The musical is adapted from the 1943 short storyLe Passe-Muraille by Marcel Aymé and set in Paris shortly after World War II. It centers on a shy, unassuming clerk who develops the ability to walk through walls, and who challenges himself to stick to his moral center and change others' lives, and his own, as a result.
In 1997, Legrand, a noted film composer and jazz musician, and a newcomer to stage musicals at age 65, brought the musical (under its original title, Le Passe Muraille) to Paris where it won the Prix Molière for Best Musical.
The musical received mostly negative reviews in America, although Errico, Gets and the score were praised. Ben Brantley, in his review for The New York Times, wrote: "Even charming is too weighty a word to describe the wispy appeal of Amour"[1] The Talkin' Broadway reviewer, however, wrote: "Broadway's Music Box Theatre may have found its most ideal tenant in quite a while. The delightful little jewel box of a musical, Amour, ...deserves a lengthy stay there, where it may enchant audiences for a long time to come."[2] Cary Wong in filmscoremonthly wrote: "The lyrics are mostly pedestrian and uninvolving, and they make the already stock characters even more one-dimensional." He does note that "...while there is a lot to admire in this musical, it's too much of a chamber operetta to compete with the likes of 'Hairspray' and 'La Boheme'."[3]
A "reconceived production" was produced by Goodspeed Musicals from August 11 through September 4, 2005, directed by Darko Tresnjak.[4]
Amour made its European Premiere in a new production presented by Danielle Tarento at the Charing Cross Theatre from May 2 to June 8, 2019, with direction from Hannah Chissick, choreography by Matt Cole, musical direction by Jordan Li-Smith and designed by Adrian Gee. The production starred Gary Tushaw as Dusoleil, Anna O'Byrne as Isabelle and Alasdair Harvey as the Prosecutor, alongside Elissa Churchill, Claire Machin, Keith Ramsay, Jack Reitman, Steven Serlin and Alistair So, with understudy Laura Barnard. Amour was nominated for 8 The Off West End Theatre Awards, and won for 'Best Costume Design' and 'Best New Musical' at the 2020 ceremony.
Characters
Dusoleil: a self-proclaimed "ordinary guy" who discovers he can walk through walls
Isabelle: an unhappily married woman and the object of Dusoleil's affections
Whore, Painter, Newsvendor: three street workers who support Dusoleil
Prosecutor: Isabelle's husband, a man with more than a few skeletons in his closet
Boss: Dusoleil's nasty boss
Doctor Roucefort: Dusoleil's doctor, who gives him the eventual cure to his intangibility
Madeleine, Claire, Charles, Bertrand: Dusoleil's co-workers. The women reveal feelings for Dusoleil when they discover he is the elusive "Monsieur Passepartout"
Policemen: "henchmen" hired by the prosecutor to keep the people of Montmartre in check
Monsieur le President: President of the tribunal that tries Dusoleil
Advocate: Dusoleil's lawyer, who appears on behalf of Dusoleil on his very first day in court
Plot
In Paris after World War II, a shy, unassuming "invisible" civil servant, Dusoleil, lives alone and works in a dreary office under a tyrannical boss. His lazy co-workers are unhappy because Dusoleil is a hard worker who finishes his work early. To pass the time, he writes letters to his mother and daydreams about the beautiful Isabelle. Isabelle is kept locked away by her controlling husband, the prosecutor-general with an unsavory past. When Dusoleil miraculously gains the ability to walk through walls, he begins to steal from the rich and give to the poor. He also gains the self-confidence to woo Isabelle, who is intrigued by the news stories about Passepartout, a mysterious criminal who can walk through walls.
Dusoleil's life, as well as Isabelle's and the other characters, takes a rich and, for a while, romantic turn. As Dusoleil admits to being Passepartout, he is put on trial in front of the prosecutor. Before the trial progresses, Isabelle reveals her husband's secret—that he was a Nazi collaborator. Dusoleil is pardoned and he spends one romantic night with Isabelle. When he takes pills that the doctor has given him, mistaking them for aspirin, he loses his magic power. He becomes stuck mid-leap in a wall, and his memory is carried on in story and song.
