VOICE ONE:
An American musical play has been performed in New York City foralmost forty-two years. On January thirteenth, however, “TheFantasticks” is finally expected to close. I’m Doug Johnson.
VOICE TWO:
And I’m Sarah Long. The story and music of “The Fantasticks” isour report today on the VOA Special English program, THIS ISAMERICA.
((MUSIC: “OVERTURE”))
VOICE ONE:
“The Fantasticks” has been performed about seventeen-thousandtimes at the Sullivan Street Playhouse in New York. It is thelongest-running musical play in the world. Now, however, “TheFantasticks” producer Lore [loar] Noto says the show must endJanuary Thirteenth. He says operating costs have increased. At thesame time, ticket sales have decreased.
The musical opened on May Third, Nineteen-Sixty. Much has changedsince then. Yet over the years people kept coming to see “TheFantasticks.”
VOICE TWO:
People even came to see a performance of “The Fantasticks” a fewdays after the September Eleventh terrorist attack in New York. Thetheater is in the area called Greenwich Village, very close to thetarget area. But about fifteen people walked through the ashesblowing from the destroyed World Trade Center buildings to see theshow.
One song in the play had a new andsadder meaning after September Eleventh. This song, “Try toRemember,” urges people to try to remember a very different kind ofSeptember — a September when life was beautiful.
VOICE ONE:
“The Fantasticks” is about young love, children leaving home andwhat it is like to be a father.
Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt wrote “The Fantasticks” inNineteen-Fifty-Nine. They wrote it for a summer production atBarnard College in New York. Nine months later, the show opened atthe Sullivan Street Playhouse.
“The Fantasticks” has played thereever since. The children and grandchildren of those who first sawthe play have returned to see it.
VOICE TWO:
One reason for the continuing popularity of “The Fantasticks” maybe that it is different from large musicals playing in Broadwaytheaters. The Sullivan Street Playhouse is very small. It has onlyone-hundred-fifty seats. The people who see the show are very closeto the actors.
“The Fantasticks” has only eight actors. There are only twomusicians. The actors’ clothes and the settings on the stage arevery simple.
VOICE ONE:
Now we present some music from the first New York production of”The Fantasticks.” Jerry Orbach plays the Narrator. He helps tellthe story. Mister Orbach also plays El Gallo [GUY-yo], a handsomerobber. The Narrator sings the play’s most famous song, “Try toRemember.”
((MUSIC: “TRY TO REMEMBER”))
VOICE TWO:
The Narrator presents the main people in the play. They are a boynamed Matt, a girl named Luisa, and their two fathers. Luisa issixteen years old. She dreams of having more interesting experiencesin her life. Rita Gardner plays Luisa. She sings “Much More.”
((MUSIC: “MUCH MORE”))
VOICE ONE:
A wall separates the homes of Matt and Luisa. Their fathers builtthe wall to keep the young people apart. The fathers really wantMatt and Luisa to fall in love. But, they feel that the best way tomake this happen is to act as if they disapprove of any relationshipbetween their two children.
The fathers believe children willonly do what their parents do not want them to do. The fathers,played by William Larsen and Hugh Thomas, sing about this in “NeverSay No.”
((MUSIC: “NEVER SAY NO”))
VOICE TWO:
The fathers decide on a plot to bring Matt and Luisa together.They ask El Gallo to try to kidnap Luisa. Matt fights El Gallo. Theyoung man saves Luisa. He becomes a hero. The young people and theirfathers are united. Everyone is happy.
But in the second part of “The Fantasticks,” Matt and Luisadiscover that their fathers have tricked them. The young loversargue. Matt decides to leave Luisa. He wants to travel to otherparts of the world. He seeks new experiences. Kenneth Nelson isMatt. He sings “I Can See It.”
((MUSIC: “I CAN SEE IT”))
VOICE ONE:
The fathers are unhappy that their plot to bring the childrentogether has failed. They discuss the problems of having children.They decide it is easier to grow vegetables than to raise children.
((MUSIC: “PLANT A RADISH”))
VOICE TWO:
Luisa also wants to visit different places. The handsome robber,El Gallo, offers to take her with him to see the world.
((MUSIC: “ROUND AND ROUND”))
VOICE ONE:
Luisa prepares to go away with El Gallo, but he leaves withouther. Matt returns from his travels. He has seen and experienced manyunpleasant things. Both Luisa and Matt have been hurt emotionally bytheir experiences. Yet they also have grown up.
Matt and Luisa rediscover their love for each other. Listen asthey sing their song of love, “They Were You.”
((MUSIC: “THEY WERE YOU”))
VOICE TWO:
This program was written by Jerilyn Watson and Shelley Gollust.It was produced by George Grow. Our studio engineer was KevinRaiman. I’m Sarah Long.
VOICE ONE:
And I’m Doug Johnson. Join us again next week for another reportabout life in the United States on the VOA Special English programTHIS IS AMERICA.
((MUSIC: “OVERTURE”))