Sunday, April 3, 2022 at 3:00
McVinney Auditorium, Providence
Providence Singers
with
Joe Wilson, Jr., Emcee
Dancers from the State Ballet of Rhode Island
Kevin Deas, Bass-baritone
Brad Kleyla, Tenor
and Providence Singers Soloists
Give My Regards to Broadway—George M. Cohan/arr. Robert Page, Little Johnny Jones (1904)
Let’s Call the Whole Thing Off—George Gershwin, Shall We Dance (1937)
*Blow, Gabriel, Blow—Cole Porter, Anything Goes (1934)
Chorus
I Got Plenty o' Nuttin'--George Gershwin, Porgy and Bess (1935)
Kevin Deas, Bass-baritone
On the Street Where You Live—Lerner & Loewe, My Fair Lady (1956)
Brad Kleyla, Tenor
I Could Have Danced All Night, My Fair Lady
Olivia Black, Soprano
If I Loved You—Richard Rogers, Carousel (1945)
Chorus
Briana Mattis, SBRI Principal Dancer
June is Bustin’ Out All Over—Carousel (1945)
Till There Was You—Meredith Willson, The Music Man (1957)
**One Day More—Claude-Michel Schönberg, Les Misérables (1980)
Chorus
I N T E R M I S S I O N
Anything Goes—Cole Porter, Anything Goes (1934)
Chorus
Sit Down You’re Rockin’ the Boat—Frank Loesser, Guys and Dolls (1950)
Chorus and Ted Doran, Tenor
Music of the Night—Phantom of the Opera (1996)
Chorus and Ross McLendon, Bass
Ashley Pabon, SBRI Principal Dancer
Maria—Sondheim & Bernstein, West Side Story (1957)
Brad Kleyla, Tenor
I Dreamed a Dream—-Michel Schönberg, Les Misérables (1980)
Alina Grimshaw, Mezzo
Lost in the Stars—-Kurt Weill, Lost in the Stars (1974)
Kevin Deas, Bass-baritone
Somewhere—Leonard Bernstein, West Side Story (1957)
Chorus
Masquerade—Andrew Lloyd Weber, Phantom of the Opera (1996)
Chorus and SBRI Dancers:
Briana Mattis, Rebecca DeVivo, Grace Gongoleski, Julienne Racine
Ol’ Man River—Jerome Kern, Show Boat (1927)
Kevin Deas, Bass-baritone
Make Our Garden Grow—Bernstein, Candide (1956)
Chorus
* Ted Doran, Solo
** Erin McDermott and Michael Zarzycki, Solos
Guest Artists
Joe Wilson, Jr.
Emcee
Kevin Deas
Bass-baritone
Brad Kleyla
Tenor
Providence Singers Soloists
Olivia Black
Soprano
Alina Grimshaw
Mezzo-soprano
Ted Doran
Tenor
Ross McLendon
Baritone
Lyrics and Program Notes
Give My Regards to Broadway from Little Johnnie Jones
words and music by George M. Cohan
Little Johnnie Jones was George Cohan's first full-length musical and is often credited as being the first American Musical. Patriotic in tone, it was inspired by Ted Sloan, an American jockey who went to England in 1903 to ride in the Derby for King Edvard VII. Johnnie Jones, like Sloan, crossed the pond to race in the English Derby. Johnnie was offered a bribe to throw the race. He refused, but when his horse (Yankee Doodle) lost the race, rumors spread that he took the bribe. His friends return to America, but Johnnie decided to stay in London to try to regain his reputation and sends them off with this song.
Give my regards to Broadway, remember me to Herald Square.
Tell all the gang at Forty Second Street that I will soon be there.
Whisper of how I'm yearning to mingle with the told time throng.
Give my regards to old Broadway, and say that I'll be there e're long.
Mister Cohen wrote a wonderful song about the way that he felt
'Cause he was gone for so long from all his cronies and pals
From all the floozies and gals he used to see every night when all the lights were so bright,
And somehow I feel the same when you mention the name of that incredible place
where I can see face to face all those guys and those dolls,
All those hustler and molls who make my life, oh so dreamy and they smile when they see me.
So I whisper of how I'm yearning to mingle with the old time throng.
So give my regards to old Broadway, and say that I'll be there e'er long!
Let's Call the Whole Thing Off from Shall We Dance
George M. Cohen, arranged by Robert Page
Shall We Dance was the seventh of ten musical comedy films starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. It was the second (and last) Hollywood musical written by George and Ira Gershwin. The story pairs an American ballet dancer pretending to be Russian (Astaire) and a famous tap dancer (Rogers) who are caught up in a fake publicity stunt that claims they're married. Unable to stop the rumors, they decide to marry and divorce, but that plan falter as they start to fall in love. This duet is sung during a roller-skating tap dance that takes a little jab at ballet with the arabesque pose the couple strikes just before they topple onto the grass.
