Program Notes

WHY WE DO WHAT WE DO
I fell in love with the
Richard Brooks film of
The Catered Affair the
moment I saw it on TV
as a kid. There, onscreen, were the people
of my neighborhood
acting the way they really
acted, caring about what
they really cared about
and sounding the way
New Yorkers really
sounded. It was only
later in life that I discovered the almost royal pedigree of the script. Originally written
as a teleplay by the great Paddy Chayefsky, the piece was
expanded for film by the legendary Gore Vidal. How could I
help but love it even more? Still, watching the film as an adult, I
found things about the story that I felt I could expand, illuminate and even utilize to make my own personal statement about
life. That is why I set out to create this show you are seeing
tonight. But I certainly didnt do it alone.

Highlands of Scotland where I was raised. But I was raised in a

tenement block not dissimilar to the one the Hurleys live in,
and my surname is, of course, Irish to the core. These were,
somehow, my people. The journey from reading that draft has
been nothing but fun. Long may it continue."
JOHN BUCCHINO, our composer and lyricist came aboard
because, When Harvey (whom I didn't know at the time)
asked me to write this show with him, I said no. This was
playing in the big leagues and part of me didn't feel ready.
Being relatively new to theatre writing, I thought there was a
right way to do it, as if there was some rulebook of which I
couldn't get a copy. But I came to see the beauty and humanity
in both the original material and in Harvey's concept. And I
finally said yes when we each made our own list of places in
the story where a song might happen, compared them, and
found they were virtually identical. A good sign.
Certainly a costume designer has a different agenda for choosing projects than a composer, or does she? ANN HOULDWARD had this to say, I was thrilled and honored to be asked

Creating a theater piece takes an army of artists. Each one of

them brings their own talent, personal perspective and motivations to the collaboration. I thought it might be interesting to
ask a few of these artists why they chose to join this project. I
asked. They shared.
Why not start with the star of our show? This is what went
through darling FAITH PRINCES decision-making mind.
How often does someone put into your hot little hands a role
that is Mama Rose as written by Chekhov? And who in their
right mind would give up a chance to have Harvey as a
brother?
Our director, JOHN DOYLE, is an international sensation
who is offered a dozen scripts a day. Why did he choose to do A
Catered Affair? When Harvey sent me the script I was immediately captivated and excited. So seldom does one receive material that reflects something of what makes the human being
tick." The Bronx seems, in some ways, a long way from the

P16 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE

OLD GLOBE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR JACK OBRIEN DIRECTED HARVEY FIERSTEIN IN THE HIT
BROADWAY PRODUCTION OF HAIRSPRAY, FOR WHICH BOTH WON TONY AWARDS JACK
FOR DIRECTION AND HARVEY FOR HIS HILARIOUS PERFORMANCE AS EDNA TURNBLAD
(PICTURED). PHOTO BY PAUL KOLNIK .

CONSTANTINE KITSOPOULOS not only has one of

theaters best names, he also has a stellar reputation as a
musical director. His response to my query was, I actually
turned this one down initially as I was doing another show
that I thought would run. Well, that's show biz.... I was thrilled
to be called after that show closed and even more enthusiastic
once I read the script and listened to the music. The kicker of it
all was having the opportunity to work with John Doyle and
the brilliant team that he has assembled.
DAVID GALLO, our set designer, had a personal journey that
paralleled the show, A Catered Affair came to me at a most
interesting time. After many years of designing shows that
were unique to me for many reasons (but seemed to lack a
personal touch) I was delighted to find this script on my
desk. As an avid collaborator with John Doyle, I am always
interested in what he has going on. When he brought this
show to me I was delighted to find so many relationships in
the play analogous to my own life experiences. The beauty and
fragility of the story (and many of the details) are something I
have found true during my own recent marriage journey. This
kind of poetry is why I (and my now wife) have given ourselves
to a life in the performing arts.
And finally, a note from my own brother, RON FIERSTEIN,
and partner in this venture once again speaks to the familial
involvement of this project. One morning more than a decade
ago Harvey called me at my office to say he'd just seen an old
movie on TV that he thought could sing." We decided to look
into acquiring the musical stage rights and off we went on an
adventure that has led to this production. How exciting it is to
see all the paperwork contracts on mine, scripts on Harvey's
spring to life with the collaboration of so many talented
theater people.
So, thats how some of us arrived at your theater. Im certain
our audience has as many reasons for coming to see us.
Harvey Fierstein

