Call Me Madam - WikiHQ

Call Me Madam is a Broadway musical written by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse, with music and lyrics by Irving Berlin.

The musical is a satire on politics and foreign policy that spoofs postwar America's penchant for lending billions of dollars to needy countries. It centers on Sally Adams, a well-meaning but ill-informed socialite widow who is appointed ambassador to the fictional European country of Lichtenburg, where she charms the local gentry, especially Cosmo Constantine, while her press attaché Kenneth Gibson falls in love with Princess Maria.

Background

The lead character is based on Washington, D.C. hostess and Democratic Party fundraiser Perle Mesta, who was appointed ambassador to Luxembourg in 1949. The Playbill distributed at each performance humorously noted that "neither the character of Mrs. Sally Adams nor Miss Ethel Merman resemble any person living or dead."

In 1949, Merman and her family were vacationing at the Hotel Colorado in Glenwood Springs with Howard Lindsay and his wife, Dorothy Stickney. Watching Merman at poolside, while he was reading a magazine article about Mesta, Lindsay was struck by how typically "American" Merman was, and immediately envisioned her portraying a colorful character similar to the newly-appointed ambassador. When he proposed the idea to Merman, who had little interest in either society or political news, she responded, "Who's Perle Mesta?"

Although Merman had announced she was interested in playing a dramatic role in her next project, Lindsay and Russel Crouse approached Irving Berlin and began working on the book for Call Me Madam when Berlin expressed interest in composing the score. Berlin's last production, Miss Liberty, had failed to recoup its investment, and he was determined to repeat the success he had had with Annie Get Your Gun. The three collaborators agreed they needed to treat their subject with care, to avoid any legal action by Mesta. As the work progressed, Merman conceded she would be willing to sing two or three songs, but eventually accepted the fact she was going to star in a full-scale musical comedy, instead of the drama she preferred. as the inaugural production of the Encores! second season, Call Me Madam was lauded as the company's first hit production. Encores! presented a fully-staged production in February 2019, with Carmen Cusack headlining a cast that included Darrell Hammond as Grand Duke Otto, Carol Kane as Grand Duchess Sophie, Stanley Wayne Mathis as Senator Borckbank, Randy Rainbow as Sebastian Sebastian and Lauren Worsham as Princess Maria.

Call Me Madam had its premiere regional theatrical engagement at the Dallas State Fair in August 1952, with Joan Blondell headlining and Russell Nype reprising his Broadway role. The cast also included William LeMassena as Pemberton Maxwell, Michael Pollock as Sebastian Sebastian and Gene Raymond as Cosmo Constantine. In 1959, Constance Bennett headlined a production featuring Wilbur Evans as Cosmo Constantine that played engagements at the Camden County Music Fair and the Storrowtown Music Fair. Also in 1959, Penny Singleton headlined a production by the St. Louis Municipal Opera Theatre in which both Russell Nype and Pat Harrington Sr. reprised their Broadway roles. Wilbur Evans reprised the role of Cosmo Constantine in a 1963 production headlined by Martha Raye that played engagements at the Valley Forge Music Fair and at the Storrowtown Music Fair, with Kenneth Gibson played by James Kirkwood. Margaret Whiting, who headlined a 1961 production that played in Boston and New Jersey, in 1966 headlined the play's Melody Top summer stock production in Milwaukee that featured Tommy Sands as Kenneth Gibson.

Jo Anne Worley, who headlined the 1987 Pasadena Convention Center production of Call Me Madam, also headlined a semi-staged concert version mounted in 2001 at the Auditorium Theatre (Chicago) with Malcolm Gets as Kenneth Gibson and Fred Willard. Leslie Uggams headlined a revival mounted at the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, New Jersey in April–May 1996. The additional cast included J. B. Adams as Henry Gibson/Grand Duke Otto, Mark Baker as Pemberton Maxwell and Vanessa Dorman as Princess Maria. In September 2000, Call Me Madam was mounted at the UCLA Freud Playhouse with Karen Morrow headlining a cast that included Robert Mandan as Pemberton Maxwell, Michael Nouri as Cosmo Constantine, Hugh Panaro as Kenneth Gibson and Michael Tucci as Congressman Wilkins.

