''The New Moon'' is an

operetta Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs and including dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, and length of the work. Apart from its shorter length, the oper ...

with music by

Sigmund Romberg Sigmund Romberg (July 29, 1887 – November 9, 1951) was a Hungarian-born American composer. He is best known for his Musical theatre, musicals and operettas, particularly ''The Student Prince'' (1924), ''The Desert Song'' (1926) and ''The New Moo ...

, lyrics by

Oscar Hammerstein II Oscar Greeley Clendenning Hammerstein II (; July 12, 1895 – August 23, 1960) was an American lyricist, librettist, theatrical producer, and director in musical theater for nearly 40 years. He won eight Tony Awards and two Academy Award ...

and book by Oscar Hammerstein II, Frank Mandel, and Laurence Schwab. The show was the third in a string of Broadway hits for Romberg (after ''

The Student Prince ''The Student Prince'' is an operetta in a prologue and four acts with music by Sigmund Romberg and book and lyrics by Dorothy Donnelly. It is based on Wilhelm Meyer-Förster's play ''Old Heidelberg (play), Old Heidelberg''. The piece has a scor ...

'' (1924) and '' The Desert Song'' (1926)) written in the style of Viennese operetta. Set around the time of the French Revolution, the story centers on a young French aristocrat in disguise, who has fled his country and falls in love with the daughter of a prominent

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

planter. It premiered 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 ...

in 1927 and played on Broadway in 1928. It spawned a number of revivals and two film adaptations, and it remains popular with light opera companies. The piece turned out to be "Broadway's last hit operetta", as

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and the Golden Age of musicals approached, heralding a change in musical theatre genres.

Performance history

''The New Moon'' debuted in

on December 22, 1927 at the Chestnut Street Opera House. The tryout was a failure, and the show was extensively revised before another tryout in

Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...

in August 1928 and then moving to New York City. Al Goodman conducted in both Philadelphia and New York.The New Moon, operetta
Allmusic, accessed December 1, 2012 The operetta opened on Broadway at the Imperial Theatre on September 19,

1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly demonstrating that DNA is the genetic material. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris B ...

, ran for 519 performances, and closed at the Casino Theatre on December 14, 1929. The production used set designs by Donald Oenslager. The work was produced in London's West End at the Drury Lane Theatre in 1929. Although the piece received international productions and stock revivals lasting into the 1950s,Suskin, Steven
"A Two-Piano ''Finian's Rainbow'' and the Encores! ''New Moon''"
''Playbill'', November 28, 2004, accessed December 1, 2012 it subsequently disappeared from the repertoire for a few decades. One commentator wrote, "What has kept ''The New Moon'' from being as familiar as '' Naughty Marietta'' or ''

'' is perhaps its chronological place at the end of operetta's reign over the musical stage. The operetta was restaged faithfully in 1986 by the

New York City Opera The New York City Opera (NYCO) is an American opera company located in Manhattan in New York City. The company has been active from 1943 through its 2013 bankruptcy, and again since 2016 when it was revived. The opera company, dubbed "the peopl ...

and was telecast by

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

in 1989. The Light Opera of Manhattan staged the work several times in the 1980s. City Center Encores! presented a semi-staged revival at

New York City Center New York City Center (previously known as the Mecca Temple, City Center of Music and Drama, and the New York City Center 55th Street Theater) is a performing arts center at 131 West 55th Street (Manhattan), 55th Street between Sixth Avenue, Six ...

in March 2003. The Encores production was presented during the run-up to the

Iraq War The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with 2003 invasion of Iraq, the invasion by a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition, which ...

and part of the audience responded with loud applause and cheers to the line "One can be loyal to one's country and yet forswear its leader".Midgette, Anne
"Operetta Review: Much Silliness In a Gilt Frame"
''The New York Times'', March 29, 2003, accessed December 1, 2012

Roles and original Broadway cast

*Marianne Beaunoir (

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hertz, Hz to A5 in Choir, choral ...

) — Evelyn Herbert *Monsieur Beaunoir, ''her father'' — Pacie Ripple *Julie, ''her maid'' (

) — Marie Callahan *Captain Georges Duval — Edward Nell Jr. *Robert Misson (

tenor A tenor is a type of male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. Composers typically write music for this voice in the range from the second B below m ...

) — Robert Halliday *Alexander (

baritone A baritone is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the bass (voice type), bass and the tenor voice type, voice-types. It is the most common male voice. The term originates from the ...

) — Gus Shy *Philippe L'Entendu (tenor) — William O'Neal *Clotilde Lombaste (soprano) — Esther Howard *Besac, ''boatswain of the 'New Moon (baritone) — Lyle Evans *Jacques, ''ship's carpenter'' — Earle Mitchell *Vicomte Ribaud — Max Figman *Flower Girl — Olga Albani *Fouchette — Thomas Dale *Emile, Brunet, Admiral de Jean, etc.

