''Cabin in the Sky'' 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 Character (arts), charac ...

with music by

Vernon Duke Vernon Duke ( 16 January 1969) was a Russian-born American composer and songwriter who also wrote under his birth name, Vladimir Dukelsky. He is best known for " Taking a Chance on Love," with lyrics by Ted Fetter and John Latouche (1940), "I ...

book A book is a structured presentation of recorded information, primarily verbal and graphical, through a medium. Originally physical, electronic books and audiobooks are now existent. Physical books are objects that contain printed material, ...

by Lynn Root, and lyrics by John Latouche. The musical opened on

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 Stre ...

in 1940. The show is described as a "parable of Southern Negro Life with echoes of

Ferenc Molnár Ferenc Molnár ( , ; born Ferenc Neumann; January 12, 1878April 1, 1952), often anglicized as Franz Molnar, was a Hungarians, Hungarian-born author, stage director, dramatist, and poet. He is widely regarded as Hungary's most celebrated and c ...

's ''

Liliom ''Liliom'' is a 1909 play by the Hungarian playwright Ferenc Molnár. It was well known in its own right during the early to mid-20th century, but is best known today as the basis for the Rodgers and Hammerstein 1945 musical ''Carousel''. P ...

'' (which would be turned into the musical ''

Carousel A carousel or carrousel (mainly North American English), merry-go-round (International English), or galloper (British English) is a type of amusement ride consisting of a rotating circular platform with seats for riders. The seats are tradit ...

'') and

Marc Connelly Marcus Cook Connelly (December 13, 1890 – December 21, 1980) was an American playwright, director, producer, performer, and lyricist. He was a key member of the Algonquin Round Table, and received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1930. Biogra ...

's ''

The Green Pastures ''The Green Pastures'' is a play written in 1929 by Marc Connelly adapted from '' Ol' Man Adam an' His Chillun'' (1928), a collection of stories written by Roark Bradford. The play was the winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1930. It ha ...

''." Several songs from the Broadway musical were released as a 3-record shellac set under the title "The Music of Cabin in the Sky featuring Ethel Waters" in 1940.

History

Lynn Root wrote the libretto and brought it to

George Balanchine George Balanchine (; Various sources: * * * * born Georgiy Melitonovich Balanchivadze;, Romanization of Georgian, : April 30, 1983) was a Georgian-American ballet choreographer, recognized as one of the most influential choreographers ...

, "who was anxious to do it as his first assignment as director of an entire Broadway production." Balanchine took the script to

to compose the music. "On reading the script, my first impulse was to turn it down because as much as I admired the

Negro In the English language, the term ''negro'' (or sometimes ''negress'' for a female) is a term historically used to refer to people of Black people, Black African heritage. The term ''negro'' means the color black in Spanish and Portuguese (from ...

race and its musical gifts, I didn't think myself sufficiently attuned to Negro folklore." However, Duke ended up taking up the project but insisted on "a lyricist with some direct contact with Southern Negroes." Duke talked to

Ira Gershwin Ira Gershwin (born Israel Gershovitz; December 6, 1896 – August 17, 1983) was an American lyricist who collaborated with his younger brother, composer George Gershwin, to create some of the most memorable songs in the English language of the ...

and E.Y. Harburg but they both turned it down. (Gershwin was working on ''

Lady in the Dark ''Lady in the Dark'' is a musical with music by Kurt Weill, lyrics by Ira Gershwin and book and direction by Moss Hart. It was produced by Sam Harris. The protagonist, Liza Elliott, is the unhappy editor of a fashion magazine who is undergoing p ...

'' and Harburg thought the composer was "incapable of writing the kind of score the play required.) Duke ended up picking John Latouche as his lyricist and the two began work in

Virginia Beach Virginia Beach (colloquially VB) is the List of cities in Virginia, most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. The city is located on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay in southeaster ...

. The two wanted to absorb aspects of the local black culture but "decided to stay away from pedantic authenticity and write our own kind of 'colored' songs." The rehearsals for the show were rather interesting between the Russian trio (Duke, Balanchine and

Boris Aronson Boris Aronson (October 15, 1898 – November 16, 1980) was an American scenic designer for Broadway and Yiddish theatre. He won the Tony Award for Scenic Design six times in his career. Biography The son of a Rabbi, Aronson was born in Kie ...

