Play On! Original Cast Recording Artwork
Music Duke Ellington Lyrics Various (see below) Book Cheryl L. West Productions 1996 San Diego 1997 Broadway
Play On! is a musical adaptation of Shakespeare 's Twelfth Night , featuring the music of Duke Ellington , with a book by Cheryl L. West . The musical resets the story in 1940s Harlem .
Production history [ ]
The original production, conceived by director Sheldon Epps , premiered in San Diego at the Old Globe Theatre in September 1996. After 19 previews, it opened on Broadway on March 20, 1997 at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre , where it ran for 61 performances. The cast included Tonya Pinkins , André De Shields , and Carl Anderson . An original cast recording was released on May 20, 1997 on Varèse Sarabande . A 1999 production of Play On! at the Pasadena Playhouse was recorded for the PBS series Great Performances .[1]
The book, by playwright Cheryl L. West , departs from Twelfth Night' s usual setting of Illyria , resetting the play's action and characters in 1940s Swing -era Harlem .[2]
Synopsis [ ]
Vy comes to swinging 1940s Harlem to write songs for the Duke , Harlem's greatest band leader. To overcome the sexist barriers of the time against women songwriters, she disguises herself as a man, Vy-man. She finds the Duke in tears over his loss of Lady Liv , Harlem's "queen of the blues". The Duke likes Vy-man's music, so he instructs the songwriter to go to the Cotton Club and present one of her songs as if it were a new song written by the Duke for Lady Liv. Lady Liv finds Vy-man charming, and a series of mistaken pairings results.
Meanwhile, several of the performers at the Cotton Club are rebelling against the overly serious and tyrannical club manager, Rev . Since Rev has a crush on Lady Liv, the performers persuade him that he should woo her by learning to swing and scat , giving up his old fashioned ballads. More confusion results before the truth is revealed, and the couples are appropriately united.
Songs [ ]
Act 1
"Take the A Train " (Music and Lyrics by Billy Strayhorn )
"Drop Me Off in Harlem " (Music by Duke Ellington, Lyrics by Nick Kenny )
"I've Got to Be a Rug Cutter" (Music and Lyrics by Duke Ellington)
"I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart " (Music and Lyrics by Duke Ellington, Irving Mills , Henry Nemo , John Redmond)
"C Jam Blues " (Music by Duke Ellington)
"Mood Indigo " (Music and Lyrics by Duke Ellington, Irving Mills, Albany Bigard )
"Don't Get Around Much Anymore " (Music by Duke Ellington, Lyrics by Bob Russell )
"Don't You Know I Care" (Music by Duke Ellington, Lyrics by Mack David )
"It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing) " (Music by Duke Ellington. Lyrics by Irving Mills)
"I Got It Bad and That Ain't Good " (from Jump For Joy ) (Music by Duke Ellington. Lyrics by Paul Francis Webster )
"Hit Me With a Hot Note and Watch Me Bounce" (Music by Duke Ellington. Lyrics by Don George )
"I'm Just a Lucky So-and-So " (Music by Duke Ellington. Lyrics by Mack David)
"Everything But You " (Music and Lyrics by Duke Ellington, Don George, Harry James )
"Solitude " (Music and Lyrics by Duke Ellington, Eddie DeLange , Irving Mills)
Act 2
Awards and nominations [ ]
Original Broadway production [ ]
References [ ]
External links [ ]
Duke Ellington
Studio albums
Harlem Jazz, 1930
Ellingtonia, Vol. One
Ellingtonia, Vol. Two
Braggin' in Brass: The Immortal 1938 Year
The Blanton–Webster Band
Never No Lament: The Blanton-Webster Band
Smoke Rings
Liberian Suite
Great Times!
Masterpieces by Ellington
Ellington Uptown
The Duke Plays Ellington
Ellington '55
Dance to the Duke!
Ellington Showcase
Historically Speaking
Duke Ellington Presents...
