Shenandoah (musical)

*Shenandoah*
Shenandoah
	Original Cast Recording
Music
Lyrics	Peter Udell
Book	Peter Udell ; Philip Rose ; James Lee Barrett
Basis	1965 film Shenandoah
Productions	1974 Goodspeed Opera House ; 1975 Broadway ; 1989 Broadway revival
Awards	Tony Award for Best Book in a Musical ; Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical (John Cullum)

Shenandoah is a musical that was composed during 1974 with music by , lyrics by Peter Udell, and book by Udell, Philip Rose, and James Lee Barrett. The musical is based on Barrett's original screenplay for the 1965 film Shenandoah.

Plot[]

Charlie Anderson, a widower, lives with his large family in the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia, during the American Civil War. Anderson does not wish to be involved with the war because he doesn't consider it "his" war, but he is forced to take action when his youngest son Robert is taken prisoner by Union soldiers. In the course of searching for Robert, Charlie, his daughter Jenny, and some of his sons rescue Sam (Jenny's newlywed Confederate soldier husband) from a Yankee POW train. After enduring the tragedy of losing his eldest son Jacob (to a sniper) and his second eldest son James and James' wife Anne (to deserters), Charlie and the rest of the family return home, defeated. In his despair, Charlie is reminded to return to church, where he, at long last, is reunited with Robert once more.

Productions[]

The play was first performed at the Goodspeed Opera House in East Haddam, Connecticut, during 1974. It transferred to the Alvin Theatre on Broadway beginning on January 7, 1975. where it played for a total of 1,050 performances, ending August 7, 1977.

The cast featured John Cullum (Charlie Anderson, the main role), Joel Higgins (James), Penelope Milford (Jenny), Robert Rosen (Henry), Ted Agress (Jacob), Gordon Halliday (Sam), Chip Ford (Gabriel), Joseph Shapiro (Robert, the boy), David Russell (John), Jordan Suffin (Nathan), Gary Harger (Corporal), Charles Welch (Rev. Byrd), and Donna Theodore (Anne), who won a Drama Desk Award for her performance. The cast also included Betsy Beard, Tedd Carrere, Stephen Dubov, Gary Harger, Brian James, Robert Johanson, Sherry Lambert, Craig Lucas, Gene Masoner, Paul Myrvold, Dan Ormond, Casper Roos, J. Kevin Scannell, Jack Starkey, E. Allen Stevens, Marshall Thomas, Matt Gavin, Edward Penn, and Ed Preble.

The production was directed by Philip Rose, with scenery by Chuck Murawski, lighting by Thomas R. Skelton, costumes by Pearl Somner and Winn Morton, choreography by Robert Tucker, dance arrangements by Russell Warner, musical direction by Lynn Crigler, and orchestrations by Don Walker. Michael P. Price was executive director of the Goodspeed Opera House.

The production was nominated for six Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and won two: one for Best Actor in a Musical (John Cullum) and the other for Best Book of a Musical.

Shenandoah was revived at the Virginia Theatre on Broadway, again with Cullum in the main role, on August 8, 1989, and ended September 2, 1989. It returned to the Goodspeed Opera House during 1994, featuring Marc Kudisch.^[1] A new production began on March 22, 2006 at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C., featuring Scott Bakula. A positive critical response and strong sales resulted in the run being extended through May 21, although Bakula left the production April 30.^[2]

Shenandoah was staged by The Serenbe Playhouse in Serenbe, Georgia the spring of 2019.^[3] It featured Taylor Hicks and Rachel Potter in the cast. It was received with good reviews.^[4]

Characters[]

Characters

Charlie Anderson
Anne
James Anderson
Jenny Anderson
Jacob Anderson
Nathan Anderson
John Anderson
Sam
Gabriel
Robert Anderson
Henry
Corporal
Sergeant Johnson
Reverend Byrd
Mr. Carol
Tinkham

Musical numbers[]

Act I

Raise the Flag of Dixie (Prologue) - Ensemble
I've Heard it All Before - Charlie
Pass the Cross to Me - Ensemble
Why Am I Me? - The Boy and Gabriel
Next to Lovin' (I Like Fightin') - Jacob, James, Nathan, John and Henry
Over the Hill - Jenny
The Pickers are Coming - Charlie
Next to Lovin' (I Like Fightin') (Reprise) - Jacob, James, Nathan, John, Henry and Jenny
Meditation - Charlie
We Make a Beautiful Pair - Anne and Jenny
Violets and Silverbells - Jenny, Sam and Ensemble
It's a Boy! - Charlie, Jacob, James, Nathan, John and Henry

