The Act, 1977

The run closed July 1, 1978

Opened

October 29, 1977

Closed

July 1, 1978

Performances

233

Previews

Unknown

Theatre

Majestic Theatre

Of the 589 productions we hold that opened in the 1970s and carry a performance count, this is the 96th longest. That is a rank within what we hold, not within everything that was staged.

Who was in it17 named

Claudia Asbury
Christopher Barrett
Gayle Crofoot
Carol Estey
Mark Goddard
Michael Leeds
Roger Minami
Laurie Dawn Skinner
Albert Stephenson
Brad Witsger
Steve Anthony
Mace Barrett
Danny Buraczeski
Karen Dibianco

3 of these 17 names have a person record behind them and link to one. The other 14 are set from the identifier in the cast list, which is a slug of the name, so hyphens and full stops are lost and a few come out wrong. We hold nothing else about them. Nobody here is matched to a character: the cast list records who was in the company and not what they played.

Creative team

Director

Martin Scorsese

Choreographer

Ron Lewis

Orchestrations

Ralph Burns 7

A producer is one string on this record, however many people or companies it names. Directors and choreographers are held both as text and as identifiers; where an identifier exists the name links to a page.

Recordings 2 held for the work

None of these is attributed to this staging. They are filed against The Act, and nothing says which production any of them documents. Closing that join is the point of this catalogue and it is not closed yet.

Around this production

The Act is a musical with a book by George Furth, lyrics by Fred Ebb, and music by John Kander. It was written to showcase the talents of Kander and Ebb favorite Liza Minnelli, who portrayed Michelle Craig, a fading film star attempting a comeback as a Las Vegas singer. The musical premiered on Broadway in 1977.

And so The Act finally came to town. “Don't blame us for the shape the show is in,” asserted librettist Furth, “it’s all Scorsese’s fault.” More Opening Nights On Broadway A Critical Quotebook of Compiled By Steven Suski, p. 57

• For “The Act,” the following songs were also used: “Dearest” (lyric by Benny Davis, music by Harry Akst) and “Liza” (Show Girl, 1929; lyric by Ira Gershwin and Gus Kahn, music by George Gershwin). Complete Book of 1950s Broadway Musicals the Dan Dietz, p. 529
• John Kander and Fred Ebb wrote the Liza Minnelli vehicle, The Act (10/29/77; 233 performances), but it failed to catch on with audiences or critics. Broadway Its History People and Places An Encyclopedia Bloom Ken 1949 2nd Ed New, p. 352
• She built her reputation singing the work of Kander and Ebb, substituting for Gwen Verdon in Chicago (1975), then starring in The Act (1977) and subsequently winning a second Tony. Historical Dictionary of the Broadway Musical Volume 22 William A Everett Paul R, p. 261
• As the Girls Go, Seventh Heaven, Goldilocks, On a Clear Day, Zorba, The Act, Jerome Robbins’ Broadway, and Kiss of the Spider Woman—each of which saw fit to raise the prevailing price plateau—all floundered and flopped. That’s show biz. More Opening Nights On Broadway A Critical Quotebook of Compiled By Steven Suski, p. 35
• The Act was dealt a severe blow when the star started missing performances—twenty-six in all, a full ten percent of the New York run. More Opening Nights On Broadway A Critical Quotebook of Compiled By Steven Suski, p. 58

Passages naming this production, found by keyword across 178 books. Where it turns up in the literature, not curated notes about it.

What this page does not know

• No photograph of this staging.
• No character names. We can say who was in the company and not who they played.
• Which of the 2 recordings of The Act document this run, if any.
• Reviews, box office, running order, understudies and designers: none of it is held for any production.