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1964:
Anyone Can Whistle at the
Majestic Theatre
 Stephen
Sondheim wrote both the
music and lyrics for a new
1964 Broadway production
called "Anyone Can
Whistle" that played at
the Majestic Theatre.
Arthur Laurents wrote the
musical's book and
directed the show. Future
Streisand collaborator
Herb Ross was the
choreographer, and he
received the show's only
Tony nomination. "Anyone
Can Whistle" was not a
hit. It suffered from a
contrived story line that
was difficult for
audiences to keep up with;
a rare misstep for
Laurents who, with
Sondheim, had achieved
monumental success five
years earlier with
"Gypsy." "Anyone Can
Whistle" closed after only
twelve previews and nine
performances.
Angela Lansbury made her Broadway musical debut in "Anyone Can
Whistle" (right). She played the part of a corrupt mayor of a town that
was teetering on bankruptcy. She and other town officials hatched
a scheme to attract tourists. The skeptics who attempted to expose
the Mayor's false claims that miracles happen in their town (some
nonsense involving water from a stone), ultimately prevailed in
uncovering the scam.
In the face of a Broadway calamity, this failed show still managed
to produce one of Sondheim's most famous numbers, a sure testament
to his brilliance. "There Won't Be Trumpets" is one of the most
frequently performed Sondheim ballads.
Several years later, Lansbury recalled her time in "Anyone Can
Whistle":
"I don't think it was that fine a show ... [but] it started me
on the road to musical theatre. So I'll be forever grateful to
Stephen and Arthur Laurents for giving me that opportunity."
UPDATE: April 2010
As part of its 2010 "Encores!" series,
"Anyone Can Whistle" enjoyed a six-performance revival between April 8
- 11 at New York's City Center. Tony Winner (for Sondheim's "Passion")
Donna Murphy had the Lansbury role. Other cast members included Sutton
Foster and frequent Sondheim performer Raul Esparza.
The reviews this time around were much kinder, with Ben Brantley of
the New York Times noting:
Accept that “Anyone Can Whistle” is never going to work as a fully
integrated show, and it’s possible to have a swell time at this
production ... members of that ever-expanding club of Sondheim
cultists can float into heaven, listening to what is really the
first score that suggests what would become this composer’s
idiosyncratic style, performed by a top-of-the line orchestra and
cast.
About the Cast Album
 The original
cast album from "Anyone Can Whistle" was recorded by
Columbia Records in New York on April 12, 1964, the day
after the show closed. Goddard Lieberson, the man in charge
of Columbia at the time, recognized something special about
Sondheim. In order to preserve Sondheim's first solo work
for posterity, Lieberson authorized the recording of a
failed show, something that was very rarely done in those
days.
When Sondheim later became one of the greatest commercial
successes in Broadway history, the cast album from "Anyone
Can Whistle" tagged along for the ride. The album eventually
turned a tidy profit for Columbia.
Lieberson's instincts about Sondheim in 1964 were right on
the money, just as they were when he signed Barbra Streisand
to a lucrative recording contract with Columbia
a year earlier. (Photo right:
Barbra clutches a copy of the "Anyone Can Whistle" cast album).
On April 8,
1995, "Anyone Can Whistle" was revived for a one night
benefit performance at Carnegie Hall. Angela Lansbury
was on hand to participate as the evening's Mistress of
Ceremonies. Former Streisand co-star (and veteran
Sondheim songstress) Madeline Kahn performed the
original Lansbury part. Bernadette Peters and Scott
Bakula rounded out the night's special all star cast.
A recording of that
benefit performance was also released by Columbia
Records, making "Anyone Can Whistle" one of the few
failed shows to have yielded two successful cast
recordings.
There
won't be trumpets
. .
.
Following the success
she achieved in "I Can Get It For You Wholesale," Arthur Laurents
was convinced that Barbra should be cast in his next production,
"Anyone Can Whistle." According to Laurents, however, Stephen
Sondheim was not utterly convinced that Barbra was the right
choice for a part in the upcoming production.
In the time it took
for Stephen Sondheim to decide whether to offer Barbra a role in
"Anyone Can Whistle," she had already signed with Ray Stark to
star in the Broadway production of "Funny Girl." The old adage,
"you snooze, you lose" could not be a more appropriate assessment
of what happened next.
Was Sondheim's trepidation about casting Barbra in this ill fated
musical an early sign of his genius? Did he, as early as 1963, see
something in Barbra that convinced him that "Anyone Can Whistle"
was not the right vehicle for her next role on Broadway?
It's doubtful that Barbra
would have
been offered the Lansbury
role. It's more
likely that she would
have landed a smaller ensemble part. The words from "Anyone Can
Whistle's" score,
Everybody Says Don't, seem prophetic in retrospect.
Sondheim
was never really on board with Barbra joining the cast of his new
show. So with a little help from Sondheim, the stars became
aligned in Barbra's favor. "Funny Girl" turned out to be a smash,
"Anyone Can Whistle" flopped miserably, and both Broadway history
and Streisand's theatrical career were decided in the process.
 But Barbra eventually got her chance to perform at least one
number from "Anyone Can Whistle" in front of paying audiences. Her
1993-4 concert tour included the show's number, "Everybody Says
Don't" as part of the first act's biographical sequence
(right). The
Sondheim ballad was first recorded a year earlier on Barbra's
"Back to Broadway" album and also appears on the live recording of
her 1994 concert. In her show, Barbra performed the number to
illustrate how she always bowed to her own creative instincts
despite objections from industry nay-sayers. Art isn't easy,
indeed.
The other number from "Anyone Can Whistle" covered by Barbra was
"There Won't Be Trumpets." This Sondheim song was eventually cut
from the show, but does appear on the show's cast album. Barbra,
on the other hand, recorded "There Won't Be Trumpets" but elected
not to include it on any of her studio albums.It wasn't until
the her 1991 audio retrospective, "Just for the Record" was
released that we were finally able to hear her version of a song
that was not deemed worthy of a performance on Broadway. Despite
the failure of "Anyone Can Whistle" on Broadway, Sondheim's "There
Won't Be Trumpets" has nevertheless managed to become the show's
one solid legacy. "There Won't Be Trumpets" has established itself
as one of Sondheim's most well known (and often performed)
compositions. |