The Complete Porgy and Bess
A Drum Is a Woman
Studio Sessions, Chicago 1956
Such Sweet Thunder
Studio Sessions 1957 & 1962
Ellington Indigos
Black, Brown and Beige
Duke Ellington at the Bal Masque
The Cosmic Scene
Happy Reunion
Jazz Party
Back to Back
Side by Side
Anatomy of a Murder
Festival Session
Blues in Orbit
The Nutcracker Suite
Piano in the Background
Swinging Suites by Edward E. and Edward G.
Unknown Session
Piano in the Foreground
The Great Summit: The Master Takes
Paris Blues
Featuring Paul Gonsalves
Midnight in Paris
Duke Ellington Meets Coleman Hawkins
Studio Sessions, New York 1962
Money Jungle
Afro-Bossa
The Symphonic Ellington
Duke Ellington's Jazz Violin Session
Studio Sessions New York 1963
My People
Ellington '65
Duke Ellington Plays Mary Poppins
Ellington '66
Concert in the Virgin Islands
The Popular Duke Ellington
Far East Suite
The Jaywalker
Studio Sessions, 1957, 1965, 1966, 1967, San Francisco, Chicago, New York
...And His Mother Called Him Bill
Second Sacred Concert
Studio Sessions New York, 1968
Latin American Suite
The Pianist
New Orleans Suite
Orchestral Works
The Suites, New York 1968 & 1970
The Intimacy of the Blues
The Afro-Eurasian Eclipse
Studio Sessions New York & Chicago, 1965, 1966 & 1971
The Intimate Ellington
The Ellington Suites
This One's for Blanton!
Up in Duke's Workshop
Duke's Big 4
Mood Ellington
Live albums
Duke Ellington at Fargo, 1940 Live
Black, Brown, and Beige
The Carnegie Hall Concerts: January 1943
The Carnegie Hall Concerts: December 1944
The Carnegie Hall Concerts: January 1946
The Carnegie Hall Concerts: December 1947
Ellington at Newport
Dance Concerts, California 1958
Dance Dates, California 1958
Newport 1958
Jazz at the Plaza Vol. II
Duke Ellington at the Alhambra
Live at the Blue Note
Hot Summer Dance
The Great Paris Concert
A Concert of Sacred Music
In the Uncommon Market
Soul Call
Yale Concert
70th Birthday Concert
Togo Brava Suite
Live at the Whitney
Third Sacred Concert
Eastbourne Performance
Collaborations Compositions by Billy Strayhorn by Juan Tizol
Orchestra members
Hayes Alvis
Cat Anderson
Ivie Anderson
Harold Ashby
Alice Babs
Shorty Baker
Butch Ballard
Art Baron
Aaron Bell
Louie Bellson
Joe Benjamin
Barney Bigard
Lou Blackburn
Jimmy Blanton
Wellman Braud
Lawrence Brown
Harry Carney
Johnny Coles
Willie Cook
Buster Cooper
Kay Davis
Wild Bill Davis
Wilbur de Paris
Bobby Durham
Mercer Ellington
Rolf Ericson
Jimmy Forrest
Victor Gaskin
Peter Giger
Tyree Glenn
Paul Gonsalves
Sonny Greer
Fred Guy
Jimmy Hamilton
Otto Hardwick
Shelton Hemphill
Rick Henderson
Al Hibbler
Johnny Hodges
Major Holley
Charlie Irvis
Quentin Jackson
Hilton Jefferson
Herb Jeffries
Freddie Jenkins
Money Johnson
Herbie Jones
Wallace Jones
Taft Jordan
Al Killian
Queen Esther Marrow
Wendell Marshall
Murray McEachern
Louis Metcalf
James "Bubber" Miley
Harold "Geezil" Minerve
Ray Nance
Tricky Sam Nanton
Oscar Pettiford
Eddie Preston
Russell Procope
Junior Raglin
Betty Roché
Ernie Royal
Al Sears
Joya Sherrill
Willie Smith
Elmer Snowden
Rex Stewart
Billy Strayhorn
Billy Taylor
Clark Terry
Juan Tizol
Norris Turney
Ben Webster
Arthur Whetsel
Cootie Williams
Nelson Williams
Skippy Williams
Booty Wood
Jimmy Woode
Britt Woodman
Sam Woodyard
Related
Characters On screen Musical Adaptations Opera