MusicalOperaRevivalBroadway
Opening Date
Apr 07, 1983
Closing Date
May 15, 1983
1st Preview
Mar 19, 1983
1st Preview
Mar 19, 1983
Previews
22
Performances
45
MusicalOperaRevivalBroadway

ABOUT THIS PRODUCTION

Theatres
Radio City Music Hall
(Apr 07, 1983 - May 15, 1983)
Description
An American folk opera in three acts
Setting
Charleston, South Carolina. The early 1930s.
Produced by Radio City Music Hall Productions (Bernard Gersten: Executive Producer) and Sherwin M. Goldman Productions; Produced by arrangement with Tams-Witmark Music Library, Inc.; Associate Producer: Virginia Hymes
Music by George Gershwin; Libretto by DuBose Heyward; Lyrics by DuBose Heyward and Ira Gershwin; Founded on the play "Porgy" by Dorothy Heyward and DuBose Heyward; Musical Director: C. William Harwood
Directed by Jack O'Brien; Choreographed by George Faison; Assistant Director: Helaine Head
Scenic Design by Douglas W. Schmidt; Costume Design by Nancy Potts; Lighting Design by Gilbert V. Hemsley, Jr.
General Manager: Mario De Maria; Company Manager: Herbert Scholder
Production Supervisor: Helaine Head; Production Stage Manager: John Actman; First Assistant Stage Manager: Andre Love; Second Assistant Stage Manager: Richert Easley
Associate Conductor: John Miner; Assistant Conductor: Edward Strauss; Music Preparation: George Darden
General Press Representative: Gifford / Wallace, Inc.; Goat trained and handled by Dawn Animal Agency, Inc.
Loretta Abbott
Ensemble
Timothy Allen
Mingo
The Undertaker
 
Ensemble
Shirley Baines
Serena
Alternate
Earl L. Baker
Ensemble
Gregg Baker
Crown
Alternate
Priscilla Baskerville
Clara
Alternate
 
Bess
Alternate
Emerson Battles
Ensemble
Raymond H. Bazemore
Frazier
 
Ensemble
Shirley Black-Brown
Ensemble
Roslyn Burrough
Ensemble
Vertrelle Cameron
Ensemble
Seraiah Carol
Ensemble
Duane Clenton Carter
Ensemble
Dabriah Chapman
Ensemble
Louise Coleman
Ensemble
Henrietta Elizabeth Davis
Bess
Alternate
Janice D. Dixon
Ensemble
Diallobe Dorsey
Ensemble
Cisco Xavier Drayton
Ensemble
Alberta M. Driver
Ensemble
Richert Easley
Coroner
Joseph S. Eubanks
Undertaker
 
Ensemble
Karen E. Eubanks
Ensemble
Lori Eubanks
Ensemble
Beno Foster
Ensemble
Luvenia Garner
Clara
Alternate
Jerry Godfrey
Ensemble
Earl Grandison
Ensemble
Milton B. Grayson, Jr.
Ensemble
Elvira Green
Ensemble
Lawrence Hamilton
Ensemble
Gurcell Henry
Ensemble
Angela Holcomb
Ensemble
Lisa D. Holkmann
Ensemble
Loretta Holkmann
Maria
Alternate
Janice T. Hutson
Ensemble
David-Michael Johnson
Ensemble
Leavata Johnson
Ensemble
Tyrone Jolivet
Robbins
 
Ensemble
Dorothy L. Jones
Ensemble
Donald Walter Kase
Jim
 
Ensemble
Robert Kryser
Ensemble
Roberta Alexandra Laws
Ensemble
Eugene Little
Ensemble
Jason Little
Ensemble
Ann Marie Mackey
Ensemble
Barbara Mahajan
Ensemble
Amelia Marshall
Ensemble
Larry Marshall
Sportin' Life
Richard Mason
Ensemble
Y. Yvonne Matthews
Lily
 
Ensemble
Regina McConnell
Serena
Alternate
Everett McCorvey
Nelson
 
Ensemble
John McDaniels
Ensemble
George Robert Merritt
Crown
Alternate
William Moize
Policeman
 
Ensemble
Naomi Moody
Bess
Alternate
Robert Mosley Jr.
Porgy
Alternate
Daisy Newman
Bess
Alternate
Byron Onque
Ensemble
H. William Penn
Ensemble
Marenda Perry
Ensemble
Lou Ann Pickett
Annie
 
