The Washington times., 1928-12-22
SHOW BOAT IS
ON EVE OF A
BIRTHDAY

SHOW bOdls bItS SAC1kSSN AAASA
cal success in the history Of the.
theater in any single year will
complete one years run at the
ziegfeId Theater with the per.
formance of Wednesday night, De-
cember 26. 1t opened there De.
cember 27, 1927.
Prior to that it had played q
week in Washington, opening No.
vember Is, at the National. The
ater; a week in Cleveland at the
Ohio, a week in Pittsburgh at the
Nixon and three weeks in Phila.
delphia. 1t crossed $226.7SO on
the tryout tour.
In 81 weeks at the Ziegfeld 1t
has played to $2,500,000 in round
dollars. Add another $4,000 for
the fifty.second week. A large
part of this run saw $4,000, for
capacity sale with standees, COM
ing in each week.
Yet, since it costs $31, geo =
week to operate the chow and
$16,S00 for the theater, the pro-
duction cost of $3.50, 900 is not
quite paid back in profits. The
costume bill alone, including q
complete new set to begin the Sec
ond year, was $4,000 Cleaning
the wardobe averages $3.50 a
week; stockings run away with
$500 a week.
'Show Boat" gives employment
to 20 principals, IL men and 8
women. and bit actors enough to
play the total of 3S speaking
roles. Ten of these are inn
portant enough to have their
names in large type on the pro-
on the weekly payroll. There are
Is show girls, the beauties who
wear gorgeous clothes; 20 white
girl dancers, 16 white gentlemen
of the ensemble, 80 specially
chosen negro singers, is men and
16 women, and a troupe Of 10
negro dancing girls, making a
total of 1872 persons on the stage.
The orchestra adds 25, with con-
ductor, and there is a stage
manager and assistant, Of course.
Backstage there are 25 on the
stage carpenters staff, IA in the
property mans squad, and 4 elec-
tricians and IL operators. In
cluding the manager, the front
OF the house." with 3 box-office
men, .doormen, 13 ushers, 3
engineers, 4 porters. cleaners
and special policemen, has 81 on
the payroll. Not including the
principals maids and valets, there
are Is dressers in the wardrobe
staff, handling and caring tor 800
costumes Of 160 patterns, ranging
from the crinolines of 1885 to the
sleek silks of 1923, for the action
of SHOW Boat" covers four dec
ades.
$40 Performers
Altogether there are $40 per-
sons on the payroll, front and
back stage and staff.
Royalties total per cent of the
weekly gross, going to Jerome
Kern, composer; Oscar Hammer.
stein I'd, librettist; Edna Gerber,
author of the novel, Show Boat"
(which Doubieday-Doran today re-
ports has sold 100000 copies and
Sammy Lee, dance director. Mere
than 100000 has been paid in
royalties.
Show Boat" it developed early,
had four hit songs: cor Man
River" Cant Help Lovin' That
Man." "Only Make Believe" and
why Do / Love Your" One
song hit had proveI enough to in
sure success for other musical
shows in the past.
There are but three Show
Boat" troupes playing in the
world: New York, London and a
third touring the English prov
inces. The second was opened by
Sir Alfred Butt at the Drury Lane
Theater, May 8. 1928, with Edith
Day as Magnolia. Cedric Hard
wicke as Cap'n Andy and Paul
Robson, colored baritone. as Joe.
1t was an instant hit and still is
fiscal history there. A
second American company. to
start in New York about Septem-
Der Is, 1928, and to go on the
road later, was projected by Mr..
Ziegfeld. He cast Joseph Ma
caulay, the Aramis of his "The
Three Musketeers," as Gaylord
Ravenal, the gambler; Paul Robe
son as Joe and Libby Holman as
Julia. This plan was abandoned
because Of difficulties in casting.
No one whom Mr.. Ziegfeld thought
suitable for Magnolia, played and
sung here by Norma Terris, could
be found; he could not duplicate
Eva Buck and Sammy White, &C.
centric comedians (seven teams
were tried out in London by Sir
Alfred Butt for these roles); he
wanted Walter Huston for Cap'n
Andy, played with such distinc-
tion here by Charles Winninger.
But Mr.. Huston was under con-
tract to George NJ. Cohan for
Elmer the Great Raymond
Hitchcock was then signed for
the role. Paul Robson was too
great a hit in London to take
away, and, besides, he had been
suspended for six months by
Actors Equity over here on a
charge of jumping a contract.
Those in the Cast
Mr.. Ziegfeld gave up. Besides
those named above, "Show Boat
has greatly enhanced the repu-
tation of Helen Morgan, night
club hostess, torch singer" and
former Ziegfeld chorus girl, who
leaped into fame as Julie" and
added new bay leaves to the
wreaths of Howard Marsh as
Ravenal. Charles Ellis as Steve.
Edna May Oliver, straight
comedienne, as Partly Ann
Hawks, Aunt Jemima Teresa
Veronica Gardella) as Queenio,
and last but certainly far from
least, Jules Bledsoe, colored bari
tone as Joe, besides bringing half
dozen understudies into tempo
I.a isM fanan trhn,.n lon lnnnn M