The Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization released the first complete recording of Rodgers & Hammerstein's ALLEGRO on Sony Masterworks Broadway on February 3, 2009.
The CD is produced by David Lai, Bruce Pomahac and Ted Chapin.
Sony Masterworks Broadway is giving away copies of the celebrated CD right here on BroadwayWorld.com with a special contest.
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A cast of stars from the worlds of Broadway and opera was assembled for this unprecedented studio recording. Featured on the CD are Patrick Wilson as Joe Taylor, Jr.; Nathan Gunn and Audra McDonald as Joe's parents; Marni Nixon as Joe's Grandma; Judy Kuhn as Beulah; Liz Callaway as Emily; Laura Benanti as Jennie; and Norbert Leo Butz as Joe's best friend, Charlie.
ALLEGRO also features solos by Judith Blazer, Maureen Brennan, Ashley Brown, Danny Burstein and Kathy Morath, as well as a full chorus and a children's chorus. The CD features a host of noteworthy cameos including former New York City Cultural Affairs Commissioner Schuyler Chapin; Senior Minister of All Souls Unitarian Church Galen Guengerich; Lincoln Center Theater Executive Producer Bernard Gersten; theater scribes Howard Kissel and John Simon; Broadway veterans Ray Demattis, Harvey Evans and Kurt Peterson; and ALLEGRO's 1947 production assistant, Stephen Sondheim.
Larry Blank conducts the 50-piece Istropolis Philharmonic Orchestra, featuring the original orchestrations by Robert Russell Bennett and dance arrangements by Trude Rittmann. Bruce Pomahac is the musical director and Ben Whiteley is the choral director (with choral arrangements by Crane Calder).
ALLEGRO, Rodgers & Hammerstein's fourth work together, debuted in 1947 preceded by the Broadway musicals OKLAHOMA! and CAROUSEL, and the film STATE FAIR. A somewhat controversial work, the show ran for a season and earned some rave reviews, but nevertheless was their first musical to be less than a blockbuster hit. ALLEGRO divided critics and challenged audiences with an unusual style of storytelling, and a groundbreaking approach to musical staging. In the words of Stephen Sondheim, the production marked "the first really good experimental show."
An original musical, ALLEGRO tells the story of an earnest country doctor, Joseph Taylor, Jr. and follows his life from cradle to adulthood. His journey -- both literal and moral - spans from small town to big city, and back again. The score is unconventional: fragments of song move in and out of the action like passing thoughts; melodies flit by in one scene only to take hold and blossom in the next. Major songs are given to minor characters, while the central character has comparatively little solo work. A chorus provides spoken commentary and sings aloud inner thoughts. Original director/choreographer Agnes de Mille's extended ballet sequences are reflected in intriguing orchestral pieces.
