Carousel (Musical) Plot & Characters | StageAgent Overview Synopsis Richard Rodgers once wrote that of all the musicals he wrote, Carousel was his personal favorite. This iconic American classic features some of the most powerful music ever written for the stage, including “If I Loved You”, “Mister Snow”, “June is Bustin Out All Over” and the iconic “You’ll Never Walk Alone.” Carousel was Rodgers and Hammerstein’s second collaboration, and was adapted from Ferenc Molnar’s 1909 play Lilliom. They transferred the Budapest setting of Lilliom to the New England coastline, where Carousel takes place. The story tells of charming, roguish carnival barker, Billy Bigelow, and mill worker Julie Jordan, both loners, who meet and fall in love. Their marriage ends up costing both their jobs, and things go downhill from there. Billy’s desperation makes him violent against those he loves most, and drives him to commit crimes in order to provide for his family. When Billy falls in with con-man Jigger Craigin, he ends up getting caught in the midst of an armed robbery and takes his own life.

Billy is allowed to return to earth for one day fifteen years later, and he encounters the daughter he never knew. Louise is a lonely, friendless teenager, her father's reputation having haunted her throughout her young life. How Billy instills in both the child and her mother a sense of hope and dignity is a dramatic testimony to love’s transcendence. Voted the best musical of the 20th century by Time Magazine, Rodger’s and Hammerstein’s Carousel is the classic American musical, spanning heaven and earth in its exploration of human frailty, resilience, and the power of forgiveness. Characters Carousel CAROUSEL ROUBEN MAMOULIAN Based on Liliom , a play by FERENC MOLNAR as adapted by BENJAMIN F. GLAZER. First produced at the Majestic Theatre on April 19, 1945, with John Raitt as "Billy" and Jan Clayton as "Julie". TO the strains of the "Carousel Waltz" the curtain rises upon an amusement park in a New England town in 1873. Fishermen, sailors, mill girls and children are enjoying the sights and sounds of a carnival atmosphere.

Two mill girls, Carrie Pipperidge and Julie Jordan, are having a good time until Mrs. Mullin, proprietress of the carousel, insults them. When her handsome, strapping barker, Billy Bigelow, jumps to the defense of the girls, Mrs. Mullin summarily fires him. Billy, being a happy-go-lucky fellow, does not take this dismissal to heart; on the contrary, he invites Julie to have a beer with him. While he is off to get his belongings, Carrie asks her friend Julie whether she finds Billy attractive, but Julie is singularly evasive ("You're a Queer One, Julie Jordan"). Carrie thereupon confides to Julie that she has a fellow of her own, the fisherman Enoch Snow, whom she plans to marry ("When I Marry Mr. Snow"). When Billy returns and is left alone with Julie they begin to talk about love, and the kind of person each would be attracted to. When Billy inquires if Julie could ever marry a person such as he is, Julie replies that she would--if she loved him ("If I Loved You"). The romance soon takes wing: Julie and Billy get married.

Making preparations for the first clam-bake of the year, the fishermen, mill girls, sailors and children are ebullient over the vernal season ("June Is Bustin' Out All Over"). Carrie and Enoch Snow dream about their future together as man and wife ("When the Children Are Asleep"). At this point Billy learns that Julie is pregnant. Though up to now completely irresponsible and incapable of meeting the emotional and domestic demands made upon him by marriage, Billy is suddenly filled with a sense of parental pride and with an overwhelming feeling of tenderness for both his wife and his unborn child ("Soliloquy"). He is determined to get money for them to assure their future. The clam-bake proves a gay affair. ("This Was a Real Nice Clam Bake"), alive with good humour, rowdy spirits and song. Julie, however, is touched with sadness, knowing as she does that her husband is volatile in his moods and undependable in his behanviour; yet she loves him deeply, and for this reason there is no point in her wondering if he is good or bad ("What's the Use of Wond'rin'").

But that there is much bad in Billy becomes evident when he gets involved in a hold-up. Caught by the police, he commits suicide to elude arrest. Overwhelmed by her grief, Julie tries to find solace in the comforting words of her friend, Nettie ("You'll Never Walk Alone"). Billy arrives in Heaven, where he defiantly tells two of its police that he does not regret his actions on Earth. For this he is doomed to spend fifteen years in Purgatory. At the end of that period the Starkeeper in Heaven permits him to return to Earth for a single day to gain redemption for his soul. Snatching a star from the firmament, which he intends as a gift for his daughter, Billy comes back to Earth. He finds that she is an unhappy child who is incapable of receiving his gift. As a reflex action in his disappointment, Billy slaps her face, but the slap is given in love, and not in hate, and so the girl feels no pain. Through his understanding and tenderness, Billy is able to lift his daughter out of her misery and to fill her with hope and courage.

He now watches the ceremony during which she is graduating from highschool, happy to see that her head is now high, happy too that he has found redemption. As the immediate successor to Oklahoma!--the musical play with which Rodgers and Hammerstein made stage history--Carousel takes the American musical play another impressive step forward. From many points of view, it is better than Oklahoma!, though its performance history is less spectacular. The text has greater depths of feeling, a more encompassing humanity and greater universality--with tragic overtones not often encountered on the musical stage. The fusion of music and the text is even more sensitive here than in Oklahoma!. Song flows into speech and speech into song; melody and text become one. Extended sequences combine prose, verse and speech, or recitative and melody. The orchestra often becomes an eloquent commentator on what has just happened or is about to happen. And Rodgers' artistic horizon is extended. Here he is much more than the shaper of fresh, original and beautifyl melody; he is a musical dramatist. For the orchestra he now writes with symphonic breadth.

