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Florida shows and emphatically stating "we are not closing the show." To help boost the show, the actors agreed to work for scale and the
Shubert Organization, owners of the Belasco Theatre (which had been unoccupied for two years) offered to waive its rental fee for four months until February 1, 1990. But within a few days, after production costs quickly began to mount, Hirschfeld himself closed the show, stating: "I kept saying there should be no changes from the Miami Beach version. You can`t come into New York with a new show without trying it out. It was destroyed by the way it was changed about. Since I didn't like the show, I didn't think it was worth it."
156:. Communicating via chalk messages on a park bench, he begins an unlikely correspondence with Margie Miller, a middle aged divorcé who jogs through the park and whose daughter is conspiring to send her to a Florida retirement village. Eventually Margie befriends Jay-Jay, helping him to fight off the gangs and drug pushers of the park, while learning about life and herself in the process. Together they become a sort of surrogate family.
568:"In Act II, Jay-Jay and Margie bravely overcome outmoded legal obstacles and moral attitudes to get married. They adopt five children, two of whom become the first sibling astronauts and together head a successful manned space mission to Pluto. Actually, I am lying. Something else entirely happens in Act II. But I assure you that my version is more interesting.
224:. The cast was expanded to 20, with Fabray, Blake and Galde remaining in the leads; producer McArt appeared in a "cameo" as a crazy homeless bag lady who makes telephone calls from a broken phone; Hirschfeld's granddaughter also appeared in the show. The production was directed by Bob Bogandoff and choreographed by Michael DiFonzo.
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602:, whose name is dragged into nearly every scene before and after serving as a setting for a dance number. Given the vehicle for these insistent plugs, it's hard to know whether the restaurant should consider itself the beneficiary of free advertising or the victim of a dissatisfied customer's personal vendetta."
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The musical received overwhelmingly negative reviews by
Broadway critics, who found that the show was both amateurish and made light of serious social issues such as street crime, drugs, homelessness and child abuse, while turning gritty New York City into a sentimental fairy tale. Though aimed at a
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the new musical at the
Belasco, is a numbing evening of such guileless amateurism that it will probably have a future as a Harvard Business School case study, whatever its fate in the annals of drama. Even modest Broadway shows like this cost more money than the gross national product of some third
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Producer and majority backer Abe
Hirschfeld, who had successfully run for Miami Beach City Commission during the production, at first tried to counter the bad reviews with an extensive advertising campaign, calling the critics "liars," claiming that New York critics had a "vendetta" against South
522:, in a kinder review, said that the show was "a New York fairy tale told with a modest amount of musical imagination and wit ... a small musical in almost every respect. It's not awful, but its mildness and meager musical numbers make it a dim prospect to last very long on Broadway."
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writing the music and Gloria
Nissenson writing the lyrics. The first production meeting was held in August 1987 at the Boca Raton Resort and Club, where Bob Bogandoff was selected as the director. In May 1988, McArt flew to Los Angeles to personally offer the musical's leading role to
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The opening night after-party was held at Tavern on the Green, where 600 formally attired patrons showed up to celebrate. At the party, Rhodes predicted that the show would run for years, but after the uniformly negative reviews were published in the papers, hopes began to fade.
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and opened on
November 9 with Worley and Blake in the leads. At 14, Blake became the youngest Broadway performer to have his name above the title of the show. The sets and costumes were designed by Michael Bottari and Ronald Case and the lighting design was by Norman Coates.
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family audience, critics noted that the show had moments of vulgarity, such as a scene in which two gay men happily emerge from the bushes after having sex and jokes in which the character of Margie comments on her sagging breasts and her estranged husband's penis.
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Although she was with the show from the beginning, Fabray was let go from the project during the summer of 1989. Director
Bogandoff was also fired as the producers searched for a replacement with Broadway credentials (and a Tony nomination).
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From April to June, the show was substantially rewritten with the addition of nine new songs before it headed to
Broadway with a scheduled opening date of October 30, 1989. Among the changes were an addition of "Red," a musical number set at
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that because the show was being rewritten daily, DeHaven was having trouble learning her new lines and they needed someone who was "a quick study." Broadway wags, sensing a troubled production, began to call the show "Ain't Miss DeHaven."
