During the gloomy days of World War I, audiences, including servicemen on leave, wanted light and uplifting entertainment, and they flocked to theatres to see lighthearted musical comedies, a number of which broke box-office records. These included The Bing Boys Are Here (1916), Chu Chin Chow (1916), and The Maid of the Mountains (1917).[1] Almost as popular were The Boy, The Happy Day (1916) and Yes, Uncle! (1917). Greenbank had worked on a dozen shows with each of Monckton and Ross from 1900 to the time of The Boy, and Talbot and Thompson were also frequent collaborators of theirs in the first two decades of the 20th century.[2]
The plot of The Boy closely follows that of The Magistrate, although character names have been changed, and some of the original dialogue is retained. In the Play Pictorial feature, B.W. Findon's review of the musical praised the singing of Nellie Taylor and Peter Gawthhorne, and the comedy of W. H. Berry, as well as the production in general.[3]
Synopsis
Australian sheet music to "Little Miss Melody"
Act I
Mrs. Millicent Meebles, a remarried widow, habitually understates the age of her son, Hughie Cavanaugh, to make herself appear several years younger. Consequently, the 19-year-old lad is taken for a 14-year-old boy and appears to be precocious. Hughie, that "Sporty Boy", flirts with astonishing skill with his beautiful music teacher.
Act II
Hughie also precociously introduces his step-father, Mr. Meebles, a magistrate, to the nightclub in the Cosmos Hotel. They are followed by Millicent, who wishes to warn a friend not to divulge the boy's true age. When the nightclub is raided by the police, Mr. Meebles escapes without capture, having a comically difficult time.
Mr. Meebles arrives at court just in time to hear the case that results from the raid and must, as magistrate, sentence his wife and sister-in-law, Diana Fairlie (whose lover is Albany Pope), to incarceration. Fortunately, a fellow magistrate, Mr. Burridge comes to the ladies' rescue by over-ruling the sentence on a technicality. At home, Millicent confesses that she has exaggerated Hughie's age. All is forgiven.
Productions
The Boy opened at the Adelphi Theatre in London on 14 September 1917, directed by Robert Courtneidge, under the management of Alfred Butt. The production ran for 801 performances – one of the longest runs of any musical theatre piece up to that time.[4]
An Australian production opened at the Theatre Royal in Melbourne on 23 October 1920, starring Arthur Stigant, Lance Lister and Gladys Moncrieff, where it ran until 22 January 1921.[5][6] The production later toured to Sydney, where it opened at Her Majesty's Theatre on 17 December 1921, and then Adelaide in November 1922.[7][8][9]
It was adapted for Broadway as Good Morning, Judge in 1919, by the same creative team, at the Shubert Theatre, running for 140 performances and then touring successfully.[10] Two songs by George Gershwin were added to the score, including "I am so Young", published as "I was so Young (You were so Young)."[11] It starred George Hassell as Mr. Meebles, Charles King as Hughie, Mollie King as Joy Chatterton and Edward Martindel as Col. Bagot.[12]
Although the piece was revived several times by amateur British groups in the 1930s, it has not been seen since then.[13]
Roles and original cast
Horatio Meebles (Magistrate of Bromley Street Police Court) – W. H. Berry
^"Theatre Royal – the Boy". The Age. No. 20, 460. Victoria, Australia. 25 October 1920. p. 8. Retrieved 27 February 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
^"At the Sign of Four O'". The Critic. Vol. XXXI, no. 1195. Adelaide. 19 January 1921. p. 20. Retrieved 27 February 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
^"The Boy". The Sydney Mail. Vol. XX, no. 508. New South Wales, Australia. 21 December 1921. p. 15. Retrieved 27 February 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
