Shows · Present Arms
Present Arms
Opened 1928
155 performances
Musical, Early
Set at a Marine base in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, a young private pretends to be a captain to impress a visiting English aristocrat. His deception leads to romantic complications, comic military mix-ups, and eventual heroism when he proves his worth through genuine bravery rather than fake rank.
- Music
- Richard Rodgers
- Lyrics
- Lorenz Hart
- Book
- Herbert Fields
Productions1 on Broadway
Present Arms is a Broadway musical comedy that opened April 26, 1928, with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Lorenz Hart, and the book by Herbert Fields. It was produced by Lew Fields, with musical numbers staged by Busby Berkeley. It ran for 155 performances at the Lew Fields' Mansfield Theatre, which is known as the Lena Horne Theatre today. Present Arms was filmed in 1930 with Irene Dunne, with its title changed to Leathernecking. The film is presumed lost.
Producer-director George Abbott gifted her with a Rodgers and Hart interpolation (from Present Arms ), “You Took Advantage of Me”; don’t be fooled by Stritch’s placid opening, as her second chorus thoroughly jazzes up the joint.
Anything Goes A History of American Musical Theatre Ethan Mordden, p. 408Something wrong here? Correct a field or report the problem. Every change is recorded in public under the contributor licence.