The form and style of his windswept melodies and his expansive musical scenes, now unhampered by structural limitations, were dictated by the requirements of the text without concern for convention or tradition. His dramatic expressiveness succeeds time and again to penetrate to the very core of a character or situation. Review of "Carousel" by Rogers and Hammerstein Updated March 01, 2016. About.com Rating First performed in 1945, Carousel was a phenomenal hit, running for almost 900 performances. Critics hail it as Rodgers and Hammerstein’s best work. Time magazine named it the best musical of the 20th century. Composer Richard Rodgers declared that Carousel was his personal favorite. While there’s a lot to admire, such as an interesting story line and inspiring ballads, I don’t believe Carousel ranks as highly as other musicals by Rodgers and Hammerstein. Rogers and Hammerstein’s Ol’ Song and Dance For me, the show is too long. I’m usually distrustful of musicals with a dream ballet slapped into the middle of a show. They rarely add to the storyline, and almost always induce yawns from the audience.

(I apologize to all ballet enthusiasts reading this review!) Carousel features too many pretty songs, many of which are a bit slow, in comparison to their more energetic musicals Oklahoma, South Pacific, and The Sound of Music. There are beautiful melodies throughout Carousel. continue reading below our video 4 Tips for Improving Test Performance The song “You’ll Never Walk Alone,” is one of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s most spiritually stirring numbers. But there’s also a song dedicated to clambakes that borders on the ridiculous (“This Was a Real Nice Clambake” – even the title makes me smirk). “Soliloquy” is by far the longest ballad in the show, running over seven minutes and filled with complex melodies and tempo changes. This song would be a lot more enjoyable if it wasn’t being sung by the obnoxious main character – the central flaw of this musical. Here’s the Deal Breaker: Carousel focuses on one of the most annoying protagonists in musical history: Billy Bigelow. Billy is brash, gruff, and who consistently makes bad choices. Upon hearing the news that he is going to be a father, he decides the best way to make money for his child is to commit robbery.

But before committing the crime he gambles away his share of the stolen goods. And then he stabs himself when the police catch him! Billy Bigelow is even an idiot in the after-life. In Act Two, he journeys up to the Pearly Gates and demands to talk to God. He is sent back to Earth to do one good deed to earn his place in Heaven. But instead of doing a good deed, he slaps his teen-age daughter! And for some disturbing reason, the girl says it feels like a kiss. The Original Story Carousel is based upon Lilliom, a play by Hungarian dramatist Ferenc Molnar. In his original script, the protagonist fails to get into Heaven at the end. In Carousel, Billy’s ghost whispers a few kind words into his widow’s ear, and then he gets to float on up to Paradise. Call me judgmental, but I prefer my anti-hero characters to undergo a lot more struggle before they attain redemption. By tacking on a happy ending, Rodgers and Hammerstein pleased millions of musical lovers. But they also obliterated the lesson of Molnar’s original story.

(HD 720p) R&H "Carousel", You'll Never Walk Alone (Extended Version) - YouTube (HD 720p) R&H "Carousel", You'll Never Walk Alone (Extended Version) Want to watch this again later? Sign in to add this video to a playlist. Need to report the video? Sign in to report inappropriate content. Rating is available when the video has been rented. This feature is not available right now. Please try again later. Uploaded on Oct 11, 2010 To watch Billie/Julie Duet - If I Loved You To watch Billie's Soliloquy My earlier Carousel "You'll Never Walk Alone" video has been blocked in my home country (USA) by INGROOVES who holds the copyright to Claramae Turner's solo of You'll Never Walk Alone. I replaced Ms. Turner's solo audio with the Mormon Tabernacle's recording of the song. Audio is a little off but bearable, I think.

Nettie Fowler, the cousin of the female protagonist Julie Jordan, sings "You'll Never Walk Alone" to comfort and encourage Julie when her husband, Billy Bigelow, the male lead, is killed during a failed robbery. It is reprised in the final scene to encourage a graduation class of which Louise (Billy and Julie's daughter) is a member. Billy watches this ceremony during his return to earth. Both acts are included in this video clip. Because the song is included in the musical's school graduation finale, it has become a standard at graduation ceremonies in the United States. When you walk through a storm Keep your chin up high And don't be afraid of the dark. At he end of the storm Is a golden sky And the sweet silver song of a lark. Walk on through the wind, Walk on through the rain, Tho' your dreams be tossed and blown.Walk on, walk on With hope in your heart And you'll never walk alone, You'll never walk alone.

Carousel :: Rodgers & Hammerstein :: Show Details Carousel Background The Theatre Guild, a theatrical producing organization which flourished on Broadway from the early ‘20s for over half a century, hit upon successful formula of turning a few of its classic plays into classics of musical theatre. Their production of Gershwin’s PORGY AND BESS was based on their production of DuBose Heyward’s PORGY; likewise, Rodgers & Hammerstein’s OKLAHOMA! was based on Lynn Rigg’s GREEN GROWN THE LILACS. In 1921 The Guild presented the American premiere of a new play called LILIOM by the renowned Hungarian playwright, Ferenc Molnar. Benjamin Glaser was the translator (although a fascinating and never-proven rumor has suggested that an early translation of LILIOM was provided by Rodgers’ first partner, Lorenz Hart), and Eva Le Gallienne created the role of Julie to Joseph Schidkraut’s portrayal of the title role. LILIOM was a critical and popular success for the Guild; set on the outskirts of Budapest, its mix of whimsy and pathos, tragedy and fantasy, hit a chord with the American public.

The Guild knew they had a winner; more than that, they felt its potential could be further exploited. A preliminary request to Molnar that LILIOM be musicalized, following on the heels of PORGY AND BESS, was rejected; but a subsequent proposal, this time fresh on the heels of OKLAHOMA! and with the understanding that the authors of that musical adaptation would tackle this one as well, met with Molnar’s approval. LILIOM could sing, if Rodgers & Hammerstein wrote the score. However, there was yet another problem, this time on the American side of the equation: in 1945, at the height of World War II and the Nazi occupation of Europe, Budapest was not a romantic of uncontroversial setting for a musical. If LILIOM were to work, it would have to be relocated, and Rodgers and Hammerstein were reticent to do so. Theatre Guild producer Theresa Helburn suggested a New Orleans setting, with Liliom becoming a tough and exotic Creole character.