Things have come to a pretty pass, Our romance is growing flat,
For you like this and the other, while I go for this and that.
Goodness knows what the end will be. Oh, I don't know where I'm at.
It looks as if we two will never be one. Something must be done!
You say eether and I say eyether,
You say neether and I say nythere;
Eether, Either, Neether, Nyther
Let's call the whole thing off!
You like potayto and I like potahto
You like tomato, and I like tomahto,
Potato, Potahto, Tomato, Tomahto
Let's call the whole thing off!
But oh! If we call the whole thing off, then we must part.
And oh! If we ever part, then that would break my heart.
So, if you like pajamas and I like pajahmas
I'll wear pajamas, I'll give up pajahmas.
For we know we need each other so better call the calling off off!
Let's call the whole thing off!
Laughter! Lawfter! After! Awfter!
Let's call the whole thing offf.
But oh! If we call the whole thing off, then we must part.
And oh! If we ever part, then that would break my heart.
So, if you go for oysters and I go for ersters
I'll order oysters. I'll cancel the esters.
For we know we need each other better call the calling off off!
Let's call the whole thing off!
Blow, Gabriel, Blow from Anything Goes
Cole Porter
"Anything Goes" is a good description of the shenanigans aboard the SS American, a passenger ship on route to London from New York. At the beginning of Act II, the passengers gather to celebrate the man they believe to be Public Enemy #1 with a revival meeting. Following a scandalous confession or two, the evangelist-turned-nightclub-singer leads the congregation in this rousing gospel song.
Do you hear that playin'?
Yes, I hear that playin'!
Do you know who's playin'?
No, who is that playin'?
Why, it's Gabriel playin', Gabriel sayin',
"Will you be ready to go when I blow my horn?"
Oh, blow, Gabriel, blow, go on and blow, Gabriel blow!
I've been a sinner, I've been a scamp, but now I'm willin' to trim my lamp.
So, blow, Gabriel, blow!
I was low, Gabriel, low, mighty low, Gabriel, low.
But, now since I have seen the light,
I'm good by day and good by night, so blow, Gabriel, blow!
Once I was headed for hell, but when I got to Satan's door,
I heard you blowing' on your horn once more,
So I said, "Satan, farewell."
And now I'm all ready to fly, yes, fly higher and higher!
'Cause I've gone through the brimstone, I've been through the fire,
And I've purged my soul and my heart too, so climb up the mountain top!
Climb up the mountain top and blow, Gabriel, blow!
I want to join your happy band and play all day in the Promised Land,
So blow, Gabriel, blow!
I Got Plenty o' Nuttin' from Porgy and Bess
Libretto by DuBose Heyward and lyricist Ira Gershwin, music by George Gershwin
Gershwin called Porgy and Bess a folk opera--a folk tale sung by opera singers about a group of people who would naturally sing folk songs. It tells the story of Porgy, a disabled street beggar living in the slums of Charleston, and the troubled woman he quietly longs for. When Bess turns to him after all the other residents of Catfish Row reject her, Porgy is thrilled to welcome her into into his room and his heart. After a month of living today, Porgy celebrates his happy new life with this song.
Oh, I got plenty o' nuttin, an' nuttin's plenty for me,
I got no car, got no mule, I got no misery.
De folks did plenty o' plenty got a lock on day door,
Fraid somebody's a going to rob 'em when Dey's out a makin' more. What for?
I got no lock on de door, (dat's no way to be.)
Hey kin steal de rug from de floor, dat's okay did me.
'Cause de thing dat I prize, like de stars in de skies, all are free.
Oh, I got plenty o' nuttin, an' nuttin's plenty for me.
I got my gal, got my song, got Hebben de whole day long.
Oh, I got plenty o' nuttin, an' nuttin's plenty for me.
I got de sun, got de moon, got de deep blue sea.
De folks did plenty o' plenty got to pray all de day.
Seems mid plenty you sure got to worry how to keep de Devil away.
I ain't a-frettin' 'bout hell till de time arrives.
Never worry long as I'm well, never on to strive to be good, to be bad, what de hell,
I is glad I's alive.
If I Loved You from Carousel
Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein
In this wistful song, a carnival barker and a small town girl tentatively explore what life might be like if they were in love.
If I loved you,
Time and again I would try to say all I'd want you to know.
If I loved you, words wouldn't come in an easy way
Round in circles I'd go!
Longin' to tell you, but afraid and shy,
I'd let my golden chances pass me by!
Soon you'd leave me, off you would go in the mist of day,
Never, never to know how I loved you
If I loved you.
