Connick Vehicle Nice Work If You Can Get It Postponed

By Kenneth Jones
25 Jul 2008

Harry Connick, Jr.
Harry Connick, Jr.

Don't expect Harry Connick Jr. to sing the Gershwins' "Do-Do-Do" anytime soon. The Boston Globe reported that the Boston launch of the musical Nice Work If You Can Get It, borrowing songs and plot elements from the Gershwin musical Oh, Kay!, has been postponed.

The Broadway-aimed show starring Connick was to play Boston's Colonial Theatre late this year, but the production's elements couldn't be put together in time for the fall rehearsals following the spring exit of director-choreographer Kathleen Marshall. Connick and Marshall shared success in the 2006 Broadway run of The Pajama Game.

Broadway Across America-Boston president Drew Murphy sent a letter to Boston subscribers informing them of the change. No new dates have been announced.

Other directors were being sought for the production, Murphy said. The pre-Broadway engagement was to play Boston's Colonial Theatre Dec. 16, 2008-Jan. 11, 2009, toward a spring 2009 Broadway opening.

Marshall exited the project earlier this year, as did a team of attached producers. Broadway Across America took up the slack and announced it would be the sole producer.

The show, inspired by the 1926 Broadway musical, Oh, Kay!, has a book by Joe DiPietro (All Shook Up; I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change) and songs by composer George Gershwin and lyricist Ira Gershwin. The DiPietro property was seen in a Goodspeed Musicals production under the title They All Laughed in 2001. Oh, Kay! has a treasure chest score, including "Do-Do-Do," "Someone to Watch Over Me," "Dear Little Girl" and "Maybe."

Connick, Jr. made his Broadway acting debut in the revival of The Pajama Game, earning a Tony nomination for his work. Kathleen Marshall was director and choreographer. He also provided the Tony-nominated score for Thou Shalt Not. A winner of three Grammy Awards, Connick has also appeared in the films "Hope Floats" and "Independence Day," and he received an Emmy nomination for his performance as Dr. Leo Markus on "Will and Grace" and an Emmy Award for the PBS special and "Harry Connick, Jr.: Only You in Concert." A New Orleans native, Connick has been active in the Hurricane Katrina relief efforts.