Hammerstein demurred on the grounds that his lyrics, always rife with dialect of the setting they were placed in, would be riddled with so many “ze’s” and “zose’s” as to make the songs sound like so manu buzz saws. Helburn was determined not to let the idea go, and she persisted. It was Richard Rodgers who came up with the concept of New England in the late 19th century—and suddenly the idea fell into place. While visions of clambakes and fishing boats danced in their heads, the authors went to work. The very first song they wrote for the score was the most daunting—Billy’s powerful and insightful “Soliloquy.” As daring as anything in the groundbreaking OKLAHOMA!, this number provided character, story, passion and heartfelt emotion—in an unprecedented eight-minute solo.

After the “Soliloquy” everything fell into place: the upbeat choral numbers ( “June is Bustin’ Out All Over,” “This Was a Real Nice Clambake”), the love songs (“If I Loved You,” “When I Marry Mister Snow,” “What’s the Use of Wond’rin,” and “When the Children are Asleep,”) and the haunting and inspirational “You’ll Never Walk Alone.” CAROUSEL proved that the extraordinary innovations of OKLAHOMA! were no one-time fluke; the opening scuttled the traditional overture and replaced it with a lush “Carousel Waltz” joined by a storied prologue in mime; and this was followed by the now-classic “Beach Scene” in which dialogue and snatched of song we intermingled to breathtaking effects. CAROUSEL shared with OKLAHOMA! its stellar creative team: authors Rodgers & Hammerstein of course, and director (Rouben Mamoulian) and choreographer (Agnes de Mille.) After tryouts in New Haven and Boston, CAROUSEL opened at Broadway’s Majestic Theatre on April 19, 1945, where it ran for 890 performances.

While not the spectacular success the OKLAHOMA! was, CAROUSEL managed to do the impossible—follow a mammoth success and stand on its own right. Audiences in the throes of World War II could not help but be moved by the story of a young widow raising a child without its father. The final scene, in which Bill comes back to Earth spiritually and reaches out to Julie and their daughter Louise, was played before countless war widows, parents, children and siblings who had lost a loved one overseas. The effect of CAROUSEL and “You’ll Never Walk Alone” is haunting, to this day. The original Broadway cast featured John Raitt as Billy, Jan Clayton as Julie, and Jean Darling as Carrie. Winner of the New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award as Best Musical of 1945, the Broadway run was quickly followed by a two year national tour, as well as countless productions throughout the world. In 1950, CAROUSEL premiered at London’s Theatre Royal Drury Lane, where it played for 566 performances, and in 1956 the motion picture version, starring Gordon MacRae as Billy and Shirley Jones as Julie, was released.

Written By: Bert Fink OKLAHOMA!, the first musical Rodgers & Hammerstein wrote together, wasn’t a mere success: it was a phenomenon. An artistic triumph that changed the course of musical theatre, it shattered box office records when it opened in 1943, outran every show before it, held Broadway's longevity crown for fifteen years, and launched the Rodgers & Hammerstein partnership as Broadway's Golden Team in Broadway’s Golden Era. Inevitably the question arose: what could possibly follow OKLAHOMA!? In his autobiography Rodgers recalls the sage advice he received from film mogul Sam Goldwyn: "This is such a wonderful show!" Goldwyn bubbled. "You know what you should do next? Shoot yourself!" Fortunately Rodgers & Hammerstein had other ideas in mind. Their first assignment after OKLAHOMA! was a new work in another medium altogether—writing the score for a movie musical called STATE FAIR (1945), a charming depiction of homespun Americana that introduced "It Might as Well Be Spring," the Academy Award winner for Best Song of the Year. Still, Hollywood was only a detour on the return to Broadway.

As with OKLAHOMA!, it was Rodgers & Hammerstein’s producers, Lawrence Langner and Theresa Helburn of The Theatre Guild, who provided the team with the source for their next musical. In two previous, successful instances Helburn and Langner had recycled Guild plays into Guild musicals (turning PORGY into PORGY AND BESS, and GREEN GROW THE LILACS into OKLAHOMA!). Now, the Guild wanted Rodgers & Hammerstein to make a musical out of LILIOM. Hungarian playwright Ferenc Molnar’s elaborate fantasy had its American premiere under the auspices of the Theatre Guild, in a 1921 production translated by Benjamin F. Glazer that starred Joseph Schildkraut in the title role and Eva Le Gallienne as Julie. The property was rich with musical potential, but before it could be transformed Helburn and Langner had to convince not only their skeptical American authors, but also their Hungarian one. Molnar had already turned down several requests to turn LILIOM into an opera. And he was ready to resist again, until, at the Guild's invitation, he attended a performance of OKLAHOMA! and was instantly won over.

LILIOM could sing, he decreed, if Rodgers & Hammerstein wrote the score. But Rodgers & Hammerstein had their doubts too. It was not the themes of domestic violence and fateful tragedy in LILIOM that deterred the authors—in fact these issues only served to whet their appetite for challenging work—but the play's locale: Budapest, Hungary. In 1944 Budapest was ravaged by war and setting a play there would only compete with the headlines or, worse, seem exploitative. If a musical of LILIOM were to work, they concluded, it would have to be relocated, and Rodgers and Hammerstein were reluctant to do so. Helburn suggested a New Orleans setting, with Liliom turned into a tough and exotic Creole character. Oscar Hammerstein II demurred on the grounds that his lyrics, which were always steeped in the dialect of their locale, would become riddled with the "ze's" and "zose's" of the Creole accent and end up sounding like a chorus of buzz saws. But then Richard Rodgers came up with the concept of New England in the late 19th century and everything fell into place.

