Hello, Dolly! is absolutely one of my favorite movie musicals of all time and has been since I was a preschooler. I saw the stage show for the first time in my twenties and was equally as enchanted, so I'm thrilled to be covering it this week. It's colorful, upbeat, happy, hopeful, and ever so much fun.
Hello, Dolly! is a musical with music & lyrics by Jerry Herman and book by Michael Stewart. Based on the 1954 Thornton Wilder play The Matchmaker, the show opened in 1963 in Detroit before coming to the St. James Theatre (located on W 44th Street) in 1964, where it ran for over 2,800 performances before closing in 1970. The show has also seen successful productions in the the UK's West End, national tours in the US and the UK, and multiple revivals both on Broadway and the West End. The original Broadway run was nominated for eleven Tony Awards in 1964, winning ten (Best Musical; Best Book of a Musical; Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical for Carol Channing; Best Original Score; Best Producer of a Musical; Best Direction of a Musical; Best Choreography; Best Conductor and Musical Director; Best Scenic Design; and Best Costume Design). The 2017 Broadway Revival was nominated for ten Tony Awards, winning four (Best Revival of a Musical; Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical for Bette Middler; Best Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical for Gavin Creel; and Best Costume Design of a Musical). The film adaptation starring Barbra Streisand came about in 1969 and was nominated for seven Oscars, winning three (Best Art Direction; Best Score of a Musical Picture - Original or Adaptation; and Best Sound), as well as earning five Golden Globe nominations.
For this post, I will as usual focus on one song for each main cast member from three recordings: the original Broadway cast recording, the film soundtrack, and the 2017 Broadway revival. Warning: potential spoilers ahead.
Dolly Gallagher Levi (Mezzo-Soprano)
Spotlight Song: Before the Parade Passes By
Honorable Mentions: Put On Your Sunday Clothes; Dancing; Love, Look in My Window; Hello, Dolly!; So Long Dearie; Hello, Dolly! (Reprise)
Original Broadway Cast (1964): Carol Channing
Film Adaptation (1969): Barbra Streisand
Broadway Revival (2017): Bette Midler
Dolly is the definition of iconic, and what an inspiration to women everywhere who love to be in everyone's business. Channing, Streisand, and Midler all bring their own incredible flavors to this role, but personal bias will see me pick the film cast as my favorite almost every time. Dolly is truly the heart and soul of the show, mainly making you laugh out loud but also possibly causing you to produce a tear when she tugs on your heartstrings. Act I's finale, Before the Parade Passes By, is a great example of just that; it's vulnerable and triumphant, and you truly feel for her as she decides to step back out into the world after heartbreaking loss. We could all probably learn a thing or two from her.
Before the parade passes by, I’ve gotta go and taste Saturday’s high life/Before the parade passes by, I’ve gotta get some life back into my life/I’m ready to move out in front, I’ve had enough of just passing by life/With the rest of them, with the best of them/I can hold my head up high/For I’ve got a goal again, I’ve got a drive again/I’m gonna feel my heart coming alive again/Before the parade passes by
Horace Vandergelder (Baritone)
Spotlight Song: It Takes a Woman
Honorable Mentions: Hello, Dolly! (Reprise)
Original Broadway Cast (1964): David Burns
Film Adaptation (1969): Walter Matthau
Broadway Revival (2017): David Hyde Pierce
Horace is such a character of a "man's man," and while in other contexts he could be the actual worst, in the setting of this show he's fairly endearing. Burns, Matthau, and Pierce all do a great job portraying the well-known half-a-millionaire from Yonkers, but I'll have to say Matthau is my favorite closely followed by Pierce. This grumpy bachelor with a secret heart of gold may not sing much in the show, but it doesn't stop him from being a star. Act I's It Takes a Woman is a hilarious parody of misogyny, full of absolutely incorrect expectations that Mr. Vandergelder has for his future wife. Knowing how the show ends, we can all thankfully laugh a bit during this number instead of cringing with a giant "yikes".
It takes a woman all powdered and pink/To joyously clean out the drain in the sink/And it takes an angel with long golden lashes/And soft dresden fingers for dumping the ashes/Yes, it takes a woman, a dainty woman/A sweetheart, a mistress, a wife/Oh, yes, it takes a woman, a fragile woman/To bring you the sweet things in life
Cornelius Hackl (Bass-Baritone)
Spotlight Song: It Only Takes a Moment
Honorable Mentions: Put On Your Sunday Clothes; Dancing; Elegance
Original Broadway Cast (1964): Charles Nelson Reilly
Film Adaptation (1969): Michael Crawford
Broadway Revival (2017): Gavin Creel
Growing up watching a very young Michael Crawford play Mr. Vandergelder's 28 3/4-year-old Head Clerk naturally gave me a shock when I found out Cornelius was originally supposed to be a baritone. Nonetheless, Reilly, Hackl, and Creel all showed different flavors of THE Cornelius Hackl, and Crawford and Creel would for sure be my favorites. Cornelius tends to steal any scene he's in, and he's honestly just an absolute delight that you root for from start to finish. Act II's It Only Takes a Moment duet with Irene is very different from stage to screen as they completely changed it for the film, but I personally like the much calmer environment for this beautiful ballad. It's a lovely love song and a great way to start ushering in the end of the show.
