Girl Crazy

Notes on the Program

by Michael Colby

Beginning with Lady, Be Good! (1924), producers Alex A. Aarons and Vinton Freedley presented seven Broadway musicals containing scores by the Gershwin brothers: composer George and lyricist Ira. Girl Crazy was one of the most acclaimed and successful of these shows, running 272 performances. With a book by Guy Bolton, Girl Crazy made theatre history in several ways.

After a tryout run at the Schubert Theatre in Philadelphia, Girl Crazy opened on October 12, 1930 at New York’s Alvin Theatre (currently renamed The Neil Simon Theatre). At the opening, George Gershwin himself led the orchestra, which boasted such musicians as Benny Goodman, Glenn Miller, Red Nichols, Jimmy Dorsey, Jack Teagarden, and Gene Krupa. The remarkable cast included a nineteen-year old Ginger Rogers as “Molly,” Allen Kearns (later “Mr. Wilson” on TV’s Dennis the Menace) as “Danny,” Lew Parker (later seen as Marl Thomas’ father on That Girl) as “Jake,” and vaudevillian Willie Howard as “Gieber” (a role intended for Bert Lahr).

The complete notes are now available for purchase.