DVD 13996 THE SHOW BOAT STORY

First, some "cataloguing" data: <“Show Boat” Story (The). N.B.: This 1988 musical documentary TV movie, prepared for broadcast originally on the Public Broadcasting System network, is about the musical stage work (which also is known by alternative spelling as “Showboat”) by composer Jerome Kern and librettist (also the lyricist), Oscar Hammerstein II (i.e., Oscar Greeley Clendenning, Ritter von Hammerstein II); the documentary explores, through the spoken words of commentator Miles Kreuger (of the Institute of the American Musical) and others who are seen and heard in the documentary, the music and libretto of “Show Boat”, its musical scoring, its theatricality, its various lore, its originality and allure, its first two Broadway productions, as well as also the 1988 recording of the work using the 1927 orchestrations and vocal scoring of the work as Jerome Kern originally had conceived; among the singers/actors heard and discussed (singled out, from among others, for mention here) are, firstly, from the 1927 original Broadways cast, Stepin Fetchit (pseud. of Lincoln Theodore Monroe Andrew Perry), Helen Morgan, Dennis King, secondly, from the 1932 revival of the Broadway production with most of the 1927 cast intact (Paul Robeson, however, replacing 1927’s Joseph Bledsoe), and, thirdly, from the 1988 recording (for which John McGlinn conducts soloists, the Ambrosian Chorus, and the London Sinfonietta), Lilian Gish, Jerry Hadley, Teresa Stratas, and Frederica von Stade; includes film footage from the 1929 and 1936 films of “Show Boat”.> This musical documentary is a delight, removing the rusticles of time and unwanted alterations by others to reveal just what a gem Jerome Kern's "Show Boat" really is. Kreuger's commentary (and that of others, too) reveal the true character and depth of this musical show. McGlinn, resorting to the original orchestrations and vocal settings, reveals a work of great beauty, vivacity, and rugged musical strength that assure Kern's worth