Dear World

[Chevstriss]

Posted: 2/26/05 at 4:01pm

is there anything particularly good about this score? i just sat thru it for the first time and found it recycled and forgettable. Even the lyrics were embarassing.

easy to see why its not done often. In fact I've never heard of a regional or community theatre doing this show. I'm sure they have, but I've never heard of it.

[melissa errico fan]

Posted: 2/26/05 at 4:02pm

I'm not a fan of the score, but I like Angela Lansbury in it. Updated On: 2/26/05 at 04:02 PM

[WithoutATrace]

Posted: 2/26/05 at 4:06pm

I LOVE Dear World. "The Tea Party" is Jerry Herman's best work ever! I also love "Each Tomorrow Morning," "I Don't Want To Know," and "I've Never Said I Love You." The title song is god awful though. I hope they do this at Encores soon. It deserves recognition.

[melissa errico fan]

Posted: 2/26/05 at 4:10pm

I wouldn't be surprised if an Encores production popped up in the next few years.

[Chip1012]

Posted: 2/26/05 at 7:15pm

I agree that Herman's best material is "The Tea Party." It's pretty brilliant.

[Jon]

Posted: 2/26/05 at 7:23pm

Yes, regional theatres do it. We did it at our theatre in 1991.

The title song and "One Person" are pretty awful -almost Jerry Herman parodies. However, the rest of the score is quite good, with a genuine French feel to it.

[Dollypop]

Posted: 2/26/05 at 8:07pm

I saw the original production of DEAR WORLD and it remains one of my favorite flops. Lansbury was marvelous and I truly loved the score. I also liked the title song--in its time. The country was trying to heal from the Vietnam conflict and somehow the Hallmark-type lyrics were a soothing balm. Upon hearning them today, they sound infantile.

You should note that the show has been revised ans the titels song was cut from the new version. I believe the show is now called THE SPRING OF NEXT YEAR.

[wildcat]

Posted: 2/26/05 at 8:56pm

Oh, that's pretty! It seems a shame to lose the combination of Giradoux and Herman forevermore because of a couple of dud numbers. What was the real problem with that show? People say that audiences didn't want to see Lansbury in such a dark show but there must have been more to it. I recall thinking that Miguel Godreau's dancing mime character was a bit twee.

[Feodor Sverdlov]

Posted: 2/26/05 at 9:42pm

I love the score.

[Jon]

Posted: 2/26/05 at 11:41pm

The version we did (the one Tams-Wirmark was licencing at the time) contains two more songs that aren't on the cast album: "The Bottom of the Glass", which is Aurielia's first number, and "Just A Litle Bit More", a second song for the villains.

[frontrowcentre2]

Posted: 2/26/05 at 11:59pm

The main reason DEAR WORLD failed and the reason why it is so seldom done is that it has a truly horrible script. A couple of the songs are duds ("Garbage", "Dear World") but several of them are wonderful yet they are all wrong for the characters Giraudoux wrote. The score has been grafted onto a delicate play and succeed in destrying all its charm. Divorced from the script, the songs make an enjoyable cast album which leads many to believe the show was an unappreciated masterpiece. But anyone who has seen it will tell you the script just doesn't support the score.

[twogaab2]

Posted: 2/27/05 at 10:54am

I think the problem of Dear World is the source material. Directors love the play, actors love the play, and audiences hate it. The same holds true for the musical. In spite of one of Herman's best scores, audiences in general hate the show.