Ethel Waters "AS THOUSANDS CHEER" Helen Broderick 1935 St. Louis Playbill

Description

This is a rare January 13th, 1935 program (playbill) from the one-week, Post-Broadway engagement of the IRVING BERLIN and MOSS HART musical revue "AS THOUSANDS CHEER" at the American Theatre in St. Louis, Missouri. (The production opened September 30th, 1933 at the Music Box Theatre in New York City and ran for 400 performances before going on the road.) ..... The musical starred HELEN BRODERICK, DOROTHY STONE and ETHEL WATERS and the cast included PORTER HALL, MARGARET IRVING, JEROME COWAN, HAL FORDE, ALBERT CARROLL, DAVE FITZGIBBONS, GRACE CORNELL, KURT GRAFF, CLIFFORD MENZ, HAMTREE HARRINGTON, THOMAS HAMILTON, HAROLD MURRAY and the CHARLES WEIDMAN DANCERS ..... Side Note
: The IRVING BERLIN and MOSS HART revue contained satirical sketches and witty or poignant musical numbers, several of which became standards, including "
Heat Wave
", "
Easter Parade
", "Supper Time" and "Harlem on My Mind". The sketches were loosely based on the news and the lives and affairs of the rich and famous, and other people of the day, such as
Joan Crawford
,
John D. Rockefeller, Jr.
,
Noël Coward
and
Josephine
Baker
. The revue was a successor to the creators'
Face the Music
and was
Marilyn Miller
's last stage appearance before her death. It was also the first Broadway show to give an
African-American
star
equal billing with whites, however ETHEL WATERS had
to wait until the end of the Broadway run to see her name above the title
. (Wikipedia)
..... CREDITS: Music and Lyrics by IRVING BERLIN ("Music Box Revues", the Marx Brothers' "The Cocoanuts", "Face the Music", "As Thousands Cheer", "Louisiana Purchase", "This is the Army", "Miss Liberty", "Annie Get Your Gun", "Call Me Madam", "Mr. President"); Book by MOSS HART; Sets designed by ALBERT JOHNSON; Costumes designed by VARADY and IRENE SHARAFF; Choreographed by CHARLES WEIDMAN; Directed by HASSARD SHORT; Produced by SAM H. HARRIS ..... DETAILS: The four page playbill measures 6" X 9" inches and includes full production credits, cast list, scenes and musical numbers, but no cast photos or bios ..... CONDITION: With the exception of moderate to heavy creasing, a fold across the middle, tiny tears on each side of the fold and minor edge wear, this rare playbill is in excellent condition and will make a wonderful addition to the collection of any musical theatre aficionado or historian. This item will be carefully packaged in a protective, carded sleeve and backed by stiff cardboard.