Liliom would become Billy Bigelow, barker on a carousel in a small fishing village, and Julie would be featured as one of the local millworkers. While images of clambakes and lighthouses danced in their heads, the authors went to work. The very first song they wrote for the score was the most daunting—Billy’s powerful and insightful "Soliloquy." As daring as anything in the groundbreaking OKLAHOMA!, this number provided character, motivation, passion and heartfelt emotion—in an unprecedented eight-minute solo. Structurally, CAROUSEL proved as daring as OKLAHOMA! in style and form, while telling a story that was far more sophisticated. Here, in addition to Billy’s "Soliloquy," the innovations included the opening, which scuttled the traditional overture entirely and replaced it with a lush "Carousel Waltz" that underscored a storied prologue in mime; and the now-classic "If I Loved You" scene, in which dialogue and fragments of song were intermingled to breathtaking effects. CAROUSEL began rehearsals in early 1945.

Guiding it was OKLAHOMA!'s stellar creative team: authors Rodgers & Hammerstein, producers Helburn and Langner, director Rouben Mamoulian, choreographer Agnes de Mille and costume designer Miles White. Featured in the original cast were John Raitt as Billy, Jan Clayton as Julie Jordan, and Jean Darling as Carrie. After tryouts in New Haven and Boston, CAROUSEL opened at Broadway's Majestic Theatre on April 19, 1945, and eventually ran for 890 performances. Even the skeptics were confounded: while it could never be the unexpected revelation that OKLAHOMA! was, CAROUSEL did the impossible—it followed a smash hit by succeeding in its own right. Audiences in the throes of World War II responded deeply to its story of a young widow raising a child alone, and its spiritual imagery had a profound impact on those who had lost a loved one overseas. The effects of CAROUSEL and its authemn, "You’ll Never Walk Alone" are haunting to this day.

Winner of the New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award as Best Musical of 1945, the Broadway run was followed by a two year national tour. In London CAROUSEL followed OKLAHOMA! directly into the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, opening in June of 1950 and playing for over a year and a half. In 1956 the motion picture version was released by Twentieth Century Fox. Filmed on location in Boothbay Harbor, Maine, it was originally slated to star Frank Sinatra as Billy and Judy Garland as Julie. However, she withdrew prior to filming and he left over a contract dispute during the first weeks of shooting. They were replaced by the OKLAHOMA! movie co-stars Gordon MacRae and Shirley Jones. CAROUSEL has been performed by hundreds of theatre and opera companies throughout the world. Notable productions include the Music Theater of Lincoln Center with John Raitt re-creating the role of Billy (1965); a television version starring Robert Goulet with choreography by Edward Villella, broadcast on ABC-TV (1967); and a summer run at the U.S.

Pavilion of the 1958 Brussels Exposition, with Jan Clayton re-creating the role of Julie. Director Nicholas Hytner, choreographer Sir Kenneth MacMillan and designer Bob Crowley collaborated on the revelatory 1992 Royal National Theatre production of CAROUSEL in London, which played to sold-out houses in the Lyttleton Theatre before transferring to the Shaftesbury Theatre in the West End the following September, where it was presented by Cameron Mackintosh. In March 1994, CAROUSEL marked its first return to Broadway since the original run, playing for a year at the Vivian Beaumont Theater. Presented by Lincoln Center Theater, this CAROUSEL went on to receive a record-setting five Tony Awards (the most of any show that season), including Best Director of a Musical (Hytner), Best Choreography (MacMillan), Best Scenic Design (Crowley) and Best Revival of a Musical 1994. A Japanese production played extended engagements in Tokyo, Nagoya and Osaka in 1995, and a U.S.

National Tour visited over 40 cities from February of 1996 through May of 1997, and starred Broadway stars to be Patrick Wilson, Sarah Uriarte Berry and Jennifer Laura Thompson. In 2002, Carnegie Hall hosted a concert performance with Hugh Jackman, Audra McDonald, Philip Bosco, Blythe Danner, John Raitt, Norbert Leo Butz, Jason Danieley, Judy Kaye and Lauren Ward. That same year, Emily Loesser appeared in CAROUSEL at the Royal Festival Hall in London. Shirley Jones played Nettie at the Reagle Theatre in 2005. In 2007, the Boston Pops' CAROUSEL featured Aaron Lazar, Liz Callaway, Jason Danieley and Marin Mazzie, while R&H opera star Lesley Garrett played Nettie in a 2008 West End revival. CAROUSEL had always been Rodgers & Hammerstein’s personal favorite; the latest turns on the CAROUSEL prove that their opinion is still shared by audiences everywhere.

YOU’LL NEVER WALK ALONE "You’ll Never Walk Alone" (music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II) was written for the 1945 Broadway musical play CAROUSEL. The song highlights a momentous plot turn early in Act II, and is reprised as the musical’s powerful and inspirational finale. From the very beginning, this song has always had a special resonance and meaning beyond its context and function within the score for CAROUSEL. During the musical’s original Broadway run, with the world at war, many in the audience who had a husband, a brother, a son or a lover fighting overseas, found solace in its meaning and its message.

In addition to numerous recordings of the song on CAROUSEL cast albums and the motion picture soundtrack, "You’ll Never Walk Alone" has been recorded by dozens of pop, rock, gospel, country western and opera stars, including: Louis Armstrong, Chet Atkins, Shirley Bassey, Glen Campbell, Ray Charles, Perry Como, Michael Crawford, Placido Domingo, Aretha Franklin, Judy Garland, Gerry and the Pacemakers, Marilyn Horne, Mahalia Jackson, Patti LaBelle, Cleo Laine, Mario Lanza, Darlene Love, Jim Nabors, Olivia Newton John, Pink Floyd, Elvis Presley, The Righteous Brothers, Nina Simone, Frank Sinatra, Kiri Te Kanawa, Conway Twitty and Dionne Warwick. Rodgers & Hammerstein’s "You'll Never Walk Alone" has a unique history in Great Britain where a 1963 cover version of the song by the Liverpool band Gerry and the Pacemakers was embraced by the locals (known as "scousers"), and lead to its adoption as the motto and anthem of the Liverpool Football Club. Subsequently, it has become ubiquitous at football (soccer) matches all over the world.

