1960: The Fantasticks at the Sullivan Theatre

"The Fantasticks" was an off-Broadway production that opened in 1960 at the Sullivan Theatre in Greenwich Village and starred the inimitable Jerry Orbach. The play centers around two young lovers who are brought together by their fathers and who embark on life journeys before being reunited in the final act. The show's music and lyrics were written by Harvey Schmidt and Tom Jones, respectively, and their original New York production ran for over 42 years. A revival is currently on the boards in New York.

Try to remember . . .

The score from The Fantasticks provided a treasure trove of musical inspiration for Barbra early on in her career. One of the few times Barbra has publicly performed a number from The Fantasticks occurred in June of 1967. She sang one of the show's more memorable numbers,  "I Can See It" during her legendary Central Park concert (right). That particular rendition can be seen on the official DVD release of Barbra's A Happening In Central Park television special. The audio version of the song can be enjoyed on the soundtrack album from the show.

During the early part of her career, Barbra recorded four of the most moving ballads from The Fantasticks: "Soon It's Gonna Rain,"  "Much More," "I Can See It" and "Try To Remember."
 

Elliott Gould

In 1964, Barbra's husband, Elliott Gould, performed The Fantasticks in summer stock opposite Liza Minnelli at The Westport Country Playhouse in Connecticut. In 2002, Gould was asked by CNN to reflect on his experience in The Fantasticks and for his thoughts on the show's impending final curtain:

"I was approached to do this production with Liza, who had done something called, "Best Foot Forward." And Ward Baker directed us, and it was an amazing experience. And it's really hard to accept that it's going to close. But I feel that, evidently, business-wise, it has to close. Only for it to reopen again in the future as a major revival."
 

Brad Sullivan

For the 1995 film of The Fantasticks Academy Award winner Joel Grey and character actor Brad Sullivan were cast in the roles of the meddlesome fathers. You'll surely remember Sullivan as the man who portrayed curmudgeon Henry Wingo and was directed by Barbra in her 1991 film, The Prince of Tides. In one of the more bizarre moments of The Fantasticks, Brad Sullivan sings an on-screen duet with Joel Grey.

Brad Sullivan passed away on December 31, 2008.