Millie and Pirates Connection

[JoizeyActor]

Posted: 7/5/04 at 11:00pm

Well, I was listening to the AOL showtunes, and this song came on that was very familiar. I'm assuming 'The Speed Test' from Millie was 'taken' from 'My Eyes Are Fully Open' from 'Pirates of Penzance'. Again, 'Pirates' is another show I haven't seen all the way through and I had no clue that there was a patter song like the one in Miilie.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 7/5/04 at 11:03pm

Wow, when I saw "Pirates" in the subject title, I immediately thought of the movie, "Pirates of the Caribbean" and was like "what on earth...?" But anyway, I've never actually thought of that, but the song from "Pirates" is just hysterical when performed well. Now that you mention it, it's a lot like The Speed Test. I wonder if that's intentional...

[JoizeyActor]

Posted: 7/5/04 at 11:05pm

It's almost the exact same melodie and many of the same lyrics.

Like, "I hope you solve this matter matter matter matter matter". And "If I could be so lucking as to have a good---" And "[hudson's floor wax] really doesn't matter!" Words were just replaced it seems.

[mzk]

Posted: 7/5/04 at 11:12pm

it's the same song.
the song from pirates is actually taken from g&s's ruddigore (i think...) hence the line "so we'll sing this song from ruddigore and it really doesn't matter."
i thought (and i could be verrrry wrong) that originally, jeanine tesori was hired as a music supervisor of sorts and that the music for millie was intended to be old songs (around in the twenties?) w/new lyrics. that didn't exactly happen and tesori ended up as composer but there are a few songs in millie that she didn't compose or didn't compose entirely.
(oooh! my first post!) Updated On: 7/5/04 at 11:12 PM

[Matt_G]

Posted: 7/5/04 at 11:13pm

I was picturing Sutton walking the plank

[TheaterChef]

Posted: 7/6/04 at 4:08am

You're absolutely correct, mzk. It is from Ruddigore. I discovered that a few years back when I was in a local production of Pirates of Penzance and came across the optional piece "My Eyes Are Fully Open" and found it was fit into Millie. One more thing to take away from the originality of the show..

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 7/6/04 at 5:22am

I remember when I saw "Millie" -- when that number began, I got almost angry that they had simply stolen that patter song from "Ruddigore" and had the nerve not to even mention it in the Playbill. Beyond shameless, it was one of several reasons I didn't care for the show. Plagiarism leaves a nasty taste in my mouth and I almost walked out after that number.

[TheaterChef]

Posted: 7/6/04 at 5:38am

D'accord.

[SuperSchubert]

Posted: 7/19/04 at 10:26am

Yeah, I have listened to my recording of Millie only once. When I heard 'The Speed Test' I did a double take when I realized that it was a definite rip-off of the song from Ruddigore.

So they don't even credit Gilbert and Sullivan? For shame!