‘REDHEAD’ UK STUDIO CAST ALBUM AND ‘LA PELIRROJA’ ORIGINAL MEXICAN CAST RECORDING – DEBUT CD RELEASE!

Albert Hague and Dorothy Fields‘ musical ‘Redhead’proved the surprise hit Broadway show of 1959, winning‘Best Musical’ at that year’s Tony Awards. As well as earning ‘Best Musical’, the show also won awards for its choreography, costume design and for its leading performers Gwen Verdon, Richard Kiley and Leonard Stone. Set in the early 1900s, ‘Redhead’ is, moreover, something of a theatrical rarity – a musical whodunit. It tells the story of Essie Whimple, a rather plain young lady who makes wax images in a museum run by her two aunts. Her tableau of a recent murder offends the murdered girl’s brother, Tom Baxter. But Tom and Essie are soon attracted to each other; he helps her get a dancing role at the Odeon Music Hall and, aided by a chase reminiscent of the Keystone Kops, they eventually solve the murder.

In May 1959, the RCA Camden label issued a studio cast recording of the ‘Redhead’ score. Recorded in London, the album featured Rita Williams, Bryan Johnson and Fred Lucas with the Mike Sammes Singers and Hill Bowen Orchestra. The recording (presented as highlights) effectively captured the magic and immediacy of Hague and Fields’ score. In their 4* review, Billboard praised the release for the “top flight musical comedy warbling stints of Rita Williams and Bryan Johnson”.

One year after ‘Redhead’ opened on Broadway, a Spanish language adaptation by Luis De Llano and Martha Fisher opened in Mexico City. ‘La Pelirroja’, starring Virma Gonzalez, Armando Calvo and featuring Placido Domingoopened on February 11th 1960 at Teatro de los Insurgentes. The production was subsequently preserved on record by RCA Victor Mexico.

Stage Door are pleased to debut on CD both the RCA Camden ‘Selections from Redhead’ album and the complete Mexican cast recording of ‘La Pelirroja’. The release is complemented by a handful of ‘pop’ covers of the ‘Redhead’ song score, performed by Art Lund, Toni Arden and Tommy Leonetti. The release forms part of Stage Door’s COLLECTOR’S SERIES, a line of limited edition CD products presented in the retro style of a miniature long-playing record. All Collector’s Series titles are limited to 500 units.

http://stagedoorrecords.com