Other regional productions of Call Me Madam have been headlined by Maxene Andrews (East Windsor, Connecticut, 1976), Klea Blackhurst (San Francisco, 2009), Kim Criswell with Catherine Brunell as Princess Maria and David Hess as Cosmo Constantine (Middlesex County, Connecticut, 2004), Ruta Lee (Fort Worth, Texas, 1978) and Helen Reddy with Monte Markham as Cosmo Constantine (Sacramento, California, 1986).

Call Me Madam opened in the West End at the London Coliseum on March 15, 1952 for a run of 486 performances. Billie Worth headlined a cast that included Anton Walbrook as Cosmo Constantine and Shani Wallis—in her first major stage role—as Princess Maria. Noele Gordon—who had understudied Worth during the London Coliseum run—headlined the production's British touring edition in 1953. A 78-rpm cast recording of the production was released on the Columbia Records label in 1952, with Billie Worth and Arthur Lowe, titled Vocal Gems from Call Me Madam.

In 1983, Gordon headlined a West End revival with a cast that also included Jeremy Hawk as Pemberton Maxwell and Basil Hoskins as Cosmo Constantine. The production opened on March 14, 1983 and ran for seven weeks at the Victoria Palace.

Call Me Madam has since had two London fringe productions, the first at Upstairs at The Gatehouse in the summer of 2009 with Thom Southerland directing a cast including Beverley Klein as Sally Adams, Chris Love as Kenneth Gibson, Kate Nelson as Princess Maria and Gido Schimanski as Cosmo Constantine. The Union Theatre, London mounted Call Me Madam in the fall of 2012, staged and directed by Michael Strassen and headlined by Lucy Williamson with a cast including Gavin Kerr, Leo Miles and Natalie Lipin. The play received five nominations at the Off West End Awards and was named as one of the productions when the Union won Best Fringe at The Stage Awards in 2013 alongside The Globe (Best Theatre).

Call Me Madam began its inaugural Australian engagement on September 5, 1953 at Her Majesty's Theatre, Melbourne with Evie Hayes headlining a cast that also included David Cahill as Hugo Tantinnin and Alec Kellaway as Congressman Wilkins. The production also played engagements in Brisbane and Sydney. Revived in 1985 at the Canberra Theatre with June Bronhill headlining and David Branson featured as Cosmo Constantine, Call Me Madam was mounted in 2000 at the Arts Centre Melbourne with Geraldine Turner headlining a cast that included Rachael Beck as Princess Maria, Reg Gorman as Congressman Wilkins and Spencer McLaren as Kenneth Gibson.

Film adaptation

A 1953 Twentieth Century-Fox film adaptation stars Ethel Merman, George Sanders, Donald O'Connor, Billy DeWolfe, Charles Dingle and Vera-Ellen.

Casts (1950s-1970s)

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" border="1"

!! rowspan="2" |Character

!Original Broadway Production

!Original West End Production

!US National Tour

!State Fair Musicals Production

!Film Version

!Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera Production

!Lambertville Music Circus Production

!The MUNY Production

!Music Fair Circuit Production

!Ben Kapen’s Melodyland Production

!Kenley Players Production

!The MUNY Production

!1950-1952

!colspan="2" | 1952-1953

!1952

!colspan="3" | 1953

!1954

!colspan="2" | 1959

!1966

!colspan="2" | 1968

|Mrs. Sally Adams

|Ethel Merman

|Billie Worth

|Ethel Merman

|Joan Blondell

|Ethel Merman

|Elaine Stritch

|Eleanor Lutton

|Elaine Stritch

|Penny Singleton

|Constance Bennett

|Pearl Bailey

|colspan="2"| Ethel Merman

|Cosmo Constantine

|Paul Lukas

|Anton Walbrook

|Richard Eastham

|Gene Raymond

|George Sanders

|Richard Smart

|Kent Smith

|Mitchell Gregg

|Wilbur Evans

|colspan="2"| Richard Eastham

|Kenneth Gibson

|Russell Nype

|Jeff Warren

|colspan="2"| Russell Nype

|Donald O'Connor

|David Daniels

|colspan="2"| Russell Nype

|Ron Beattie

|William Falkner

|colspan="2"| Russell Nype

|Princess Maria

|Galina Talva

|Shani Wallis

|Galina Talva

|Ellen McCown

|Vera-Ellen<hr>Carol Richards (Singing Voice)

