Posted by PalJoey 2012-12-04 21:01:38
Performed by the late Alice Playten and company (including Baayork Lee and Pia Zadora), choreographed by a young Michael Bennett, pre-Turkey, pre-Lurkey, pre-Company and -Follies, pre-Chorus Line and -Dreamgirls:
http://youtu.be/6lyv67Peo4w
If you are a young (or old) Broadway fan and you have never seen this before, watch it, please...and watch your entire sense of choreography and musical staging change.'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by After Eight 2012-12-04 21:14:25
I saw it at the Palace.
It was a good number, but please don't exaggerate... cf. Coffee Break, Put on Your Sunday Clothes ...
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by PalJoey 2012-12-04 22:09:52
I never exaggerate. I just enthuse.
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by Jay Lerner-Z 2012-12-05 00:52:09
That was great! Alice and her "little pals" were indeed tremendous. I especially like the look of disgust after nobody puts any money into her hat.
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by CurtainPullDowner 2012-12-05 02:08:28
Love this, but there were other Michael B numbers that didn't get taped that were brilliant: I WONDER WHAT ITS LIKE TO DANCE WITH A BOY, WEARY NEAR TO DYING....
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by EricMontreal22 2012-12-05 04:22:23
I was just thinking of this since The World of Henry Orient was on TCM.
It's a great number, and must have been one of the things that got Bennett Promises, Promises, but I do think the musical's a mess. It's covered pretty heavily in Goldman's The Season.
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by EricMontreal22 2012-12-05 04:28:47
If any Bennett or Broadway dance fan hasn't seen the youtube video of the Dancers Over 40 Bennett lecture (I know PalJoey has) many of his dancers did, here's the clip talking about the number (the entire thing is quite long, but it's all up there, and worth watching)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6YqWziXM2E
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by EricMontreal22 2012-12-05 04:31:38
(and speaking of, I wish we had a video record of Bennett's Grapes of Roth from Promises)
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by EricMontreal22 2012-12-05 05:06:20
Part 6-7 of that Bennett special has Carolyn Kirsh talking about how hard it was to learn to dance Tick Tock from Company, replacing Donna and showing her dress from the number and 10-11 has a lot of great Follies stories.
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by EricMontreal22 2012-12-05 05:07:57
(though all the dancers are pretty hard on the libretto of Follies)
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by Jon 2012-12-05 07:23:35
Priscilla Lopez is also in the group of girls.
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by newintown 2012-12-05 09:54:37
I always love watching that great number.
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by sondheimboy2 2012-12-05 13:26:54
I don't think Don Amechie's intro to the number would have made me buy a ticket.
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by themysteriousgrowl 2012-12-05 13:42:19
No? How about Don Ameche's?
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by newintown 2012-12-05 13:48:27
No, you must be Don Ameche's sister.
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by themysteriousgrowl 2012-12-05 13:51:07
Well, perhaps you're right. Perhaps it is a greater honor for me.
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by Boredathome 2012-12-06 08:13:09
yeah....nothing special there.
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by PalJoey 2012-12-06 10:08:14
Bennett gets TWO separate hands in the middle of the number and YOU think that's not special?
Perhaps you don't know what special is...
(AT 3:00 AND 3:45)
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by trentsketch 2012-12-06 10:08:52
I really am fascinated by this show. This song, in particular, stands out.
What that choreography shows me is that you can build a showstopper around the abilities of young performers without having to include over the top choreography. This is stylized marching, posing, and formation changes. It's harder than it looks but not so hard that the young performers struggle to keep it together. It builds very well.
Alice Playten taking the lead doesn't hurt, either.
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by PalJoey 2012-12-06 10:17:57
And later in his life, Bennett would build showstoppers around the abilities of older performers without having to include "over the top" choreography.
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by orangeskittles 2012-12-07 01:51:15
That's so weird, I just watched this video Monday night. I came across it a few months ago when a friend was looking for clips of Michael Bennett speaking. I found this instead and became instantly obsessed.
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by PalJoey 2012-12-07 09:29:35
I know. It gets stuck in my mind for weeks at a time, the way Turkey Lurkey does.