True to the song's intent, it has also provided inspiration in times of peril, and has served as a potent fundraiser for causes borne out of disaster. In 1985, a recording of "You’ll Never Walk Alone" featuring British pop and rock stars, was put together to raise funds for victims of the Bradford Stadium tragedy — and did: the song was a Number One single in Britain throughout the summer of 1985, and raised hundreds of thousand of pounds for the cause. In September 1997, on the eve of the funeral for Diana, Princess of Wales, scores of Londoners who had gathered for the event broke into spontaneous, subdued choruses of "You’ll Never Walk Alone." In happier times, BBC live coverage showed over 750,000 Britons gathered on the Mall in front of Buckingham Palace in June 2002, singing "You'll Never Walk Alone" during the 2002 Golden Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II.

In the United States in recent years, "You’ll Never Walk Alone," long associated with Jerry Lewis’ Labor Day Muscular Dystrophy telethons, has also been adopted by such causes as Hurricane Andrew and Hurricane Katrina relief and the annual national AIDS Walk campaigns. Marilyn Horne, Joan Baez and others have sung "You’ll Never Walk Alone" at AIDS Walk rallies in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Philadelphia and Chicago, and in 1992 Patti LaBelle made a new recording of the song for a national AIDS Walk public service announcement. Bringing the song full circle, at the 1994 AIDS Walk New York, Shirley Verrett and the cast of the Broadway production of CAROUSEL sang "You’ll Never Walk Alone" on the Great Lawn in Central Park before a crowd of 30,000. 17 years later, CAROUSEL co-star Audra McDonald sang the song, to a crowd now swollen to over 45,000. Rolling into the 21st Century, "You'll Never Walk Alone" continues to inspire the world at times of triumph and tragedy.

In 2002, opera great Renee Fleming sang it at Ground Zero as part of the first year anniversary commemorations of the devastating 9/11 attacks; in 2009 she sang the song for a worldwide audience once again, this time backed by the US Naval Academy Glee Club on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial for a globally-televised concert in honor of the Inauguration of President Barack Obama. Ewen, David. Richard Rodgers, Holt, New York 1957 _____. With a Song in His Heart (Richard Rodgers), Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York 1963 Fordin, Hugh. Getting To Know Him: The Biography of Oscar Hammerstein II, Random House, New York 1977 Green, Stanley. The Rodgers and Hammerstein Story, John Day, New York 1963; DeCapo Press paperback, 1980 _____. The Rodgers & Hammerstein Fact Book, Hal Leonard, Milwaukee 1980 Hammerstein II, Oscar. Lyrics, with an introduction by the author and a preface by Stephen Sondheim, Hal Leonard, Milwaukee 1985 _____.

A Real Nice Clambake, illustrated by Nadine Westcott, Little, Brown & Co., Boston 1992 Mordden, Ethan.Rodgers & Hammerstein, Harry N. Abrams, Inc., New York 1992 Nolan, Frederick. The Sound of Their Music, Walker, New York 1978 Rodgers, Richard. Musical Stages: An Autobiography, Random House, New York 1975; Jove Paperback, New York 1978 Taylor, Deems. Some Enchanted Evenings, Harper, New York 1953 AGNES DE MILLE: THE DANCES OF CAROUSEL Written By: Agnes DeMille In the last year of her life, legendary choreographer Agnes de Mille revisited her contributions to the original groundbreaking 1945 Broadway production of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s CAROUSEL, resulting in an extraordinary video of insight, commentary and recollection. Hosted by the composer’s daughter, Mary Rodgers, the video includes the dance sequences from “June is Bustin’ Out All Over,” “The Hornpipe,” and the Act II Ballet, recreated by Ms.

de Mille’s longtime associate Gemze de Lappe and performed by members of the Nashville Ballet. Commentary from Ms. de Mille and Ms. de Lappe includes analysis, discussion and demonstration, advice and suggestions for the director, and discussion of sets, costumes and lighting. This instructional video is included with the materials provided by R&H Theatricals for CAROUSEL and is recommended for viewing by your entire production team, cast and crew. The New York Times Written By: Oscar Hammerstein II Toward the end of January, 1944, Theresa Helburn and Lawrence Langner beckoned Dick Rodgers and me into a dark corner of Sardi's, put their fingers to their lips with a hushing gesture, looked from left to right to make sure no one was listening, and whispered, 'How would you like to do a musical play based on Molnar's Liliom?' We looked from right to left and whispered back at them in unison: 'No.' A pause. Then Lawrence asked, 'Why?' We took turns listing successive objections, all having to do with the original scene, Hungary. 'It's a beautiful story,' Terry commented wistfully. We agreed. 'Interesting set of characters,' volunteered Lawrence.

Granted. We had some cannelloni, and ice cream and raisin cake, and parted. The following week we met at my house and Miss Helburn was prepared to meet our locale objection: 'Move it from Hungary to Louisiana. You boys say you want to write about America. Louisiana is America$mdash;but it also has a European flavor. Liliom can be a Creole.' This sounded like a good idea. I promised to give it serious consideration. Well, I brushed up on my Creole atmosphere and ran bang into a disconcerting difficulty$mdash;the dialect. Meanwhile, however, Molnar's tender story and its strange characters had begun to hypnotize us. Dick and I kept telling each other why we weren't going to adapt 'Liliom,' and then we would drift off into a contemplation of all its attractive possibilities. The very difficulties of the job we knew would lead us into unusual devices. We knew we wouldn't wind up with a conventional musical comedy. It was obvious that we would have to mix in values from the dramatic stage and opera. The idea that really opened the way to it all was a suggestion by Dick that at first sounded downright silly.

