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Paint Your Wagon (musical)

Paint Your Wagon is a Broadway musical comedy, with book and lyrics by Alan J. Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe. The story centers on a miner and his daughter and follows the lives and loves of the people in a mining camp in Gold Rush-era California. Popular songs from the show included "Wand'rin' Star", "I Talk to the Trees", and "They Call the Wind Maria".

Paint Your Wagon

1951 Broadway
1953 West End
2015 Encores!

The musical ran on Broadway in 1951 and in the West End in 1953. In 1969, the film version, also titled Paint Your Wagon, was released. It had a highly revised plot and some new songs composed by Lerner and André Previn.

Productions[edit]

The musical had a pre-Broadway try-out at the Shubert Theater in Philadelphia opening on September 17, 1951.[1] It opened on Broadway at the Shubert Theatre on November 12, 1951, and closed on July 19, 1952, after 289 performances. The production was directed by Daniel Mann, set design by Oliver Smith, costume design by Motley, lighting design by Peggy Clark, music for dances arranged by Trude Rittmann, with dances and musical ensembles by Agnes de Mille set to the orchestrations of Ted Royal.[2]


It starred James Barton (as Ben Rumson), Olga San Juan (Jennifer Rumson), Tony Bavaar (Julio Valveras), Gemze de Lappe (Yvonne Sorel), James Mitchell (Pete Billings), Kay Medford (Cherry), and Marijane Maricle (Elizabeth Woodling).[2] Burl Ives and Eddie Dowling later took over the role of Ben Rumson, and Ann Crowley was a replacement for Jennifer.[3] De Mille later restaged the dances as a stand-alone ballet, Gold Rush.[4]


The West End production opened on February 11, 1953 at Her Majesty's Theatre and ran for 477 performances.[5] It starred real life father and daughter Bobby Howes and Sally Ann Howes.[6] The Australian production opened on November 27, 1954 at Her Majesty's Theatre in Melbourne, with Alec Kellaway as Ben.[7]


A new production, with a revised libretto by David Rambo, was premiered at the Brentwood Theatre, produced by the Geffen Playhouse in association with Christopher Allen, D. Constantine Conte, and Larry Spellman in Los Angeles, California, from November 23, 2004, to January 9, 2005. This new world premiere adaptation was directed by Gilbert Cates and choreographed by Kay Cole. Design team included musical director Steve Orich, who provided arrangements and orchestrations. The design team featured Daniel Ionazzi (scenic and lighting), David Kay Mickeleson (costume) and Phil Allen (sound). The cast[8] included Thomas F. Wilson as Ben Rumson, Jessica Rush as his daughter Jennifer and Sharon Lawrence as Lily. One change from the original was "They Call the Wind Maria" staged as an ensemble number instead of a showcase solo.[9][10]


A subsequent production was produced by the Pioneer Theatre Company in Salt Lake City, Utah and ran from September 28, 2007, through October 13, 2007. The director was Charles Morey and choreographer Patti D'Beck, with a cast of nearly 30.[11][12]


The musical was presented in an Encores! staged concert production at New York City Center in March 2015. The production was directed by Marc Bruni, and starred Keith Carradine as Ben Rumson, Alexandra Socha as Jennifer and Justin Guarini as Julio Valveras. [13]

Reception[edit]

In 2010, Steven Suskin wrote, "The interwoven use of ballet that worked so well in the highlands was less effective on the prairies, and the subject matter was harsh and cold. In spite of the show's failure, Loewe displayed ... an uncanny ability to write scores indigenous to the time and locale of the characters and plots."[14]

Theatre World Award

at the Internet Broadway Database

​Paint Your Wagon​

Paint Your Wagon History and Synopsis at Tams-Witmark