- the designer) and the all-black cast. In his book ''Passport to Paris'', Duke quotes George Ross' description from the ''Telegram:'' "Pit a threesome of turbulent Russians against a tempestuous cast of Negro players from Harlem and what have you got? Well, in this instance the result is a lingual ruckus approaching bedlam. At least half a dozen times at the rehearsal of ''Cabin in the Sky'',

Ethel Waters Ethel Waters (October 31, 1896 – September 1, 1977) was an American singer and actress. Waters frequently performed jazz, swing, and pop music on the Broadway stage and in concerts. She began her career in the 1920s singing blues. Her no ...

Todd Duncan Robert Todd Duncan (February 12, 1903 – February 28, 1998) was an American baritone opera singer and actor. One of the first African-Americans to sing with a major opera company, Duncan is also noted for appearing as Porgy in the premier produ ...

, Rex Ingram, J. Rosamond Johnson,

Katherine Dunham Katherine Mary Dunham (June 22, 1909 – May 21, 2006) was an African American dancer, choreographer, anthropologist, and social activist. Dunham had one of the most successful dance careers of the 20th century and directed her own dance compan ...

and her dancers have paused in puzzlement while the argumentative trio of Muscovites disputed a difference of opinion in their native tongue. The Russian vowels and consonants fly as thick as borsht. After ten minutes of such alien harangue and retort, Miss Waters asks what it is all about. ‘George,’ Duke generally interprets, ‘just said the answer is yes!' and then rehearsals are resumed under the flag of truce until the next vocal flare-up." Three days before the opening, Duke decided to replace the song "We'll Live All Over Again" after Waters expressed dissatisfaction with it. It was replaced with the showstopper "Taking a Chance on Love." The song was originally "Foolin' Around with Love" which he wrote with

Ted Fetter Theodore Fetter (June 10, 1906 – March 13, 1996) was a Broadway lyricist who contributed material to such revues as ''The Show Is On'' (1936) and ''Billy Rose's Aquacade'' (1939), but is best remembered for co-writing the song " Taking a Ch ...

. Latouche retitled it and wrote the reprises. J. Rosamond Johnson, besides taking a small role, trained the singing chorus.

led her dancers through their slithering paces, assisted in the choreography by George Balanchine.

Productions

The musical premiered on Broadway at the

Martin Beck Theatre The Al Hirschfeld Theatre, originally the Martin Beck Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 302 West 45th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. Opened in 1924, it was designed by G. Albert Lansburg ...

on October 25, 1940 and closed on March 8, 1941 after 156 performances. The musical is based on the story ''Little Joe'' by Lynn Root. Musicals Tonight! presented a staged concert of the musical at the 14th Street YMHA, New York City in October 2003. The musical was presented in a staged concert by

Encores! Encores! is a Tony Honors for Excellence in Theatre, Tony-honored concert series dedicated to reviving United States, American Musical theatre, musicals, usually with their original orchestrations. Presented by New York City Center since 1994, E ...

in February 2016, starring Chuck Cooper,

Norm Lewis Norm Lewis (born June 2, 1963) is an American actor and baritone singer. He has appeared on Broadway and in London's West End, film, television, recordings and regional theatre. He is also noted for his wide vocal range. Lewis was the second ...

, and LaChanze.

Synopsis

Act I Little Joe is dying. Lucifer Jr prepares to bring his soul to hell (Little Papa Satan). Little Joe protests, and his wife Petunia’s praying causes the Lawd's General to appear (The General's Entrance). The General proclaims that Heaven will grant Little Joe six more months of life, and if he can redeem himself during that time, he will be let into heaven (The Man Upstairs). Little Joe becomes conscious again and Petunia rejoices (Taking a Chance on Love). During Joe's recovery, Lucifer Jr attempts to ruin Petunia and Little Joe by claiming that Little Joe owes him a large amount of money in gambling debts. Petunia says she will gamble with him to pay back the debt. She accuses him of cheating and chases him away. Little Joe comes out of the house, and for the first time is kind to Petunia. Petunia is ecstatic (Cabin in the Sky). The Pastor welcomes Little Joe back to the Church (Holy Unto the Lord/Dem Bones). In Hell, Lucifer Jr comes up with a plan to tempt Little Joe and delivers a broadcast to the other members of Hell (Do What You Wanna Do). He gives Little Joe a sweepstakes ticket, which Petunia lets Joe keep (Finale Act I). Act II The Act begins with a prologue with the Lawd’s General describing the nature of temptation (Fugue). Little Joe and Petunia are very happy and dream of moving far away where they can be alone (My Old Virginia Home on the Nile). Lucifer Jr sends Little Joe a dream featuring the alluring Queen of Sheba (Vision Ballet). The Lawd’s General tells Little Joe to throw away the ticket (It's Not So Bad to Be Good). Joe's former lover, Georgia Brown, shows up and vamps him (Love Me Tomorrow). Petunia walks in on this and throws Little Joe out (Love Turned the Light Out). Little Joe flees to a Cafe (Cafe Dance: Lazy Steps and Boogy Woogy). Georgia Brown follows him (Honey in the Honeycomb). Petunia also shows up and, in an attempt to win Joe back, demands $1000 and says she is leaving for "Savannah". In the resulting tumult, Petunia and Little Joe are killed. Both are let into Heaven as their deaths caused Georgia Brown to reform and join the church (Finale Act II).

