A revised and scaled-down version of the Neil Simon/ Marvin Hamlisch/ David Zippel musical The Goodbye Girl began previews April 14 and opens April 17 at the Albery Theatre in London's West End.
Ann Crumb (Aspects of Love) and Gary Wilmot will play the roles originated on Broadway by Bernadette Peters and Martin Short.
Simon based his libretto on his own screenplay about a single-mom dancer who sublets an apartment with her daughter -- only to find she's been ripped off and the apartment is already occupied by an eccentric actor. The actor agrees to let them stay, but relations are chilly -- at first.
The show has music by Marvin Hamlisch with original lyrics by David Zippel (City of Angels, the forthcoming Disney Hercules cartoon) and some new lyrics for this production by Don Black. Rob Bettinson directs. This revival tried out in the suburb of Bromley "to terrific response," spokesperson Joy Sapieka told Playbill On-Line.
The score includes "I Think I Can Do This Part," "Elliott Garfield Grant," "A Beat Behind" and "Paula." Seven new songs have been penned by Hamlisch/Black for the revised version, including "Am I Who I Think I Am?" (for Wilmot) and "The Future Isn't What It Used To Be" (Wilmot and Dina Tree, who plays young Lucy. Hamlisch, the composer of A Chorus Line and They're Playing Our Song, is a 1997 Best Song Oscar nominee for ``I Finally Found Someone'' from The Mirror Has Two Faces. Other Neil Simon libretti include Promises, Promises and Sweet Charity.
Wilmot appeared in the 1994 Barry Manilow musical Copacabana. Crumb has appeared in productions on both sides of the Atlantic, including the Off-Broadway Rags revival.
Other cast-members include Shezwae Powell (Once On This Island) and the children Lucy Evans and Dina Tree. Set designs for Goodbye Girl are by Robert Jones, while musical arrangements are by John Cameron (Les Miz)
The production, which is directed by Rob Bettinson (Buddy, Jolson) has its own website: http://ds.dial.pipex.com/james.wells/Goodbye.
Tickets cost £5.00-£32.00. For information: 0171 369 1730. (From the U.S., dial 011-44 first and omit the first 0.)
-- By Robert Viagas David Lefkowitz
