Based on Jaroslav Hašek's 1921–1923 satiric novel The Good Soldier Švejk, the musical focuses on a naive and idealistic young man who, despite his pacifist views, leaves his sweetheart Minny Belle Tompkins to fight in Europe in World War I. He first tries to stop the war after meeting a young German sniper of the same name, who believes that the soldiers must unite. However, the commanders of the allied forces intend to use the discontent with the war among the German soldiers as a perfect time to advance in the war. Johnny then manages to bring the skirmish to a temporary halt by incapacitating a meeting of the generals with laughing gas, but once they recover they promptly reinstate the war, resulting in hundreds of thousands of fatalities. Meanwhile, Johnny finds himself committed to an asylum for ten years. He returns home to discover Minny Belle has married a capitalist, and he settles down as a toymaker who will create anything except tin soldiers, his personal gesture of peace in an increasingly warlike society.
The musical was written and composed by Green and Weill during the summer of 1936 in a rented old house located in Nichols, Connecticut near the summer rehearsal headquarters of the Group Theatre at Pine Brook Country Club.[1][2] Its title was inspired by the fact the name appeared on United States casualty rolls more often than any other.[3]
A 1956 production was presented Off-Broadway at the Little Carnegie Playhouse at Carnegie Hall. It was directed by Stella Adler and starred among others James Broderick as Johnny Johnson and Gene Saks as the Mad Psychiatrist. It ran from October 21, 1956, through October 28. Samuel Matlowsky was the musical director and conducted the 1956 record album which had none of the cast from the Stella Adler production.[6]
After 10 previews, a revival directed by José Quintero and choreographed by Bertram Ross opened on April 11, 1971, at the Edison Theatre, where it closed after one performance. The cast included Ralph Williams as Johnny and Alice Cannon as Minny Belle.[7]
The British premiere was staged by actors from the Royal Shakespeare Company in the Not the RSC Again festival at the Almeida Theatre, London in the Summer of 1986. There were no more than two performances of Johnny Johnson, which was directed by Paul Marcus. The title role was taken by Graham Turner with Beverley Klein as Minny Belle. Other roles were played by Martin Milman, Clive Mantle, Tina Marian, Michael McNally, Keith Osborne, Geraldine Wright, Patrick Bailey, David Summer and Andrew Yeats. Musical director was John Owen Edwards.[8][9]
In 2009, a concert-staging was mounted in London by the Discovering Lost Musicals Charitable Trust, with Max Gold in the title role.[10]
The ReGroup Theatre Company staged two sold-out staged readings that were directed by Estelle Parsons at the 47th St Theatre, in New York on December 12, 2011.[11] Johnny was played by Pete McElligott, and his performances was named one of the 10 memorable performances of 2011 by Backstage.[12]
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