Edie "Hominy Grits" — Edith, Gould, Jackie, Lee "Hominy Grits" — Edith, Gould, Jackie, Lee "Peas in a Pod" — Edie & Edith "Peas in a Pod" — Edie & Edith "Drift Away" — Gould & Edith "Drift Away" — Gould & Edith "The Five-Fifteen" (reprise) — Edith "The Five-Fifteen" (reprise) — Edith "Tomorrow's Woman" — Edie, Jackie, Lee "Daddy's Girl" — Edie & Joe "Daddy's Girl" — Edie & Joe "Being Bouvier" (reprise) — Major Bouvier, Jackie, Lee "The Telegram" — Edie & Edith "The Telegram" — Edie & Edith "Will You?" — Edith "Will You?" — Edith Act Two (1973) "The Revolutionary Costume for Today" — Edie "The Revolutionary Costume for Today" — Edie "The Cake I Had" — Edith & Edie "The Cake I Had" — Edith & Edie "Entering Grey Gardens" — Company "Entering Grey Gardens" — Company "The House We Live In" — Edie & Company "The House We Live In" — Edie & Company "Jerry Likes My Corn" — Edith & Edie "Jerry Likes My Corn" — Edith & Edie "Around the World" — Edie "Around the World" — Edie "Choose to Be Happy" — Norman Vincent Peale & Company "Choose to Be Happy" — Norman Vincent Peale & Company "Around the World" (reprise) — Edie "Around the World" (reprise) — Edie "Another Winter in a Summer Town" — Edie & Edith "Another Winter in a Summer Town" — Edie & Edith "Peas in a Pod" (reprise) — Edith & Edie "The Girl Who Has Everything" (reprise) — Edith & Edie U.S. and International productions
According to an article in Playbill.com (November 21, 2007), composer Scott Frankel said there are no plans for a national tour based on the 2006-07 Broadway production, but "Dramatists Play Service, Inc. is handling the show's licensing to stock, amateur, university and resident theatres. Independent productions will start playing in those markets in 2008." [3]
- The musical's first post-Broadway production was produced by TheatreWorks (Silicon Valley) in the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts in Mountain View, California from August 20 to September 14, 2008. The show was directed by Kent Nicholson (associate director, Mike Ward), with choreography by Alex Perez, with a cast that featured Beth Glover, Dale D. Soules, Elisa Van Duyne, Paul Myrvold, Nicholas Galbraith, Michael Winther, Anthony J. Haney, Kathryn Foley, with Carolyn Di Loreto and Isabella Wilcox alternating the role of young Lee Bouvier.[4] The TheatreWorks production was nominated for 9 Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle Awards, winning 4: Beth Glover (Principal Performance-Female); Paul Myrvold (Supporting Performance-Male); J.B. Wilson (Scenic Design); Pamela Grey (Lighting Design).
- Grey Gardens premiered in the Midwest in suburban Chicago's Northlight Theatre of Skokie, IL, under the direction of artistic director BJ Jones, from November 12 through December 21, 2008. Hollis Resnik starred as the two middle-aged Edies.[5]
- The Studio Theatre in Washington, DC opened its production on November 12, 2008, running through December 21. The production was directed by Serge Seiden and starred Barbara Walsh as Big and Little Edie Beale. The cast also featured Barbara Broughton as Big Edie, Bobby Smith and Janna Sokolowski.[6]
- An independent production of Grey Gardens was staged by Ordway Center for the Performing Arts in Saint Paul, Minnesota, running March 17 through May 17, 2009. It was co-produced by Ordway Center and Park Square Theatre. The cast starred Christina Baldwin as the two middle-aged Edies and Wendy Lehr as Big Edie and featured Richard Ooms, Michael Gruber, Zoe Pappas, Joshua James Campbell, and Hayley Koop and Kacie Riddle alternating the role of Lee Bouvier.[7]
- The New England premiere of Grey Gardens was staged by The Lyric Stage Company of Boston in Boston, Massachusetts, running May 8 through June 6, 2009. It featured Leigh Barrett as the two middle-aged Edies, as well as Aimee Doherty, Sara deLima and Will McGarrahan.[8]
- The Philadelphia, Pennsylvania premiere of Grey Gardens was staged by the Philadelphia Theatre Company, from May 22, 2009 through June 28, 2009.[9]
- The Canadian Premiere will be presented from May 1-22, 2012 courtesy of Fighting Chance Productions in Vancouver, BC at the Jericho Arts Centre. The cast will feature Cathy Wilmot, Lucas Blaney and Celia Reid with direction and musical staging by Ryan Mooney and music direction by Caitlin Hayes.
