- Grind (musical)
Infobox Musical
name= Grind
subtitle=
caption=
music=Larry Grossmann
lyrics=Ellen Fitzhugh
book=Fay Kanin
basis=
productions=1985 Broadway
awards="Grind" is a musical with a book by
Fay Kanin , music by Larry Grossmann, and lyrics by Ellen Fitzhugh."Grind" is a portrait of a largely African-American
burlesque house inChicago in the Thirties. Directed byHal Prince with choreography byLester Wilson , the cast includedBen Vereen as a song-and-dance man,Stubby Kaye as a slapstick comic, and Leilani Jones as a stripper named Satin.It opened on Broadway at the
Mark Hellinger Theatre on April 16,1985 and closed on June 22,1985 after 71 performances and 25 previews.The reviews were mixed at best. In his "New York Times" review,
Frank Rich wrote: "...the show has become a desperate barrage of arbitrary musical numbers, portentous staging devices, extravagant costumes..., confused plot twists and sociological bromides..." "Grind" fared poorly at the box office; "The production was a disaster; the show lost its entire $4.75 million investment, and Prince and three other members of the creative team were suspended by the Dramatists Guild for signing a "substandard contract." [ [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C0DE5DE1E39F934A25756C0A9649C8B63 "New York Times", Jesse McKinley, May 17, 2002] ]1985 was a bad year for Broadway musicals, and only one hit ("Big River") had emerged by the time Tony nominations were submitted. Since there was little decent competition, "Grind" received a Tony nomination for Best Musical.Ken Mandelbaum wrote of the season: "The original "Big River" came along at the end of a dismal season for new musicals, and "Leader of the Pack", "Quilters", and the fascinating but unworkable "Grind" posed virtually no competition. [Ken Mandelbaum, "The Insider", 5/24/2004, broadway.com]Even critics who hated "Grind" were impressed by Jones' performance:
Frank Rich wrote: "Miss Jones, in her Broadway debut, is a find - a gifted young performer lacking only a little flash." She received theTony Award , theDrama Desk Award , and theTheatre World Award as Best Featured Actress in a Musical that year.Musical numbers
;Act I
* This Must Be the Place - Company
* Cadava - Solly, Gus and Romaine
* A Sweet Thing Like Me - Satin and Earle's Pearls
* I Get Myself Out - Gus
* My Daddy Always Taught Me To Share - Leroy
* All Things To One Man - Satin
* The Line - Leroy and Earl's Pearls
* Katie, My Love - Doyle
* The Grind - Gus and Company
* Yes, Ma'am - Doyle
* Why, Mama, Why - Satin and Leroy
* This Crazy Place - Leroy and Company;Act II
* From The Ankles Down - Leroy and Earle's Pearls
* Who Is He - Satin
* Never Put It In Writing - Gus
* I Talk, You Talk - Doyle
* Timing - Romaine and Solly
* These Eyes of Mine - Maybelle and Company
* New Man - Leroy
* Down - Doyle
* A Century Of Progress - Leroy, Satin and Earle's Pearls
* Finale - CompanyAwards and nominations
;
Tony Award
*Best Musical (Produced by Kenneth D. Greenblatt, John J. Pomerantz, Mary Lea Johnson, Martin Richards, James M. Nederlander, Harold Prince, Michael Frazier; Produced in association with Susan Madden Samson, Jonathan Farkas) (nominee)
*Best Book of a Musical (Fay Kanin) (nominee)
*Best Original Score (Music by Larry Grossman; Lyrics by Ellen Fitzhugh) (nominee)
*Best Featured Actress in a Musical (Leilani Jones ) (winner)
*Best Scenic Design (Clarke Dunham) (nominee)
*Best Costume Design (Florence Klotz) (winner)
*Best Direction of a Musical (Harold Prince) (nominee);Theatre World Award
*Leilani Jones (winner) ;Drama Desk Award
*Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical (Timothy Nolen) (nominee)
*Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical :Leilani Jones (winner) :Sharon Murray [nominee)
*Outstanding Orchestration (Bill Byers) (nominee)
*Outstanding Lyrics (Ellen Fitzhugh) (nominee)
*Outstanding Music (Larry Grossman) (nominee)
*Outstanding Lighting Design (Ken Billington) (nominee)
*Outstanding Set Design (Clarke Dunham) (nominee)References
* [http://theater2.nytimes.com/mem/theater/treview.html?res=9F02E7DD1138F934A25757C0A963948260 "New York Times" review, April 17, 1985]
External links
*
* [http://www.rationalmagic.com/Bursting/Grind.html plot and other information at rationalmagic]
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