In Town (musical)

"In Town" is a musical comedy written by Adrian Ross and James T. Tanner, with music by F. Osmond Carr and lyrics by Ross. It was produced by George Edwardes at the Prince of Wales Theatre and opened on 15 October 1892, running for a successful 292 performances. It starred the comedians Arthur Roberts and Edmund Payne as Shrimp, the Call Boy, as well as singing star Florence St John.

In Town was one of the first musical comedies on the London stage. [ [http://www.staff.ncl.ac.uk/fraser.charlton/edmuscom/page12/edmuscom_what.html Article on the rise of Edwardian musical comedy] ] It was lighter than a Gilbert and Sullivan style comic opera, but more coherent in construction than a burlesque. The piece initiated Tanner's and Edwardes's famous series of modern-dress musical shows and helped set the new fashion for the series of Gaiety Theatre musical hits that followed. Many of the best-known London couturiers began to design costumes for stage productions by the 1880s. The illustrated periodicals were eager to publish photographs of the actresses in the latest stage hits, and so the theatre became an excellent way for clothiers to publicise their latest fashions. [ [http://www.peopleplayuk.org.uk/collections/object.php?object_id=1739&back=%2Fguided_tours%2Fmusicals_tour%2Ffirst_musicals%2Fgaiety_girls.php%3F Information about the famous costume designes of the musicals] ]

The plot of "In Town" is a smart tale of backstage and society intrigue. Roberts played a lad-about-town who gives a young aristocrat a tour of the slightly naughty lifestyles both high and low, to be found in London. They visit a theatre, and scenes include on stage and backstage action.Gänzl, Kurt. [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/38669 "Edwardes, George Joseph (1855–1915)",] "Oxford Dictionary of National Biography", Oxford University Press, 2004, accessed 18 Septtember 2008, doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/38669] One of the popular songs from the show was "The Man About Town".

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External links

* [http://www.nodanw.com/london_shows_chronology/1892.htm Information about shows that opened in London in 1892]