Interview: Ted Sperling Helms a Lavish Concert Revival of STRIKE UP THE BAND at Carnegie Hall

MasterVoices will open its 2024-25 season on Tuesday, October 29 at Carnegie Hall when MasterVoices Artistic Director Ted Sperling leads the 120–member MasterVoices Chorus, the MasterVoices Orchestra and guest soloists in a concert staging of Strike Up the Band, a rarely revived work with music by George Gershwin and lyrics by Ira Gershwin.

The performance features Shereen Ahmed, Phillip Attmore, Victoria Clark, Lissa deGuzman, Claybourne Elder, Christopher Fitzgerald, Bryce Pinkham, and David Pittu. You can see the entire cast, crew, and more information, on MasterVoices’ website.

With its soaring melodies, infectious syncopation, and lyrics that both provoke and delight, Strike Up the Band was the first of three political musicals that the Gershwins, George S. Kaufman, and Morrie Ryskind wrote together. MasterVoices has previously performed the other two, the Pulitzer Prize-winning Of Thee I Sing in 2017, and its sequel, Let ‘Em Eat Cake, in 2019. 

Director Ted Sperling worked with the Gershwin and Kaufman estates and author Laurence Maslon to create a new edition of Strike Up the Band, which contains the best of the 1927 and 1930 versions of the show. The MasterVoices concert staging will also feature a cast of dancers, taking “full advantage of the wonderful dance music that follows so many of the songs, sometimes lyrical, other times comic, or military.”

Some of the most famous songs from the show, in addition to its irresistible overture and title song, are “The Man I Love” and “I’ve Got a Crush on You.” 

This MasterVoices performance will be dedicated to the memory of Gershwin family member Michael Strunsky, who would have turned 90 years old the week of our concert. As steward of the Ira Gershwin Musical Estate, Mike was an essential supporter of so many of MasterVoices’ projects, including The Firebrand of Florence, Lady in the Dark, Of Thee I Sing, and Let ‘Em Eat Cake. He will be sorely missed.

Read a conversation with Ted Sperling about the new revision, which he hopes may become a “blueprint for future performances of this work.”

How are you feeling about your upcoming performance of Strike Up the Band with MasterVoices?

I’m very excited to complete the trilogy of the Gershwin/Kaufman/Ryskind musicals, having already presented Of Thee I Sing and Let ‘Em Eat Cake. Plus, we’re doing a delicate revision on the piece, combining the best of the 1927 and 1930 versions.

What has the process been like of being part of the book revision for Strike Up the Band?

Larry Maslon and I have had a great time working on the new book together. It’s tricky to tinker with something and still maintain its integrity, but this was always a wacky piece and even the original authors did a wholesale revision back then, so it feels right to give it a new polish for today.

Can you give me an example of one of the changes you've made that you feel improves the show? 

We’ve tried to create stronger story lines for all the characters, and in particular for the main romantic characters, the love triangle of Joan, Jim and Sloane. 

Who should come see this performance?

Anyone who loves Gershwin tunes, Gilbert and Sullivan, the Marx Brothers, tap dancing, and pointed political satire! Plus, a chorus of 140 singing their hearts out, an expert Broadway orchestra, and nine brilliant comic actor/singers.

Do you have a personal favorite song from the show? 

I’m quite taken with “Meadow Serenade,” one of the really obscure songs that was lost for decades. The lyric survived, but the music was thought lost. A wonderful composer named Kay Swift, who was close to the Gershwins, recalled the main melody, and transcribed it years after the production had closed. She didn’t remember the music for the introductory verse, so Burton Lane, another wonderful composer and friend of the Gershwins, set it to music. 

Aside from working on this production, what have you been filling your time with lately?

Well, we have the rest of this year’s season to cast and prepare, so I’m working hard on “Blind Injustice” now, which will be our next production, in February. I also have been conducting and hosting several exciting symphonic programs that I’ve put together with my husband, Noah Waxman, so we’re developing a new one for this coming summer. 

Is there anything else you'd like to add?

I’m looking forward to a cabaret-style concert [on Wednesday October 16th] to benefit WNET. I’m playing piano and doing a little duetting with my longtime best friend and collaborator, Victoria Clark. It’s open to the public, so check it out! And then come see Vicki do a hilarious turn as a wealthy philanthropist who’s hot to trot in Strike up the Band a week or so later at Carnegie Hall!

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Tickets to Strike Up the Band on October 29th are available on Carnegie Hall’s website.

For more information about MasterVoices and to see the full cast list, visit https://www.mastervoices.org/events/strike-up-the-band/

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