Along with George and Ira Gershwin, Irving Berlin and Jerome Kern, Cole Porter was one of America’s greatest composers of the early part of the 20th Century. What Cole brought to the musical experience during the explosive Jazz era was his unique brand of wit and an amazing collection of rhythms layered on top of elegant melodies and sophisticated song structures. In a word Cole Porter’s music was more than just special and unique, it was popular. Songs like ‘Night and Day’, ‘I Get a Kick Out of You’, and ‘Anything Goes’, sprang from the Broadway stage and Jazz nightclubs of his time into the homes and hearts of the American public. Singers loved his clever lyrics and jazz musicians loved his tunes.
Cole had two distinct creative periods of success during the course of his career. The early period captured the youth and exuberant energy of the “Roaring Twenties” and thoughtful reflection of the Depression era of the Thirties, and his later period which embodied a more serious and mature sensibility characterized by a huge change in his personality that followed a serious accidental fall which shattered his legs. This “re-imagined” version of Cole Porter was the creator of what many believe to be his most triumphant success, “Kiss Me Kate”.
“Anything Goes” is perhaps his most popular creation from that early ‘devil-may-care’ period of his life. I selected this show for our Drama Troupe’s musical this year because I wanted to expose my students to Cole’s unique musical style, and bring them an understanding of a whole generation of music popular with their grandparents and great-grandparents. There is a joy in Cole’s music that is timeless, and it’s exciting to see a whole new generation fall in love with his work. In addition, it was a chance to focus on fun and light-hearted frivolity and styles of dancing that we rarely have the opportunity to feature on our stage at Charlotte High School. “Anything Goes” is a clear departure from the more serious work we offered last year with “Into the Woods”.
I hope you will sit back, forget your cares and troubles and experience a special time in the theatre devoted simply to sheer fun. Your bags are packed, you’re ready to go, so sail away with us aboard the S.S. American on our journey from NYC to London. Enjoy the trip!
