John Lennon "OH! CALCUTTA!" Joe Orton / John Dankworth 1970 London Cast Flyer

Description

This is a rare single page advertising handbill (flyer) promoting the Original West End production of the controversial musical revue "OH! CALCUTTA!" at the Royalty Theatre in London. (The musical premiered in London on July 27th, 1970 at the Roundhouse Theatre and transferred to the
Royalty Theatre
on September 30th, 1970 running through January 27th, 1974. The show then transferred to the
Duchess Theatre
on January 28th, 1974, where it ran until 1980 for a total of 3,918 performances.) ..... "OH! CALCUTTA!" is an
avant-garde
theatrical
revue
,
created by British drama critic
Kenneth Tynan
.
The show, consisting of sketches on sex-related topics, debuted
Off-Broadway
in 1969 and then in London in 1970. The show sparked considerable controversy at the time, because it featured extended scenes of full-frontal nudity, both male and female. The title is taken from a painting by
Clovis Trouille
,
itself a
pun
on "
O quel cul t'as!
"
French
for "What an
arse
you have!". Tynan had hoped that
Harold Pinter
would direct the production, in order to give it avant-garde legitimacy, but Pinter declined. Sketches in the Original Off-Broadway production were written by, amongst others,
Nobel prize
winner
Samuel Beckett
,
John Lennon
,
Sam Shepard
,
Leonard Melfi
,
Edna O'Brien
,
Jules Feiffer
, Tennessee Williams (whose sketch was cut before opening night)
and Tynan himself.
Peter Schickele
(aka "PDQ Bach"), Robert Dennis and Stanley Walden were the revue's
composers
,
known as "The Open Window". (Wikipedia) ..... The Original London cast included BRENDA ARNAU, DOMINI BLYTHE, ANTHONY BOOTH, JONATHAN BURN, PAMELA FARBROTHER, SEBASTIAN GRAHAM-JONES, LINDA MARLOWE, RICHARD MONETTE (Artistic Director of the Stratford Festival of Canada from 1994 to 2007), JENNY RUNCARE and NOEL TOVEY ..... CREDITS: Devised by KENNETH TYNAN; Contributions by JOHN DANKWORTH, JOHN COTGRAVE, DAN GREENBURG, ALLEN JONES, JOHN LENNON, JACQUES LEVY, DAVID NEWMAN, ROBERT BENTON, JOE ORTON, SAM SHEPARD, CLOVIS TROUILLE, KENNETH TYNAN and SHERMAN YELLEN; Music and Lyrics by THE OPEN WINDOW (Robert Dennis, Peter Schicklel and Stanley Walden); Sets designed by FARRAH; Choreographed by MARGO SAPPINGTON; Directed by CLIFFORD WILLIAMS; Produced by MICHAEL WHITE in association with HILLARD ELKINS and ROBERT STIGWOOD
..... DETAILS: Advertising handbills (heralds) were distributed or inserted into the playbills of other productions to help generate ticket sales for upcoming shows and events. This single page, two-sided handbill measures 5 3/4" X 8 9" inches and includes wonderful graphics
and performance times
on the front and excerpts from three London reviews and a ticket order form on the backside ..... CONDITION: With the exception of light edge wear, this rare handbill is in excellent condition and will make a wonderful addition to the collection of any musical theatre aficionado or historian. This item will be carefully packaged in a protective, carded sleeve and backed by stiff cardboard.