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1965:
Drat!
The Cat! at
the
Martin
Beck Theatre
 It
was supposed to be Elliott
Gould's finest hour on
Broadway, but his 1965
musical, "Drat! The Cat!"
closed after just 8
performances. Amid the
wreckage of her husband's
ill fated show, Barbra
Streisand found a pure gem
of a song. When Gould sang
it, it was simple and
obscure. When Barbra
recorded it, it became one
of her all-time greatest
hits.
"Drat! The Cat!" opened at
the Martin Beck Theatre on October 10, 1965 and promptly closed
eight performances later on October 23. The show starred Barbra
Streisand's (then) husband, Elliott Gould, opposite Lesley Ann
Warren (who would marry Jon Peters in 1967). Milton Schafer and Ira Levin wrote the music and lyrics. Joe
Layton provided the choreography. He was also the director.
Nominations and awards for "Drat! The Cat!" were scarce. It's only
Tony recognition was a nomination for Scenic Design, but Lesley Ann
Warren did manage to win a Theatre World Award for her role.
The show takes place in the 1890s. Warren plays Alice Van Guilder,
an ambitious social climbing wanna-be who gets her kicks as a cat
burglar. Gould plays Bob Purefoy, a policeman who, while hot on the
trail of his suspect, falls madly in love with her. Alice attempts
to frame Bob for her crimes, but she ultimately falls for him as well. Realizing the error of her ways, Alice receives a suspended
sentence for her transgressions. The two get married and live
happily ever after.
Suddenly,
nothing is the same
. .
.
  There were two songs
from "Drat! The Cat!" that Barbra recorded for official
release,
and one of them became a quintessential Streisand classic. In
the show, Elliott Gould sings the ballad, "She Touched Me."
During the brief time when Gould was performing the number on
Broadway, Barbra recorded it, rewritten as "He Touched Me" and
included it in her 1965 album, "My Name Is Barbra, Two..." The
number was destined for obscurity had Barbra not rescued it
from the dust bin. Today, "He Touched Me" is perhaps the only
song anyone remembers from "Drat! The Cat!" Even more
impressive was Barbra's ability to turn it into one of her
earliest hits, and in doing so, forever guaranteed it, and the
ill fated production, "Drat! The Cat!" a place in popular
music history.
The other number Barbra recorded from "Drat! The Cat!" was
called "I Like Him." It was released as the B-side to the
single, "He Touched Me"
right around the
time when Gould was preparing to open with the show on
Broadway. "I Like Him" was performed on stage by Lesley Ann
Warren as her second act finale. Unlike "He Touched Me," "I
Like Him" was not included on any of Barbra's studio albums.
Anyone who wants to own Barbra's version of this ballad will
have to locate a rare 1965 Columbia Records pressing of the
single.
Joe
Layton
The late Joe
Layton had much more success working with Barbra Streisand
on several of her television specials than he did as
director and choreographer on "Drat! The Cat!". While few
will remember his directorial efforts on that doomed
Broadway musical, Joe Layton will forever be associated with
Barbra Streisand as a key contributor to her many early
television successes. Layton was an integral part of a
successful production formula that has yet to be duplicated
in television. Of particular note was Layton's choreographic
work with Barbra on "My Name Is Barbra" and "Color Me
Barbra." The staging of her musical numbers was as important
as the music itself, and Layton was universally lauded for
his efforts at the time.
Later, Joe Layton
would go on to work on two additional, though somewhat less
successful Streisand television specials. He directed "The
Belle of 14th Street" and served as co-producer of "Barbra
Streisand...and Other Musical Instruments," for which he
received an Emmy nomination.
Layton was
associated with another landmark television special worth
noting. In 1964, he directed Carol Burnett and Elliott Gould
in "Once Upon A Mattress," a televised production of his
original 1960 stage musical. Today, that early sixties
televised version of "Once Upon A Mattress" is considered a
classic.
For the screen, Layton crafted the musical sequences for such
familiar films as "Thoroughly Modern Millie" (with Julie
Andrews in 1967), "Annie" (with Carol Burnett in 1982)
and "For the Boys" (with Bette Midler in 1991).
Despite the misstep of "Drat! The Cat!", Layton's Broadway
credits were otherwise quite impressive. He conceived
the musical staging for the original Broadway production of
"The Sound of Music" (1959). Layton also directed and
conceived the musical numbers for Joel Grey in the 1969
production of "George M!" and won a Tony as Best
Choreographer. Layton had another blockbuster that year,
directing Angela Lansbury to a Tony Award as Best Actress in a
Musical for "Dear World."
 Joe Layton has also worked on Broadway productions starring
Bette Midler, Diana Ross, Harry Connick, Jr., Glenn Close,
Chita Rivera, and Danny Kaye, among others, in a list of
extraordinary credits too numerous to mention.
Special Guest Star
Joe
Layton not only choreographed Barbra's musical
numbers for "My Name Is Barbra," but he also
made a cameo appearance on the show (right). In the
first act sequence, Barbra sings "How Does The
Wine Taste?" and interacts with a rather stoic
looking drummer. The drummer was none other than
Layton, on camera with Barbra for one of the
shows more memorable moments. |