John Doyle
When his Broadway revival of
Sweeney Todd premiered in
November 2005, John Doyle was
given the critical equivalent of the
keys to the city. The thrilling new
revival burrows into your
thoughts with the poisoned seductiveness of a campfire storyteller
who knows what really scares you,
Ben Brantley wrote in The New
York Times. An extraordinary
evening: unexpected, thrilling and,
in the oddest way, authentic, Clive Barnes said in The New York
Post. David Rooney of Variety called the show mesmerizing on a
number of levels.
Sweeney Todd was originally produced in 1979 with a cast of over
two dozen actors and a 17-piece orchestra. Doyles revival used a 10person cast, who also served as the shows musicians and played the
score. The show won two Tony Awards (including Best Direction
of a Musical for Doyle) and earned an additional four Tony nominations for the production.
His 2006 Broadway revival of Sondheims Company also
doubled actors as musicians and was equally successful. Company
won the Tony for Best Revival of a Musical, and Doyle earned his
second nomination for Best Direction.
Though new to the American stage, Doyle is a veteran director
in the UK, and has worked with the actor-musician device for more
than 15 years. When asked by Playbill.com about this style, he
replied, That very style has made me known, so I cant moan about
it too much. [But] you dont get to be 54, working your whole life
in the theatre, and not do lots of different work.
I feel a little aggrieved occasionally that [some say] the technique is the concept, he adds. It just isnt. The concept is the
message behind how you want to tell your story, its not the technique or trick that you use to get it. The dancing in West Side Story
isnt the concept, is it? But its a show that lives through dance.
The body of Doyles work is characterized by inventiveness and
variety. He was the Artistic Director for four prestigious UK theatres, and has staged operas and plays in addition to his musicals.
Doyle also directed the UK regional premiere of Alan Bennetts The
Madness of King George III, as well as classics such as Othello, Hedda
Gabler, and Uncle Vanya.
A Catered Affair, opening in April of 2008, will be Doyles third
production on Broadway.
Kim Montelibano Heil

Photo: 2007 www.salvationarmy.org.uk

to design what I find to be a vignette of life for not only the

people of the Bronx, but for families such as mine from rural
Montana. Yes, the wedding dress that costs too much but you
want to give to your daughter the meeting of two families
from different sides of the track trying to figure out what
your life will be without your children. Those things pulled at
my heartstrings.

PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE P17

Program Notes (continued)

John Bucchino

Photo by Molly Mullin

Born in Philadelphia
but raised largely in Palm
Desert, CA, John
Bucchino has been
writing music since high
school. He works
instinctively and by
memory, allowing the
music to come to him as
an emotional language.
Im largely self-taught
when it comes to technique, he admits. My
approach to music has
always been more emotional, rather than mathematical.
Ultimately, it was his emphasis on emotion that gave him
passage into the world of musical theatre.
One who noticed Bucchino was fellow composer and lyricist Stephen Schwartz (Godspell, Wicked, Pippin). A fan of
Bucchinos songwriting, Schwartz eventually became one of his
best friends and encouraged him to write for musical theatre.
Bucchino was reluctant, however, and didnt really heed the
suggestion until several years later when another famous
Stephen Sondheim contacted him to talk about his
work. Like Schwartz, Sondheim felt that Bucchino might have
a future composing for the stage. Bucchino remembers, I
finally thought: maybe theres something here. He was asked
by Jeffrey Katzenberg of Dreamworks to write the score for the
animated film, Joseph, King of Dreams, for which he won the
2000 Video Premiere Award for Best Song. Shortly after that,
director Hal Prince approached him with an idea for a threepart musical evening, and asked him to contribute a project.
His songs held a presence of their own in the New York
cabaret scene, and in 2000 he was approached by RCA to
record an album. He called on his famous friends, Liza
Minnelli, Art Garfunkel, Kristen Chenoweth, and Patti Lupone,
among others to sing his songs, and the album, entitled
Grateful: The Songs of John Bucchino. The CD prompted
Harvey Fierstein to write him in 2003 about A Catered Affair.
When asked about his musical influences he replies: The
Beatles, first and foremost. The diversity in their composition
and production, from rock to classical to Eastern elements, the
tightly-crafted lyrics infused with poetry and whimsy make
them a huge influence for me.
P18 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE

His other influences cover a wide range, from classical

composers to Gershwin, Berlin and Rodgers, to pop writers of
the 60s and 70s such as Joni Mitchell, Paul Simon, James
Taylor and Stevie Wonder.
I wasn't exposed to much theatre music, but my mom
loved Rodgers and Hammerstein, he says. We had the cast
albums to Carousel and The Sound of Music which makes it
especially sweet that my work is now represented by the
Rodgers and Hammerstein Organization!
Kim Montelibano Heil
John's CDs and children's book may be purchased at the
Globes gift shop as well as through his website at www.johnbucchino.com.