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as Jay-Jay (the title character), Anthony Galde as Elmo, a gang leader and an ensemble of 9 actors. At the second performance, Fabray was sick so producer McArt played the role as her understudy. The show closed on
November 29.
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called the show "a really bad musical" and "a howler" and agreed that it had "so many references to the Tavern on the Green that it's almost impossible to believe that the restaurant's owners haven't underwritten the show."
664:, with whom he had a "survivor take all" business partnership. Hirschfeld was sentenced to three years in prison, of which he served two. When he got out of prison he ran for the U.S. Senate, calling himself "Honest Abe".
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In
December 1985, Jan McArt, a performer and theater producer who was nicknamed "The First Lady of Florida's Musical Theatre," was introduced to Rhodes and became interested in the project. After securing the rights from
576:"The biggest unintentional laugh for a New York audience arrives when Ms. Worley ventures into Bloomingdale's and is immediately welcomed by a kindly silver-haired saleswoman who offers her complete undivided attention."
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and Bogandoff was replaced by Tony Tanner, who also served as choreographer. On September 26, DeHaven left the show due to an injury to her rib and "unspecified artistic differences." Producer Jan McArt later told the
817:"Nanette Fabray Her 'Prince' Has Come The Veteran Actress Wasn't Interested In Doing A Musical Until Producer Jan McArt Showed Up On Her Doorstep With The Script Of The Prince Of Central Park."
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ran for four performances. The $ 2 million production (75 percent of which was put up by Hirschfeld) earned only $ 128,907 during its entire run (4 performances and 19 previews).
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had accused him of tricking his readers "by supplying his own, ostensibly superior libretto for the show" in his review. Rich wrote that Hirschfeld went on to purchase the
134:. The musical was a notorious flop, losing nearly $ 2 million and closing after only four performances. Today, it is best remembered for a humorously negative review by
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felt the show was "overlong" and "occasionally tedious" but ultimately "charming." It singled out Blake's performance, calling him "an '80s male echo of the appeal
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The musical tells the story of Jay-Jay, a 12-year-old runaway who tries to escape an abusive foster mother and the terrors of New York City by living in a tree in
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for two weeks (nearly destroying it) and later served time in jail and that in retrospect, the flop was one of the finer achievements of his career.
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to join the cast on October 10 and the show's opening date was postponed until November 9 to allow her more time to rehearse.
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McArt, whose theatre hosted the show's first production, took over the role for two weeks until DeHaven could be replaced.
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ran from February 3 to March 5, 1989 and was generally well received by local audiences, though critics were mixed. The
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Richard H. Blake discussing the show and performing the title song "The Prince of Central Park" on June 17, 2012
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Richard H. Blake discussing the show and performing the title song "The Prince of Central Park" on June 17, 2012
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The show premiered as a "work in progress" on October 25, 1988 at McArt's Mallory Square Cabaret Theatre in
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found Worley to be "likable" and "surprisingly restrained" while calling Blake "a major young talent."
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was announced and scheduled to open on November 7, 1985 at the Drury Lane Oakbrook Terrace Theatre in
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to be in the production, was compared by Rich to "an aging Mouseketeer." The review concluded with:
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world nations. People put up this money. As long as there are people as gullible as the sponsors of
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Rich also mocked the fact that the authors seemed to have no connection to New York City, writing:
184:, but this production was ultimately canceled when the producer was sent to jail on tax charges.
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192:, who had produced the TV movie, McArt began to develop the show with Rhodes writing the book,
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Rich's review went on to include a deliberately incorrect and funny summary of the plot:
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February 15, 1989; Byline: Section: Amusements; Page: 7D. Retrieved on 2013-02-03.
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November 5, 1989; Byline: Jack Zink and Norine Dworkin. Retrieved on 2013-02-02.
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October 13, 1989; Byline: Skip Sheffield; page 10W. Retrieved on 2013-02-03.
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1100:" 'Prince Of Central Park' Prince Of Central Park" Closes Early On B'way"
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November 11, 1989; Byline: Norine Dworkin Zink. Retrieved on 2013-02-02.
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July 21, 1988; Byline: Skip Sheffield; page 6W. Retrieved on 2013-02-03.
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was "laughed off by all the critics and quickly disappeared" and that
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November 14, 1989, Byline: Patricia O'Haire. Retrieved on 2013-02-02
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February 25, 1994; Byline: David Richards. Retrieved on 2013-02-03.