Act II

Entr'acte - Orchestra
Freedom - Anne and Gabriel
Violets and Silverbells (reprise) - James and Anne
Papa's Gonna Make it Alright - Charlie
The Only Home I Know - Corporal and Ensemble
The Only Home I Know (Reprise) - Corporal
Papa's Gonna Make it Alright (Reprise) - Jenny
Meditation II - Charlie
Pass the Cross to Me (Finale) - Ensemble
Freedom (curtain call) - Ensemble

References[]

^ Klein, Alvin (August 21, 1994). "After 20 Years, Goodspeed Opera's 'Shenandoah' Back Again" The New York Times.
^ Jones, Kenneth (April 10, 2006). "D.C. Shenandoah Extends; Bakula Will Leave, Sutherland Joins the Fray" Playbill.com. Archived 2008-12-03 at the Wayback Machine
^ [1]
^ "Review Roundup: What Did Critics Think of SHENANDOAH at Serenbe Playhouse with Rachel Potter and Taylor Hicks".

External links[]

[1] Klein, Alvin (August 21, 1994). "After 20 Years, Goodspeed Opera's 'Shenandoah' Back Again" The New York Times.

[2] Jones, Kenneth (April 10, 2006). "D.C. Shenandoah Extends; Bakula Will Leave, Sutherland Joins the Fray" Playbill.com. Archived 2008-12-03 at the Wayback Machine

[3] [1]

[4] "Review Roundup: What Did Critics Think of SHENANDOAH at Serenbe Playhouse with Rachel Potter and Taylor Hicks".

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v t Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical
1950–1975	South Pacific by Oscar Hammerstein II and Joshua Logan (1950) Hello, Dolly! by Michael Stewart (1964) Fiddler on the Roof by Joseph Stein (1965) Company by George Furth (1971) Two Gentlemen of Verona by John Guare and Mel Shapiro (1972) A Little Night Music by Hugh Wheeler (1973) Candide by Hugh Wheeler (1974) Shenandoah by James Lee Barrett, Peter Udell and Philip Rose (1975)
1976–2000	A Chorus Line by James Kirkwood Jr. and Nicholas Dante (1976) Annie by Thomas Meehan (1977) On the Twentieth Century by Betty Comden and Adolph Green (1978) Sweeney Todd by Hugh Wheeler (1979) Evita by Tim Rice (1980) Woman of the Year by Peter Stone (1981) Dreamgirls by Tom Eyen (1982) Cats by T. S. Eliot (1983) La Cage aux Folles by Harvey Fierstein (1984) Big River by William Hauptman (1985) The Mystery of Edwin Drood by Rupert Holmes (1986) Les Misérables by Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg (1987) Into the Woods by James Lapine (1988) No Award (1989) City of Angels by Larry Gelbart (1990) The Secret Garden by Marsha Norman (1991) Falsettos by William Finn and James Lapine (1992) Kiss of the Spider Woman by Terrence McNally (1993) Passion by James Lapine (1994) Sunset Boulevard by Don Black and Christopher Hampton (1995) Rent by Jonathan Larson (1996) Titanic by Peter Stone (1997) Ragtime by Terrence McNally (1998) Parade by Alfred Uhry (1999) James Joyce's The Dead by Richard Nelson (2000)
2001–present	The Producers by Mel Brooks and Thomas Meehan (2001) Urinetown by Greg Kotis (2002) Hairspray by Thomas Meehan and Mark O'Donnell (2003) Avenue Q by Jeff Whitty (2004) The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee by Rachel Sheinkin (2005) The Drowsy Chaperone by Bob Martin and Don McKellar (2006) Spring Awakening by Steven Sater (2007) Passing Strange by Stew (2008) Billy Elliot the Musical by Lee Hall (2009) Memphis by Joe DiPietro (2010) The Book of Mormon by Trey Parker, Robert Lopez and Matt Stone (2011) Once by Enda Walsh (2012) Matilda the Musical by Dennis Kelly (2013) A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder by Robert L. Freedman (2014) Fun Home by Lisa Kron (2015) Hamilton by Lin-Manuel Miranda (2016) Dear Evan Hansen by Steven Levenson (2017) The Band's Visit by Itamar Moses (2018) Tootsie by Robert Horn (2019) Jagged Little Pill by Diablo Cody (2020)