Thoughts on Marriage
Keep your eyes wide open before marriage, and half-shut
afterwards.
Benjamin Franklin
My husband said he needed more space. So I locked him outside.
Roseanne Barr
My wife and I were happy for twenty years. Then we met.
Rodney Dangerfield
Do you know what it means to come home at night to a woman
who'll give you a little love, a little affection, a little tenderness?
It means you're in the wrong house.
George Burns
If you want to sacrifice the admiration of many men for the
criticism of one, go ahead, get married.
Katharine Hepburn
Your marriage is in trouble if your wife says, 'You're only interested
in one thing,' and you can't remember what it is.
Milton Berle
My wife and I have the secret to making a marriage last. Two times
a week, we go to a nice restaurant, a little wine, good food.....She
goes Tuesdays, I go Fridays.
Henny Youngman
"I am" is reportedly the shortest sentence in the English language.
Could it be that "I do" is the longest sentence?
George Carlin

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT OLD GLOBE PRODUCTIONS, PLEASE VISIT OUR
WEBSITE AT WWW.THEOLDGLOBE.ORG.

Paddys Bronx
Sidney Paddy
Chayefsky, writer of the
teleplay The Catered
Affair, on which the
musical A Catered Affair
is based, was born on
January 29, 1923, in the
Bronx. His parents,
Harry and Gussie, are
credited for introducing
the arts to the young
Sidney, who learned to
channel his frustrations
and anger into writing,
becoming adept at parody and satire. As a boy during the
Depression, he would defend himself against the neighborhood bullies by playfully mimicking and mocking them, a ruse
that impressed the gangs so much they became friends with
him.
He eventually joined the army, where he earned the nickname Paddy from his lieutenant when Sidney insisted he
was Catholic in order to get out of K.P. duty.
In 1944, after stepping on a landmine, Chayefsky found
himself in the infirmary, where he met writer and director
Garson Kanin. They formed a quick friendship, and together
they went on to write Chayefskys first movie, True Glory. He
caught the attention of director Michael Gordon, who recommended him for an apprenticeship at Universal Pictures.

ERNEST BORGNINE AND ESTHER MINCOTTI FROM 1955 SCREENPLAY MARTY.

CAST FROM 1956 FILM THE CATERED AFFAIR; SCREENPLAY BY GORE VIDAL .

Chayefsky emerged as one of the best dramatic writers

working during televisions Golden Age. He made his mark
in 1953 when he wrote a teleplay entitled Marty, a love story
between two ordinary lonely people. Marty was so beloved by
critics and audiences alike that he wrote a screenplay version
in 1955, which won four Oscars (including Best Picture and
Best Screenplay for Chayefsky) and nominations for an additional four.
That same year, Chayefsky wrote a teleplay called The
Catered Affair, which was released in 1956 as a movie. This
was the process for many of his projects; The Bachelor Party and
Middle of the Night were both written for television and eventually made into movies with varying levels of success. Middle of
the Night was a hit on Broadway, as were two of his other plays
that were written for the stage, The Tenth Man (1959) and
Gideon (1961).
In 1971, Chayefsky wrote The Hospital, which was a huge
box office success and garnered his second Oscar win for Best
Writing. His final film, Network (1976), earned him his third
Oscar, and is remembered today as one of the best film satires
ever made. His line spoken by Peter Finch, Im mad
as hell, and Im not going to take this anymore! is rated #19
in the Top 20 movie quotes by the American Film Institute.
On August 1, 1981, Chayefsky died of cancer in New York
City at the age of 58. He left behind his wife Susan and his
son Dan, who recalls that his fathers death was peaceful,
absent of the rage that fueled his writing and that he carried
for so long.
Kim Montelibano Heil

PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE P19