Ben Franklin in Paris

*Ben Franklin in Paris*
Ben Franklin in Paris
	Original Cast Recording
Music	; Jerry Herman
Lyrics	Sidney Michaels
Book	Sidney Michaels
Productions	1964 Broadway; 2008 San Francisco

Ben Franklin in Paris is a musical with a book and lyrics by Sidney Michaels, and music by Mark Sandrich, Jr. with two songs contributed by Jerry Herman.^[1]

Premise[]

The story is a somewhat fictionalized account of Benjamin Franklin's adventures in the French capital. Seeking support for the Colonies' war against England, he arrives in Paris, where he enlists the aid of an old friend, Madame la Comtesse Diane de Vobrillac, a confidante to King Louis XVI. Franklin's hopes of winning the king's support seem dashed when British forces capture Philadelphia but rally when the Colonists are victorious at Saratoga. At home, his son William, the governor of New Jersey, sides with the enemy, and the traitorous act upsets the elder Franklin's plans. To regain the upper hand, he offers to marry Diane, but she rejects him. Knowing he faces death by hanging, Franklin nevertheless decides to go to England, hoping his act of martyrdom will win him posthumous support. Diane learns of the plan and intercedes with the King, who eventually welcomes Franklin in his new position of the ambassador of the United States to France.

Production[]

After 13 previews, the Broadway production, directed and choreographed by Michael Kidd, opened on October 27, 1964 at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, where it closed on May 1, 1965 after 215 performances.^[2]

The musical had set designs by Oliver Smith, costume design by Motley, lighting design byJohn Brown, musical direction/vocal arrangements by Donald Pippin, orchestrations by Philip J. Lang, and dance music by Roger Adams.

The cast included Robert Preston (Benjamin Franklin), Ulla Sallert (Mademoiselle la Comtesse Diane de Vobrillac), Susan Watson (Janine Nicolet), Sam Greene (Captain Wickets), Franklin Kiser (Temple Franklin), Jerry Schaefer (Benjamin Franklin Bache), Anthony Falco (Footman), Oliver Clark (Louis XVI), Art Bartow (Vergennes), Clifford Fearl (Turgot), Roger LePage (British Grenadier), Byron Webster (David Lord Stormont), Ron Schwinn (French Soldiers), Bob Kaliban (Pierre Caron de Beaumarchais), John Taliaferro (Jacques Finque), Stuart Getz (Little Boy), Jack Fletcher (Pedro Count de Arande), Herb Mazzini (Bookseller/Abbe de Morellet), Kip Andrews (Spanish Aide-de-Camp), Art Matthews (Spanish Soldier), Suzanne France (Spanish Ambassador's Daughter), and Lauren Jones (Yvonne). Watson was replaced by Rita Gardner soon after opening night. Michaels was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Author of a Musical.^[2]

An original cast recording was released by Capitol Records.

San Francisco's 42nd Street Moon theater company presented this musical in November/December 2008.^{[citation needed]}

Song list[]

Act I

"We Sail the Seas"
"I Invented Myself"
"Too Charming" – music and lyrics by Jerry Herman^[1]
"What Became of Old Temple"
"Half the Battle"
"A Balloon Is Ascending"
"To Be Alone with You" – music and lyrics by Jerry Herman^[1]
"You're in Paris"
"How Laughable It Is"
"Hic Haec Hoc"
"God Bless the Human Elbow"

Act II

"When I Dance with the Person I Love"
"Diane Is"
"Look for Small Pleasures"
"I Love the Ladies"
"To Be Alone with You"
"Half the Battle" (Reprise)

References[]

^ Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c Herman, Jerry; Kenneth Bloom (2003), "Chapter 11: Miscellaneous", Jerry Herman: The Lyrics: A Celebration, New York, New York: Routledge, pp. 259–260, ISBN 0-415-96768-6
^ Jump up to: ^a ^b Ben Franklin in Paris Playbill, retrieved May 11, 2018

External links[]

Ben Franklin in Paris at the Internet Broadway Database
Costume designs by Motley Theatre Design Group for original Broadway production - Motley Collection of Theatre & Costume Design

[Jerry_Herman-1] Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c Herman, Jerry; Kenneth Bloom (2003), "Chapter 11: Miscellaneous", Jerry Herman: The Lyrics: A Celebration, New York, New York: Routledge, pp. 259–260, ISBN 0-415-96768-6

