Broadway musicals, so the adage goes, don’t get written; they get rewritten. In 1992 American theatregoers were surprised to hear that Crazy for You, a new Gershwin musical, comedy was about to open on Broadway. George Gershwin had died, 55 years previously, in 1937, aged 38.
George and Ira Gershwin’s Girl Crazy, which starred Ethel Merman, had premiered during the Depression in 1930 when audiences wanted to be cheered-up. The book was completely reworked and given new dialogue by Ken Ludwig. Only four numbers were retained from the original production. Thirteen numbers from other Gershwin shows were added.
Big production numbers follow in quick succession. The songs are piled high: “Someone To Watch Over Me”, “Slap that Bass”, “Embraceable You”. “I Got Rhythm”, “Naughty Baby”, “They Can’t Take That Away From Me”.
The story-line is light-hearted. A banker (Charlie Stemp) is meant to be closing a bankrupt theatre in Deadrock, a small mining town in the Nevada desert; but he wants to be in show business and decides instead to put on a musical with the local cowboys and himself and the cowgirl (Carly Anderson), he has fallen in love with, in the leading roles. He disguises himself as a famous Broadway impresario and imports Follies chorus girls from New York, who are dazzlingly costumed by William Ivey Long.
Crazy for You was last seen in London in 1994 when it ran for nearly three years. The musical is dance-led and Susan Stroman’s choreography was very much part of its success. It still is. Stroman is back again, and this time she is also directing. The staging is extremely efficient. Stroman keeps the cast, happily tapping away. The energetic and inventive routines are a joy to watch, “I Got Rhythm” is an absolute knock-out. The energy is fantastic.
Charlie Stemp, hoofer, singer, actor, has considerable talent, charm, humour, elegance and stamina. Tom Edden is very amusing as the impresario. He and Stemp (in disguise as the impresario) share a classic Marx Brothers vaudeville Duck Soup sketch in which they mirror each other’s every movement and gesture. The timing is spot-on There is a touch of Groucho Marx about Edden’s performance. His dry comment, “I am beside myself,” is a witty and clever pun.
Crazy for You is in the same classic 1930’s show business bracket as Anything Goes and 42nd Street. Comic and farcical, the production is pure, undiluted, crowd-pleasing escapism. Who can ask for anything more?
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