Gypsy: A Musical Fable is a 1959 musical with music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a book by Arthur Laurents. Gypsy is loosely based on the 1957 memoirs of striptease artist Gypsy Rose Lee, and focuses on her mother, Rose, whose name has become synonymous with "the ultimate show business mother." It follows the dreams and efforts of Rose to raise two daughters to perform onstage and casts an affectionate eye on the hardships of show business life. The character of Louise is based on Lee, and the character of June is based on Lee's sister, the actress June Havoc.
The musical contains many songs that became popular standards, including "Everything's Coming Up Roses", "Together (Wherever We Go)", "Small World", "You Gotta Get a Gimmick", "Let Me Entertain You", "All I Need Is the Girl", and "Rose's Turn".
It is frequently considered one of the crowning achievements of the mid-twentieth century's conventional musical theatre art form, often called the book musical. Gypsy has been referred to as the greatest American musical by numerous critics and writers, among them Ben Brantley ("what may be the greatest of all American musicals...") and Frank Rich. Rich wrote that "Gypsy is nothing if not Broadway's own brassy, unlikely answer to King Lear." Theater critic Clive Barnes wrote that "Gypsy is one of the best of musicals..." and described Rose as "one of the few truly complex characters in the American musical."
1959Jan, 4
Gypsy opened and closed on Broadway after 120 performances and four previews
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Events on 1959
- 1Jan
Cuban Revolution
Fulgencio Batista, dictator of Cuba, is overthrown by Fidel Castro's forces during the Cuban Revolution. - 7Jan
Fidel Castro
The United States recognizes the new Cuban government of Fidel Castro. - 20Feb
John Diefenbaker
The Avro Arrow program to design and manufacture supersonic jet fighters in Canada is cancelled by the Diefenbaker government amid much political debate. - 8Apr
COBOL
A team of computer manufacturers, users, and university people led by Grace Hopper meets to discuss the creation of a new programming language that would be called COBOL. - 23Nov
Charles de Gaulle
French President Charles de Gaulle declares in a speech in Strasbourg his vision for "Europe, from the Atlantic to the Urals".