Lend an Ear

Lend an Ear was commissioned by Frederick Burleigh, and played as a small revue in April 1941 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, at the Pittsburgh Playhouse, directed by Burleigh with the performers from Carnegie Tech[2] and in a "straw hat" theatre, but plans to produce the show in New York ended. After World War II ended, it was decided to proceed with the revue, and it began rehearsals in May 1948 in Los Angeles, California. Gower Champion became involved and went from advisor to choreographer to being credited as "Dances and Musical Numbers Staged by..." Lend an Ear premiered at the Las Palmas Theatre, Los Angeles, on June 14, 1948. Rehearsals for a New York opening began on July 26, 1948, at the Coronet Theatre (now the Eugene O'Neill Theatre). The show went to Boston for its tryout, opening at the Majestic Theatre in August 1948.[3][4]

Lend an Ear opened on Broadway on December 16, 1948, at the National Theatre[5] and moved three times before closing on January 21, 1950, after 460 performances.[6] After the National Theatre, the show ran at the Broadhurst Theatre from February 21, 1949, to October 8, 1949, then the Shubert Theatre from October 10, 1949, to October 29, 1949, and finally the Mansfield Theatre from October 31, 1949, to January 21, 1950.[7] Playbill.com noted that "The brilliant revue 'Lend an Ear' moved in [to the Brooks Atkinson Theatre (Broadway)] from another theatre in 1949 and played for three months."[8]

Directed by Hal Gerson, with musical staging by Gower Champion and assistant to the choreographer Marge Champion; the costumes, setting and lighting were by Raoul Pene DuBois. The cast featured Carol Channing, Yvonne Adair, Jennie Lou Law, Gloria Hamilton, Gene Nelson, Bob Scheerer, and William Eythe.[1][5][6] Channing, Nelson, and Scheerer won the Theatre World Award,[9] and Gower Champion won the Tony Award for Best Choreography.[10][11]

The musical gave Carol Channing her break "where the wide-eyed beauty displayed her fabulous comic talents and vocal abilities".[12] This led to her being cast, the following year, in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.[13]

No cast album was made.

A revival was produced Off-Broadway at the Renata Theatre by Steven Slane and Jenny Lou Law in September 1959, with direction by Law and choreography by Bill Hooks. The cast featured Elizabeth Allen, Charles Nelson Reilly, and June Squibb.[14]

Source:[1]