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STREET SCENE {HOUSTON GRAND OPERA} {TAPE 1 OF 2}
(TV)

Summary

Tape one of two. This special presents the Houston Grand Opera's production of "Street Scene," composer Kurt Weill and lyricist Langston Hughes's 1947 dramatic musical, based on the 1929 social drama by Elmer Rice. Weill's work, distinctly American in tone, portrays the lives of the residents of a block of New York tenement buldings, particularly the Maurrant family. As the show opens, the cast sings about the day's oppressive heat in "Ain't It Awful, the Heat?," followed by "Get a Load of That" in which three women, Mrs. Jones, Mrs. Fiorentino, and Mrs. Olsen, describe their shock over the fact that their married neighbor, Anna Maurrant, is known to be involved with the local collector for the milk company, Steve Sankey. After her brutish husband Frank comes home from work, Anna joins the ladies on the front stoop and sings an aria revealing the disappointment she feels in her life. Various neighbors sing arias about themselves which illustrate the ethnic and cultural diversity of the neighborhood. Tension mounts as the Maurrants' son Willie arrives home from a fight with another school boy who has been spreading rumors about his mother. Sam Kaplan, a studious law student with a crush on the Maurrant's other child, Rose, expresses his feelings about the street they all live on in the song "Lonely House," where one can still feel lonely among so many people. Next, Mr. Easter, Rose's married employer, walks her home, tells her he's crazy about her, and in the song "Wouldn't You Like to Be on Broadway?" tries to entice her into an arrangement where she would be "kept" by him and appear on the stage. Her response, in the song "What Good Would the Moon Be?," reveals that she would prefer to be with someone she loves rather than accept the easy life he offers. Flirty, sexy Mae Jones returns home to her parents' apartment escorted by the cocky Dick McGann. In the lively song-and-dance tune "Moon-Faced, Starry-Eyed," they express how wild they are about each other. After they leave, Mae's brother, Vincent, a local tough, makes a pass at Rose. After an unsuccessful attempt to rebuff him, Sam sings about the pain and brutality he sees all around him, and Rose wonders if the rumors about her mother's infidelity are true since Mr. Maurrant gives his family so little affection. Reminiscing about a poem Sam once recited to her, the two young lovers sing "Remember That I Care" and depart for the evening with a kiss. Continues with T:53954.

Details

  • NETWORK: ARTE (France)/(Germany)
  • DATE: January 1, 1995
  • RUNNING TIME: 1:23:43
  • COLOR/B&W: Color
  • CATALOG ID: T:53953
  • GENRE: Specials; Music
  • SUBJECT HEADING: International Collection - France; International Collection - Germany; Musical revues, comedies, etc.; Operas
  • SERIES RUN: ARTE (France)/(Germany) - TV, 1995
  • COMMERCIALS: N/A

CREDITS

  • Michael Boehme … Producer
  • Walter Bernd … Production (Misc.), Production Manager (for theater unit)
  • Erik Nacken … Production (Misc.), Production Manager (for film unit)
  • Francesca Zambello … Director (for the stage)
  • Jose Montes-Baquer … Director
  • Beth Greenberg … Direction (Misc.), Assistant Director (for theater unit)
  • Peter Fritsch … Direction (Misc.), Assistant Director (for theater unit)
  • Astrid Frielingsdorf … Direction (Misc.), Assistant Director (for film unit)
  • Jens Rodenberg … Direction (Misc.), Assistant Director (for film unit)
  • Elmer Rice … Writer, Book by
  • Kurt Weill … Composer
  • Langston Hughes … Lyricist
  • James Holmes … Conductor
  • Denny Berry … Choreographer
  • Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz … Symphony Orchestra
  • Ludwigshafener Theaterchor … Choir/Chorus
  • Klaus Thielitz … Choral Director
  • Ashley Putnam … Cast, Mrs. Maurrant
  • Marc Embree … Cast, Frank Maurrant
  • Teri Hansen … Cast, Rose Maurrant
  • Kip Wilborn … Cast, Sam Kaplan
  • Wendy Hill … Cast, Mrs. Fiorentino
  • Anthony Mee … Cast, Lippo Fiorentino
  • Janice Felty … Cast, Mrs. Jones
  • Rodney Stenborg … Cast, Mr. Jones
  • Heide Eisenberg … Cast, Mrs. Olsen
  • John Kuether … Cast, Mr. Olsen
  • David Rae Smith … Cast, Abraham Kaplan
  • Michael Scarborough … Cast, Mr. Easter
  • Dean Anthony … Cast, Mr. Buchanan
  • Anita Vidovic … Cast, Mae Jones
  • Danny Costello … Cast, Dick McGann
  • Ivan Thomas … Cast, Henry Davis
  • Claudia Ashley … Performer
  • Rachel Beaubout … Performer
  • Field Blauvelt … Performer
  • Nicolas Bocek … Performer
  • Yvette Bonner … Performer
  • Susan Borofsky … Performer
  • Cliff Butler … Performer
  • Michael Carratini … Performer
  • Craig Childers … Performer
  • Muriel Costa-Greenspon … Performer
  • Andrew Culiak … Performer
  • Cornelia Fisch … Performer
  • Adrienne Flaherty … Performer
  • Bryan Flaherty … Performer
  • Maureen Flaherty … Performer
  • Thomas Flaherty … Performer
  • Robin Lynn Gooch … Performer
  • Gabriel Kahane … Performer
  • Elke Kaiser … Performer
  • Lisa Kelly … Performer
  • Jacqueline Mack … Performer
  • Paul Meredith … Performer
  • Zoe Miller … Performer
  • Daniel Nardicio … Performer
  • Amy Neff … Performer
  • Chris Nicholas … Performer
  • Stefanie Pannes … Performer
  • Peter Parsch … Performer
  • Yashira Rodrighez … Performer
  • Ben Romer … Performer
  • Elly Romer … Performer
  • Armin Seitz … Performer
  • Any Stadler … Performer
  • Margaret Stenborg … Performer
  • Kaion Woods … Performer
  • Dana Woods … Performer