Tony winner Kathleen Marshall directed and choreographed the newly reworked Meredith Willson musical for the Transport Group in 2020.
Broadway Records and Yellow Sound Label will digitally release an Off-Broadway cast album of Meredith Willson‘s The Unsinkable Molly Brown July 22. The album features the cast of Transport Group’s 2020 production, led by Beth Malone in the title role.
The production featured Willson’s original score with some trunk songs from the Music Man writer’s archives interpolated, along with a newly revised book and additional lyrics by Dick Scanlan.
“In addition to preserving a show that has been one of the most joyful and fulfilling of my career, part of the thrill of recording this score is introducing Meredith Willson songs that no one had ever heard before the new The Unsinkable Molly Brown,” said Scanlan in a statement.
Along with Malone, the album will feature performances from David Aron Damane, Whitney Bashor, Omar Lopez-Cepero, Alex Gibson, Paolo Montalban, Paula Leggett Chase, Lauryn Ciardullo, Karl Josef Co, Kaitlyn Davidson, Tyrone Davis, Jr., Gregg Goodbrod, Michael Halling, Nikka Graff Lanzarone, Keven Quillon, and CoCo Smith.
The band, under the direction of Joey Chancey, features Meg Zervoulis on acoustic piano and synth; Suzy Perelman on violin; Joe Wallace on upright bass; Micah Burgess on arch top, steel string, banjo, and mandolin; John Skinner on alto saxophone, clarinet, flute, and piccolo; Justin Vance on flute, clarinet, bass clarinet, and tenor saxophone; Jami Dauber on trumpet and flugelhorn; Alex Jeun on tenor and bass trombone; and Barbara Merjan on percussion and drums.
Produced by Michael Croiter, Michael Rafter, and Dick Scanlan, and recorded by Andy Manganello, the album will feature liner notes by Luis Miranda, orchestrations by Larry Hochman, and additional orchestrations by Michael Starobin and Bruce Coughlin. Michael Rafter adapted the music, and Joey Chancey is music coordinator. The recording was mixed and edited by Croiter at Yellow Sound Lab and mastered by Michael Fossenkemper of Turtle Tone Mastering. The album was recorded December 12, 2021, at Power Station at Berklee in NYC.
The reworked revival opened Off-Broadway February 26, 2020 at The Transport Group following earlier runs at the Denver Center Theatre Company and the St. Louis Muny. Directed and choreographed by three-time Tony winner Kathleen Marshall (Anything Goes, The Pajama Game), the production featured scenic design by Brett Banakis, costume design by Sky Switser, with gowns for Malone by Paul Tazewell, lighting design by Peter Kaczorowski, sound design by Walter Trarbach, music direction by Joey Chancey, and casting by Nora Brennan.
The musical tells the rags-to-riches story of Margaret “Molly” Brown—a turn-of-the-century hero of the underdog, champion of women’s rights, fighter for labor rights, advocate of immigration reform—and, most famously, survivor of the Titanic. A love story about a woman who rejected the notion that it’s a man’s world, this new Molly Brown portrays Molly as she really was—vibrant, progressive, modern.
Take a look at the full track listing:
1. I Ain’t Down Yet
2. The Wonderful Plan
3. Just Becuz
4. I’ve A’ready Started In
5. Dancing to the Saddle Rock
6. Belly Up to the Bar, Boys
7. I’ve A’ready Started In (Reprise)
8. I’ll Never Say No/My Own Brass Bed
9. He’s My Friend
10. Are You Sure?
11. Act One Finale
12. Beautiful People of Denver / The Sacred 36
13. Share the Luck / He’s My Friend (Reprise)
14. I’d Like to Change Everything About You
15. Cuppa Tea
16. If We Can-Can
17. The Dolce Trio: Dolce Far Niente, The Same Little Chapel, I May Never Fall in Love With You
18. Wait for Me
19. Share the Luck (Reprise)
20. Exit Music
21. Bonus Track: Colorado My Home
