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Music & Lyrics by: Stephen Sondheim
Directed by: Jerry Zaks
Book by: Burt Shevelove & Larry Gelbart
Previews from March 18th 1996
April 18th 1996 - January 4th 1998
St. James Theater
Broadway
AWARDS & NOMINATIONS
1996 Tony AwardŽ Winner - Best Actor in a Musical - Nathan Lane
1996 Drama Desk AwardŽ Winner - Outstanding Actor in a Musical - Nathan Lane
1996 Drama Desk AwardŽ Nominee - Best Musical Revival
1996 Tony AwardŽ Nominee - Best Featured Actor in a Musical - Lewis J. Stadlen
1996 Tony AwardŽ Nominee - Best Direction of a Musical
1996 Tony AwardŽ Nominee - Best Revival of a Musical
SYNOPSIS
In a desperate attempt to win his freedom, the slave, Pseudolus, attempts to help his young master, Hero, earn the love of a courtesan, Philia. Meanwhile, Pseudolus has to outsmart Hero's parents, the slave-master, Lycus, and the large man that has already paid for Philia, Miles Gloriosus. Also, an old man Erronious is desperately searching for his lost children. In the end, it turns out that Philia and Miles are brother and sister and the children of Erronious. Further, Philia is now allowed to marry Hero and Pseudolus gains his freedom.
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OPENING NIGHT CAST
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Nathan Lane
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Prologus (an actor)/ Pseudolus (slave to Hero)
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Brad Aspel
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Protean
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Cory English
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Protean
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Ray Roderick
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Protean
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Lewis J. Stadlen
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Senex (a citizen of Rome)
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Megan Testa
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Domina (wife of Senex)
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Jim Stanek
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Hero (son of Senex and Domina)
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Mark Linn-Baker
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Hysterium (slave to Senex and Domina)
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Ernie Sabella
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Marcus Lycus (a buyer and seller of courtesans)
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Jessica Boevers
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Philia (a virgin)
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William Duell
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Erronius (a citizen of Rome)
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Cris Groenendaal
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Miles Gloriosus (a warrior)
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Pamela Everett
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Tintinabula
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Leigh Zimmerman
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Panacea
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Susan Misner
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Geminae
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Lori Werner
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Geminae
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Mary Ann Lamb
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Vibrata
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Stephanie Pope
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Gymnasia
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SWINGS
Michael Arnold, Kevin Kraft, Kristin Willits
STANDBY:
Prologus/Pseudolus - Bob Amaral
UNDERSTUDIES
Hysterium/Lycus - Bob Amaral, Patrick Garner
Erronius - MacIntyre Dixon, Patrick Garner
Senex - MacIntyre Dixon, Kenneth Kantor
Hero - Cory English, Kevin Kraft
Domina - Ruth Gottschall
Marcus Lycus/Miles Glorious - Kenneth Kantor
Philia - Jennifer Rosin
Gymnasia - Leigh Zimmerman
ACT 1
A spring evening in Ancient Rome, circa 200 years before the Christian era, and, as is his wont, the thespian Prologus bids us welcome to his temple - wherein are worshipped the gods of tragedy and comedy. Alas, tragedy will have to wait, for it is Comedy Tonight. "Raise the curtain!" he cries, and promptly it falls to the floor, revealing the set on which tonight's entertainment will be played - the adjoining houses of Erronius, Senex and Lycus. But Prologus seems more taken by the character of Senex's son's slave Pseudolus: "a role of enormous variety and nuance, and played by an actor of such . . ." - in other words, his own part.
As the play begins, Senex and Domina are off to the country, leaving their slave Hysterium in charge of the moral welfare of their son, Hero. But Hero is advanced for his years and feeling strange. The reason? Love, I Hear, he confides to the audience: what else makes you sigh, and hum a lot, too? The object of his affection is a courtesan at the house of Lycus, but, sadly, Hero has no convertible assets apart from his slippery slave. Maybe, figures Pseudolus, if he could engineer the young lovebirds' union, Hero would let him go Free. Free! A free man, free to write free verse, he muses.