Musical numbers

Act I Scene One: The Church * "Wade in the Water" - Churchmembers * "Little Papa Satan" - Lucifer Jr * "The General's Entrance" - Lawd's General and Saints * "The Man Upstairs (Pay Heed)" - Lawd's General and Saints * " Taking a Chance on Love" - Petunia * "Taking a Chance on Love (Encore)" - Petunia Scene Two: Petunia and Little Joe's Home * "Cabin in the Sky" - Petunia and Little Joe * "Holy Unto the Lord/Dem Bones" - Petunia, Little Joe, Brother Green, J. Rosamond Johnson Singers, and Churchmembers Scene Three: In Hell * "Do What You Wanna Do" - Lucifier Jr and Imps Scene Four: Petunia and Little Joe's Home * "Finale Act I" - Orchestra Act II Scene One: Petunia and Little Joe's Home * "Fugue" - Lawd's General and Saints * "My Old Virginia Home on the Nile" - Petunia and Little Joe * "Vision Ballet" - The Dunham Dancers * "It's Not So Good To Be Bad" - Lawd's General * "Love Me Tomorrow" - Georgia Brown and Little Joe * "Love Turned the Light Out" - Petunia Scene Two: The Cafe * "Lazy Steps" - The Dunham Dancers * "Boogy Woogy" - The Dunham Dancers * "Honey in the Honeycomb" - Georgia Brown and Boys * "Savannah" - Petunia * "Death of Petunia and Little Joe" - Lawd's General Scene Three: Before Heaven * "Finale Act II: Cabin in the Sky (Reprise)" - Company

Characters and original cast

The original Broadway characters and cast:

Critical reception

The musical was very well received.

Gerald Bordman Gerald Martin Bordman (September 18, 1931 – May 9, 2011) was an American theatre historian, best known for authoring the reference volume ''The American Musical Theatre'', first published in 1978. Simonson, Robert (12 May 2011)Gerald Bordman, ...

wrote "Wisely, everyone involved in the show rejected the easy excesses and crassness so many musicals resorted to. Certainly they avoided turning the evening into a black minstrel show. Throughout the production a tasteful restraint, a sense of what as appropriate to the story, was maintained. This rare display of integrity made ''Cabin in the Sky'' an attractive enough evening to keep ticket buyers coming for 20 weeks." Brooks Atkinson wrote "Vernon Duke has written racy music in several veins from song hits to boogie-woogie orgies. Mr Latouche has composed crisp and jaunty lyrics. As scene and costume designer, Boris Aronson has done his finest work, giving to pure imagination many vivid shapes and flaring colors. Put "Cabin In The Sky" down as a labor of love by a group of theatre people who have enjoyed working on something that is bursting with life." Thomas S. Hischak wrote, "With enthusiastic reviews, an outstanding score, and a powerhouse cast of some of the finest African Americans in the business, it was surprising the musical did not run longer than twenty weeks." However, not everyone liked the show. Critic Richard Watts, Jr. wrote in his review that the show was "merely a white man's self-conscious attempt to write a pseudo-folk fable of another race." ''Cabin in the Sky'' proved to be the last major success of Duke's career. The show was made into the 1943 film '' Cabin in the Sky'', but as Denny Flinn stated in his 1997 book, ''Musical!'' "It is noble that Hollywood made a black musical at all, but there are too many interpolations to the John Latouche-Vernon Duke score."

References

External links

*{{Playbill production, /cabin-in-the-sky-martin-beck-theatre-vault-0000008315
archive

Musicals by Vernon Duke Broadway musicals 1940 musicals African-American musicals All-Black cast Broadway shows Fiction about the afterlife Fiction about the Devil Music based on the Faust legend Musicals choreographed by George Balanchine