A CONCORD THEATRICALS TITLE

Chaps!

Full-Length Musical, Comedy  /  1w, 5m

A hilarious, crowd-pleasing musical comedy! In 1944, the quirky, frazzled employees of BBC radio scramble to present an authentic Country show when America’s favorite singing cowboy, Tex Riley, fails to show.
Songs by Gene Autry, Roy Rodgers, Bob Nolan, Johnny Mercer, Frank Loesser, Patsy Montana, Dickie Wells, Tex Owens, Cliff Friend, Rex Allen Jr. & More...

  • Cast Size
    Cast Size
    1w, 5m
  • Duration
    Duration
    90 minutes
  • SubGenre
    Subgenre
    Farce, Period
  • Audience
    Target Audience
    Appropriate for all audiences

Details

Summary
Whoa, Brittania! Panic at the BBC! The year is 1944, America's favorite singing cowboy Tex Riley and his troupe are late for a special broadcast at the BBC in London. Out of desperation, Mabel, their tour manager, and Miles, the frantic young producer, grab whomever they can — a snobby announcer, an amiable sound man, a passing soap opera actor — slap them into costume, hand them scripts (after all, it's radio!) and shove them in front of the studio audience. The resulting performance is one England will never forget.

Songs by Gene Autry, Roy Rodgers, Bob Nolan, Johnny Mercer, Frank Loesser, Patsy Montana, Dickie Wells, Tex Owens, Cliff Friend, Rex Allen Jr. & More...
History
Chaps! had its world premiere at the Hope Summer Repertory Theatre, Holland, Michigan, in May 1995
. Artistic Director, David Colacci. Producing Director, Mary Schakel. Directed by Jahnna Beecham & Malcolm Hillgartner. Musical Arrangements by Malcolm Hillgartner & Chip Duford.
ARCHIE LEITCH – Cockney sound engineer, down-to-earth and quick with a quip. Plays the guitar, loves cowboy songs – and knows quite a few of them.
MILES SHADWELL – Intense young producer responsible for bringing the Singing Cowboys to Great Britain. If this holiday broadcast doesn’t come off, he might as well kiss his job good-bye. If he wasn’t so neurotic, he’d be a nice guy.
LESLIE BRIGGS-STRATTON – Imperious, arrogant snob of a BBC announcer á la George Sanders. Loathes cowboy songs. Is convinced he is civilization’s last line of defense against the rise of vulgar populism on the radio. Nobody knows he was once a featured performer in music hall pantomime.
CLIVE COOPER – A radio personality of sorts, Clive is the “Saltey’s Fish ‘n’ Chips Man.” An old-school-tie kind of guy, he really thinks of himself as a great AC-tor.
MABEL CARTER – Tex Riley’s stage manager. Mabel is used to being a behind-the-scenes wallfower. But once she steps up to the mike, she’s a rose in full bloom.
STAN – The sound effects man. Like Buster Keaton, this shell-shocked veteran is a man of few words.
  • Time Period 1940s / WWII
  • Setting The year is 1944. The setting — Studio B at the BBC in London.
  • Features Period Costumes
  • Additional Features Physical Comedy, Play w/ Music
  • Duration 90 minutes
  • Cautions
    • No Special Cautions

Media

“Madcap comedy, serious drama, high adventure and wistful romance.” – The Weekly Herald

“Combine Monty Python and Tex Ritter, and you get a bloody funny singing buckaroo!” – Herald News

“Beautiful harmony... sparkling energy... exquisitely timed... an endearing production.” – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, One of 2005's Top 10

“Ropes in the audience with plenty of laughs.” – The San Diego Union-Tribune, Critics' Choice

“Winning performances!” – Los Angeles Times

“A rootin' tootin' good time... as wholesomely western as a festival of Gene Autry movies.” – North County Times

“Just the ticket to take away the blues.” – KPBS, San Diego

“Opening night standing ovation!” – The San Diego Reader

“A hoot... entertaining hoedown.” – Seattle Times, Critics' Pick Best Bets

“Rustles up a stampede of old-time radio nostalgia and campy humor.” – Seattle Post-Intelligencer

