Sugar Babies (musical)

Sugar Babies is a musical revue conceived by Ralph G. Allen and Harry Rigby, with music by Jimmy McHugh, lyrics by Dorothy Fields and Al Dubin and various others. The show is a tribute to the old burlesque era. First produced in 1979 on Broadway and running nearly three years, the revue attracted warm notices and was given subsequent touring productions.

Sugar Babies
MusicJimmy McHugh
LyricsDorothy Fields
Al Dubin
various
BookRalph G. Allen
Harry Rigby
Productions1979 Broadway
1987 Australia
1988 West End

Productions

Sugar Babies opened on Broadway at the Mark Hellinger Theatre on October 8, 1979 and closed on August 28, 1982 after 1,208 performances. Staging and choreography was by Ernest Flatt, with sketches directed by Rudy Tronto, musically directed by Glen Roven, scenic and costume design by Raoul Pene Du Bois, lighting design by Gilbert Vaughn Hemsley Jr., vocal arrangements and lyrics by Arthur Malvin, additional vocal arrangements by Hugh Martin, Ralph Blane, and orchestrations by Dick Hyman.

The revue starred Mickey Rooney in his Broadway debut, Ann Miller, and featured Ann Jillian and Peter Leeds. After the original stars left, successors included Juliet Prowse, Anita Morris, Joey Bishop, Eddie Bracken, Jeff Dunham and Rip Taylor.

The revue subsequently had a short-lived National tour which starred Carol Channing and Robert Morse, from August through November 1980.[1][2] The 1982 Bus and Truck Tour starred Eddie Bracken and Jaye P. Morgan (who was succeeded by Mimi Hines).[3] The 2nd National Tour, in 1984 and 1985, reunited Rooney and Miller.[4][5]

Concept

Norman Abbott, nephew of famed straight man Bud Abbott, conceived the idea of a Broadway musical based on burlesque after inheriting his uncle's "treasure trove of burlesque material, including written gags, props, music and posters". According to The Life and Times of Mickey Rooney, "He then came to the conclusion that the only person alive who could pull this off as a headliner was Mickey Rooney." After two weeks of rehearsals, however, Abbott, who was directing the show, was fired when Rooney told him "this isn't going to work out." Although Abbott didn't have a contract, he sued producer Harry Rigby and received a six-figure settlement.[6]

Rigby and Ralph G. Allen, a theatre professor and historian fascinated with burlesque, wrote the book for the show. In 1977, Allen read pieces of a revue he wrote that borrowed material from long forgotten burlesque routines at a conference on American popular entertainment. Rigby was in the audience and approached Allen about the material. Sugar Babies debuted two years later.

The show consists of "traditional material ... routines going back 50 to 60 years. It contains standard songs such as "Don't Blame Me" and "I Feel a Song Comin' On", interspersed with newly created musical numbers, including "The Sugar Baby Bounce".[7]

The show had burlesque "tropes" such as the swing number, the sister act, the fan dance, the vaudeville dog act. "It was all fast and funny and it ended with a patriotic number...with the entire company in red, white, and blue with a flag background and Miller as the Statue of Liberty."[8]

Songs and scenes

Source: Script[9]

Reception

Time wrote that the show is a "happy send-off to burlesque", and "Rarely has so much energy been packed into so small a package. Rooney dances, he sings, he mugs, he dresses in drag."[10]

Awards and nominations

Original Broadway production
Year Award Category Nominee Result
1980 Tony Award Best Musical Nominated
Best Book of a Musical Ralph G. Allen and Harry Rigby Nominated
Best Original Score Jimmy McHugh, Dorothy Fields and Al Dubin Nominated
Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical Mickey Rooney Nominated
Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical Ann Miller Nominated
Best Direction of a Musical Ernest Flatt and Rudy Tronto Nominated
Best Choreography Ernest Flatt Nominated
Best Costume Design Raoul Pène Du Bois Nominated
Drama Desk Award Outstanding Actor in a Musical Mickey Rooney Nominated
Outstanding Actress in a Musical Ann Miller Nominated

References
  1. Corry, John (August 7, 1980). "An Anomaly Is Born: Carol Channing As 'Babies' Burlesque Comic". The New York Times. p. C 15.
  2. Lardner, James (November 4, 1980). "Theater Notes". The Washington Post. p. B8.
  3. Richards, David (June 29, 1982). "Sugar Babies To End Tour". The Washington Post. p. B10.
  4. Frank, Leah (July 7, 1985). "Theater Review;Rooney Triumphant In 'Sugar Babies'". The New York Times.
  5. "O Calendar: 'Sugar Babies', Pantages Theatre". Orange Coast Magazine: 116–119. February 1984.
  6. Barnes, Mike (July 13, 2016). "Norman Abbott, TV Director and Brainchild Behind Broadway's 'Sugar Babies,' Dies at 93". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  7. Klein, Alvin (March 1, 1987). "Theater; Understudy Becomes The Star In Darien's 'Sugar Babies'". The New York Times.
  8. Mordden, Ethan (January 1, 2004). One More Kiss: The Broadway Musical in the 1970s (reprint ed.). Palgrave Macmillan. p. 236-237. ISBN 978-1-4039-6539-4. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  9. 'Sugar Babies: The Burlesque Musical' script. New York City: Samuel French, Inc. 1983. pp. 8–9. ISBN 978-0-5736-8166-0.
  10. "Show Business: Andy Hardy Comes Home"". Time. October 29, 1979.
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