Ensemble
Akili Prince
Scipio
Herbert Lee Rawlings, Jr.
Ensemble
Roumel Reaux
Ensemble
Noelle Richards
Ensemble
David Robertson
Ensemble
Lattilia Ronrico
Ensemble
Renee L. Rose
Ensemble
Myles Gregory Savage
Ensemble
Wilma A. Shakesnider
Serena
Alternate
Sheryl Shell
Ensemble
Kiki Shepard
Ensemble
Gwendolyn Shepherd
Maria
Alternate
Alexander Smalls
Jake
Alternate
Michael V. Smartt
Porgy
Alternate
Jonathan Sprague
Porgy
Alternate
Larry Storch
Detective
Edward Strauss
Jasbo Brown
Kevin L. Stroman
Ensemble
Charee Adia Thorpes
Ensemble
James Tyeska
Jake
Alternate
 
Porgy
Alternate
Veronica Tyler
Serena
Alternate
Mervin Bertel Wallace
Peter
The Honey Man
 
Ensemble
Pamela Warrick-Smith
Ensemble
Cornelius White
Ensemble
Rodney Wing
Ensemble
Tarik Winston
Ensemble
Denice Woods
Strawberry Woman
 
Ensemble
Thomas J. Young
Crab Man
 
Ensemble
Understudies: Duane Clenton Carter (Porgy, Crown), Richert Easley (Detective), Beno Foster (Peter), Earl Grandison (Frazier), Elvira Green (Maria), Gurcell Henry (Clara), David-Michael Johnson (Mingo), Leavata Johnson (Annie), Donald Walter Kase (Jake), Y. Yvonne Matthews (Strawberry Woman), John McDaniels (Robbins), William Moize (Nelson), Byron Onque (Jim), Herbert Lee Rawlings, Jr. (Sportin' Life), Myles Gregory Savage (Crab Man), Sheryl Shell (Lily) and Rodney Wing (Jake)
music by George Gershwin; lyrics by Ira Gershwin
(Unless otherwise noted)
Act 1
Sung By
Brown Blues
(lyrics by Ira Gershwin and DuBose Heyward)
Piano
Summertime
Clara
A Woman Is a Sometime Thing
Jake and Men
Here Come de Honey Man
(lyrics by Ira Gershwin and DuBose Heyward)
Peter
They Pass By Singing
Porgy
Oh Little Stars
(lyrics by Ira Gershwin and DuBose Heyward)
Porgy
Gone, Gone, Gone
Ensemble
Overflow
Ensemble
My Man's Gone Now
Serena
Leavin' for the Promise' Lan'
(lyrics by Ira Gershwin and DuBose Heyward)
Bess and Ensemble
It Takes a Long Pull to Get There
(lyrics by Ira Gershwin and DuBose Heyward)
Jake and Men
I Got Plenty O' Nuttin'
Porgy and Ensemble
Struttin' Style
(lyrics by Ira Gershwin and DuBose Heyward)
Maria
Buzzard Song
(lyrics by Ira Gershwin and DuBose Heyward)
Porgy and Ensemble
Bess, You Is My Woman Now
Porgy and Bess
Oh I Can't Sit Down
Ensemble
I Ain't Got No Shame
Ensemble
It Ain't Necessarily So
Sportin' Life and Ensemble
What You Want Wid Bess
(lyrics by Ira Gershwin and DuBose Heyward)
Bess and Crown
Act 2
Sung By
Oh, Doctor Jesus
Serena, Maria, Peter, Lily and Porgy
I Loves You, Porgy
Porgy and Bess
Oh, He'venly Father
(lyrics by Ira Gershwin and DuBose Heyward)
Ensemble
Oh de Lawd Shake de Heaven
Ensemble
Oh, Dere's Somebody Knockin' at de Do'
(lyrics by Ira Gershwin and DuBose Heyward)
Ensemble
A Red Headed Woman
Crown and Ensemble
Clara, Clara
(lyrics by Ira Gershwin and DuBose Heyward)
Ensemble
There's a Boat That's Leavin' Soon for New York
Sportin' Life and Bess
Good Mornin', Sistuh!
(lyrics by Ira Gershwin and DuBose Heyward)
Ensemble
Oh, Bess, Oh Where's My Bess
(lyrics by Ira Gershwin and DuBose Heyward)
Porgy, Serena and Maria
Oh Lawd, I'm on My Way
(lyrics by Ira Gershwin and DuBose Heyward)
Porgy and Ensemble

Tony Award®

 

Best Actor in a Musical

1983 Nominee
Michael V. Smartt
 

Best Choreography

1983 Nominee
Choreographed by George Faison
Season:
View Graph
Week Ending Gross % Gross Pot. Attendance % Capacity # Previews # Perf.
Statistics supplied are courtesy of The Broadway League.
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