Variety (April 1953)

Out-of-Town’ Not So Wonderful; B’way Boff More Than Compensates As usually happens with musi-j cal s undergoing tryout revisions I ^wonderful Town'* went into the ^ during its pre-Broadway tour, 5«pfte record-setting capacity Crosses The Rosalind Russell star- 2 I? S had a $6,631 operating deficit nn a $207,312 total groSs for its ?^e-week road tuncup. Before settling down Feb. 25 to ,.j standee trade and substan- tia operatlng profit at the Winter rarden, N. V., the Robert Fryer musical represented an investment 5 S206 341, excluding $16,955 imion bonds. That included $188,- 391 production cost, $6,631 try- out loss and $11,319 pre-opening *»vnense in New York. There’s a possible $8,000 addi- tional production cost involved in two costume items in dispute, but that would be offset by a similar amount of orchestrating, copying and arranging expense to be re- couped from composer Leonard Bernstein and lyricists Betty Com- den and Adolph Green, at the rate of $100 per week. An unusual as- pect of the initial accountant’s statement covering the production Is that it lists all unpaid bills. The production cost of the show • included $52,683 for scenery, $36,- 742 for costumes (excluding the disputed $8,000) $17,679 for orchestration (including the $8,000 to be repaid), $8,750 advance royalties, $33,785 re- hearsal salaries, $4,985 other re- hearsal expense, $14,677 for com- pany transportation and hauling, and $19,091 in other expenses, in- cluding payments of .$5,000-and $2,500, respectively, to composer Leroy Anderson and lyricist Arn- old B. Horwitt, in settlement of their previous contracts. George Abbott, who staged the production, received $5,000 ad- vance and gets 2Vfc% of the gross (Continued on page. 90) » It’s ‘Queen Shirley’ As Booth Adds 3d Tony To Oscar, ‘Variety’ Crowns By winning the Antoinette Per- ry award for the third time Sun- day (29), at the annual American Theatre Wing dinner In N.Y., Shirley Booth has probably amassed the most impressive par- lay of awards in show biz history. Actress coppqd the Wing’s seventh annual Tony award in the distin- guished femme dramatic perform- ance category for her starring role in "Time of the Cuckoo.” She had just won an Academy Award Oscar for her starring performance In the film,” "Come Back, Little Sheba.” Most recent accolade marks her as a three-time Tony winner, as she received that award in 1949 for her supporting role in "Good* bye, My Fancy” and in 1950 for her starring portrayal in "Sheba.” She has also taken the spotlight twice in the annual Variety poll of legit critics. In this voting, she came out as best dramatic actress for "Sheba” and again for her role in the musical, "A Tree Grows In Brooklyn.” Other winners in the Wing’s 16 award categories were "The Cru- cible,” outstanding drama; "Won- derful Town,” outstanding musi- cal; Tom Ewell ("The Seven Year Itch”), distinguished starring dra- matic performance; Rosalind Rus- sell ("Town”), distinguished star- I 1 ®* musical performance; Thomas Mitchell ("Hazel Flagg”), distin- guished starring musical perform- ance; Beatrice Straight (“Cruci- r le ), distinguished featured per- formance; John Williams ("Dial M or Murder”), distinguished fea- Performance; Sheila Bond ' • ^ ou Were Here”), distin- feature d musical perform- ance; Hiram Shermari (“Two’s Com- ’ distinguished featured mu- SS- Performance; Raoul Pene Du Rian outstanding set de- Miles White (“Flagg”), out- anding costume designer; Joshua <*«*">. outstanding di- nnfi? r ’ ? ona ^ d Saddler ("Town”), utstandmg choreographer; Leh- (Town” and Gilbert Sc se ? s °n)» outstanding mu- ZJ, ireclor : and Abe Kurnit hX r,y ™ an lor “Wish”), out- standing stage technician. Beater ^ arda were Biven to U» p„ '. Li y e ' Dann y Kaye and 6 £( iuity Community Theatre* ‘Devil & Webster’ Bows At Mass. Colony July 18 Sturbridge, Mass., March 31. "Devil and Daniel Webster,” music drama by Stephen Vincent Benet and Douglas Moore, will be presented July 18 through Aug. 29 as a feature of an annual festival to be held at Old Sturbridge Vil- lage, a restored colonial commu- nity here. Folk musical will be staged in an openair theatre, with a professional cast including Clif- ford Harvuot, Adelaide Bishop and Luigi Vellucci. Elmer Nagy will stage the pro- duction, with Moshe Paranov mu- sical director and Alwin Nicolai choreographer. Operation