June is Bustin' Out All Over
Richard Rogers and Oscar Hammerstein
March went out like a lion
A whippin' up the water in the bay
Then April cried and stepped aside,
And along come pretty little May!
May was full of promises
But she didn't keep 'em quickly enough for some
And a crowd of doubtin' Thomas's
Was predictin' that the summer'd never come
But it's comin, by gum,
We can feel it come,
You can feel it in your heart
You can see it in the ground
You can see it in the trees
You can smell it in the breeze
Look around! Look around! Look around!
June is bustin' out all over
All over the meadow and the hill!
Buds're bustin' outa bushes
And the rompin' river pushes
Ev'ry little wheel that wheels beside the mill!
June is bustin' out all over
The feelin' is gettin' so intense,
That the young Virginia creepers
Hev been huggin' the bejeepers
Outa all the mornin' glories on the fence!
Because it's June...
June, June, June
Just because it's June, June, June!
Till There Was You from The Music Man
Mereditch Willson
There were bells on a hill
But I never heard them ringing
No, I never heard them at all
'Til there was you
There were birds in the sky
But I never saw them winging
No, I never saw them at all
'Til there was you
Then there was music
And wonderful roses
They tell me in sweet fragrant meadows
Of dawn and dew
There was love all around
But I never heard it singing
No, I never heard it at all
'Til there was you
One Day More from Les Misérables
Music by Claude-Michel Schönberg
One day more
Another day, another destiny
This never-ending road to Calvary
These men who seem to know my crime
Will surely come a second time
One day more
I did not live until today
How can I live when we are parted?
One day more
Tomorrow you'll be worlds away
And yet with you my world has started
One more day all on my own
Will we ever meet again?
One more day with him not caring
I was born to be with you
What a life I might have known
And I swear I will be true
But he never saw me there
One more day before the storm
Do I follow where she goes?
At the barricades of freedom
Shall I join my brothers there?
When our ranks begin to form
Do I stay or do I dare?
Will you take your place with me?
The time is now
The day is here
One day more
One day more to revolution
We will nip it in the bud
We'll be ready for these schoolboys
They will wet themselves with blood
One day more
Watch 'em run amuck
Catch 'em as they fall
Never know your luck
When there's a free for all
Here a little dip
There a little touch
Most of them are goners
So they won't miss much
One day to a new beginning
Raise the flag of freedom high
Every man will be a king
Every man will be a king
There's a new world for the winning
There's a new world to be won
Do you hear the people sing?
My place is here
I fight with you
One day more
We will join these people's heroes
We will follow where they go
We will learn their little secrets
We will know the things they know
One day more
Watch 'em run amuck
Catch 'em as they fall
Never know you luck
When there's a free for all
We'll be ready for the schoolboys
Tomorrow we'll be far away
Tomorrow is the judgement day
Tomorrow we'll discover
What our God in Heaven has in store
One more dawn
One more day
One day more
Anything Goes from Anything Goes
Cole Porter
Anything Goes is a madcap adventure aboard a passenger ship where everyone seems to have at least two identities and one complicated romance. When a young salesman is mistaken for Public Enemy #1, the passengers are thrilled to have a celebrity in their midst and shrug off his notoriety with this song. And in the background, one of the would-be lovers considers his odds and decides they're pretty good, all things considered.
Times have changed and we've often rewound the clock
Since the Puritans got a shock
When they landed on Plymouth Rock.
If today any shock they should try to stem
'Stead of landing on Plymouth Rock, Plymouth Rock would land on them.
In olden days, a glimpse of stocking as looked on as something shocking,
Now heaven knows, anything goes.
Good authors too who once knew better words
Now only use four-letter words writing prose, anything goes.
The world has gone mad today, and good's bad today,
And black's white today, and day's night today,
When most guys today that women prize today
Are just silly gigolos.
So though I'm not a great romancer
I know that you're bound to answer when I propose.
Anything goes!
Sit Down You're Rockin' the Boat from Guys and Dolls
Frank Loesser
In Guys and Dolls, a small-time gambler falls for a pretty evangelist. When her mission is threatened with closure, he promises to bring in "a dozen genuine sinners." Her superior is dubious about this sudden group conversion, so one of the men invents a dream that led him to repentance. The others join in with great enthusiasm and varying degrees of sincerity. The doubter is convinced, the mission is saved, the guys get the dolls, and all is right in the New York City underworld, at least for now.
I dreamed last night I got on the boat to heaven
And by some chance I had brought my dice along.
And there I stood, and I hollered, "Someone fade me"
But the passengers--they knew right from wrong.
For the people all said,
"Sit down, sit down you're rockin' the boat."
And the devil will drag you under
With a soul so heavy you'd never float.