Synopsis

Robert is a young French aristocrat whose

revolutionist A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates for, a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective to describe something producing a major and sudden impact on society. Definition The term—bot ...

inclinations force him to flee his country. Under an assumed name, he sells himself as a bond-servant to planter and ship-owner Monsieur Beaunoir and his family in

in 1792. Because the Paris police are looking everywhere for him, Robert cannot tell Beaunoir or Beaunoir's beautiful daughter Marianne, with whom he has fallen in love, that he is of noble blood. Eventually he is tracked down by

Vicomte A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. The status and any domain held by a viscount is a viscounty. In the case of French viscounts, the title is s ...

Ribaud, the detective villain, and put aboard a ship, the ''New Moon'', so that he can be returned to France. Robert thinks he has been betrayed by Marianne, who has gained her father's consent to travel on the same ship, pretending that she is in love with the ship's captain, Duval. A

mutiny Mutiny is a revolt among a group of people (typically of a military or a crew) to oppose, change, or remove superiors or their orders. The term is commonly used for insubordination by members of the military against an officer or superior, ...

occurs, and Robert and the bond-servants come into power. Everyone goes ashore on the Isle of Pines, and a new republic is founded. The republic flourishes under Robert's guidance, but Marianne, her pride hurt, at first refuses to marry Robert. French ships arrive, apparently to reclaim the island. Vicomte Ribaud expects them to conquer the island for the King of France. But the French Commander reveals that there has been a

revolution In political science, a revolution (, 'a turn around') is a rapid, fundamental transformation of a society's class, state, ethnic or religious structures. According to sociologist Jack Goldstone, all revolutions contain "a common set of elements ...

in France, and that all aristocrats must die unless they renounce their titles. Ribaud, a

Royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of gove ...

, heads for execution, but republican Robert renounces his title. All ends happily for him and Marianne.

Musical numbers

;Act I *Dainty Wisp of a Thistledown (Ensemble) *Marianne (Robert) *The Girl on The Prow (Marianne, Besac and Ensemble) *Gorgeous Alexander (Julie, Alexander and Girls) *An Interrupted Love Song (Captain Georges Duval, Marianne and Robert) *Tavern Song (Flower Girl, a Dancer and Ensemble) *

Softly, as in a Morning Sunrise "Softly, as in a Morning Sunrise" is a song with music by Sigmund Romberg and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II from the 1928 operetta '' The New Moon''. One of the best-known numbers from the show, it is a song of bitterness and yearning for a lost ...

(Philippe and Ensemble) *Stout-hearted Men (Robert, Philippe and Men) *Fair Rosita (Girls and The Dancers) *One Kiss (Marianne and Girls) *Ladies of the Jury (Alexander, Julie, Clotilde Lombaste and Girls) *Wanting You (Marianne and Robert) ;Act II *A Chanty (Besac and Men) *Funny Little Sailor Man (Clotilde Lombaste, Besac and Ensemble) *

Lover, Come Back to Me "Lover, Come Back to Me" is a popular music, popular song composed by Sigmund Romberg with lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II for the Broadway show ''The New Moon'', where the song was introduced by Evelyn Herbert and Robert Halliday (as Robert Misson ...

(Marianne) *Love Is Quite a Simple Thing (Robert, Besac, Alexander and Julie) *Try Her Out at Dances (Alexander, Julie and Girls) *Softly, as in a Morning Sunrise (reprise) (Phillippe and Men) *Never (for You) (Marianne) *Lover, Come Back to Me (reprise) (Robert and Men)

Film versions

Two film versions were produced by

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 first, in

1930 Events January * January 15 – The Moon moves into its nearest point to Earth, called perigee, at the same time as its fullest phase of the Lunar Cycle. This is the closest moon distance at in recent history, and the next one will be on J ...

, starred

Grace Moore Mary Willie Grace Moore (December 5, 1898January 26, 1947) was an American operatic lyric soprano and actress in musical theatre and film.Obituary ''Variety Obituaries, Variety'', January 29, 1947, page 48. She was nicknamed the "Tennessee N ...

and

Lawrence Tibbett Lawrence Mervil Tibbett (November 16, 1896 – July 15, 1960) was an American opera singer and recording artist who also performed as a film actor and radio personality. A baritone with large, deep, and dark-timbred voice. His dynamic range (in ...

, with a setting in

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. It added two new songs by

Herbert Stothart Herbert Pope Stothart (September 11, 1885February 1, 1949) was an American songwriter, arranger, conductor, and composer. He was nominated for twelve Academy Awards and won Best Original Score for '' The Wizard of Oz''. Stothart was widely ackn ...

and Clifford Grey. The second, in

1940 A calendar from 1940 according to the Gregorian calendar, factoring in the dates of Easter and related holidays, cannot be used again until the year 5280. Events Below, events related to World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January *Janu ...

, starred

Jeanette MacDonald Jeanette Anna MacDonald (June 18, 1903 – January 14, 1965) was an American soprano and actress best remembered for her musical films of the 1930s with Maurice Chevalier (''The Love Parade'', ''Love Me Tonight'', ''The Merry Widow (1934 film) ...

and

Nelson Eddy Nelson Ackerman Eddy (June 29, 1901 – March 6, 1967) was an American actor and baritone singer who appeared in 19 musical films during the 1930s and 1940s, as well as in opera and on the concert stage, radio, television, and in nightclubs ...

