First performance 18 May 2012 | ||
Music Ken Hirsch and Robin Lerner Lyrics Ken Hirsch and Robin Lerner Book Douglas Day Stewart and Sharleen Cooper Cohen Basis 1982 film An Officer and a Gentleman Premiere May 18, 2012: Lyric Theatre in Sydney, Australia Productions 2012 Australia
2016 Silkeborg (Denmark) Adapted from An Officer and a Gentleman Playwrights Douglas Day Stewart, Sharleen Cooper Cohen Similar Priscilla - Queen of the Desert, Next to Normal, Jersey Boys | ||
An Officer and a Gentleman, The Musical is a stage musical based on the original movie, written by Douglas Day Stewart. It had its world premiere May 18, 2012 at the Lyric Theatre in Sydney, Australia. The musical closed six weeks later on July 1.
Contents
It was co-produced by John Frost and Sharleen Cooper Cohen. The book was written by Douglas Day Stewart and Sharleen Cooper Cohen and the score was written by Ken Hirsch and Robin Lerner. It was directed by Simon Phillips. It starred Ben Mingay as Zack Mayo and Amanda Harrison as Paula Pokrifki.
Reception
The Sydney production received mixed reviews. In response to a highly negative review in The Australian, calling the show a "bloodless facsimile" of the film, author Stewart published a rebuttal defending the production and attacking the critics for their "eclectic, overly intellectual point of view". When the show's closing was announced, producer John Frost told a reporter that an American tour was still a possibility, after revisions were made to the show.
The show was nominated for five Helpmann Awards including "Best Musical 2012". Bert LaBonte won for "Best Supporting Actor".
Original Australian Cast
Zack Mayo - Ben Mingay
Paula Pokrifki - Amanda Harrison
Sid Worley - Alex Rathgeber
Lynette Pomeroy - Kate Kendall
Sgt. Emil Foley - Bert LaBonté
Byron Mayo - Bartholomew John
Esther Pokrifki - Tara Morice
Ramon Guiterrez - Josh Piterman
Taniya Seegar - Zahra Newman
Charlie Redding - Josef Brown
Amy Cantrowitz - Sheridan Harbridge
Young Zack Mayo - Michael Kilbane, Oliver Wright, Otis Pavlovic, George Cartwright
Ensemble: Bernard Angel (Guiterrez understudy), Elise Brennan (Lynette & Paula understudy), Bianca Baykara (Seegar understudy), Kirby Burgess (Paula & Lynette understudy), Lena Cruz, Sam Devenport, Akina Edmonds (Seegar understudy), Zoy Frangos (Zack & Guiterrez understudy), Peter Hardy (Byron understudy), Brendan Irving (Zack & Sid understudy), Tanya Mitford, Thern Reynolds, Simon Roborgh (Redding understudy), Michael Whalley (Sid understudy) and Patrick Williams (Foley understudy).
Recordings
A promotional disc of five songs was released including "Up Where We Belong", performed by Ben Mingay, Amanda Harrison, Kate Kendall and Alex Rathgeber, and "If You Believe In Love", sung by Amanda Harrison.