Sit down, sit down, sit down, sit down
Sit down you're rocking the boat
And as I laughed at those passengers to heaven,
A great big wave came and washed me overboard.
And as I sank, I hollered, "Someone save me!"
That's the moment I woke up, thank the Lord.
And the people all said,
"Sit down, sit down you're rockin' the boat."
And the devil will drag you under
With a soul so heavy you'd never float.
Sit down, sit down, sit down, sit down,
Sit down you're rocking the boat!
Music of the Night from Phantom of the Opera
Andrew Lloyd Weber, arr. John Black
Turn your face away from the garish light of day,
Turn your thoughts away from the cold unfeeling light...
Night time sharpens, heightens each sensations,
Darkness stirs and wakes imagination.
Silently the senses abandon their defenses.
Slowly, gently, night unfurls its splendor;
Grasp it, sense it, tremulous and tender.
Turn your face away from the garish light of day,
Turn your thoughts away from cold, unfeeling light...
And listen to the music of the night.
Close your eyes and surrender to your darkest dreams!
Purge your thoughts of the life you knew before!
Close your eyes, let your spirit star to soar
And you'll live as you've never lived before.
Softly, deftly, music shall caress you.
Hear it, feel it secretly possess you.
Open up your mind, let your fantasies unwind
In this darkness which you know you cannot fight,
The darkness of the music of the night.
Let your mind start a journey through a strange, new world;
Leave all thoughts of the world you knew before.
Let your soul take you where you long to be!
Only then can you belong to me.
Floating, falling, sweat intoxication.
Touch me, trust me, savor each sensation.
Let the dream begin, let your darker side give in
To the power of the music that I write,
The power of the music of the night.
You alone can make my song take flight,
Help me make the music of the night.
Somewhere from West Side Story
Music by Leonard Bernstein, Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim
There's a place for us
Somewhere a place for us
Peace and quiet and open air
Wait for us somewhere
There's a time for us
Someday a time for us
Time together and time to spare
Time to look, time to care
Someday
Somewhere
We'll find a new way of living
We'll find a way of forgiving
Somewhere
There's a place for us
Somewhere a place for us
Time together with time to spare
Time to look, time to care
Someday
Somewhere
We'll find a new way of living
We'll find a way of forgiving
Somewhere
Hold my hand and I'll take you there
Somehow
Someday
Somewhere
Masquerade from Phantom of the Opera
Andrew Lloyd Weber
Masquerade! Paper faces on parade.
Masquerade! Hide your face so the world will never find you!
Masquerade! Every face a different shade.
Masquerade! Look around, there's another mask behind you!
Swish and swirl, fish and fowl,
Gull and goat, skull and scowl,
Flash of green, splash of brown,
Ace of hearts, face of clown.
Faces, take your turn,
Take a ride on the merry-go-round.
Kurd and king, beast and bird,
Ghoul and goose, fool and priest,
Curl of lip, twirl of cape,
Trace of rouge, face of ape.
Faces, drink it in, drink it up
'Til you've drowned in the light
In the sound, but who can name the face?
Masquerade, grinning yellows, spinning red.
Masquerade, take your fill, let the spectacle astound you.
Masquerade, burning glances, turning heads.
Masquerade, stop and stare at the sea of smiles around you.
Masquerade, seething shadows, breathing lies,
Masquerade, you can fool any friend who never knew you.
Masquerade, leering satyrs, peering eyes,
Masquerade, run and hide, but a face will still pursue you.
What a night, what a crowd,
Makes you glad, makes you proud,
All the creme de la creme watching us, watching them
And all our fears are in the past.
Six month of relief, of delight,
Of Elysian peace and we can breathe at last.
No more notes, not more ghost,
Here's a health, here's a toast to a prosperous year
To the new chandelier, and may its splendor never fade.
Six months, what a joy, what a change,
What a blessed release and what a Masquerade!
Make Our Garden Grow from Candide
Leonard Bernstein
You've been a fool
And so have I,
But let's be man and wife.
And let us try,
Before we die,
To make some sense of life.
We're neither pure, nor wise, nor good
We'll do the best we know.
We'll build our house and chop our wood
And make our garden grow.
I thought the world
Was sugar cake
For so our master said.
But, now I'll teach
My hands to bake
A loaf of daily bread.
We're neither pure, nor wise, nor good
We'll do the best we know.
We'll build our house and chop our wood
And make our garden grow.
Let dreamers dream
What worlds they please
Those Edens can't be found.
The sweetest flowers,
The fairest trees
Are grown in solid ground.
We're neither pure, nor wise, nor good
We'll do the best we know.
We'll build our house and chop our wood
And make our garden grow.
And make our garden grow!