THE THREEPENNY OPERA (Decca Broadway 012 159 463-2)

At the time of his death, Weill's reputation was somewhat unsettled. His German work (circa 1926-1933) had been quite popular in Europe in its time; but from the mid-thirties on, the English-speaking world had relatively little interest in modern German culture. Weill's Broadway record included two hit wartime musicals -- Lady in the Dark (1941) and One Touch of Venus (1943) -- but his subsequent shows failed. None of his American work has had a Broadway afterlife, with only one full-scale revival to his credit: A 1972 engagement of Lost in the Stars, starring Brock Peters, which lasted five weeks. Street Scene has found a home in the opera world, however.

This was an era when Broadway success was often measured in song hits. One show alone -- like Oklahoma! or Finian's Rainbow or Kiss Me, Kate - could turn out a half-dozen hits or more. Weill's adventurous style (and early career) earned him enormous respect along Broadway, but he died with only two Broadway song hits to his name, "September Song" and "Speak Low."

And then came Marc Blitzstein's adaptation of The Threepenny Opera, produced in 1954 off-Broadway at the Theatre de Lys (now the Lortel). At that time, no musical had ever run nearly so long as Oklahoma!'s five years. Threepenny ran six -- 2,611 performances -- making it the longest running musical ever in New York or London (at the time). It also demonstrated the viability of off-Broadway economics, earning far more than most Broadway musicals of the period.

Die Driegroschenoper was first performed in 1928, to international acclaim. An indifferent translation arrived on Broadway in 1933, under the title The Threepenny Opera. Without the involvement of either Weill or Brecht, it closed after 12 performances. And that, presumably, would have been that, had composer/lyricist Blitzstein not taken it upon himself to translate one of the Threepenny songs, "Pirate Jenny." Weill liked the new lyric, granting permission for a full translation - but he died a month later. Blitzstein went ahead with Lotte Lenya, Weill's widow and the show's original Jenny, by his side. The success of the off-Broadway Threepenny -- and the American stardom it brought Lenya -- instigated a reexamination of Weill's work, which within a generation placed him among the top theatre composers of the twentieth century. Which is where he belongs. It also gave Weill his most enduring song-hit, the English-language version of the "Moritat." Blitzstein came upon the notion of calling his outlaw hero "Mack the Knife," a sobriquet in the manner of Jack the Ripper and Billy the Kid. This catchy catchphrase launched the little-remembered song, after a quarter of a century, onto the charts.

Decca Broadway have continued their sweep of the various record labels now owned by Universal and brought us a sonically-restored release of the 1954 Threepenny cast album. As can be expected, it sounds far more vibrant than heretofore, with Weill's jazz-age reeds and brass standing out. The score is filled with wonders. "Pirate Jenny" (recreated by Lenya), "Solomon Song," "Tango Ballad ('There was a time')," and "Barbara Song" (sung by Bea Arthur) are all incredibly rich; "Army Song" and "Ballad of the Easy Life" are both rapid-paced stunners. Weill also provided an arresting Overture.

Scott Merrill plays Mack the Knife, Gerald Price sings "Mack the Knife," and Jo Sullivan plays the ingenue Polly. Sullivan had also been featured in Blitzstein's previous Broadway show, Let's Make an Opera. Her appearance in Threepenny garnered her the female lead in Frank Loesser's The Most Happy Fella.

The Blitzstein adaptation has been criticized over the years for being too tame. This doesn't take into account the censorship Blitzstein was forced to work under. (Not only on stage; Blitzstein apparently had to make lyric revisions, on the spot, in the recording studio.) As a piece of theatre, this adaptation seems to work best. Some people approach Threepenny as a great musical by Weill, while others see it as a great play by Brecht. (Weill's correspondence in the late 1940s indicates that he felt the need to protect his rights in the work from Brecht, who was trying to arrange his own American adaptation.) Brecht people seem to feel slighted by the Blitzstein adaptation, which is their prerogative, but the last two Broadway productions of the piece -- which were more Brechtian -- certainly didn't do as well. Me, I'll stick with Blitzstein and Weill.

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