MY ONE AND ONLY

[morosco]

I wish I could travel back in time and see it again. What fun that show was!
Kickin' the Clouds Away

[Gypsy9]

I saw MY ONE AND ONLY on New Year's Eve. What a festive way to celebrate. I loved seeing the one and only Tommy Tune and a surprisingly good Twiggy. Great fun. It is hard to ruin Gershwin tunes. And the dancing was sublime. Remember the late great Charles "Honi" Coles dancing the Title tune?

[JRybka]

I really did love this show. I actually saw it with Sandy Duncan and her husband, Don Corriea. They were both loads of fun. I really did enjoy the show. I saw that & Cats that year. (I got to meet Laurie Beechman)

[AnthVoice2010]

A Great Show - I snuck into NYC to see it twice. (scary crap at the time)

The last time was Halloween. Tune and Coles encored the "My One and Only" number that night- sensational. Twiggy and Tune came out and stage-doored in Halloween costumes photos of which, by coincidence, were later published in his bio.

[DottieD'Luscia]

Twiggy was out the first time I saw this in January 1984. Her understudy Stephanie Ely was wonderful. I wanted to see it with Sandy Duncan and Don Correia but I was away at college at the time.

[BrodyFosse123]

A very close friend of mine was in the original Broadway cast and her stories of her involvement with the production, including her casting and the now legendary out-of-town tryout, still fascinate me to no end.

This chapter will definitely be fantastic whenever she gets around to writing her memoirs.

[DottieD'Luscia]

I got to meet Adrian Bailey last year who was in the original cast. We had a nice brief chat about this show.

[morosco]

Tommy Tune and Thommie Walsh win the Tony Award for best choreography.
Tommy Tune and Thommie Walsh -1983 Tony Awards

[Smaxie]

Here's the full number from the 1983 Tonys, marred, unfortunately by the opening credits.

The NY Magazine article about the trials and travails of My One And Only's tryout and subsequent overhaul is a great read. It's proof that even shows in dire condition can be turned around, with enough talent and money!
I just heard a spiritual...

[Mister Matt]

Every time I think of this show, I still see Twiggy's expressionless face as she navigates the choreography through that Tony performance. You can practically hear her counting out the steps through the television screen. It's oddly hypnotic. Watch as her smile just disappears starting at 4:14 and she can't stop staring at her feet. The Twiggy close-ups at that point are just CRUEL.

Regardless, it's such a fun number and I wish I could have seen the show.

[JoanBennett]

When Don and Sandy went in, there were changes to the choreography so that Don could always be on her, uh, less-prepared side.

When American Theater Productions was putting together the national tour and trying to find viable names, the idea was floated to star Donnie and Marie... it took a while to get the owners to realize there was a little bit of an incestuous "ick" factor with that idea

[MrMidwest]

Sandy Duncan & Tommy perform S'Wonderful:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ls1OTLZHsKw

[MimiJudith]

I was a kid when I first saw this show, and I ended up seeing it 13 times. I even started a fan club for Tommy Tune and got to meet him backstage -- I remember that he smelled very good. Carol Burnett and Whoopi Goldberg were backstage with me and my mother, waiting on line to speak to Tommy. I gave him a needlepoint that my mother and I made for him -- it was of the My One and Only logo (red background with silhouettes of Tommy and Twiggy). He was so nice. Anyway, this is still my favorite show and I've seen hundreds of shows since.

[Chickiequotes85]

I have only seen the London production of MY ONE AND ONLY but that was years ago. Thought it was a fun piece. Would love it to see it come back again :)

[PalJoey]

It was, like Gower Champion's 42nd Street, an exuberantly joyous and joyful theatrical experience.

I hope Broadway never forgets how to do that.

[morosco]

HOW 'MY ONE AND ONLY' CAME TO BROADWAY

[morosco]

Still one of the most magical moments I have ever had in the theatre was the barber shop / tap scene with Tommy Tune and Charles Honi Coles. It was as if the world had come to a complete stop. I can't put it into words. It was a stunning few moments of musical comedy heaven.

Here's a clip with Dexter Jones and Jeremy Benton recreating that scene with the original choreography. (There used to be a clip online with Tommy Tune and Charles doing the number but I can't find it again.)
Dexter Jones and Jeremy Benton recreate My One and Only

[North2009]

Thanks for posting the article. Very interesting.

[morosco]

Here's the commercial. Was the number "High Hat" cut during previews or was it added later?
Original Broadway TV spot

[willrogers2008]

Thank you for the amazing link, Morosco.

[MrMidwest]

1983 People Magazine article

[D2]

For whatever reason, I didn't see it until about a week before it closed. Sandy Duncan and Tommy Tune were terrific together and, as others have stated, it was a joyous evening of pure musical comedy gold. I don't feel I missed anything by not seeing Twiggy, (Duncan is a better singer and dancer) and just to hear Georgia Engel (she replaced Denny Dillon) mutter curses in that inimitable voice of hers was priceless.

[bobs3]

I was in college when the show was playing and on a tight budget, so I second-acted the show. I thought it was great. I especially liked how Twiggy would switch from a high-pitched cockney accent while speaking to a low singing voice. I wish could have seen the entire the show.

[once a month]

It was an elegant evening in the theatre. Dancing in that trough of water, Tommy Tune and Twiggy were magical I'll never forget it!

[broadwayjim42]

I loved that show, although it's also the site of my most embarassing celebrity encounter. At the stage door, I told Tommy how much I loved him as the voice of Silent E on The Electric Company. Um...that was Tom Lehrer.

About that same time frame, also saw Tommy in Times Square in a mink coat, red leather pants and tall black boots. Sartorial eloquence indeed.

[lupone76]

Definitely one of my favorites as a child. I was about 6 years old and oh, was I in awe. So much so that I dragged my parents back to see it 4 more times.
bobs, no such thing as second acting these days. I remember up until the early 90's when I was in high school it was so easy to crash the second act. Now days, those ushers make sure you come back from intermission with your ticket in hand.