This was to transplant the play to the New England coast. But it sounded silly only for a few seconds. I began to see an attractive ensemble$mdash;sailors, whalers, girls who worked in the mills up the river, clambakes on near-by islands, an amusement park on the seaboard, things people could do in crowds, people who were strong and alive and lusty. The poignancy of the story, I was certain, would not suffer from gaiety of background. It would enhance it. As for the two leading characters, Julie with her courage and inner strength and outer simplicity seemed more indigenous to Maine than to Budapest. Liliom is, of course, an international character, indigenous to nowhere. So now, for the first time, Dick and I felt that irrational enthusiasm that lures men into the harrowing project of writing a musical play. And away we went. from 'Turns on a Carousel' Percussion Notes CLARINET I and CLARINET II are both B-Flat Clarinets. The BASS CLARINET part in the BASSOON book has been double lined for BASSOON, if a doubler or an additional player is not available.

TROMBONE I, TROMBONE II and TROMBONE III are all Tenor Trombones. The HARP part may be played on a synthesizer with a harp patch if a real harp is not available, but the HARP part is essential cannot be omitted The PERCUSSION book is written to be played by one percussionist, with the exception of “The Carousel Waltz” which can be played by either one, two or three percussionists. The original string breakdown was 5 VIOLINS 1-A, 4 VIOLINS 1-B, 4 VIOLAS, 3 CELLOS and 2 BASSES. Trap Set, Timpani, Triangle, Bells, Glockenspiel, Xylophone, Wood Block, Tambourine Carousel (1956) - IMDb IMDb There was an error trying to load your rating for this title. Some parts of this page won't work property. Please reload or try later. X Beta I'm Watching This! Keep track of everything you watch; tell your friends.

Error | Drama , Musical | 16 February 1956 (USA) Billy Bigelow has been dead for fifteen years, and now outside the pearly gates, he long waived his right to go back to Earth for a day. But he has heard that there is a problem with his ... See full summary » Director: From $2.99 (SD) on Amazon Video ON DISC a list of 26 titles created 05 Jan 2013 a list of 23 titles created 29 Nov 2013 a list of 43 titles created 13 Jan 2016 a list of 35 titles created 10 months ago a list of 34 titles created 1 month ago Search for " Carousel " on Amazon.com Connect with IMDb Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. In the Oklahoma territory at the turn of the twentieth century, two young cowboys vie with an evil ranch hand and a traveling peddler for the hearts of the women they love.

Director: Fred Zinnemann On a South Pacific island during World War II, love blooms between a young nurse and a secretive Frenchman who's being courted for a dangerous military mission. Director: Joshua Logan Farm family Frake, with discontented daughter Margy, head for the Iowa State Fair. On the first day, both Margy and brother Wayne meet attractive new flames; so does father's prize hog, ... See full summary » Director: Walter Lang A widow accepts a job as a live-in governess to the King of Siam's children. Director: Walter Lang Harold Hill poses as a boys' band leader to con naive Iowa townsfolk. Director: Morton DaCosta The story of the great sharpshooter Annie Oakley , who rose to fame while dealing with her love/professional rival, Frank Butler. Directors: George Sidney, Busby Berkeley Stars: Betty Hutton, Howard Keel, Louis Calhern Fred and Lilly are a divorced pair of actors who are brought together by Cole Porter who has written a musical version of The Taming of the Shrew. Of course, the couple seem to act a great ...

See full summary » Director: George Sidney Matchmaker Dolly Levi travels to Yonkers to find a partner for "half-a-millionaire" Horace Vandergelder, convincing his niece, his niece's intended, and his two clerks to travel to New York City along the way. Director: Gene Kelly In 1850 Oregon, when a backwoodsman brings a wife home to his farm, his six brothers decide that they want to get married too. Director: Stanley Donen An Iowa pajama factory worker falls in love with an affable superintendent who had been hired by the factory's boss to help oppose the workers' demand for a pay rise. Directors: George Abbott, Stanley Donen Stars: Doris Day, John Raitt, Carol Haney In New York, a gambler is challenged to take a cold female missionary to Havana, but they fall for each other, and the bet has a hidden motive to finance a crap game. Director: Joseph L. Mankiewicz Chinese stowaway Mei Li (Miyoshi Umeki) arrives in San Francisco with her father to meet her fiancé, wealthy nightclub owner Sammy Fong (Jack Soo), in an arranged marriage, but the groom ...

See full summary » Director: Henry Koster Edit Storyline Billy Bigelow has been dead for fifteen years, and now outside the pearly gates, he long waived his right to go back to Earth for a day. But he has heard that there is a problem with his family, namely his wife Julie Bigelow née Jordan and the child he never met, that problem with which he would now like to head back to Earth to assist in rectifying. Before he is allowed back to Earth, he has to get the OK from the gatekeeper, to who he tells his story... Immediately attracted to each other, he and Julie met when he worked as a carousel barker. Both stated to the other that they did not believe in love or marriage, but they did get married. Because the shrewish carousel owner, Mrs. Mullin, was attracted to Billy herself, and since she believed he was only of use as a barker if he was single to attract the young women to the carousel, she fired him. With no other job skills and unwilling to take just any job, Billy did not provide for Julie but rather lived off Julie's Aunt Nettie. But... Written by Huggo Curtain up...on a wonderful new world of entertainment!

See more » Genres: 16 February 1956 (USA) See more » Also Known As: Rodgers and Hammerstein's Carousel See more » Filming Locations: 4-Track Stereo (35 mm magnetic prints)| 6-Track Stereo (premiere only)| 4-Track Stereo (Westrex Recording System) Color: Did You Know? Trivia This film was originally meant to be filmed in both standard 35mm CinemaScope and CinemaScope 55 (55mm). Early in production it was discovered that both prints could be made from the one negative, and so it was filmed in 55mm CinemaScope only. Standard 35mm CinemaScope prints were made for release, and like The King and I (1956), this film was never shown theatrically in the 55mm format. See more » Goofs As everyone leaves for the clambake in sailboats, we can see, for a full fifteen seconds or so, several men in one of the boats wearing very modern-looking caps and sunglasses. See more » Quotes Billy Bigelow : [impatiently] Well, what'd I do now? Heavenly Friend : Nothing.