[vault-2] Jump up to: ^a ^b Ben Franklin in Paris Playbill, retrieved May 11, 2018

[1]

[2]

show v t Benjamin Franklin
President of Pennsylvania (1785–1788), Ambassador to France (1779–1785), Second Continental Congress (1775–1776)
Founding of the United States	Join, or Die. (1754 political cartoon) Albany Plan of Union Albany Congress Hutchinson Letters Affair Committee of Secret Correspondence Committee of Five Declaration of Independence Model Treaty Franco-American alliance Treaty of Amity and Commerce Treaty of Alliance Staten Island Peace Conference Libertas Americana Treaty of Paris, 1783 Delegate, 1787 Constitutional Convention Pennsylvania Provincial Assembly Postmaster General Founding Fathers
Inventions, other events	Franklin's electrostatic machine Bifocals Franklin stove Glass armonica Gulf Stream exploration, naming, and chart Lightning rod Kite experiment Pay it forward Associators 111th Infantry Regiment Junto club American Philosophical Society Library Company of Philadelphia Pennsylvania Hospital Academy and College of Philadelphia University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia Contributionship Union Fire Company Early American currency Continental Currency dollar coin Fugio cent United States Postal Service President, Pennsylvania Abolition Society Master, Les Neuf Sœurs Gravesite
Writings	Silence Dogood letters (1722) A Dissertation on Liberty and Necessity, Pleasure and Pain (1725) The Busy-Body columns (1729) Pennsylvania Gazette (1729–1790) Poor Richard's Almanack (1732–1758) The Drinker's Dictionary (1737) "Advice to a Friend on Choosing a Mistress" (1745) "The Speech of Polly Baker" (1747) Observations Concerning the Increase of Mankind, Peopling of Countries, etc. (1751) Experiments and Observations on Electricity (1751) Birch letters (1755) The Way to Wealth (1758) Pennsylvania Chronicle (1767) Rules by Which a Great Empire May Be Reduced to a Small One (1773) Proposed alliance with the Iroquois (1775) A Letter to a Royal Academy (1781) Remarks Concerning the Savages of North America (1784) "The Morals of Chess" (1786) An Address to the Public (1789) A Plan for Improving the Condition of the Free Blacks (1789) The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin (1771–1790, pub. 1791) Bagatelles and Satires (pub. 1845) Franklin as a journalist
Legacy	Franklin Court Benjamin Franklin House Benjamin Franklin Institute of Technology Benjamin Franklin Parkway Benjamin Franklin National Memorial Franklin Institute awards medal Benjamin Franklin Medal Royal Society of Arts medal Depicted in The Apotheosis of Washington Treaty of Paris (1783 painting) Benjamin Franklin Drawing Electricity from the Sky (1816 painting) Boston statue Philadelphia statue Washington D.C. statue Jefferson Memorial pediment In popular culture Ben and Me (1953 short) Ben Franklin in Paris (1964 musical play) 1776 (1969 musical 1972 film) Benjamin Franklin (1974 miniseries) A More Perfect Union (1989 film) Liberty! (1997 documentary series) Liberty's Kids (2002 animated series) Benjamin Franklin (2002 documentary series) John Adams (2008 miniseries) Sons of Liberty (2015 miniseries) Refunding Certificate Franklin half dollar One-hundred-dollar bill Franklin silver dollar Washington–Franklin stamps other stamps Cities, counties, schools named for Franklin Franklin College, Yale University Franklin Field Mount Franklin State of Franklin Sons of Ben (Philadelphia Union) Ships named USS Franklin Ben Franklin effect
Related	Age of Enlightenment American Enlightenment The New-England Courant The American Museum magazine American Revolution patriots Syng inkstand
Family	Deborah Read (wife) Sarah Franklin Bache (daughter) Francis Franklin (son) William Franklin (son) Richard Bache Jr. (grandson) Benjamin F. Bache (grandson) Louis F. Bache (grandson) William Franklin (grandson) Andrew Harwood (great-grandson) Alexander Bache (great-grandson) Josiah Franklin (father) Jane Mecom (sister) James Franklin (brother) Mary Morrell Folger (grandmother) Peter Folger (grandfather) Richard Bache (son-in-law) Ann Smith Franklin (sister-in-law)
Category Commons

Ben Franklin in Paris
Original Cast Recording
Music	Jerry Herman
Lyrics	Sidney Michaels
Book	Sidney Michaels
Productions	1964 Broadway 2008 San Francisco