Anything Goes

Anything Goes
Public domain · source
Name	Anything Goes
Music	Cole Porter
Lyrics	Cole Porter
Book	Guy Bolton; P. G. Wodehouse; Howard Lindsay; Russel Crouse
Premiere	1934
Location	Alvin Theatre, New York City
Genre	Musical comedy

Anything Goes Anything Goes is a 1934 musical with music and lyrics by Cole Porter and a book originally by Guy Bolton and P. G. Wodehouse, later heavily revised by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. Set largely aboard an ocean liner, the piece centers on mistaken identities, romantic entanglements, and satirical vignettes that reflect the interwar period. The work became one of Porter’s most enduring scores, spawning standards that entered the repertoires of Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, and numerous jazz and pop interpreters. Over decades, the show has been revised and revived by major companies and artists connected to institutions such as the Theatre Guild, Royal Shakespeare Company, National Theatre (United Kingdom), and Broadway houses.

Background and origins

The musical originated from a commission in the early 1930s when producers sought new works from established librettists Guy Bolton and P. G. Wodehouse, who had collaborated on shows produced by the Shubert Organization and the Theatre Guild. With the advent of the Great Depression, producers like Groucho Marx-era impresarios and the Shuberts aimed for light entertainment; they enlisted Cole Porter, fresh from successes like Paris (musical) and collaborations with Irving Berlin-era figures. The original 1934 staging at the Alvin Theatre featured stars associated with the Ziegfeld Follies and drew on transatlantic travel themes popularized by liners such as the RMS Mauretania and the cultural cachet of transatlantic crossings between New York City and London. Early drafts were reworked by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse when the need arose to create broader comedic set pieces for performers from the American Ballet Theatre and vaudeville circuits.

Composition and musical structure

Porter’s score synthesizes elements of Tin Pan Alley songwriting, jazz-inflected rhythms, and the urbane sophistication associated with the Algonquin Round Table. Signature numbers employ AABA standards, thirty-two-bar forms, and Tin Pan Alley harmonic progressions that allowed improvisatory interpretation by artists from Duke Ellington-influenced orchestras to Broadway pit bands. Songs such as one became staples for swing arrangers and were adapted into instrumental charts by bandleaders like Benny Goodman and Count Basie. The orchestration in the original production used typical Broadway pit instrumentation of the era, linking the work to contemporaneous productions at venues like the Palace Theatre (New York) and collaborations with choreographers from companies associated with the American Ballet Theatre and the Martha Graham Dance Company. Porter’s witty, urbane lyrics incorporate internal rhyme, clever enjambment, and topical references that have required sensitivity in subsequent revivals to address evolving social mores and references to figures linked to the Roaring Twenties and early 1930s cultural milieu.

Notable productions and adaptations

The original 1934 production at the Alvin Theatre starred performers drawn from the Ziegfeld Follies and toured nationally under the auspices of the Shubert Organization. A celebrated 1954 revival revised the book and featured choreography and staging influenced by postwar Broadway practices and directors associated with the New York City Center. Landmark revivals include the 1987 production directed by Michael Kidd and the 1989 National Theatre production involving creatives affiliated with the Royal National Theatre, each updating dialogue and satirical targets. Film adaptations and televised versions connected the property to Hollywood figures from Paramount Pictures and later television broadcasts on networks such as PBS and BBC One. Regional and amateur productions have adapted the show for companies from the National Theatre (United Kingdom) to the Guthrie Theater, and dance reimaginings have been staged by ensembles tied to the New York City Ballet and contemporary choreographers influenced by figures like Bob Fosse.

Cultural impact and reception

Anything Goes has informed the Great American Songbook and influenced standards performed by artists associated with Columbia Records, Decca Records, and Verve Records. Critics from publications like The New York Times and The Guardian have debated its satire, gender politics, and port of call humor across decades, prompting scholarly analyses in journals connected to Columbia University and Oxford University Press publications. The show’s songs have been used in films, radio programs broadcast by BBC Radio 4 and NBC Radio, and advertising campaigns referencing the interwar glamour epitomized by liners such as the RMS Queen Mary. Revivals have sometimes updated characterizations to reflect changing attitudes toward figures associated with 1930s celebrity culture, and performers from the American Theater Wing to West End stages have reinterpreted roles in ways that link the original’s sophisticated comedy to contemporary social commentary.

Recordings and notable performers

Commercial cast recordings from the original Broadway run and later revivals were released on labels including RCA Victor, Columbia Records, and Decca Records, featuring interpretations by leading Broadway singers and bandleaders. Solo recordings of key songs were made by artists such as Bing Crosby, Ella Fitzgerald, Peggy Lee, Frank Sinatra, Barbra Streisand, and instrumental versions by Duke Ellington and Count Basie. Notable stage performers associated with major productions include actors and singers who also had careers at institutions like the Metropolitan Opera and the Royal Opera House, and choreographers who worked with companies including the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. The show’s standards continue to be recorded by jazz ensembles and vocalists linked to labels such as Blue Note Records and Verve Records, ensuring ongoing presence in concert repertoires and archival collections held by institutions like the Library of Congress and the British Library.

Category:1934 musicals