| Music | Kurt Weill |
| Lyrics | Ira Gershwin |
| Book | Moss Hart |
| Premiere | Broadway: 23 January 1941 (467 performances) Direction: Moss Hart Musical Staging: Hassard Short Choreography: Albertina Rasch |
| Adaptations | 1944 Film Version 1945 Radio Adaptation 1947 Radio Adaptation 1950 Radio Adaptation 1953 Radio Adaptation 1954 Television Adaptation |
Synopsis and Musical Numbers
Unravel the musical mysteries of the mind….
Liza Elliot is an executive at a popular women’s magazine, Allure. Although she is successful in every way – her job could not be better, and she is having a wonderful relationship with a gentleman, even though he is married – she has been having attacks of depression and mood swings, which make it difficult for her to concentrate on her work. Just one day earlier, she threw a paperweight at Charley Johnson, the magazine’s advertising manager, who had suggested a circus-themed cover for the upcoming Easter issue, something that she vetoed, but which he wouldn’t let go. She makes an appointment with Dr Alexander Brooks, a good-looking and pleasant psychoanalyst in his mid-forties. In his office, Brooks interrogates her about her problems, asking her to lie on his couch and tell him anything that comes to mind. She recalls a particular childhood melody she has heard in her dreams, and Brooks asks her to hum it. As she does, she begins to dream.
As the dream starts, twelve men, all dressed in faultless evening wear, proclaim their admiration for Liza (“Oh, Fabulous One in Your Ivory Tower”). Sutton, Liza’s maid – who is, in reality, Miss Foster, Liza’s beautiful secretary at Allure – thanks the suitors on behalf of Liza, but tells them that her mistress is unavailable. Inside, Beekman, Liza’s chauffeur – in real life, Russel Paxton, the gay photographer at Allure – lavishes praises on his mistress while Liza discusses her extraordinary schedule with Sutton (“The World’s Inamorata”). Beekman then drives Liza to a party. En route, she asks him to stop so she can get on a soapbox to address the crowd (“One Life to Live”). They return to the car and head to Seventh Heaven, where the party is already underway. Pierre, the headwaiter – in real life, Kendall Nesbitt, Liza’s married lover – rushes to Liza. He makes a fool of himself by the flourish of praise that he gives her, then calls for everyone’s attention. The crowd toasts Liza – she is the “Girl of the Moment.” The flourish of a bugle signals the arrival of a soldier, a sailor and a marine – the latter of which is, in reality, Charley. He brings a message from the President who wishes to have Liza’s portrait painted. To Liza’s dismay, the finished painting is unflattering. Liza appears as she does in real life: austere, hostile and unglamorous. She looks at it and screams, covering her face. At first, the crowd is perplexed, but they soon turn on Liza, laughing at and mocking her, saying, “It Looks Like Liza.”
Liza wakes up from her dream, and Brooks remarks that it is interesting to see how polarised she is in reality compared to the woman in her dreams. He makes an appointment for the next day, and Liza leaves.
At the Allure offices, Miss Foster arranges letters on Liza’s desk, while Miss Stevens, the receptionist, and Maggie Grant discuss Randy Curtis, the handsome new star modelling for Allure. Kendall Nesbit calls and leaves a message for Liza, just missing her arrival at the office. Alison, another of Allure‘s employees, arrives to bother Liza with what she feels are chic new ideas for the magazine. Next, Russell arrives, singing Randy’s praises, having organised a meeting between Randy and Liza at her office. Charley also turns up for an appointment with Liza, and she asks him to wait while she meets Randy. Charley is a bit of a jokester, so he requests an autograph from Randy, causing everyone to be a little embarrassed. When Charley and Liza are eventually alone, she attempts to apologise to him for her temper tantrum the previous day, but it doesn’t go well. Dissatisfied, Charley storms out, just as Kendall arrives to tell Liza that he has divorced his wife for her. Instead of being pleased, she becomes visibly upset. Randy asks Liza for a dinner date, which she accepts to get rid of Kendall, who storms out of the office. Liza becomes more upset. She cancels all her appointments, locks the door and lies on the couch. As she hums her long-forgotten melody, she once again begins to dream.
The dream begins with a graduation ceremony, with the students carrying their diplomas (“Mapleton High Chorale”). Next, Liza and Kendall are choosing a ring for Liza. She is hesitant but finally decides on one. The salesman, who looks like Charley, gives her a dagger instead of the ring. As Liza covers her eyes, both men disappear. Randy appears and takes her hands in his. Liza is all smiles (“This is New”). Afterwards, Liza dances with Charley, when six women, who all resemble Liza, enter. Charley disappears, and Randy reappears, serenading the women. Eventually, Liza is left alone and hums the beginning of her song. She cannot remember the rest, but she does recall a play from her childhood, “The Princess of Pure Delight.” The dream world alters; it is Liza and Kendall’s wedding day. At the altar, the minister – Charley again! – asks whether anyone knows why the couple should not marry. He answers his own question, saying that Liza does not love Kendall, an accusation that Liza emphatically tries to deny (“This Woman at the Altar”).
Meanwhile, Maggie, unsure of the virtues of psychoanalysis, goes to see Dr Brooks about Liza. Brooks tries to reassure her about the process, and she leaves feeling better. Liza arrives for her appointment, where they discuss her extreme reaction to the news of Kendall’s divorce and her subsequent dream. Brooks points out that Liza is another glamorous woman in this dream. He also suggests that perhaps she is afraid to compete with other women. Liza becomes upset and tells him that she will not be continuing counselling.