is bud- geted at $70,000. R&H Backers Sore at Stuff Regular backers of Rodgers & Hammerstein and Joshua Logan shows are reportedly doing a quiet bum at the financing arrangements for two incoming productions, "Me and Juliet” and "Kind Sir.” Beef is that they’ve been excluded in the special capitalization setups of the two shows, both of which are rated promising b.o. bets in ad- vance. The disgruntled investors readily* admit that they have no legal or even specific moral ground for grievance, and that their feelings are purely disappointment at not being able to string along on hot prospects of successful author- management- cqmbos. Moreover, there’s no suggestion that they won’t be glad to go in on the next project of either Rodgers & Ham- merstein or Logan. But they still feel that they’ve been by-passed. In the case of the'Ttodgers- Hammerstein musical, "Me and Juliet,” the author-producers are getting $200,000 of the capital from RCA-Victor and putting up the bal- ance themselves. No outside back- ers are joeing admitted, so there is no ground for charges of favorit- ism. But since regular R 8c H in vestors have always been included in past productions, they were licking their monetary chops in an ticipation of another cleanup on "Me and Juliet.” "Kind Sir," to be produced by Logan, who will also direct, is be ing financed entirely by him, au- thor Norman Krasna and costars Charles Boyer and Mary Martin. It is capitalized at $75,000, with ria provisions for overcall. Backers of the current Logan-Theatre Guild production of "Picnic” were hoping to get in on the upcoming entry, which is slated for Broadway next fall., However, they were specifically notified that investing in either "Picnic” or the Leland Hayward-Logan production of "Wish You Were Here” would not entitle them to inclusion in "Kind Sir.” Backer mutterings in the two cases recall the "Call Me Madam” situation of three years ago, when the Irving Berlin-Howard Lindsay- Russel Crouse musical starring Ethel Merman was backed entirely by RCA-Victor, with the regular Hayward investors left out. ‘APRIL’ DUE FOR REVISE; WAITING FDR N.Y. HOUSE Further tryout**’ bookings for "Date with April” (formerly titled "I Found April”) have been can- celled and the Kenneth Banghart- Diana Green production will lay off for revisions until a New York house is available. The George Batson comedy, starring Constance Bennett, was to have played Philly irekt week, after laying off this week. Actors Equity has given permis slon for the production to lay off for a maximum of eight weeks, but the management hopes to obtain a Broadway house and open within the next two weeks. Big Upbeat in Cincy I Legit Sked This Year > Cincinnati, March 31. Current season for stage shows is Cincy’s biggest in years. Shubert operations, including their own - ,300-seat Cox and rentals at the ,500-seat Taft Theatre, are round- ing out a 27-week stretch which ! lias been boosted by renting of the Cox for four weeks each by Stage, Inc., and Music Drama Guild, local groups. Last season there were only 10 weeks of operation. Latest sched- uling by Noah Schechter, resident manager for the Shuberts, is Mar- garet Sullavan in "Deep Blue Sea ’ at the Cox, week of April 20. Legit’s Cliffhanging Headaches; Tough to Sell Those Topside Pews Anne Baxter Set For Readings Tour Hollywood, March 31, Anne Baxter,will tour next sea- son in a progrant of dramatic read- ings of poems by Stephen Vincent Benet and others, with a choral background and possibly a small supporting cast. In revealing the project, producer Paul Gregory de- nied reports that the screen actress would replace Judith Anderson next fall for the resumption of the tour of the current v John Brown’s Body,” costarring Tyrone Power and Raymond Massey. According to the producer, Miss Baxter will confer in England this summer with Charles Laughton, who is to stage the offering, to pick the selections to be read and the compositions for musical accom- paniment. The show is tentatively slated to go out next January, play- ing one-nighters but probably not appearing on Broadway. It will be the first U. S. legit appearance for the film actress, who was on the London stage before coming to Hollywood. Miss Baxter and her mother leave next week for an ex- tended vacation on the Continent. Miss Anderson (as are Power and Massey) is signed for next