“You’ll find yourself humming along and laughing as sagebrush and longhorns join forces with a spot of tea and a stiff upper lip.” – Seattle Times

“Lassos the audience... howling with laughter.” – City Living Seattle

“We produced Chaps! (at the Milwaukee Rep) to enormous success! Sold out the entire run, and if it had not been in a subscription series, we could have extended that show for months!” – Sandy Ernst, former Associate Artistic Director, Milwaukee Repertory Theatre

“Directing Chaps! at PCPA Theaterfest was not only a riot in the rehearsal hall, but a lovefest in performance. Audiences found the story engaging, the characters hilarious, and the music infectious. Chaps! is clever and inventive. A very good time was had by all – on both sides of the footlights.” – Paul Barnes, Artistic Director Emeritus, Three Rivers Shakespeare Festival

“What a hoot of a show! Chaps! has it all – suspense, romance, music, a wild sound effects table and a human puppet. Joyous, moving and very, very funny. We look forward to doing another production in the not too distant future.” – Deborah Gilmour Smyth, Associate Artistic Director, Lamb's Players Theatre

Videos

  • Chaps! Promo youtube thumbnail

    Chaps! Promo

Music

Song Samples

Wahoo!
Jingle Jangle Jingle
I Want to Be a Cowboy's Sweetheart
Curley Joe from Idaho
Cattle Call
Tumblin' Tumbleweeds
Come 'n Get It
Gunslinger
Ride Cowboy Ride
White Cliffs / Texas in the Spring
Ragtime Cowboy Joe
Cool Water
Sioux City Sue
Cigareets and Whusky
Duelin' Divas
Act 1
1 - I'm An Old Cowhand (J. Mercer)
2 - Saltey's Fish 'n Chips (M. Hillgartner)
3 - Back in the Saddle Again (G. Autry, R. Whitley)
4 - Wahoo! (C. Friend, pardoy lyrics by Harrison Long)
5 - Jingle Jangle Jingle (J. Lilley, F. Loesser)
6 - Toastie Oaties (M. Hillgartner)
7 - Cowboy's Sweetheart (P. Montana)
8 - The Ballad of Curley Joe (Rogers/Spencer)
9 - Cattle Call (T. Owens)
10 - Tumblin Tumbleweeds  (B. Nolan)
11 - Come 'n Get It (D. Wells)
12 - Gunslinger (L. Pober, B. Freeman)
13 - Ride, Cowboy, Ride (Allen, DeMarco, Allen, Jr.)

Act 2
14 - White Cliffs of Dover/Roundup in the Spring (Burton, Kent/Trad.)
15 - Ragtime Cowboy Joe (Muir, Abrahams, Clarke)
16 - Cool Water (B. Nolan)
17 - Sioux City Sue (Freedman/Thomas)
18 - Cigaretts and Whisky (P.D.)
19 - Duelin' Divas (apologies to G. Bizet, parody lyrics by Harrison Long)
20 - Roving Cowboy/Ride Cowboy Ride (B. Nolan/Allen, DeMarco, Allen, Jr.)
Full Scores includes:
Vocal
Rhythm (Guitar, Glockenspiel)
Fiddle
Bass
  • Musical Style Country/Western, Folk
  • Vocal DemandsModerate
  • Orchestra Size Small/Combo
  • Chorus Size No Chorus

Licensing & Materials

  • Licensing fees and rental materials quoted upon application.

Music Rentals

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Authors

Jahnna Beecham

Jahnna Beecham (playwright/lyricist) and composer Malcolm Hillgartner (composer/lyricist) have been commissioned to write musicals for Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Milwaukee Repertory Theater, Cleveland Playhouse, Hope Repertory Theatre, Children’s Theatre of Charlotte, Or ...

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Malcolm Hillgartner

Malcolm Hillgartner has written songs and lyrics for eleven musicals, including Chaps! and Dog Park: The Musical for Concord Theatricals, They Came From Way Out There, The Doll People and Holmes and Watson Save the Empire, which won an Ovation Award for Best Small-Cast Musica ...
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