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Loesser Musical Bows in D.C.


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Loesser Musical Bows in D.C.

By Carl Hartman

Associated Press

April 9, 2004

WASHINGTON -- Composer and lyricist Frank Loesser, creator of "Guys and Dolls," has another premiere scheduled -- 35 years after his death.

A musical called "Senor Discretion Himself," left unfinished when Loesser died in 1969, gets its world premiere today at Washington's Arena Stage. The script has been completed and updated by a Latino group called Culture Clash.

A largely self-taught musician, Loesser began composing as a member of the Army Air Force in World War II. His "Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition" was one of the most popular songs to come out of the conflict.

Loesser wrote some of the biggest musical hits of the 1950s and '60s, including "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying," which won him a share of a Pulitzer prize.

"Senor Discretion Himself" is set in a small Mexican town. Loesser based the book on a short story by Budd Schulberg, best known for the novel "What Makes Sammy Run."

The musical tells of a poor, illiterate baker whose indignant defense of his young daughter's virtue brings about a small miracle, rocketing him into prosperity.

"Frank wanted to do something different," said his widow, Jo Sullivan Loesser. "We listened to Mexican music all day and went to Mexico several times." Culture Clash -- Richard Montoya, Herbert Siguenza and Ricardo Salinas -- adapted the play into 21st century vernacular.

Siguenza said Culture Clash cut Loesser's script of nearly 300 pages to about 100 because today's audiences want a faster pace.

Schulberg worked on the script for a study group in New York in 1985, but it has never been staged commercially until now. "Budd's an old friend of Frank's and the family and he's coming down to see it," Ms. Loesser said.

The baker is played by Shawn Elliott, a nightclub and recording artist who costarred in "Jacques Brel Is Alive and Living in Paris." The 15-year-old seductress Lupita, the family's beauty and scholar, is played by Elena Shaddow, a veteran of Broadway's "Les Miserables."

Copyright © 2004 The Associated Press

http://www.musicalamerica.com/newsStory.cf...yID=1&cookies=1

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"Senor Discretion Himself" is set in a small Mexican town. Loesser based the book on a short story by Budd Schulberg, best known for the novel "What Makes Sammy Run."

(I've worked with Budd Schulburg. His father headed Paramount Pictures in their heydey during Hollywood's Golden Age. His most famous work is On the Waterfront, the Oscar winning film. What makes Smamy Run is a famous book of his about a typical Hollywood hustler that still resonates today.)

***

Good post :good job: We should start a 'favorite musical' thread here.

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