Two By Two (musical)
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''Two By Two'' is a
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 ...
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 book by
Peter Stone Peter Stone may refer to: *Pete Stone, Australian footballer in the 1956 Summer Olympics *Peter G. Stone (born 1957), British archaeologist *Peter Stone (cricketer) (born 1938), New Zealand cricketer *Peter Stone (professor) (born 1971), professor ...
, lyrics by
Martin Charnin Martin Charnin (November 24, 1934 – July 6, 2019) was an American lyricist, writer, and theatre director. Charnin's best-known work is as conceiver, director, and lyricist of the musical '' Annie.'' Life and career Charnin was born in New Yor ...
, and music by
Richard Rodgers Richard Charles Rodgers (June 28, 1902 – December 30, 1979) was an American Musical composition, composer who worked primarily in musical theater. With 43 Broadway theatre, Broadway musicals and over 900 songs to his credit, Rodgers wa ...
. Based on
Clifford Odets Clifford Odets (July 18, 1906 – August 14, 1963) was an American playwright, screenwriter, and actor. In the mid-1930s, he was widely seen as the potential successor to Nobel Prize–winning playwright Eugene O'Neill, as O'Neill began to withd ...
' play '' The Flowering Peach'', it tells the story of
Noah Noah (; , also Noach) appears as the last of the Antediluvian Patriarchs (Bible), patriarchs in the traditions of Abrahamic religions. His story appears in the Hebrew Bible (Book of Genesis, chapters 5–9), the Quran and Baháʼí literature, ...
's preparations for the
Great Flood A flood myth or a deluge myth is a myth in which a great flood, usually sent by a deity or deities, destroys civilization, often in an act of divine retribution. Parallels are often drawn between the flood waters of these myths and the primeva ...
and its aftermath. Directed by Joe Layton, the production opened on November 10, 1970 at the
Imperial Theatre The Imperial Theatre is a Broadway theater at 249 West 45th Street ( George Abbott Way) in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. Opened in 1923, the Imperial Theatre was designed by Herbert J. Krapp and ...
, where it ran for ten months. The opening night cast included
Danny Kaye Danny Kaye (born David Daniel Kaminsky; ; January 18, 1911 – March 3, 1987) was an American actor, comedian, singer, and dancer. His performances featured physical comedy, idiosyncratic pantomimes, and rapid-fire novelty songs. Kaye starred ...
, Marilyn Cooper,
Joan Copeland Joan Maxine Kupchik ( Miller; June 1, 1922 – January 4, 2022), known professionally as Joan Copeland, was an American actress. She was the younger sister of playwright Arthur Miller. She began her career during the mid-1940s, appearing in thea ...
,
Harry Goz Harry Goz (February 16, 1932 – September 6, 2003) was an American musical theatre and voice actor. Career Goz debuted in the 1964 Broadway production of '' Bajour'', co-starring Chita Rivera and Nancy Dussault. Goz played Tevye in the Bro ...
,
Madeline Kahn Madeline Gail Kahn (''née'' Wolfson; September 29, 1942 – December 3, 1999) was an American actress, comedian, and singer. She was known for her comedic roles in films directed by Peter Bogdanovich and Mel Brooks, including '' What's Up, Doc ...
, Michael Karm, Tricia O'Neil, and Walter Willison.