. A television version of a performance at

aired on

's ''

Great Performances ''Great Performances'' is a television anthology series dedicated to the performing arts; the banner has been used to televise plays, musicals, opera, ballet, concerts, as well as occasional documentaries. It is produced by the PBS member statio ...

'' in 1989 and was subsequently issued on

VHS VHS (Video Home System) is a discontinued standard for consumer-level analog video recording on tape cassettes, introduced in 1976 by JVC. It was the dominant home video format throughout the tape media period of the 1980s and 1990s. Ma ...

and

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...

Recordings

No original Broadway cast recording was made, but the 1928 London cast recorded some selections for Columbia. These 78 rpm records have been transferred to CD on the Pearl Label. The song "Stout-hearted Men" was recorded in 1930 by Perry Askam and in 1967 by

Barbra Streisand Barbara Joan "Barbra" Streisand ( ; born April 24, 1942) is an American singer, actress, songwriter, producer, and director. With a career spanning over six decades, she has achieved success across multiple fields of entertainment, being the ...

, peaking at No. 2 on the

Easy Listening Easy listening (including mood music) is a popular music genre and radio format that was most popular during the 1950s to the 1970s. It is related to middle of the road (MOR) music and encompasses instrumental recordings of standards, hit s ...

chart. Earl Wrightson and Frances Greer starred in Al Goodman's recording for

RCA Victor RCA Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside Columbia Records (its former longtime rival), Arista Records and Epic ...

(LK-1011).

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, record label * Decca Gold, classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, musical theater record label * Decca Studios, recording facility in West ...

made an album in 1953 with Lee Sweetland and Jane Wilson covering six selections from the score, which has been reissued on CD paired with '' The Desert Song''. Gordon MacRae recorded a 10-inch LP for

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007), and simply known as Capitol, is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-base ...

(Capitol H-219) in 1950 with Lucille Norman. It was repackaged as a split release in 1956 on one side of a 12-inch album with

Rudolf Friml Charles Rudolf Friml"Mrs. Rudolf Friml to Receive Divorce"
...

's ''

The Vagabond King ''The Vagabond King'' is a 1925 operetta by Rudolf Friml in four acts, with a book and lyrics by Brian Hooker and William H. Post, based upon Justin Huntly McCarthy's 1901 romantic novel and play ''If I Were King''. The story is a fictionali ...

'' on the reverse, also with Lucille Norman (Capitol T-219). That release was reissued on CD in 2011 by Vintage Music. ''

Reader's Digest ''Reader's Digest'' is an American general-interest family magazine, published ten times a year. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, it is now headquartered in midtown Manhattan. The magazine was founded in 1922 by DeWitt Wallace and his wi ...

'' included the operetta in the 1963 collection, ''A Treasury of Great Operettas'', starring Jeanette Scovotti and Peter Palmer and conducted by

Lehman Engel A. Lehman Engel (September 14, 1910, Jackson, Mississippi – August 29, 1982, New York City) was an American composer for television, film, and operas and a conductor of Broadway musicals and operas. Work in theatre, television and films Enge ...

. As part of a new series of stereo recordings of classic operettas, Capitol had MacRae and

Dorothy Kirsten Dorothy Kirsten (July 6, 1910, Montclair, New Jersey – November 18, 1992, Los Angeles, California) was an American operatic soprano who was the first singer in the Metropolitan Opera's history to perform on that stage for 30 consecutive years, ...

record three studio cast albums in 1962 and 1963. Their selections from ''The New Moon'' (Capitol SW-1966) are available on the EMI CD ''Music of Sigmund Romberg'', along with selections from ''

'' (Capitol SW-1841), and '' The Desert Song'' (Capitol SW-1842). The Encores! cast recorded the score in 2004, using the original orchestrations, for Ghostlight Records. A reviewer wrote in ''Playbill'' that the recording "is eminently enjoyable. ... ''The New Moon'' is vibrant, full-bodied and – yes – stouthearted." John Kenrick praised

Rodney Gilfry Rodney Gilfry is a leading American operatic baritone. After launching his career at Frankfurt Opera in 1987, Gilfry quickly established a reputation for stylish singing and acting. A renowned Mozart specialist, he has given acclaimed performa ...

, Christiane Noll, Brandon Jovanovich, the supporting cast and the conducting, writing: "What a spectacular delight! ... hesongs soar, exploding with romance and swashbuckling bravado."Kenrick, John
"CD Reviews – 2005"
Musicals101.com, accessed July 14, 2014

References

External links

*
IBDB listing for the original Broadway production
* ttps://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9A0DE6DC1739F93BA1575BC0A960948260 ''NY Times'' review of the 1986 City Opera production {{DEFAULTSORT:New Moon, The English-language operettas 1927 operas Operas Musicals by Sigmund Romberg