Pseudolus asks the procurer if they can see his stock. The charms of The House of Marcus Lycus are laid before slave and master, but Hero's heart's desire is, it seems, out of bounds. Philia is a virgin from Crete, pre-sold to the legendary warmonger Captain Miles Gloriosus, who has paid extra for virginity. Such a pity, tuts Pseudolus, about the highly contagious plague currently raging in Crete. Sportingly, he agrees to take her off Lycus' hands and thereby prevent her infecting the rest of the merchandise. So Philia and Hero meet at last. She cannot sew, cook, read or write; she has but one talent - being Lovely - but she's happy being lovely because it is a gift that she can give to Hero - if only she could remember his name. Already, though, Pseudolus is making plans: there's a boat anchored in the Tiber just made for two - what a Pretty Little Picture. But Philia says she has to wait for her new owner, the captain, and Pseudolus realises he will have to trick her onto the boat with a sleeping potion. Unfortunately, the recipe requires one ingredient he doesn't have: mare's sweat.
In the slave's absence, Senex returns and is greeted with an ecstatic gasp of "Take me", Philia having confused the head of the household with her captain. In the nick of time, Pseudolus arrives ("Would you believe it? There was a mare sweating not two streets from here') and explains that Philia is the new maid. What a brilliant notion, Senex enthuses, Everybody Ought to Have a Maid. With Philia's new employer eager to conduct an exhaustive job "interview", Pseudolus takes drastic action, emptying his cup of mare's sweat on Senex's toga and forcing the old man to postpone his liaison for a bath. Events are now spinning out of control: Senex is performing his toilet in the house of the wandering Erronius and Pseudolus details Hysterium to detain him within, but then Erronius himself returns and has to be tricked into walking round the seven hills of Rome seven times to banish the evil spirits from his house. I'm Calm, the put-upon Hysterium tries to convince himself. Senex and Hero, by this stage, are both beginning to notice the way the other is looking at Philia. A beauty like that falling for a callow youth? A beauty like that falling for a gouty, gassy asthmatic? Impossible. But the rightful owner has arrived: Bring Me My Bride, roars Miles Gloriosus. Pseudolus is condemned to death by Miles, but begs to be allowed a word, just one word.
ACT 2
By now, even Pseudolus is having difficulty following the plot: Miles is being entertained in Senex's house (which he thinks is Lycus'), Senex is waiting in Erronius' house for Philia, Philia is refusing to drink Pseudolus' potion and Domina has returned in pursuit of That Dirty Old Man of Mine, convinced he's up to no good. Still under the impression that Senex is Miles, Philia reassures Hero that, whenever she makes love to her new husband, she'll really be making love to her true Hero - so she'll make love all the more intensely: That'll Show Him. Hero doesn't find this much consolation. Moreover, there is now a rival Philia: Hysterium has been dressed as a golden-tressed courtesan and told to play dead and look Lovely. Miles is distraught: his bride is deceased, but the least he can do is build a pyre for her Funeral. Soon, the stage is filled with Philias, fake and genuine, on the run from the menfolk - until the happy ending arrives: Philia is the long-lost daughter of Erronius and Miles the long-lost son; that makes them brother and sister, leaving Philia free to wed Hero and Pseudolus . free. It has, indeed, been a Comedy Tonight.
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SONG LIST
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ACT 1
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ACT 2
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Overture
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That Dirty Old Man
(Domina)
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Comedy Tonight
(Prologus, Proteans, Company)
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That'll Show Him
(Philia)
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Love, I Hear
(Hero)
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Lovely (Reprise)
(Pseudolus & Hysterium)
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Free
(Pseudolus & Hero)
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Funeral Sequence
(Miles Gloriosus, Pseudolus, Courtesans, Proteans)
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The House Of Marcus Lycus
(Lycus, Pseudolus, Courtesans)
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Comedy Tonight (Finale)
(Company)
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Lovely
(Philia and Hero)
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Pretty Little Picture
(Pseudolus, Philia, Hero)
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Everybody Ought To Have A Maid
(Senex, Pseudolus, Hysterium, Lycus)
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I'm Calm
(Hysterium)
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Impossible
(Senex & Hero)
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Bring Me My Bride
(Miles Gloriosus, Pseudolus, Courtesans, Proteans)
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