- The Portland Center Stage staged Grey Gardens in May and June 2009, in Portland, Oregon.[10]
- A Japanese production opened on November 7, 2009 at Theater Creation in Tokyo and closed on December 6. The production then toured other Japanese cities, including Osaka and Nagoya.[11]
- The Colorado premiere of Grey Gardens will open on May 13, 2011 and run through June 12, 2011 at The Vintage Theatre in Denver, Colorado.
Awards and nominations
Original Off-Broadway production
Year Award Ceremony Category Nominee Result 2006 Drama Desk Award Outstanding Musical Nominated Outstanding Book of a Musical Doug Wright Nominated Outstanding Actress in a Musical Christine Ebersole Won Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical John McMartin Nominated Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical Mary Louise Wilson Nominated Outstanding Director of a Musical Michael Greif Nominated Outstanding Music Scott Frankel Nominated Outstanding Lyrics Michael Korie Nominated Outstanding Orchestrations Bruce Coughlin Nominated Outstanding Set Design Allen Moyer Nominated Outstanding Costume Design William Ivey Long Nominated Outstanding Sound Design Brian Ronan Nominated Drama League Award Distinguished Production of a Musical Nominated Distinguished Performance Christine Ebersole Won Mary Louise Wilson Nominated Outer Critics Circle Award Outstanding Off-Broadway Musical Won Outstanding New Score Scott Frankel and Michael Korie Nominated Outstanding Actress in a Musical Christine Ebersole Won Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical Mary Louise Wilson Won Outstanding Direction of a Musical Michael Greif Nominated Outstanding Set Design Allen Moyer Nominated Outstanding Costume Design William Ivey Long Nominated New York Drama Critics Circle Award Special Award Christine Ebersole Won Original Broadway production
Year Award Ceremony Category Nominee Result 2007 Theatre World Award Erin Davie Won Tony Award Best Musical Nominated Best Book of a Musical Doug Wright Nominated Best Original Score Scott Frankel and Michael Korie Nominated Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical Christine Ebersole Won Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical Mary Louise Wilson Won Best Direction of a Musical Michael Greif Nominated Best Orchestrations Bruce Coughlin Nominated Best Scenic Design Allen Moyer Nominated Best Costume Design William Ivey Long Won Best Lighting Design Peter Kaczorowski Nominated 2008 Grammy Award Best Musical Show Album Nominated Popular culture
- The line "Two roads diverged in a yellow wood" in the song "Around the World" references the poem 'The Road Not Taken' by Robert Frost. In the 1975 Maysles documentary, Little Edie paraphrased/misquoted some lines from the Frost poem.
References
- ^ Time magazine review
- ^ playbill article, 10/18/07
- ^ Jones, Kenneth.Will Grey Gardens Grow in London? Creative Team Has Hope playbill.com, November 21, 2007
- ^ Hetrick, Adam."A Faded Bouquet": Grey Gardens Opens at TheatreWorks Aug. 23 playbill.com, August 23, 2008
- ^ Jones, Kenneth.Chicago Veterans Resnik, Kelly and Whitney Tend Northlight's Grey Gardens, Starting Nov. 12 playbill.com, November 12, 2008
- ^ Jones, Kenneth.Barbara Walsh Will Play "Edies" of Grey Gardens in DC; Casting Complete playbill.com, October 1, 2008
- ^ Grey Gardens press release parksquaretheatre, February 16, 2009
- ^ Grey Gardens listinglyricstage.com, retrieved February 26, 2010
- ^ Grey Gardens listing theatrealliance.org,retrieved February 26, 2010
- ^ Weinstein, Nathalie.Review: Grey Gardens at Portland Center Stage pdxpipeline.com, June 3, 2009
- ^ Hetrick, Adam."Thank Heaven You're Here": Grey Gardens Premieres in Japan playbill.com, November 7, 2009
- Grey Gardens, the Musical
- Production: Grey Gardens Working in the Theatre video from the American Theatre Wing, November 2006
- KnightattheMovies.com September 2007 interview with Grey Gardens composer Scott Frankel
External links
Categories:- 2006 musicals
- Musicals based on films
- Broadway musicals
- Off-Broadway musicals
- Musicals inspired by real-life events
- Bouvier family
- Beale family
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