Music Scott Frankel Book Doug Wright Lyricist Michael Korie Orchestrator Bruce Coughlin | Lyrics Michael Korie Composer Scott Frankel Playwright Doug Wright | |
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Basis 2004 book War Paint by Lindy Woodhead
2007 film The Powder & the Glory by Ann Carol Grossman & Arnie Reisman Productions 2016 Chicago
2017 Broadway Premiere July 18, 2016: Goodman Theatre, Chicago Characters Harry Fleming, Arden Girl #3, Mr. Simms, Mr. Baruch Similar Grey Gardens, I Am My Own Wife, Far from Heaven, Hands on a Hardbody, The Little Mermaid | ||
War paint s doug wright on dramatizing feud between cosmetics titans
War Paint is a musical with book by Doug Wright, music by Scott Frankel, and lyrics by Michael Korie, based both on Lindy Woodhead's 2004 book War Paint and on the 2007 documentary film The Powder & the Glory by Ann Carol Grossman and Arnie Reisman. The musical focuses on the lives of and rivalry between 20th-century female entrepreneurs Elizabeth Arden and Helena Rubinstein.
Contents
- War paint s doug wright on dramatizing feud between cosmetics titans
- War paints s patti lupone and christine ebersole discuss their simpatico relationship
- Overview
- Productions
- Cast
- Critical response
- References
War paints s patti lupone and christine ebersole discuss their simpatico relationship
Overview
The musical relates the rivalry between two important women of the cosmetics industry, Elizabeth Arden and Helena Rubinstein from the 1930s to the 1960s. Elizabeth Arden was the daughter of a Canadian farmer, and presented her products as emblems of an upper-class life of comfort. Helena Rubinstein, from Poland, "emphasized science", promising an "exotic look." That was "code for Jewish" according to Scott Frankel.
Doug Wright noted: “Together, they not only forged an industry, but a way of life...They absolutely shattered glass ceilings as women in industry." Frankel, explaining the musical style, said: "I’m a huge fan of music from the 1930s, ‘40s, ‘50s and ’60s and, without making it a pastiche, I soaked my brain in the fluids of those periods to see what absorbed naturally."
Productions
War Paint premiered at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago in the summer of 2016. Under the direction of Michael Greif, the Chicago production began performances on June 28, 2016, officially opened on July 18, and ran through August 21, 2016. The production starred Patti LuPone as Rubinstein and Christine Ebersole as Arden, with John Dossett as Tommy Lewis, Arden's husband and Douglas Sills, as Harry Fleming, Rubinstein's confidante.
The musical features scenic design by David Korins, costume design by Catherine Zuber, lighting design by Kenneth Posner, sound design by Brian Ronan, orchestrations by Bruce Coughlin, and choreography by Christopher Gattelli.
War Paint premiered on Broadway at the Nederlander Theatre on March 7, 2017 before officially opening on April 6. Additional featured cast includes Dossett and Sills, reprising their roles from the Chicago production.
Cast
Source: Internet Broadway Database
Critical response
In his review of the Chicago production, Peter Marks in The Washington Post praised LuPone and Ebersole and the score: "LuPone and Ebersole wrap their prodigious voices around a score by Scott Frankel and Michael Korie that rings with the kind of exhilaratingly brassy notes that match the chutzpah of their characters’ ambitions... In the twilight is where both LuPone’s and Ebersole’s performances gain their essential poignancy..." and the story line: " 'War Paint' conveys with tremendous authority what it must have been like for both women to have assumed the traditionally masculine role of running a major company..."