season’s "Body” tour, Gregory adds, explaining that the show will open its regular bookings Sept. 21 in Los Angeles, after a tuneup date in Santa Barbara. The choral group, directed by Richard White, will again be with the offering. "Body” is currently at the Cen- tury, N. Y., but closes there April 11 and will lay off this summer while Power and Massey fill screen commitments. Meanwhile, Gregory discloses that he’s also continuing discus- sion^ with Joan Crawford regard- ing a possible tour in a "reading” show. 5 U.S. ORIGINALS IN LONDON ‘GUYS’ CAST London, March 31. There will be at least seven Americans in the cast of the Lon- don production of "Guys and Dolls,” which preems at the Coli- seum May 28 after a tryout week at Bristol. Proceeds of a pre-open- ing night will be donated to thea trical charities. The U. S. contingent, with excep- tion of Sam Levene, is scheduled to arrive here April 13. Rehearsals begin that day for the British cast, with the Yanks participating a week later. In addition to Vivian Blaine in her original role of Adelaide and Sam Levene in his original part of Nathan Detroit, the Broadway lineup includes Jerry Wayne as Sky Masterson; Stubby Kaye in his original role of Nicely- Nicely; Johnny Silver in his original of Benny Southstreet; Tom Pedi, also an original as Harry the Horse; and Lew Herbert as Big Jule. All major roles, apart from that of Sarah Brown, have been filled, and the British cast includes Ernest Butcher, as Arvide Abernathy; Danny Green, as Joey. Biltmore; Lou Jacobi, as Liver-Lips Louis; Robert Arden, as Angie the Ox; Gordon Needham, as Scanton Slim; and Laurie Webb, as Society Max, For the 48 parts in the produc- tion, Arthur Lewis has auditioned upwards .of 3,500 British players. The show? as previously announced, is being presented by Broadway producers Feuer Sc Martin, in as- sociation with Prince Littler. Illness Plagues ‘Wife’; Troupe Trekking East San Francisco, March 31. Charles Plummer has joined the "Constant Wife” troupe here as understudy for John Emery, who’s been in ill health the last couple of weeks. Jean Cameron (Mrs. Claude Horton) went on last week for Eva Leonard-Boyne, who was ill with flu. The Katharine Cornell produc- tion ends itslocal stand next Saturday (4) and heads for the northwest, after which it will head back east. It winds up its tour with split week May 18-23 between Springfield, Mass., and New Haven. That will complete almost two years in the Maugham revival for the star, who opened it at the Central City (Col.) Festival in the summer of 1951. . Enuff Stuff For ‘Son of Can-Can’ Can - Can,” Cole Porter - Abe Burrows musical trying out in Philly, is a b.o. sensation there. The Cy Feuer-Ernest H. Martin production set a local boxoffice record last week, getting $50,003 for eight capacity performances at the 1,870-seat Shubert, and is an advance sellout for the remaining three weeks of the engagement. The show is due April 30 at the Shubert, N. Y.,. Having rolled up the biggest advance sale in Philly annals for its original three-week booking, "Can-Can” . announced over the weekend that the stand would be extended an extra week to allow ample time for revisions. When the boxoffice opened at 9:30 a.m. Monday (30) for the added week, there was a line up Broad St. from the theatre, along Locust St. and around the corner into 15th St. Ticket sale, for the day totalled $30,500, including 20% Federal tax and a small local levy'. That’s figured about $24,000 net over the window during the day. At that rate, the final week will be sold out today (Wed.). With the , musical admittedly overlong, the principal problem is one of cutting. Besides liberal slicing of dialog, three songs have been eliminated, at least tempo- rarily. They include "Positively Pay You Next Monday” and "The Law,” from the first act, and "A Man Must His Honor Defend” from the second act. However, all three numbers went over well with the audience and their cutting was merely a matter of selection and balance, any of them may be reinstated. After the opening performance of the tryout, there was obviously so much extra, material that co- producer Martin remarked that they might use the deletions for another show. A former Hollywood resident, the producer suggested, "We could call it ‘Son of Can- Can 4“ Management o'f "Seven Year Itch,” which has played tt> solid capacity at