I just thought you'd wanna know - there's trouble. Billy Bigelow : Huh! Thought you said I didn't do nothin'. See more » Crazy Credits A star hurtles downward and explodes in mid-air; out of this appears the credit "Twentieth-Century Fox presents Rodgers and Hammerstein's 'Carousel'". The other credits all appear in a straightforward fashion. See more » Connections The very finest of Rodgers and Hammerstein! 1 January 2003 | by hamlet-16 The film of this classic musical is a joy to watch and listen to. The music is undoubtedly the finest Rodgers and Hammerstein score. Of the many fine moments in the film two astounding highlights must be Billy's Soliloquy and the Shirley Jones' and Gordon MacRae's lover's duet "If I loved you". To this is added two great ballet sequences "June is Bustin' out all Over" and Louise's ballet. The film is Rogers and Hammerstein at their most dark and introspective, which may account for the film's relatively lacklustre reception at the time of its initial release but the at the same time explains the ongoing appeal of this truly timeless classic film.

It is a fine memorial to both composer and lyricist and to the artistry of Gordon MacRae whose performance of the soliloquy is the benchmark against which all performances are judged. The film was produced in Cinemascope 55 a large film fomat which overcame many of the problems that were inherent in early Cinemascope films (even though the film was actually released only in standard 35mm form ..a bit like a 35mm print of a 70mm film this still results in a far better image) and gives the film its immaculate look. Carousel - The Guide to Musical Theatre CAROUSEL Music by Richard Rodgers, book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, based on "Liliom" by Ferenc Molnar , adapted by Benjamin F. Glazer. Majestic Theatre, New York - 19 April, 1945 (890 perfs) with John Raitt (Billy) and Jan Clayton (Julie). Opened at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, London, 7 June 1950 with Stephen Douglass and Iva Withers.

A film version was produced by Twentieth Century-Fox in 1956 with Gordon MacRae and Shirley Jones. From the magical evocation of the carousel in the overture to the majestic and moving strains of the immortal "You'll Never Walk Alone", this giant of the musical stage remains timeless and starbright. The poignant story of the faithful Julie and her brutish husband Billy is one of the most powerful books of the musical theatre and perfectly matches its extraordinary score. Recently revived by the Royal National Theatre to immense critical acclaim. Famous songs include "Mister Snow", "If I Loved You", "June Is Bustin' Out All Over" and "When The Children Are Asleep". Synopsis Act I The opening scene is an amusement part on the coast of New England around the year 1873. A feature of the park is Mrs Mullin's carousel with its gaily painted horses and its jack-the-lad barker, Billy Bigelow. Mrs. Mullin likes Billy and she likes the amount of feminine business he brings to the carousel, but she is clearly jealous of the girls whom he picks out for his special attention.

She gets sourly steamed up when he pays a little attention to a mill girl called Julie Jordan and she vehemently warns the surprised Julie aways fromthe carousel. Her timing is bad, for Billy himself catches the end of the warning. He turns on his employer and tells her that she has no control over what girls he sees and, when the quarrel raises itself a tone, Mrs Mullin, not for the first time, sacks the barker. Julie and her friend Carrie are aghast at the scene, and even more worried when it turns out that Billy probably doesn't have the price of a beer to his name, but the man shrugs off such worries. He's going to get his things and then one of them can go and have a drink with him. He doesn't mind which. Carrie is open-mouthed with amazement at Billy, and the girls are quite fazed at the fact that he is paying attention them. The quiet, introspective Julie has never had a boyfriend ('You're a Queer One, Julie Jordan') and Carrie's experience of men is in a very different field. She's going to marry the respectable and reliable fisherman, `Mister Snow'.

When Billy returns and asks which one of them is going to spend the evening with him, Julie volunteers without hesitation. She faces dismissal from the mill for doing so, for Mr Bascombe, the mill owner, insists that his girls are in their dormitory on time and when the two of them are seen together by Bascombe and a policeman, her fate is settled. She is as much out of a job as Billy is. Although she is warned of Billy's reputation as a layabout, a sponger and a ladies' man, Julie declares firmly that she will spend the evening with him. She's a strange one: nothing like any of the women Billy has known before. She says she isn't ever going to marry and when he asks her, teasing, if she would marry him, the layabout and sponger, Julie has only one simple response-'If I Loved You'. At the end of the evening they kiss, and the kiss is not the usual kiss Billy gets from his women. When they are married, Julie and Billy move in with Julie's cousin Nettie Fowler who runs a snack bar on the beach.

Billy is unable to get a job, and he becomes more and snore sombre and difficult as the workless days go by. He takes his frustration out on Julie and, one day, a one-sided row ends with his hitting her. Immediately the tale goes round town that Bigelow beats his wife. But if things are not as happy as they should be with the Bigelows, the rest of the folk are lively enough. `June Is Bustin' out All Over' and there is to be a big clambake on the beach. As for Carrie, she is still awaiting her wedding day and she and Enoch Snow pass the time in dreaming of their future together in the rosiest way ('When the Children Are Asleep'). Billy has taken to hanging around with a known evildoer called jigger Craigin, and jigger is heading him for trouble ('Blow High, Blow Low'). He has a plan to rob the mill owner of the payroll he brings each week to the captain of jigger's ship-three thousand dollars. Billy would never have to worry about a job again.

He is tempted, but when Mrs Mullin comes to try and woo him back to her employ and the carousel he realises that his old life is better and safer than crime. Only there's a catch: Mrs Mullin insists that he leave Julie. What's the use to her of a barker whom all the girls chase and who goes home to his wife? He'd better talk to Julie and see whom she puts first. When Billy goes to talk to Julie, however, she has something very different to tell him: she's going to have a baby. For Billy, that changes everything. Life has a future (Soliloquy). Now he has to make something of himself, he has to make money. There is no other way he knows of to do it: he will have to tkae part in Jigger's plan. Act II Anxious to provide for the coming child, Billy has been persuaded by Jigger, a shiftless sailor, to take part in a hold-up. They plan it for the night that the rest of the town is on the beach at A REAL NICE CLAMBAKE. Julie is troubled by Billy, who she knows has something on his mind.