966:"Sock-it-to-me Time On Broadway 'Laugh-in' Star Opens In Fantasy."
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Abe Hirschfeld, Eccentric Tycoon Who Craved Publicity, Dies at 85
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November 10, 1989; Byline: Linda Winer. Retrieved on 2013-02-02.
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February 13, 1989; Byline: Jack Zink. Retrieved on 2013-02-03.
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October 25, 1989; Byline: Jack Zink. Retrieved on 2013-02-02.
934:"Critic's Notebook; Twisted Titles or the Edsels Of Broadway"
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November 14, 1989, page 1C & 5C. Retrieved on 2013-02-02.
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February 5, 1989; Byline: Jack Zink. Retrieved on 2013-02-02.
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October 4, 1989; Byline: Jack Zink. Retrieved on 2013-02-02.
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After the success of the TV movie, Rhodes was approached by
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wrote that the show was "not yet" ready for Broadway. The
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6. "We Were Dancing" – Margie, Young Richard, Young Margie
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December 30, 1988, page 5W. Retrieved on February 3, 2013
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12. "They Don't Give You Life at Sixteen" – Elmo and Gang
848:"'Prince' dethroned after critics turned It into frog;"
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Not Since Carrie: Forty Years of Broadway Musical Flops
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14. "I Fly By Night (Reprise)" – Elmo, Gang and Jay-Jay
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11. "All I've Got Is Me (Reprise)" – Margie and Jay-Jay
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and its 1977 television movie adaptation which starred
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into a possible musical. The world premiere starring
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in which mannequins come to life and begin dancing.
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433:1. "Here's Where I Belong" – Jay-Jay and Ensemble
1002:November 11, 1989. Retrieved on February 2, 2013
539:In his famously scathing and humorous review in
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560:the theater need never fear for its survival."
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445:5. "Montage: Here's Where I Belong" – Ensemble
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950:" 'Prince Of Central Park' Opening Delayed"
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833:Richard H. Blake discussing the show live
867:"'Prince' A Charming, Nostalgic Musical"
688:. St. Martin's Griffin. pp. 35–38.
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652:In 2000, Hirschfeld was convicted of
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883:"'Prince is Still Short of Broadway"
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454:8. "I Fly By Night" – Elmo and Gang
326:Jay-Jay, the prince of Central Park
1015:"The Theatre; byline: Mimi Kramer"
716:. Random House. pp. 687–688.
633:theatre reviews, he recalled that
598:also has a serious obsession with
307:began previews on Broadway at the
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436:2. "All I've Got Is Me" – Jay-Jay
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160:Development and World Premiere
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469:10. "Good Evening" – Ensemble
1073:"Out-of-Town 'Central Park'"
902:"Worley Takes Broadway Role"
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216:Impressed with the musical,
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16:For the 2000 film starring
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182:Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois
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1239:Musicals set in Manhattan
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1128:Nemy, Enid.
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396:Floor Walker
381:Young Margie
359:School Guard
353:Stock Broker
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256:Pre-Broadway
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239:Sun-Sentinel
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233:Miami Herald
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178:Albert Marre
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154:Central Park
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356:Park Ranger
222:Miami Beach
194:Don Sebesky
174:Martha Raye
128:Ruth Gordon
120:Don Sebesky
99:Miami Beach
88:Productions
53:Don Sebesky
1213:Categories
1130:"On Stage"
723:0679453008
668:References
545:Frank Rich
375:Bird Brain
316:Characters
136:Frank Rich
114:is a 1989
607:Aftermath
362:Carpenter
1076:Newsday,
714:Hot Seat
627:Hot Seat
393:Bag Lady
338:May Berg
206:Key West
148:Synopsis
93:Key West
658:hit man
640:Variety
547:wrote:
528:Newsday
399:Maitr'd
378:Feather
372:Twitchy
190:Lorimar
27:Musical
1146:Prince
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402:Waiter
59:Lyrics
20:, see
968:from
952:from
936:from
920:from
904:from
885:from
869:from
850:from
819:from
803:from
787:from
464:Act 2
428:Act 1
344:Agnes
249:Annie
77:Basis
49:Music
718:ISBN
690:ISBN
369:Fist
292:Mame
130:and
68:Book
625:In
166:BMI
138:in
1215::
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95:)
24:.
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