Coleman's Elaine's Domain Receives Private Read-Through Nov. 18
By: BWW News Desk Nov. 18, 2005
A.E. Hotchner, the librettist of the show, also wrote Everyone Come to Elaine's, the non-fiction book upon which the musical is based. Both were inspired by the charismatic real-life figure of Elaine Kaufman, who founded and ran the 88th Street dinery. The anniversary gathering is a sad occasion for Hotchner: "That's not something I look forward to, but I think somehow I've got to…accept the fact that he's not here anymore. It's very difficult. I still feel he's still around." While the show, in its current state, includes one song with music by Coleman and lyrics by Hotchner, the bulk of the musical's score will included trunk songs with Coleman's music set to Dorothy Fields' and Carolyn Leigh's lyrics. Coleman and Hotchner had previously collaborated on Welcome to the Club.
On November 21st, Lainie Kazan (who starred in the pre-Broadway production of Coleman's Seesaw) will team up with John Paul Almon for a private industry reading of the musical; Mary Mitchell-Campbell will be on piano. Kazan takes on the title role, while Almon plays all of the twelve male characters who figure in Elaine's life. As of yet, a director is not attached to the project and no productions have been finalized.
"It's my celebration of Elaine. I've taken stuff from the book, but I've dramatized it. I've obviously exaggerated some things, taken license with some things. It's really a tribute to her, in dramatic terms," stated Hotchner.
Elaine's Domain was one of a number of projects Coleman was working on when he passed away at the age of 75. The others were Pamela's First Musical (with book by Wendy Wasserstein and lyrics by David Zippel), The Great Ostrovsky (book and lyrics by Avery Corman) and In the Pocket (book by Larry Gelbart and lyrics by Alan and Marilyn Bergman). Pamela's First Musical is saw its world premiere production at TheatreWorks in Northern California earlier this year, while The Great Ostrovsky was produced at the Prince Music Theatre in Philadelphia in March of 2004. In the Pocket, which is the new title of Like Jazz, is likely to open on Broadway in the future.
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