The other girls sense her unhappiness, but Julie bravely shrugs it off (WHAT'S THE USE OF WOND'RIN'). Billy and Jigger attempt the robbery. They are thwarted; Jigger escapes, but Billy is caught by Mr. Bascombe, the would-be victim, who vows to hand him over to the police with the prospect of a long prison term. Cornered, disgraced and terrified for Julie and their unborn child, Billy kills himself. Julie cradles Billy as he dies in her arms and is comforted by an old saying the students used to recite in school (YOU'LL NEVER WALK ALONE). Fifteen years pass. Billy, escorted by a Heavenly Friend, arrives in the backyard of Heaven. Here he meets The Starkeeper, who informs him that he will never get into Heaven until he redeems himself. After some argument, Billy is given a chance. He is allowed to return to Earth for one day, during which he must perform one good deed. Afforded a glimpse of Louise, his lonely and unhappy fifteen-year-old daughter, Billy steals a star to give to her at their first meeting. But back on Earth, he is still the rough blunderer.

Louise is shy and won't accept his gift. Unable to reach her in any other way, Billy slaps his daughter - but the sting feels miraculously like a kiss to the girl. Louise explains this to her mother, Julie, who also sees the star that Billy has left behind and, instinctively, Julie understands. Nevertheless, Billy has not yet performed his good deed, and the slap should have been the last straw. But Billy persuades the Starkeeper to give him one last chance. Unseen, Billy watches Louise and her high school graduation. He observes his daughter's self-doubts, her insecurities. Invisibly, spiritually, Billy reaches out to her; he urges her to believe in herself, and he is filled with pride as he watches his daughter blossom with confidence. Turning to Julie, Billy says simply, "I loved you, Julie. Know that I loved you." And Julie, somehow, hears him. She joins Louise and the rest of the townsfolk in singing YOU'LL NEVER WALK ALONE ... as Billy heads towards Heaven. Cast 5 women, 5 men, chorus JULIE JORDAN - A real New England village girl, but 'deeper', quieter and more complex than her friends.

Her infatuation for Billy turns to a love which is proof against his fatal character weaknesses and lives on many years after the tragedy. BILLY BIGELOW - An earthy anti-hero with a reputation for being a lay-about and a ladies' man. He is a deeply troubled character ultimately redeemed by the love he could not communicate to his wife and unborn child. CARRIE PIPPERIDGE - As the stage direction says, 'a naive, direct and normal young woman of the period'. Julie's friend, her horizon is no further than domestic bliss with be-whiskered Mr. Snow. MRS. MULLIN - The carousel owner; a middle-aged woman who believes that Billy is not only her employee, but her property. ENOCH SNOW - Dour, respectable and ambitious in a small-town sort of way, he is an affectionate family-type too. JIGGER CRAIGIN - A real 'bad lot' who plays on Billy's weaknesses, and deserts him when things go horribly wrong. NETTIE FOWLER - The motherly soul of the village. MR. BASCOMBE - The self-important millionaire and richest man around.

HEAVENLY FRIEND / STARKEEPER - Billy's guides and mentors, who tell him the home-truths he really needs. Musical Numbers: OPENING ACT 1 DUET - Mister Snow - (Julie and Carrie) - "You're a queer one, Julie Jordan" SONG - If I Loved You (Julie with Billy) - "If I loved you, time and again I would try to say" SCENE CHANGE CHORUS - June Is Bustin' Out All Over (Girls, Men, with Carrie) - "March went out like a lion" ENCORE - June Is Bustin' Out All Over GIRLS' DANCE REPRISE - Mr Snow - (Girls and Carrie) - "When you walk down the aisle" SEQUENCE - When the Children Are Asleep - (Carrie and Mr.

Snow) - "I own a little house" CHORUS - Blow High, Blow Low - (Men with Jigger) - "Blow high, blow low, a-whalin' we will go!" DANCE - Hornpipe SOLO - Soliloquy - (Billy) - "I wonder what he'll think of me" FINALE - ACT I CHORUS - A Real Nice Clambake - (Nettie and chorus) - "This was a real nice clambake" ENSEMBLE - Geraniums in the Winder - (Snow, Jigger, Chorus) - "Geraniums in the winder" SONG - What's the Use of Wond'rin' - (Julie) - "What's the use of wond'rin'" CHANGE OF SCENE SONG - You'll Never Walk Alone" - (Nettie) - "When you walk through a storm" INCIDENTAL MUSIC - Entrance of Heavenly Friend SONG - The Highest Judge of All - (Billy) - "Take me beyond the pearly gates" EXIT MUSIC - CHANGE OF SCENE BALLET INCIDENTAL MUSIC - (Carrie) - "I'm just a tom-boy" PORCH SCENE YOU'LL NEVER WALK AL

ONE (CAROUSEL) - YouTube YOU'LL NEVER WALK ALONE (CAROUSEL) Want to watch this again later?

Sign in to add this video to a playlist. Need to report the video? Sign in to report inappropriate content. Rating is available when the video has been rented. This feature is not available right now. Please try again later. Uploaded on Sep 8, 2010 "You'll Never Walk Alone" is a show tune from the 1945 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, Carousel, which later became a film (1956) starring Shirly Jones and Gordon McRae. In the musical, in the second act, Nettie Fowler, the cousin of the female protagonist Julie Jordan, sings "Youll Never Walk Alone" to comfort and encourage Julie when her husband, Billy Bigelow, the male lead, is killed during a failed robbery. This video is taken from The Broadway Musicals Series: Carousel. Performed by Marion Ross and Chorus. The album is distributed by Prism Leisure Corporation. **Musical compositon owned/administered by Music Publishing Rights Collecting Society. No intention of copyright infringement. Category

Question: Who is the main male character of the musical Carousel?
Answer: Billy Bigelow