DREAMGIRLS

Music by Henry Krieger; Book and Lyrics by Tom Even

Imperial Theatre, Broadway - 20 December, 1981 (1522 perfs)

Dreamgirls is the story of three black singers - Deena, Lorrell, and Effie who began as a group called the Dreamettes. They start as three talented, close friends and gradually sharpen their act and rename themselves "The Dreams". Little do they know of the hard, competitive world of show business.

They enter a talent show held in New York's Apollo Theatre. Disappointed in their failure to win the contest, they attract the attention of a sly tongued talent agent named Curtis Taylor, Jr. Curtis' connections get the girls hired as a backup act to James Thunder Early, a rising pop singing star. They go on tour and are widely acclaimed. At first Curtis falls in love with Effie, the full-figured lead singer who seems to spark the act. Later, in an attempt to make the act more sultry, he moves Deena into Effie's lead spot. But when Curtis' love interest also switches to Deena, Effie erupts in a rage, prompted more by hurt than the loss of her singing slot, and announces that she is not going along anymore. Michelle replaces Effie, and the Dreams go on to achieve international stardom and a string of chart-topping hits.

But life on top is rocky. Lorrell has long since taken up with James Early, but he is married and refuses to make the break from his wife. His nightclub act has also been slipping and his stardom fading. Deena wants to leave the group to try the movies. Just as the Dreams are falling apart Effie's star is rising as a solo.

Curtis tries to undermine her revitalised career by having the Dreams record her current hit song. But Effie outmanoeuvres him for both a personal and a professional triumph. It is announced that the Dreams will disband. However, Effie joins them for the farewell performance . . . before the four Dreamgirls go their separate ways.

MUSICAL NUMBERS:

1. I'm Looking for Something
2. Goin' Downtown
3. Takin' the Long Way Home
4. Move (You're Steppin' on My Heart)
5. Party, Party
6. I Want You Baby
7. Family
8. Dreamgirls
9. Press Conference
10. Only the Beginning
11. Heavy
12. It's All Over
13. And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going
14. Love, Love You Baby
15. Dreams' Medley
16. I Am Changing
17. One More Picture Please
18. When I First Saw You
19. Got to Be Good Times
20. Ain't No Party
21. I Meant You No Harm
22. Quintette
23. The Rap
24. I Miss You Old Friend
25. One Night Only
26. I'm Somebody
27. Faith in Myself
28. Hard to Say Goodbye, My Love

Instrumentation:

Violin, cello, trumpet, trombone, French horn, woodwinds, keyboards, guitars, bass, drums, percussion.

Cast:

23 parts, 11 principals in a predominantly black cast.

• C. C. White and Curtis, actors who sing and dance.
• James Thunder Early, winning personality, strong nightclub singer who can move well.
• Lorrell, Deena, and Michelle, fashion-plate singers with excellent voices who act and dance.
• Effie, full-figured gospel singer with exceptional dramatic talent.
• Marty, Wayne, Dave, and Tiny Joe Dixon, supporting actors who sing and dance.

Total cast 35-50.

Scenes and Sets:

2 acts, 20 lightning-paced scenes,

mostly area sets that flow in and out of limbo and are very simple. A platform with a piano, a name in lights, a photographer's cyclorama, lights, and a camera suggest a more complete scene. Five gliding towers. The emphasis is on costumes and lights.

Act 1

Scene 1: The Apollo Theatre
Scene 2: On the Road 
Scene 3: A Recording Studio
Scene 4: Limbo 
Scene 5: A Hotel in St. Louis
Scene 6: Miami 
Scene 7: Dressing Room in the Atlantic Hotel
Scene 8: Cleveland 
Scene 9: A TV Studio
Scene 10: San Francisco 
Scene 11: Las Vegas (backstage)
Scene 12: Las Vegas (on stage

Act II

Scene I: Las Vegas Hilton
Scene 2: Chicago Nightclub
Scene 3: Vogue Magazine Photo Call
Scene 4: National Democratic Fundraiser
Scene 5: A Chicago Recording Studio
Scene 6: Los Angeles
Scene 7: Chicago
Scene 8: New York

Period and Costume:

The early 60s to the early 70s. 18 sets (3 each) of stunning nightclub show gowns. Men's formal wear, men's pinstripe, casual, and regular suits, everyday sports clothes, evening wear, female jump-suits, photographer's smocks, men's hip casual wear, matching costume jackets for five male singers and three other groups, winter overcoats, men's hats. About 50 wigs, many with exotic hair styles.

Choreography:

Constant rhythm/rock movement, nightclub acts, jazz, disco, production numbers, rapid-paced overlapping scene changes.

Lighting and Special Effects:

Heavy and tight area lighting with dissolve-like changes as action shifts around the stage. Drop of patterned light bulbs. "The Dreams" name in 8-foot lighted letters, follow spots.

Note: Dreamgirls is fiction that closely matches the history of Motown's The Supremes singing group, both in sound and in history to the point when stardom was achieved. Even more, it tells the story of a composite of black groups that reached public acclaim in the 60s.