Personal photo Kathy and Larry Naismith at Sony studio recording their Duet song

''Here's Love'' is a

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the characters are interwo ...

with a book, music, and lyrics by Meredith Willson. Based on the 1947 film ''

Miracle on 34th Street ''Miracle on 34th Street'' (initially released as ''The Big Heart'' in the United Kingdom) is a 1947 American Christmas comedy-drama film released by 20th Century Fox, written and directed by George Seaton and based on a story by Valentine Davi ...

'', it tells the tale of a skeptical young girl who doubts the existence of

Santa Claus Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring children gifts during the late evening and overnigh ...

. When the real Kris Kringle is hired inadvertently to represent jolly

St. Nick Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring children gifts during the late evening and overnigh ...

in the

Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is an annual parade in New York City presented by the U.S.-based department store chain Macy's. The Parade first took place in 1924, tying it for the second-oldest Thanksgiving parade in the United States wit ...

, he must convince the child and her cynical divorced mother (the department store's special events director) that he is the genuine article.

Productions

The

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

production, directed by Stuart Ostrow and

choreographed Choreography is the art or practice of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which motion or form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design itself. A choreographer is one who cr ...

by Michael Kidd, opened on October 3, 1963 at the Shubert Theatre, and closed on July 25, 1964 after 334 performances and 2 previews. The cast included

Laurence Naismith Laurence Naismith (born Lawrence Johnson; 14 December 1908 – 5 June 1992) was an English actor. He made numerous film and television appearances, including starring roles in the musical films '' Scrooge'' (1970) and the children's ghost fil ...

, Janis Paige, Craig Stevens,

Lisa Kirk Lisa Kirk (born Elsie Kirk, February 25, 1925 – November 11, 1990) was an American actress and singer noted for her comic talents and rich contralto (her voice was called a husky alto). Career Born in Brownsville, Pennsylvania, she was raise ...

, Fred Gwynne, Kathy Cody, Michael Bennett, and Baayork Lee. The original director,

Norman Jewison Norman Frederick Jewison (born July 21, 1926) is a retired Canadian film and television director, producer, and founder of the Canadian Film Centre. He has directed numerous feature films and has been nominated for the Academy Award for Best ...

, was replaced by Ostrow, the producer, during rehearsals. This show had also been titled ''It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas'' and ''Miracle on 34th Street: The Musical''. The song "

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas" is a Christmas song written in 1951 by Meredith Willson. The song was originally titled "It's Beginning to Look Like Christmas". The song has been recorded by many artists, but was a hit for Perry Como ...

", written by Willson in 1951, is used in the musical, where it is sung in

counterpoint In music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more musical lines (or voices) which are harmonically interdependent yet independent in rhythm and melodic contour. It has been most commonly identified in the European classical tra ...

to the newly-composed "Pine Cones and Holly Berries".Connema, Richar
Review, ''Here's Love''
www.talkinbroadway.com, January 16, 2002

Synopsis

Susan Walker and her mother, Doris, live alone in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

in the 1960s. Doris works in an executive position at Macy's and, at the start of the musical, is busy organizing the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Susan meets an ex-marine named Fred Gaily, who takes it upon himself to rid her of her "realistic" outlook on life by taking her to see

at Macy's. Kris (Santa) manages to win Susan over while love blooms between Fred and Doris. The second act sees Kris appearing in the

New York Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the trial-level court of general jurisdiction in the New York State Unified Court System. (Its Appellate Division is also the highest intermediate appellate court.) It is vested with unlimited civ ...

, with Fred helping him defend his sanity. In the conclusion, Fred uses the Post Office to prove to the court (and the world) that Santa Claus does exist: Kris Kringle is he.

Original Broadway cast and characters

Valerie Lee Valerie may refer to: People *Saint Valerie (disambiguation), a number of saints went by the name Valerie *Valerie (given name), a feminine given name Songs *"Valerie", a 1981 song by Quarterflash, from ''Quarterflash'' *"Valerie", a 1982 son ...

– Susan Walker * Janis Paige – Doris Walker *

– Kris Kringle (Santa) * Craig Stevens – Fred Gaily * Fred Gwynne – Mr. Shellhammer * Paul Reed – Mr. Macy * Kathy Cody – Hendrika

Song list

''Broadway'' ;Act I * The Big Clown Balloons – Paradesters * Arm in Arm – Doris Walker and Susan Walker * You Don't Know – Doris Walker * The Plastic Alligator – Marvin Shellhammer and Clerks * The Bugle – Mr. Kris Kringle and Hendrika * Here's Love – Mr. Kris Kringle, Fred Gaily, Customers, Clerks, Employees and Children * My Wish – Fred Gaily and Susan Walker * Pine Cones and Holly Berries/

– Mr. Kris Kringle, Doris Walker and Marvin Shellhammer * Look, Little Girl – Fred Gaily * Look, Little Girl (Reprise) – Doris Walker * Expect Things to Happen – Mr. Kris Kringle ;Act II * Pine Cones and Holly Berries/

(Reprise) – Mr. Kris Kringle and Susan Walker * She Hadda Go Back – Fred Gaily and Marines * That Man Over There – R. H. Macy * My State – Doris Walker, R. H. Macy, Marvin Shellhammer, Tammany O'Halloran and Judge Martin Group * Nothing in Common – Doris Walker * That Man Over There (Reprise) – Court Personnel and Spectators

References

External links

''Here's Love'' at guidetomusicaltheatre.com
* {{Meredith Willson 1963 musicals Broadway musicals Christmas musicals Miracle on 34th Street Musicals based on films Musicals by Meredith Willson Plays set in New York City Santa Claus in fiction