''Miss Spectacular'' is an unproduced
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 a libretto by
Robert L. Freedman, lyrics and music by
Jerry Herman
Gerald Sheldon Herman (July 10, 1931December 26, 2019) was an American composer and lyricist, known for his work in Broadway theatre.
One of the most commercially successful Broadway songwriters of his time, Herman was the composer and lyricist ...
and additional lyrics by
Steve Lawrence
Steve Lawrence (born Sidney Liebowitz; July 8, 1935 – March 7, 2024) was an American singer, comedian, and actor. He was best known as a member of the pop duo Steve and Eydie with his wife Eydie Gormé, and for his performance as Maury Slin ...
and
Michael Feinstein
Michael Jay Feinstein (born September 7, 1956) is an American singer, pianist, and music Revivalist artist, revivalist. He is an archivist and interpreter for the repertoire known as the Great American Songbook. In 1988, he won a Drama Desk Spec ...
. Its plot focuses on a girl from the
Midwest
The Midwestern United States (also referred to as the Midwest, the Heartland or the American Midwest) is one of the four census regions defined by the United States Census Bureau. It occupies the northern central part of the United States. It ...
who heads to Las Vegas and is a finalist in the "Miss Spectacular" contest.
[Jones, Kenneth]
"Jerry Herman's 'Miss Spectacular' Gets All-Star Studio Cast Recording June 11"
Playbill, April 2, 2002
History
Steve Wynn
Stephen Alan Wynn ( Weinberg; born January 27, 1942) is an American real estate developer and art collector. He was known for his involvement in the luxury casino and hotel industry, prior to being forced to step down in 2018. Early in his care ...
had asked Herman to write a musical that would be presented at the
Mirage Hotel in
Las Vegas
Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...
, possibly in 2000. Wynn planned to install the musical in its theater for a long-term engagement, but when the property was sold to
MGM
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered ...
the new owners had no interest in the project.
In 2003, there were new plans for staging the musical in Las Vegas with
Tommy Tune
Thomas James Tune (born February 28, 1939) is an American actor, dancer, singer, theatre director, producer, and choreographer. Over the course of his career, he has won ten Tony Awards, the National Medal of Arts, and a star on the Hollywood Wal ...
directing and the search for the leading lady done with a television talent show. There has been no further word on this project.
Undaunted by the collapse of the arrangement, Herman gathered together a cast of
Broadway performers, including Lawrence, Feinstein,
Faith Prince
Faith Prince is an American actress and singer, best known for her work on Broadway in musical theatre. She won the Tony Award for Best Actress in ''Guys and Dolls'' in 1992, and received three other Tony nominations.
Life and career
Prince wa ...
,
Christine Baranski
Christine Jane Baranski (born May 2, 1952) is an American actress. She received the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for her role as Maryann Thorpe in the sitcom ''Cybill'' (1995–1998). Baranski is als ...
,
Debbie Gravitte, and
Karen Morrow
Karen Jane Morrow (born December 15, 1936) is an American singer and actress best known for her work in musical theater. Her honors include an Emmy Award and a Theatre World Award, and an Ovation Award and five Drama-Logue Award nominations. ...
, and a full orchestra to record a
concept album
A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Som ...
that was released on the DRG label in 2002. His score is reminiscent of such early work as ''
Hello, Dolly!'' and ''
Mame
MAME (formerly an acronym of Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator) is a free and open-source emulator designed to emulate the hardware of arcade games, video game consoles, old computers and other systems in software on modern personal computers and ...
''.
[
]
Song list
* "Overture"
* "Miss What's Her Name "
* "Las Vegas"
* "Ziegfeld Girl"
* "Sarah Jane"
* "Ziegfeld Girl (Reprise)"
* "Where in the World is My Prince?"
* "No Other Music"
* "I Wanna Live Each Night"
* "Miss Spectacular"
* "My Great Dream"
Source:[''Jerry Herman: Poet of the Showtune'' (2004), Steve Citron, p. 298, Yale University Press, ]
References
External links
talkinbroadway interview, date unknown
{{Jerry Herman
2000 musicals
Musicals by Jerry Herman