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by sondheimboy2 2012-12-07 13:22:07
PalJoey, if you think that's bad, a friend of mine put "Turkey Lurkey" from the Italian cast album on a mix tape for me and I had that in my head for MONTHS!
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by GavestonPS 2012-12-07 18:40:25
I know. It gets stuck in my mind for weeks at a time, the way Turkey Lurkey does.
That might be because the song consists of a couple of short choruses, repeated ad infinitum, like a TV commercial.
This is not a criticism. The song is dramatizing children (even including one very crafty child in the Playten character). They SHOULDN'T sing "Too Many Mornings" or "The Miller's Son." But the song's simplicity is why it gets stuck in our heads, I think.
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by PalJoey 2012-12-07 20:54:48
I also get "Too Many Mornings" and "The Miller's Son" stuck in my head. But maybe that's just me.
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by EricMontreal22 2012-12-07 21:22:45
And musically Turkey Lurkey is far from simple--it's impressive how he managed to choreograph those *crazy* key changes (which Bacharach was known for).
The oddest show tune I get caught in my head and often find myself singing in the shower--I hope this doesn't mean something deeper--is Happily Ever After cut from Company.
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by CarlosAlberto 2012-12-07 21:26:50
I love this number with all my heart...Alice Playten was such the little powerhouse....what a voice on that girl!
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by GavestonPS 2012-12-07 22:07:09
I also get "Too Many Mornings" and "The Miller's Son" stuck in my head. But maybe that's just me.
As do I, but for different reasons, I would argue. My point wasn't to denigrate "Poor Little Person", just to say it is written appropriately for the character(s) who sing it.
But I must admit, as much as I would have loved Alice Playten in the 1960s, nowadays I listen and think, "Why are they making that poor child shout her way through that song?" I guess I've been spoiled by mike singing, but Playten's belting is NOT healthy for a still-developing adolescent's voice.
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by PalJoey 2012-12-07 22:52:00
It's just the way she sang. She lived and was healthy until she got sick and died last year, of pancreatic cancer.
Here's a 1970 appearance of her on the Mike Douglas Show, singing a kick-ass "I Happen to Like New York":
http://youtu.be/BS0JyYMX0g0
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by EricMontreal22 2012-12-07 22:54:29
I guessher voice would still be developing, but Alice was 20 when she did Henry--not really a child.
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by PalJoey 2012-12-08 00:53:06
Here's an audio of my favorite Alice Playten performance ever, singing an obscure Cole Porter song called "Pets":
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by CurtainPullDowner 2012-12-08 01:04:58
I Loved her work in CAROLINE OR CHANGE.
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by evic 2012-12-08 13:38:24
The York theater did a terrific revival about 10 years ago with a cut down cast. Mark Nelson, who is great in Asher Lev, was a very funny Henry. The show has it's merits, but will never be redone on Broadway. I really love the orchestrations on the OBC
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by evic 2012-12-08 13:38:31
The York theater did a terrific revival about 10 years ago with a cut down cast. Mark Nelson, who is great in Asher Lev, was a very funny Henry. The show has it's merits, but will never be redone on Broadway. I really love the orchestrations on the OBC
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by iluvtheatertrash 2012-12-08 14:02:02
And her heart-breaking "Capricious and Fickle" is a stunner.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQjjMqbOh60
Song stars around 2:15.
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by sondheimboy2 2012-12-09 08:25:30
Not to threadjack, but I WISH that someone would put out a DVD of some of the Great Broadway performers and shows that appeared on the old Mike Douglas Show! Or, even better, some of flop shows that performed on the Mike Douglas Show! (Based in Philadelphia, shows that were in tryout in Philadelphia often did a number on his show.)
'Poor Little Person' from HENRY, SWEET, HENRY
Posted by GavestonPS 2012-12-09 15:48:47
Thank you, Pal Joey and iluvtheatertrash, for the clips! I'm not a vocal coach, but to my ear she's already singing more smartly by 1970. Maybe the pushing was something they made her do for HENRY or maybe it was a character choice for "Poor Little Person".
What a glorious voice when she eases up just a tiny bit! I'm so sorry to hear of her death.
(Eric, I was told that female voices aren't fully mature until the late 20s, even though they may not change range with puberty as male voices do. But don't quote me. I'm certainly not an expert.)