It only takes a moment/For your eyes to meet and then/Your heart knows in a moment/You will never be alone again/I held her for an instant/But my arms felt sure and strong/It only takes a moment/To be loved a whole life long
Irene Malloy (Soprano)
Spotlight Song: Ribbons Down My Back
Honorable Mentions: Dancing; Elegance; It Only Takes a Moment
Original Broadway Cast (1964): Eileen Brennan
Film Adaptation (1969): Marianne McAndrew
Broadway Revival (2017): Kate Baldwin
I feel like Irene would be just as much fun to portray as Dolly would. She's a strong, independent businesswoman, but she also wants to feel taken care of, and is not afraid to say she's not in love with Horace or that she has fallen in love with Cornelius. Brennan, McAndrew, and Baldwin all do a wonderful job playing this girl boss, but I'm sure you've guessed that McAndrew is my #1. Act I's Ribbons Down My Back is a deceptively difficult song to learn, but it's a sweet, sentimental musing about what Irene truly wants for herself right as we meet her in this story. Any sopranos looking for a challenge and need another classic era show to add to their repertoire, here's a great one for you.
I’ll be wearing ribbons down my back this summer/Blue and green and streaming in the yellow sky/So if someone special comes my way this summer/He might notice me passing by/And so I’ll try to make it easier to find me/In the stillness of July/Because a breeze might stir a rainbow up behind me/That might happen to catch a gentleman’s eye
Barnaby Tucker (Baritone)
Spotlight Song: Dancing
Honorable Mentions: Put On Your Sunday Clothes; Elegance
Original Broadway Cast (1964): Jerry Dodge
Film Adaptation (1969): Danny Lockin
Broadway Revival (2017): Taylor Trensch
You may think Barnaby's character exists just to follow Cornelius around and try to make him see reason, but that's only about half true. He's a fun character in his own right, and we love to see predominantly dance roles in musicals even to this day. Dodge, Lockin, and Trensch are all great, but I felt Lockin did a wonderful job playing Barnaby as that young man who's still basically a kid (even if he's 19 1/2). Act I's Dancing is a delightful number both audibly and visually, with excellent choreography complementing the lovely music and fun lyrics. This song may even make you want to get up and dance yourself!
Glide and step, and then step and glide/And everyone stands aside/Huh, look, he’s dancing/You could learn to polka if you worked a week or so/Or the tango filled with passion seething/I might join the chorus of the castle garden show/Well, whatever you do, for gosh sakes, keep breathing/For my heart is about to burst/My head is about to pop/And now that I’m dancing, who cares if we ever stop
Minnie Fay (Mezzo-Soprano)
Spotlight Song: Elegance
Honorable Mentions: Dancing
Original Broadway Cast (1964): Sondra Lee
Film Adaptation (1969): E.J. Peaker
Broadway Revival (2017): Beanie Feldstein
Minnie is to Irene what Barnaby is to Cornelius in a sense, just in a little more of a ditzy way. She's sweet, she's game for whatever, and she's very loyal to Irene, even if she is a bit naive. Lee, Peaker, and Feldstein all translate those traits well, but in this case I think Feldstein did the best job. Act II's Elegance is a fun, sassy quartet between Minnie, Irene, Cornelius, and Barnaby as they get ready to take on NYC in style. It's a bop even still today, great for getting excited to go out and be fancy.
All who are well-bred agree/Minnie Fay has pedigree/Exercise your wildest whims tonight/We are out with diamond Jims tonight/Could they be misleading us/Silver spoons were used for feeding us/We’ve got elegance/If you ain’t got elegance/You can never ever carry it off
Ermengarde Vandergelder & Ambrose Kemper (Mezzo-Soprano & Tenor)
Spotlight Song: Put On Your Sunday Clothes
Original Broadway Cast (1964): Alice Playten & Igors Gavon
Film Adaptation (1969): Joyce Ames & Tommy Tune
Broadway Revival (2017): Melanie Moore & Will Burton
Ermengarde and Ambrose aren't the biggest roles in this show, but they do help set everything in motion by trying to elope in the city and having Dolly create her grand plan. They're both incredibly naive and a little bit annoying, but like everyone else in the show they're capable of winning you over. They aren't big singing parts either, but getting to watch Tommy Tune dance in the movie is always amazing. Act I's Put On Your Sunday Clothes is my favorite song in the show, and it's a great number that lets a huge section of the cast shine. If you've ever seen WALL-E, you'll recognize this right alongside It Only Takes A Moment.
Put on your Sunday clothes when you feel down and out/Strut down the street and have your picture took/Dressed like a dream, your spirits seem to turn about/That Sunday shine is a certain sign that you feel as fine as you look/Beneath your parasol, the world is all the smile/That makes you feel brand new down to your toes/Get out your feathers, your patent leathers, your beads and buckles and bows/For there’s no blue Monday in your Sunday clothes
Rudolph Reisenweber (Bass)
Spotlight Song: Hello, Dolly!
Original Broadway Cast (1964): David Hartman
Film Adaptation (1969): David Hurst
Broadway Revival (2017): Kevin Ligon
Rudolph is basically Dolly's unofficial hype man in addition to being head waiter at the Harmonia Gardens. He doesn't have the hugest part, but when he and the other waiters are on stage they're incredibly entertaining. Act II's Hello, Dolly! is so happy and triumphant, you feel as loved and welcomed as she does coming back to her favorite place after avioding it for so long.
Hello, Dolly, well, hello, Dolly/It’s so nice to have you back where you belong/You’re looking swell, Dolly, we can tell, Dolly/You’re still glowing, you’re still crowing, you’re still going strong/We feel the room swaying, for the band’s playing/One of your old favorite songs from way back when, so/Here’s my hat, fellas, I’m staying where I’m at, fellas/Promise you’ll never go away again
I hope you had as great a time as I did revisiting this absolute delight of a musical. Happy listening, and see ya'll next week!
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