About the work
Singin' in the Rain is the stage version of the 1952 MGM film musical of the same name, released in Germany as “Du sollst mein Glücksstern sein”. Betty Comden and Adolph Green wrote the book on the basis of their own screenplay; most of the songs are by Nacio Herb Brown (music) and Arthur Freed (lyrics), supplemented by numbers from other songwriters. The musical premiered on 30 June 1983 at the London Palladium, directed by Tommy Steele, who also played the lead role of Don Lockwood.
Plot
Hollywood, 1927: silent film star Don Lockwood enjoys hit after hit with his screen partner Lina Lamont until the arrival of sound forces the studio to change course. Lina's shrill voice threatens to sink their first talking picture, “The Dueling Cavalier”. Don, his friend Cosmo Brown and the young actress Kathy Selden, with whom Don has fallen in love, turn the project into the musical “The Dancing Cavalier”, in which Kathy secretly replaces Lina's voice. When the deception comes to light, Kathy is the new star.
Cultural significance
The original London production ran until September 1985 and reached 894 performances; on Broadway, directed by Twyla Tharp, it played 367 performances at the Gershwin Theatre in 1985/86 and earned leading man Don Correia a Tony nomination. The American Film Institute ranks the film on which it is based as the greatest American film musical. The first German-language production opened on 15 April 1994 at the Staatsoperette Dresden, in a translation by Hartmut H. Forche.