Production

Reviews were mixed, but positive for the score and cast. A couple months into the run Kaye became bored and began to improvise on a nightly basis. He ad-libbed
shtick A shtick is a comic theme or gimmick. The word entered the English language from the Yiddish ''shtik'' (שטיק), related to German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germa ...
and comic asides to the audience. Improvising a dance one night, to impress
Dick Cavett Richard Alva Cavett (; born November 19, 1936) is an American television personality and former talk show host. He appeared regularly on nationally broadcast television in the United States from the 1960s through the 2000s. In later years, Cave ...
in the audience, he slipped and tore a tendon in his leg. Kaye continued with the show, appearing at each performance on crutches as young 90 year old Noah, and as Noah at 600 in a wheelchair. "He appeared with his leg in a cast and either rode around the stage in a wheelchair — in which he sometimes would try to run down the other actors — or hobbled around the stage on a crutch — which he used to goose the girls," wrote Rodgers in his autobiography ''Musical Stages.'' "In addition, he began improvising his own lines and singing in the wrong tempos. He even made a curtain speech after the performances in which he said, 'I'm glad you're here, but I'm glad the authors aren't.' Apparently there was a certain curiosity value to all this, because people actually went to see ''Two by Two'' because of Danny's one-by-one vaudeville act. Others, of course, were appalled and expressed their irritation in letters to the '' ew York Times''." The show is frequently performed by church and other amateur theatre groups, and there have been a few noteworthy revivals over the years.
Milton Berle Milton Berle (born Mendel Berlinger; ; July 12, 1908 – March 27, 2002) was an American actor and comedian. His career as an entertainer spanned over eight decades, first in silent films and on stage as a child actor, then in radio, movies and ...
headed a production at the St. Louis Municipal Opera (The Muny) in 1971.
Shelley Berman Sheldon Leonard Berman (February 3, 1925 – September 1, 2017) was an American comedian, actor, writer, teacher, and lecturer. He was awarded three gold records for his comedy albums and he won the first Grammy Award for a spoken comedy recor ...
headed the show's National Touring company in 1972–73, co-starring
Taina Elg Taina Elisabeth Elg (9 March 1930 – 15 May 2025) was a Finnish and American actress and dancer. She appeared on stage, television and in film. Early life and career Elg was born on 9 March 1930 in Helsinki, and raised in Turku by her parent ...
as Esther. More recently,
Tom Bosley Thomas Edward Bosley (October 1, 1927 – October 19, 2010) was an American actor, television personality and entertainer. Bosley is best known for portraying Howard Cunningham (Happy Days character), Howard Cunningham on the American Broadcasti ...
sang Noah's role for a soundtrack slated for a (canceled) 2001 U.S. national tour of the show.
Jason Alexander Jay Scott Greenspan (born September 23, 1959), known professionally as Jason Alexander, is an American actor and comedian. Over the course of his career he has received an Emmy Award and a Tony Award as well as nominations for four Golden Globe ...
has been seen in the role in Los Angeles' "Reprise" production as well in New York's York Theatre "Musicals-in-Mufti" production directed by Martin Charnin. Walter Willison (the original Broadway "Japheth") has also appeared as Noah in the 2002 Richard Rodgers Centennial concert for the Jewish Repertory Theater Off-Broadway (which he also directed) and in regional productions of the show in recent years. In 2004,
Martin Charnin Martin Charnin (November 24, 1934 – July 6, 2019) was an American lyricist, writer, and theatre director. Charnin's best-known work is as conceiver, director, and lyricist of the musical '' Annie.'' Life and career Charnin was born in New Yor ...
directed the World
Premiere A premiere, also spelled première, (from , ) is the debut (first public presentation) of a work, i.e. play, film, dance, musical composition, or even a performer in that work. History Raymond F. Betts attributes the introduction of the ...
of the revised version of ''Two by Two'' at the Cumberland County Playhouse in
Crossville, Tennessee Crossville is a city in and the county seat of Cumberland County, Tennessee, United States. It is part of the Crossville Micropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 12,071 at the 2020 census. History Crossville developed at the intersection ...
. In creating the new version of ''Two by Two'', Charnin stated that "I'm going to restore a concept that I had that was originally negated by Danny Kaye" The cast included Ruthie Ann Miles as Leah, Holly O'Brien as Goldie and Alan Baker as Noah. In 2021, Walter Willison (the original Japheth) directed the show's semi-centennial, ''Two By Two: The 50th Anniversary Virtual Concert'', which starred Willison as Noah, and Karen Ziemba as Esther. The show premiered on New Year's Day and benefited The Actors Fund. The show also starred Nikita Burshteyn as Japheth, Frank Calamaro as Shem, Marcy DeGonge Manfredi as Leah, N’Kenge as Goldie, Michael Notardonato as Ham, Sophia Tzougros as Rachel, and was hosted by Ted Chapin, president of
Rodgers and Hammerstein Rodgers and Hammerstein was a theater-writing team of composer Richard Rodgers (1902–1979) and lyricist-dramatist Oscar Hammerstein II (1895–1960), who together created a series of innovative and influential American musicals. Their musical ...
.


Awards

Kaye's lack of professionalism and Rodgers' public grousing about the liberties he took with the script allegedly ruined Kaye's chances for a
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 ...
nomination. Willison was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical, and he and O'Neil received
Theatre World Award The Theatre World Award is an American honor presented annually to actors and actresses in recognition of an outstanding New York City stage debut performance, either on Broadway or off-Broadway. It was first awarded for the 1945–1946 theatre se ...
s for their performances.


Plot synopsis

On his 600th birthday, Noah receives a message from God, warning him about the impending flood. He is directed to save two of each animal and to build an ark for them. Noah's wife and family have their doubts and even make fun of him as he plans to build the ark, but join in when the animals start to appear en masse. "The story dealt with Noah and the flood, and though written in 1954, covered such contemporary themes as the
generation gap A generation gap or generational gap is a difference of opinions and outlooks between one generation and another. These differences may relate to beliefs, politics, language, work, demographics and values. The differences between generations can ...
and
ecology Ecology () is the natural science of the relationships among living organisms and their Natural environment, environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community (ecology), community, ecosystem, and biosphere lev ...
," Rodgers wrote. "There was even a parallel between the flood and the
atom bomb A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission or atomic bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear weapon), producing a nuclear explo ...
." ;The gitka The "gitka" is a magical Old Testament species of rodent, created by Clifford Odets, that sings in the presence of God.
Two by Two
' on ''The Guide to Musical Theatre''
The arrival of one convinces the family of Noah's story. It has no mate so they are unable to bring her aboard.


Songs

;Act I * Why Me? * Put Him Away * The Gitka's Song * Something, Somewhere * You Have Got to Have a Rudder on the Ark * Something Doesn't Happen * An Old Man * Ninety Again! * Two by Two * I Do Not Know a Day I Did Not Love You * Something, Somewhere (Reprise) ;Act II * When It Dries * Two by Two (Reprise) * You * The Golden Ram * Poppa Knows Best * I Do Not Know a Day I Did Not Love You (Reprise) * As Far as I'm Concerned * Hey, Girlie * The Covenant The songs "Everything That's Gonna Be Has Been," "Getting Married to a Person," "The Brother Department," "The Death of Me" and "Forty Nights" were cut from the show prior to its Broadway opening; the latter song was cut because Danny Kaye decreed that no one in the show would have a funnier song than he. The song has been restored to many recent revivals.


Notes


References

* *Hischak, Thomas (2007). ''The Rodgers and Hammerstein Encyclopedia''. Greenwood Publishing Group, *Hyland, William (1998). ''Richard Rodgers''. Yale University Press,


External links

*
''Two by Two'' listing at RNH

Still Photographs from ''Two by Two''
from the
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Two By Two 1970 musicals Broadway musicals Musicals based on plays Musicals based on the Book of Genesis Musicals by Peter Stone (writer) Noah's Ark in popular culture Compositions by Richard Rodgers