Legitimate Theater Bonus #5: "Promises Promises" (1968)

Promises Promises

Welcome to Legitimate Theater: a column dedicated to movie-based stage musicals. The goal of this series is to explore those stories that originated in films and eventually worked their way onto Broadway and beyond. By the end of each entry, there will hopefully be a better understanding of this odd but rampant trend in modern entertainment. Are these stories really worth telling through song and dance? How can it even compare to the technical prowess of a camera and seamless editing? Join me on this quest as I explore the highs and lows of this trend on the third Wednesday of every month and hopefully answer what makes this Legitimate Theater.

Opening

On August 27, playwright Neil Simon passed away. He leaves behind an impressive portfolio full of great plays and films that will resonate so long as there's a stage to perform on. To prove just how charismatic he was, he also made musical adaptations of other people's films such as Sweet Charity (based on Fellini's Nights of Cabiria) and the 1968 show Promises Promises, based on the Best Picture Oscar-winning The Apartment, directed by Billy Wilder. With the team of Burt Bacharach, there's a lot to wonder as to what drew him to this material. Then again, there's the themes of ennui in a motel that was present in his works like Barefoot in the Park and The Odd Couple. What could he bring to the dark comedy that was ahead of its time in capturing the changing ideals of the American middle class? There's actually quite a bit, as proven by its eight Tony nominations and two wins. 

A Quick Background

Tony Wins: 2 Wins and 6 other Nominations  including Best Musical

Based on: The Apartment (1960)

Music: Burt Bacharach

Lyrics: Hal David

Book: Neil Simon

Prominent Actors: Jerry Orbach, Jill O'Hara, Edward Winter

Soundtrack

1. "Overture"
2. "Half as Big as Life"
3. "Grapes of Roth"
4. "Upstairs"
5. "You'll Think of Someone"
6. "Our Little Secret"
7. "She Likes Basketball"
8. "Where Can You Take a Girl?"
9. "Knowing When to Leave"
10. "Wanting Things"
11. "Turkey Lurkey Time"
12. "A Fact Can Be a Beautiful Thing"
13. "Whoever You Are"
14. "Christmas Day"
15. "A Young Pretty Girl Like You"
16. "I'll Never Fall in Love Again"
17. "Promises Promises"

Note: Listen to the music here

Song Exploration

Opening Song:
"Half as Big as Life"

If there had to be anyone to adapt The Apartment to stage, it makes sense that it would be Neil Simon and Burt Bacharach, a pair of artists who are tuned into the melancholy of 60's lifestyle with a flavor for comedy. With the jaunty melodies akin to Bacharach's best work, this is a solid start to a production that may not have the most iconic songbook of anything that Simon was involved with, but it definitely has the solid production necessary to bring Billy Wilder's tale of repressed woe to get ahead to life. It's maybe the most indicative of its era, what with the jaunty Broadway performance and jazz-style pop, but it all works in favor of capturing the joy and frustration that lies underneath the surface.

Carryovers

Since The Apartment wasn't a musical or had any significant song, it's hard to find anything in the lyrical tissue that would be recognizable. However, the music and story are mostly the same, albeit with songs that draw out the plot at great length, allowing the emotion to better explored. There's plenty of moments that could pass for their own Top 40 songs, with clever lyrics to back it up. Songs like "She Likes Basketball" add a nice flavor to the production, capturing desperation in a comical yet sincere fashion and improving the deeper understanding as to what makes these characters resonate so well with audiences of the time. It's perfect satire and the music and lyrics capture the same mentality perfectly.

High Point:

"I'll Never Fall in Love Again"

In a show full of great upbeat numbers, it's hard to argue against any of them being better. However, this song is arguably among Bacharach's most recognizable work, managing to be a Top 40 hit by itself. It also has the wit and melancholy that the show embodies so well in between lines about falling in love with flies and other silly scenarios. It has a lot of absurd lyrics, but it's also so so sad. It's the perfect balance necessary to convey a tragic song of disappointment in a nuanced fashion that doesn't draw attention to itself. There's a power to its simplicity, and something that has resonated through the decades with enough catchiness to challenge every singer with any form of talent.

Low Point:

"You'll Think of Someone"

For the most part the show maintains a pretty effective tempo and structure. The upbeat songs are uniformly fun and subversive in ways that capture The Apartment's tone perfectly. However, some of the slower songs, when things have to be more intimate, are among the weaker portions of the show. In this case, the song where a search for another love is good enough, but it pales in comparison to the other songs around it, bringing enough power to capture a point, but the point is made so much better on the rest of the soundtrack. It's quiet, somber, and everything that's more banal about the show.

What Does It Bring to the Story?

To put it bluntly, it brings music. There's not a lot of new plot added nor do any supporting characters get an extended riff. However, the music manages to help convey something that's been present in this work all along. It's the ability to present sadness underneath joy, and few composers have been able to capture it quite like Bacharach. Add in the whimsy of Simon's humor and you get an updated version that perfectly feels like the satire it was meant to be. It may be less essential than the film version, but it still feels of a piece. The movie itself was ahead of its time, and it's great to see the times catch up to it with a production that pops with life and personality.

Was This Necessary?

Yes

As mentioned, The Apartment was a movie that was ahead of its time eight years prior. The world wasn't ready for a dark and satirical view of office politics and private life. By 1968 and the shifting tides of culture, things were more in line and the impact of Wilder's story makes a lot of sense through the eyes of Simon and Bacharach, who capture the zeitgeist almost perfectly. Every melody feels pulled from the big hits of the time, but given a fresh and subversive coat. For what it lacks in iconic songs, it more than makes up for in sheer audacity in the production department. It's easy to fall in love with this show as a loving ode to the film. Most of all, it avoids being a cynical cash grab, and that alone gives it an edge over most subjects being covered on Legitimate Theater.