Based on the novel by Bradford Ropes and the subsequent Hollywood film adaptation , this backstage musical follows the rehearsal process of a Broadway show staged during the height of the Great Depression. The show is a jukebox musical of sorts, in that, in addition to songs from the film 42nd Street , it includes songs that Dubin and Warren wrote for many other films at around the same time, including Gold Diggers of , Roman Scandals , Dames , Gold Diggers of , Go into Your Dance , Gold Diggers of and The Singing Marine.
Champion followed this number with a series of tap-infused extravaganzas larger and more polished than anything Broadway really had in the s. In June , the musical premiered in out-of-town tryouts at the John F. James , closing on January 8, , after 3, performances and 6 previews. The production was directed and choreographed by Gower Champion. It was produced by David Merrick and featured orchestrations by Philip J. Karen Prunzik, who originated the role of Anytime Annie, briefly played the role of Peggy when Wanda Richert became ill and her understudy abruptly quit the show.
Aldredge costumes , and Tharon Musser lights were the same team who had designed the original Broadway production of A Chorus Line. However, the opening night triumph was overshadowed by tragedy. Following a lengthy standing ovation, Merrick went onstage and stated, "This is a very tragic moment I'm sorry to have to report that today, Gower Champion died.
But as soon as he said that Champion had died, there were "gasps and screams. Merrick lived until April 25, , but, as described by Anthony Bianco, 42nd Street "was his last big hit, his swan song".
This Tony Awardβnominated wardrobe, designed by Theoni V. The career of teenaged Catherine Zeta-Jones , a chorus member in the West End production, was launched when a vacation and an illness felled both the actress portraying Peggy Sawyer and her understudy when one of the producers happened to be in the audience.