the Fulton, N.Y., since opening last Nov. 19, has for some weeks been buying radio spot an- nouncements to hypo balcony trade. That’s a graphic example of how upstairs patronage, once a substantial part of legit revenue, is now steadily becoming tougher to draw. For all but a few shows of spe- cial appeal, such as classic reyivals, balcony tends to be the slowest- selling ticket. That’s particularly true of second-balcony, called the gallery at some houses. For almost any current hit on Broadway the topside locations are Available on shorter notice than the balcony and/or mezzanine. Hardest to get, in many cases, are the top-scale orchestra seats. It’s a long-recognized fact that it’s virtually impossible to sell out a second balcony for a show unless the boxoffice pressure for a hit is so. great that prospective patrons are unwilling to wait a few weeks to obtain downstairs or first-bal- cony seats. In that case they buy the upper locations on relatively short notice. "Top-heavy” shows, os the reverse used to be known, are almost unheard of these days. Only thing that keeps the situation from driving managements daffy is that the amount of unsold seats, at the reduced scale upstairs, represents a comparatively small margin of the total gross. Feeling among veteran company and house managers and boxoffice (Continued on page 92) Northampton, Mass., Tent Being Readied by Tuttle Musical tent may be operated this summer at Northampton, Mass., by former Broadway producer-direc- tor Day Tuttle. If the venture can't be readied in time for this season, the plan is to go ahead def- initely for 1954. Tuttle, professor of dramatics at Smith College, will be producer of the operation, and Cornelius Cotter, who was manager for the first three years at St. John Ter- rell’s Lambertville (N. J.) Music Circus, will be general manager. The proposed sit* of the venture is Look Memorial Park, a publicly owned and privately operated spot near the center of town. Project is budgeted at $75,000, of which $60,000 has been raised. However 1 , if a suitable tent can’t be obtained and other arrange ments completed within the next week or so, the scheme will be shelved until a year hence. Unions Miffed at ‘Snub’ By New ANTA Board; Membership to Be 69 Unions are understood to be burned because they are not rep- resented, except for Equity, on he 63-member new board of di- rectors of American National The- atre & Academy, recently elected by 1,000 of the organization’s some 2,200 members. Motion pictures, formerly represented by Spyros Skouras, are likewise not included. New board, widely-touted as more representative” than the previous one, expands from 47 members to 69, with the majority of s those from the former board also present on the new one, ex- cluding those who were not nomi- nated or who, like Blevins Davis, refused to run. Some six more persons remain to be named to the board, by the 63 just elected, and union repre- sentatives are prepared to claim some of these; however, there is also a feeling that these six seats are designated for VIP’s, or more or less "honorary” members, who by name or action might help ANTA get the foundation grant it is seeking. Old hands on the new board, in- cluding Vinton . Freedley, Helen Hayes, Clarence Derwent, Peggy Wood, Gilbert Miller, George Freedley, C. Lawton Campbell, Robert W. Dowling and Christian Westphalen, are among those rep- resenting the professional theatre and public on the board. There are 18 reps of the professional theatre, chosen from 44 names nominated by Actors Equity. Next largest group is the 12-member "public” panel, chosen from 19 names nomi- nated by the old ANTA board. All but a 'few of these 30 are from New York and environs. Of the other members elected to the board nine represent educational theatre, nine community and children’s the- atre, and 14 the geographical re- gions of the country. HEIMAN PREPP1NG 2 MUSICAL REVIVALS At least two musical revivals are planned for next season tour under the sponsorship of Marcus Heiman, president of United Book- ing Office. Complete financing for two productiohs is available. John Yorke is slated to be the actual producer and general manager of the operation. Qut-of-town. theatre managers, who \yould presumably participate in the backing of the shows, are be- ing queried for-their choice of ve- hicles! as arc key-city critics.