 HALLELUJAH, BABY
Musical in 2 Acts, Prologue and 6 scenes: Book by Arthur Laurents:
Music by Jules Styne: Lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green
Martin Beck Theatre, Broadway - 26 April, 1967 (293 perfs)
Synopsis
ACT I
From underneath an open umbrella, Georgina, an attractive, contemporary
black woman, appears and greets us. She tells us that while the show
we are about to see will cover sixty years, she will always remain
twenty-five - "That's nice for a girl," she states. Georgina's mother, her fiancé
Clem and her devoted friend Harvey will also remain the same age throughout
the show.
In the 1900s, Georgina and Momma are employed as maids on a Southern
plantation. Momma tries to convince Georgina that she should be content
with her lot in life. But Georgina wants more. Boyfriend Clem, a Pullman
porter, arrives and explains how the down payment on a home for Georgina
and him was lost when white cops confiscated his poker game winnings.
Harvey, a young white theatrical producer, hires Georgina to play a maid
in a Civil War play, despite the fact that blacks and whites are not allowed
to appear on stage together. Georgina finds she prefers playing a maid
to actually being one and is more determined than ever not to go back
to the kitchen.
In the twenties, Harvey manages a Harlem nightclub where Georgina
performs as one of several "Congo Cuties" and Clem works as
a waiter. A foreign prince, who doesn't understand the bigoted local
bylaws prohibiting Georgina from joining him at his table, starts a fight,
and when a brawl ensues, Georgina and Clem are fired, and Harvey resigns
in support of his friends. Clem resolves to pull himself together and
make Georgina proud.
Once more Georgina and Momma are maids and Clem sports a Pullman uniform.
All three ironically acknowledge that it pays to keep one's place and
fulfil the expectations of white people about how black people are supposed
to behave. Then the stock market crashes, and the three find themselves
out of work again.
To escape the bread lines of the '30s, Georgina returns to the stage,
taking on the role of a witch in a politically correct, voodoo version
of Macbeth, sponsored by the Federal Theatre. Considered subversive,
the show is shut down and Clem, Harvey and a friend named Mary attempt
to cheer Georgina up. Clem is drawn to the Communist cause, where they
call him "comrade," not "boy." Georgina declares that this is not the
solution to their problems: "Nobody can help you and me but you and me."
They clash, Clem walks out, and Georgina expresses the irony of her
situation.
Harvey makes Georgina aware of his feelings for her, but neither has
come far enough along for a relationship. Alone, Georgina realises that,
although she's better than ever, she's not much closer to her dreams than
she was at the beginning. She resolves to be the best she can be.
ACT II
It's the '40s and Georgina is doing her bit for the war effort by performing
with a USO troop, while Clem has become a sergeant and Harvey a second
lieutenant. All three members of this triangle are too confused about
their feelings and too full of pride to act
Georgina quits the show when the integrated company is not permitted
to play before integrated audiences. After an incident in which Harvey
attempts to join Clem and Georgina in the back of a bus, Georgina decides
that fighting for one's principles doesn't always pay off. She'll have
to find a different route to her dreams.
It's the '50s, and Georgina has finally broken through, singing and
dancing out her jubilation on the mirrored stage of a chic supper club.
Clem, now a civil rights activist, is unhappy with Georgina's new acceptance
values and tells her to "get out of your little room and connect." Meanwhile,
club manager Harvey proposes to Georgina, aware that, in spite of her
estrangement from Clem, she may always be Clem's lady. Momma tells
Clem and Harvey that no one is more surprised by Georgina's success
than her Momma.
At a party where Georgina is the sole non-white, Momma arrives to
deliver Georgina's evening bag. Georgina's friend mistakes Momma for
Georgina's maid, and Georgina breaks down. She realises she has been "driving tight
and tiny for myself," and resolves to "sing for everyone's supper - not
just my own".
As the '60s arrive, Georgina and Momma are about to move into a posh
New York apartment that Harvey has arranged for them. Clem, who wants
no more of smugly tolerant white society, convinces Georgina that this
is still not the right place for them. Clem and Georgina move on together.
At least they will have each other until things change and the weather's
better.
Ken Mandelbaum
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