|Arlyne Frank

|Dorothy Coulter

|Peggy Alderman

|Helen Strine

|colspan="2"| Donna McKechnie

|Congressman Wilkins

|Pat Harrington Sr.

|Sidney Keith

|Pat Harrington Sr.

|Joe E. Marks

|Percy Helton

|Pat Harrington Sr.

|Dick Bernie

|Pat Harrington Sr.

|Steen Rodnum

|Ted Chapman

|C.M. Gampel

|Pemberton Maxwell

|Alan Hewitt

|Donald Burr

|Alexander Clark

|William LeMassena

|Billy De Wolfe

|Lee Bergere

|Alexander Clark

|Edmund Lyndeck

|Alex Alexander

|colspan="2"| Arthur Bartow

|Henry Gibson

|William David

|David Storm

|William David

|Oran Osburn

|Le Roi Operti

|Vincent Vernon

|Eustace Fletcher

|William Boehm

|Charles Collins

|Senator Gallagher

|Ralph Chambers

|Launce Maraschel

|Ralph Chambers

|Frank Rogier

|Emory Parnell

|William Putch

|Norbert Winkler

|Joseph Cusanelli

|Richard Kuss

|Tom Batten

|William Griffis

|Senator Brockbank

|Jay Velie

|Arthur Lowe

|Jay Velie

|Owen Hewitt

|Charles Dingle

|Jay Velie

|Harry O. Weber

|Walter Richardson

|Martin Cohen

|colspan="2"| Ed Van Nuys

|Sebastian Sebastian

|Henry Lascoe

|Stanley Van Beers

|Cliff Dunstan

|Michael Pollock

|Steven Geray

|Robert Bernard

|Robert Eckles

|Emile Renan

|Mitchell Jason

|colspan="2"| Richard Graham

|Grand Duke Otto

|Owen Coll

|Felix Kent

|Owen Coll

|Robert Glenn

|Ludwig Stössel

|Ed Herchert

|Larry Brown

|S. A. Russo

|Angus Cairns

|Truman Gaige

|Grand Duchess Sophie

|Lilia Skala

|Marianne Deeming

|Frances Clark

|Hildegarde Tomanek

|Lilia Skala

|Florence Dunlap

|Dorothy Blackburn

|Judith LaBrecque

|Thalia Mazarakes

|Eleanor Phelps

|Hugo Tantinnin

|E. A. Krumschmidt

|Ernst Ulman

|E. A. Krumschmidt

|David Morris

|Helmut Dantine

|Victor Clarke

|Robert Bernard

|Robert Eckles

|Lou Fryman

|colspan="2"| Zale Kessler

|The Secretary of State

|Geoffrey Lumb

|Robert Henderson

|Geoffrey Lumb

|Donald Somers

|Walter Woolf King

|Jerry Goff

|Jack Davis

|Richard Fredricks

|Robert Gregori

|Lawrence Vincent

|Bill Pollard

Notable replacements

Original Broadway production (1950–1952)

Mrs. Sally Adams: Dinah Shore, Nancy Andrews (s/b), Elaine Stritch (s/b)
Cosmo Constantine: Richard Eastham
Princess Maria: Jeanne Bal (u/s)

U.S. national tour (1952–1953)

Mrs. Sally Adams: Elaine Stritch
Cosmo Constantine: Kent Smith

Casts (1980s-2020s)

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" border="1"

