The Dancing Years

Summary

BBC production of Ivor Novello’s musical play The Dancing Years, the first presentation in the Musical Playhouse series.

Theatre play

The Dancing Years by Ivor Novello [more information]

Play synopsis

'The story, set in Vienna in pre-1914, shifting to 1938, follows the life of a penniless composer and his love for two women. The women are completely different in their social classes, one being an innkeeper’s daughter and the other an opera singer. The background of Nazi persecution was very topical in 1939 when the musical was first played’ (source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dancing_Years).

Production history

'The opening night was 23 March 1939 at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. After a closure at the start of the Second World War in September 1939, it reopened at the Adelphi Theatre on 14 March 1942 and ran there until July 1944, for a total of 969 performances’ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dancing_Years).

Date of transmission

Wednesday 11 February 1959

Time

8.30pm

Series

Musical Playhouse

Channel

BBC Television

Production company

BBC

Credits

Producer

Graeme Muir

Jack Carter (credited with ‘Production scenes staged by’)

Adapted for Television by

Alfred Shaughnessy

Book by

Ivor Novello

Composer

Ivor Novello

Lyrics

Christopher Hassall

Musical Direction

Eric Robinson

Orchestra Directed by

David McCallum (and the George Mitchell Singers)

Sets / Settings

Clifford Hatts

Dancer

Joy Carter

Dancer

Joyce Gearing

Dancer

Seamus Gordon

Dancer

Jeanne Lusby

Dancer

Graham MacCormick

Dancer

Graham Smith

Cast

Leslie Baker	An Officer
Sari Barabas	Maria Zeigler
Nancy Evans	Cacille Kurt
Charmian Eyre	Countess Lotte
Nora Gordon	Hattie Watney
Joyce Gregg	Second Reporter
Stewart Guidotti	Carl
Philip Howard	Footman / Third Reporter
June Laverick	Grete Schone
Graham Leaman	Dock Official / Joseph
Patricia Mort	Lilli / Kathie
Laurence Payne	Rudi Kleber
Janek Smigielski	Otto
John Stoddart	A Nightwatchman / Ceruti
Peter Tuddenham	Franzel
Malcolm Watson	Oscar
Frederick Wheldon	Stage-Decor Keeper / First Reporter
Dennis Wood	Prince Charles Metterling

Additional details

Extant status

No archival copy is known to exist.

Play tags

Austria, as theme or setting; class issues / differences; music drama

Print sources

Title

Brighter Fortnights (Newspaper review)

Author/creator

Maurice Richardson (Reviewer)

Reference

The Observer, 15 February 1959, p. 18

Title

Dancing Years in a New Medium: Dim Reflection of Novello’s Style (Newspaper review)

Reference

The Times, 12 February 1959, p. 5

Title

Radio Times, 6 February 1959 (Magazine)

Linking notes

cover page image and pp. 4 (article) and 17 (listing)