Back at the office, Alison, Russell and Maggie wait anxiously for Liza’s return. Liza finally arrives and apologises, suggesting they all go right to work. Kendall arrives, and Liza admits she does not want to marry him. Kendall promises he will fight for her, then leaves. Charley enters to give Liza his resignation, having been offered a job at Town and Country. Liza tells him that she will match the offer, but Charley refuses, telling her he has been given the same position as hers. The conversation quickly becomes an argument. Charley accuses her of being married to her desk and having magazines instead of babies. When he leaves, Liza begins to cry uncontrollably. Randy arrives for their date, which Liza has forgotten. Even though she’s not dressed for dinner, Randy says Liza should come as she is, pleased that she’s not just another glamour girl. She tells him to wait outside for her to change. Barely waiting for the door to close, she rips off her clothes and puts on one of the dresses on the mannequins in her office before dashing out for her date.
The following afternoon, Liza works on a magazine layout at her desk. Maggie and Alison ask her to go out for a cocktail on the way home, but Liza refuses. They leave, and Liza tries to concentrate on her work. Voices taunt her from behind the scenes, and another dream begins. This time, Liza finds herself in Charley’s circus-themed cover design. The Ringmaster – Russell takes the part in her imagination – and the other circus folk arrive, singing that theirs is “The Greatest Show on Earth.” The Ringmaster presents Liza as a freak because of her inability to make decisions regarding her personal life. Charley enters as a prosecuting attorney in a trial, while the defence attorney is Randy. Soon, the jury arrives in a fit of tumbling (“Dance of the Tumblers”). After this fanfare, Charley and Randy battle over Liza’s innocence or guilt: she is accused of not being able to make up her mind about marrying Kendall (“The Best Years of His Life”). The Ringmaster remarks in the middle of the trial that he likes the music being sung, telling of his love for the great composers like “Tschaikowsky.” The trial proceeds, and Liza defends herself by telling “The Saga of Jenny”, the story of a girl who could always make up her mind and for whom life didn’t go well because of her decisiveness. Everyone congratulates her, and she returns to her seat and picks up the drawing of the circus cover. Charley and the jury look at the circus cover, then begin to sing the opening bars of the childhood melody that Liza knows so well. She screams and snatches the drawing from Charley’s hand. Charley accuses Liza of being afraid to be the woman she wants to be and fades into the distance as the dream ends.
Liza returns to Dr Brooks to tell him about her dream, in which she was reminded of feelings that she felt in the past. She tries to remember when she felt that way and sees, in her mind’s eye, a small group of people dressed in the evening clothes of 1904. In the group, a woman of great beauty, Liza’s mother, stands out from the rest. A man arrives, carrying a small child in his arms. It is Liza. The women in the group remark that Liza is a beautiful girl, but both parents laughingly deny this. The child is silent for a moment, looking up into their faces and then, struggling against tears, begins the little song that has haunted Liza throughout her adult life. She breaks into sobs and runs from the room. Next, a group of school children and their teacher appear. The teacher is picking children for parts in a play. She chooses David Reed for the prince and Liza for the princess, but David refuses to be the prince unless they find a pretty princess. Little Liza is deeply embarrassed and runs from the room. Liza next remembers her mother’s illness and death and how she was unable to grieve, hating her for being so beautiful and for denying her own natural beauty. Liza’s memory shifts to her graduation dance, where she takes the floor with Ben Butler. They hear that Ben has won the award for most handsome boy, while she has been voted the most popular girl. They walk to a bench, where Ben promises to take Liza to the graduation supper. Liza begins singing her melody, but this time she remembers it all (“My Ship”). Another girl, Barbara, walks over to them. She is Ben’s girlfriend, although they have been fighting. Ben leaves with Barbara, but promises to be right back. He never returns. When the memory fades and reality returns, Brooks tells Liza that she has withdrawn into herself as she could no longer risk being hurt. He concludes by saying that her attacks, fears and hurt are showing themselves as a physical rebellion at her unfulfillment as a woman.
At the Allure offices, a week later, Charley and Maggie wait for Liza to arrive. Charley tells Maggie that although he enjoys irritating Liza, he still admires her as a person. However, he believes her to be a failure as a woman. Liza arrives, followed by Randy. They speak about the wonderful afternoon they had, and he leaves. Liza invites Charley to her office. She tells him she has a few answers for the man who usually seems to have them all. After they bicker, he leaves just as Kendall arrives. Liza tells Kendall that their relationship is over and they part as friends. After Kendall exits, Randy arrives. He proposes to her. She is so surprised that she tells him she needs time to consider it. Randy leaves, and Charley strolls in. This time, Liza asks him to share her job with her. He agrees, ecstatic, then dashes into the other room to gather his materials. Maggie is astonished to see the two working peacefully together. Liza smiles, then slowly begins to sing her song. Charley, who remembers the song from his childhood, softly joins in. Maggie looks curiously from one to the other, then elaborately sinks into a chair and folds her hands in her lap. Liza is singing gaily, and oblivious to Maggie, she and Charley half-smile at each other. Liza has made peace with who she is.
Cast Recordings
Vocal Score
The Vocal Score for Lady in the Dark is available from Amazon.
Musical Cyberspace 