!! rowspan="2" |Character

!Birmingham Repertory Theatre Production

!West End Revival

!Broadway Sacramento Production

!BBC Radio Production

!Encores! Production

!Paper Mill Playhouse Production

!Reprise Theatre Company Production

!BBC Radio Production

!Goodspeed Musicals Production

!Lyric Theater of Oklahoma Production

!Encores! Production

!1982

!1983

!1986

!1994

!1995

!1996

!2000

!2003

!2004

!2012

!2019

|Mrs. Sally Adams

|colspan="2"| Noele Gordon

|Helen Reddy

|colspan="2"| Tyne Daly

|Leslie Uggams

|Karen Morrow

|colspan="2"| Kim Criswell

|Beth Leavel

|Carmen Cusack

|Cosmo Constantine

|Basil Hoskins

|Monte Markham

|David Kernan

|Walter Charles

|Neal Benari

|Michael Nouri

|Simon Green

|David Hess

|Steve Blanchard

|Ben Davis

|Kenneth Gibson

|William Relton

|Bill Hutton

|John Barrowman

|Lewis Cleale

|Jonathan Hadley

|Hugh Panaro

|Julian Ovenden

|Zachary Halley

|Jeremy Benton

|Jason Gotay

|Princess Maria

|Veronica Page

|Shona Lindsay

|Melissa Errico

|Vanessa Dorman

|Melissa Dye

|Anna-Jane Casey

|Catherine Brunell

|Molly Rushing

|Lauren Worsham

|Congressman Wilkins

|Bernard Martin

|Don Fellows

|Christopher Durang

|MichaelJohn McGann

|Michael Tucci

|colspan="2"| Adam Heller

|Pemberton Maxwell

|Jeremy Hawk

|Bob Sessions

|Peter Bartlett

|Mark Baker

|Robert Mandan

|Mark Fredrick

|Stephen Temperley

|Eric McNaughton

|Michael Benjamin Washington

|Henry Gibson

|Michael Harding

|Kim Grant

|John Leslie Wolfe

|J. B. Adams

|Jeff Austin

|Robert Matson

|Christopher Gurr

|Senator Gallagher

|John Aron

|David Healy

|Ken Page

|Michael James Leslie

|Gerry McIntyre

|Brian Stockton

|Brad Oscar

|Senator Brockbank

|David Alder

|Dan Russell

|MacIntyre Dixon

|Hal Robinson

|Paul Clausen

|Tom Huston Orr

|Stanley Wayne Mathis

|Sebastian Sebastian

|Stefan Paul Sanchez

|Simon Jones

|Jay Stuart

|Paul Keith

|Vince Leseney

|Randy Rainbow

|Grand Duke Otto

|Michael Harding

|Kim Grant

|Gordon Connell

|J. B. Adams

|Jeff Austin

|Robert Matson

|Darrell Hammond

|Grand Duchess Sophie

|Moyna Cope

|Pamela Cundell

|Jane Connell

|Nancy Johnston

|Jennifer Butt

|Marilyn Govich

|Carol Kane

|Hugo Tantinnin

|Jonathan Owen

|Freddy Lees

|Mark Manley

|Charlie Monnot

|The Secretary of State

|Colin Thomas

Musical numbers

;Act I

"Mrs. Sally Adams" – Company
"The Hostess With the Mostes' on the Ball" – Sally
"Washington Square Dance" – Sally and Company
"Lichtenburg" – Cosmo and Singers
"Can You Use Any Money Today?" – Sally
"Marrying For Love" – Cosmo and Sally
"The Ocarina" – Princess Maria and Company
"It's a Lovely Day Today" – Kenneth and Princess Maria
"The Best Thing for You (Would Be Me)" – Sally and Cosmo

;Act II

"Lichtenburg" (Reprise) – Cosmo and Singers
"Something To Dance About" – Sally and Company
"Once Upon a Time Today" – Kenneth
"They Like Ike" – Congressman Wilkins, Senator Gallagher and Senator Brockbank
"You're Just in Love" – Sally and Kenneth
"The Best Thing for You (Would Be Me)" (Reprise) – Sally and Cosmo
"It's a Lovely Day Today" (Reprise) – Kenneth and Princess Maria
"Mrs. Sally Adams" (Reprise) – Company
"Finale" – Sally and Company

