''13 Daughters'' was a short-lived

Broadway musical Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is generally the spelling for this common noun in the United States (see American and British English spelling differences), many of the extant or closed Broadway venues use or used the spelling ''Theatr ...

with book, music and lyrics by Eaton Magoon, Jr, starring

Don Ameche Don Ameche (; born Dominic Felix Amici; May 31, 1908 – December 6, 1993) was an American actor, comedian and vaudevillian. After playing in college shows, repertory theatre, and vaudeville, he became a major radio star in the early 19 ...

. It played for 28 performances in 1961. The story was influenced by the life of Magoon's great-grandparents Chun Afong and his wife Julia Fayerweather Afong and their twelve daughters.

Plot

Set in 19th century

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

, the plot involves a Chinese merchant, Chun, and Hawaiian princess, Emmaloa, who wed and have 13 daughters. A prophecy predicts the daughters will not be married until the couple's 13 calabash trees bloom. Tradition dictates the oldest daughter must be the first to marry, but she is more interested in missionary work and no tree has yet blossomed. Soon the daughters' luck will change, however, despite the prophecy.Broadwayworld.com
accessed November 17, 2015

Productions

After a month-long tryout in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

and one preview on Broadway, ''13 Daughters'' opened on March 2, 1961, at the 54th Street Theatre in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, and closed on March 25, 1961, after 28 performances. The large cast included

as Chun, Monica Boyar as Emmaloa,

Sylvia Syms Sylvia May Laura Syms (6 January 1934 – 27 January 2023) was an English stage and screen actress. Her best-known film roles include '' My Teenage Daughter'' (1956), '' Woman in a Dressing Gown'' (1957), for which she was nominated for a BAFTA ...

, Richard Tone, Stanley Grover, George Lipton, Gina Viglione, John Battles, Isabelle Farrell, Diana Corto, Ed Kenney and many others. Billy Matthews directed and Rod Alexander was the choreographer. The show was nominated for two

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...

s, for Pembroke Davenport as Conductor and Musical Director, and George Jenkins as Scenic Designer (Musical). A cast album of a follow-up production in Honolulu was recorded on Mahalo Records Prior to the opening, Gloria Gabriel, who portrayed one of the daughters, appeared on an episode of ''

To Tell The Truth ''To Tell the Truth'' is an American television panel show. Four celebrity panelists are presented with three contestants (the "team of challengers", each an individual or pair) and must identify which is the "central character" whose unusual ...

'' as an imposter, where Don Ameche was a panelist, noting that she had not yet met Ameche. There was a performance in New Zealand in April 1968 by the Hamilton Operatic Society followed two decades later by a revival concert production in 1987 at McKinley High School Auditorium, Honolulu. In 1989 a fully staged production was mounted with Joe Layton as director/choreographer, at the

Hawaii Theatre The Hawaii Theatre is a theatre in downtown Honolulu, Hawaii, United States. Built in 1922, it is located at 1130 Bethel Street, between Hotel and Pauahi Streets, on the edge of Chinatown. It is listed on the State and National Register of Histor ...

, Honolulu. Arrangements for the Honolulu revival were commissioned from Derek Williams who was also musical director, arranger/orchestrator for the 1981 world premiere and 1985 revival production of Magoon's later work, ''Aloha, a Musical of the Islands''.Day, Paul. (19 October 1981). 'Hamilton Says Aloha To Musical'. ''

The New Zealand Herald ''The New Zealand Herald'' is a daily newspaper published in Auckland, New Zealand, owned by New Zealand Media and Entertainment, and considered a newspaper of record for New Zealand. It has the largest newspaper circulation in New Zealand, ...

References

{{reflist

External links

Broadway production photos

New York Public Library The New York Public Library (NYPL) is a public library system in New York City. With nearly 53 million items and 92 locations, the New York Public Library is the second-largest public library in the United States behind the Library of Congress a ...

web site
Al Hirschfeld drawing
for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

''
Eaton Magoon, Jr. on IMDB

IMDb IMDb, historically known as the Internet Movie Database, is an online database of information related to films, television series, podcasts, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and biograp ...

Broadway musicals 1961 musicals Musicals set in Hawaii Theatre in Hawaii