Recordings

Two LP albums of the score were released. The recording rights had been granted to RCA Victor, which had invested in the show, but Merman was under contract to Decca Records, which refused to allow her to record the original cast album. Decca issued a 10-inch LP featuring Merman singing some of her songs, accompanied by arranger-conductor Gordon Jenkins and His Orchestra and Chorus, with vocalizing by Dick Haymes (who joined Merman in the show's biggest hit, "You're Just in Love", their single reaching Billboard magazine's number 30 for a week) and Eileen Wilson (who sang "It's a Lovely Day Today" with Haymes). RCA Victor issued the original cast album, replacing Merman with Dinah Shore.

Merman was recalled to the Decca studios to record additional songs from the show, and the label rereleased the album as a 12-inch LP under the title Ethel Merman: 12 Songs from Call Me Madam. The Victor album sold reasonably well, attaining the sixth spot on the Billboard popular album charts, but the LP was out of print from 1956 until RCA Red Seal reissued it briefly in 1977. Peaking at number two on Billboards popular album charts, Merman's Decca recording, which appeared on MCA Records beginning in 1973, stayed steadily in print until the end of the LP era. Merman's Madam album was most recently available on a Decca Broadway CD, which also features Merman singing four Cole Porter tunes from the stage score of Panama Hattie (1940).

A recording of the 1952 London West End production was released with 12 numbers from the show, with Billie Worth, Anton Walbrook, Jeff Warren and Shani Wallis in the principal roles, conducted by Cyril Ornadel. The release was later reissued on the Sepia label.

Merman also is heard on the film soundtrack album (with Donald O'Connor and George Sanders), issued in 1953 as a 10-inch album, also on the Decca label. Scoring fifth position on Billboard<nowiki/>'s popular albums charts when first released, the soundtrack, taken out of print in 1957, was reissued in 1981 by Stet Records on a 12-inch LP that also contained songs from the film scores of Guys and Dolls (1955) and I'll Cry Tomorrow (1955). The Merman soundtrack has not been issued on CD.

A 1995 Broadway concert cast album featuring Tyne Daly, Lewis Cleale, Christopher Durang, Ken Page and Melissa Errico is available on the DRG label.

Promotional appearances

On the premiere episode of NBC Radio's The Big Show on November 5, 1950, original Broadway cast members Ethel Merman, Paul Lukas and Russell Nype performed songs from the score in the order of their appearance in the production, while host Tallulah Bankhead added story notes between songs. Merman sang "The Hostess with the Mostes' on the Ball", then Lukas sang "Lichtenburg", then Merman sang "Can You Use Any Money Today?" and "The Best Thing for You (Would Be Me)". Merman also sang "You're Just in Love" with Nype.

In political culture

When Englishwoman Betty Boothroyd was assigned the chair of deputy dpeaker (1987–1992), backbencher Peter Pike asked her: "What do we call you?" Drawing from her showbusiness years, Boothroyd replied: "Call me Madam."

Awards

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="width: 99%;"

! scope="col" style="width:5%;"| Year

! scope="col" style="width:20%;"| Award

! scope="col" style="width:38%;"| Category

! scope="col" style="width:22%;"| Nominee

! scope="col" style="width:10%;"| Result

| rowspan="5" align="center"| 1951

| rowspan="4"| Tony Awards

| Outstanding Musical Score

| Irving Berlin

| Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical

| Ethel Merman

| Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical

| Russell Nype

| Best Stage Technician

| Peter Feller

| colspan="2"| Theatre World Award

| Russell Nype

References

Dietz, Dan. The Complete Book of 1950s Broadway Musicals (2014), Rowman & Littlefield, , p. 34

External links

Call Me Madam at guidetomusicaltheatre.com