Song list
"Overture" – Company
"Office Life" – Dusoleil, Madeleine, Claire, Bertrand and Charles
^Brantley, Ben."Theater Review: A French Milquetoast's Talent Lights the Fuse of Mischief" The New York Times, October 21, 2002
^Murray, Matthew."Broadway Review: 'Amour'" Talkin' Broadway, October 20, 2002
^Wong, Cary. "'Amour' Musical Review" 2004-06-26 at the Wayback MachineFilmscore Monthly, November 2002, accessed November 28, 2016
^Jones, Kenneth."Will 'Amour' Be Lovelier the Second Time Around? Goodspeed Reconceives Legrand Musical, Through Sept. 4", Playbill, August 12, 2005, accessed November 28, 2016
^"'Amour'" September 27, 2007, at the Wayback Machine SH-K Boom site; "'Amour'" Barnes and Noble
External links
Internet Broadway Database listing
Curtain Up review
Links to international cast albums
Synopsis at guidetomusicaltheatre.com
March 23, 2023
amour, musical, amour, musical, fantasy, with, english, book, lyrics, jeremy, sams, music, michel, legrand, original, french, lyrics, didier, cauwelaert, also, wrote, original, french, libretto, amour2002, broadway, playbillmusicmichel, legrandlyricsjeremy, sa. Amour is a musical fantasy with an English book and lyrics by Jeremy Sams music by Michel Legrand and original French lyrics by Didier Van Cauwelaert who also wrote the original French libretto Amour2002 Broadway PlaybillMusicMichel LegrandLyricsJeremy Sams English lyrics Didier Van Cauwelaert French lyrics BookJeremy Sams English book Didier Van Cauwelaert French book BasisLe Passe Muraille by Marcel AymeProductions1997 Paris2002 Broadway2019 Off West EndThe musical is adapted from the 1943 short story Le Passe Muraille by Marcel Ayme and set in Paris shortly after World War II It centers on a shy unassuming clerk who develops the ability to walk through walls and who challenges himself to stick to his moral center and change others lives and his own as a result Contents 1 Production 2 Characters 3 Plot 4 Song list 5 Recording 6 Honors and awards 6 1 Original Broadway production 7 References 8 External linksProduction EditIn 1997 Legrand a noted film composer and jazz musician and a newcomer to stage musicals at age 65 brought the musical under its original title Le Passe Muraille to Paris where it won the Prix Moliere for Best Musical The Broadway production directed by James Lapine and presented without intermission opened on October 20 2002 at the Music Box Theatre The show closed after 17 performances and 31 previews The cast included Malcolm Gets and Melissa Errico The musical received mostly negative reviews in America although Errico Gets and the score were praised Ben Brantley in his review for The New York Times wrote Even charming is too weighty a word to describe the wispy appeal of Amour 1 The Talkin Broadway reviewer however wrote Broadway s Music Box Theatre may have found its most ideal tenant in quite a while The delightful little jewel box of a musical Amour deserves a lengthy stay there where it may enchant audiences for a long time to come 2 Cary Wong in filmscoremonthly wrote The lyrics are mostly pedestrian and uninvolving and they make the already stock characters even more one dimensional He does note that while there is a lot to admire in this musical it s too much of a chamber operetta to compete with the likes of Hairspray and La Boheme 3 A reconceived production was produced by Goodspeed Musicals from August 11 through September 4 2005 directed by Darko Tresnjak 4 Amour made its European Premiere in a new production presented by Danielle Tarento at the Charing Cross Theatre from May 2 to June 8 2019 with direction from Hannah Chissick choreography by Matt Cole musical direction by Jordan Li Smith and designed by Adrian Gee The production starred Gary Tushaw as Dusoleil Anna O Byrne as Isabelle and Alasdair Harvey as the Prosecutor alongside Elissa Churchill Claire Machin Keith Ramsay Jack Reitman Steven Serlin and Alistair So with understudy Laura Barnard Amour was nominated for 8 The Off West End Theatre Awards and won for Best Costume Design and Best New Musical at the 2020 ceremony Characters EditDusoleil a self proclaimed ordinary guy who discovers he can walk through walls Isabelle an unhappily married woman and the object of Dusoleil s affections Whore Painter Newsvendor three street workers who support Dusoleil Prosecutor Isabelle s husband a man with more than a few skeletons in his closet Boss Dusoleil s nasty boss Doctor Roucefort Dusoleil s doctor who gives him the eventual cure to his intangibility Madeleine Claire Charles Bertrand Dusoleil s co workers The women reveal feelings for Dusoleil when they discover he is the elusive Monsieur Passepartout Policemen henchmen hired by the prosecutor to keep the people of Montmartre in check Monsieur le President President of the tribunal that tries Dusoleil Advocate Dusoleil s lawyer who appears on behalf of Dusoleil on his very first day in courtPlot EditIn Paris after World War II a shy unassuming invisible civil servant Dusoleil lives alone and works in a dreary office under a tyrannical boss His lazy co workers are unhappy because Dusoleil is a hard worker who finishes his work early To pass the time he writes letters to his mother and daydreams about the beautiful Isabelle Isabelle is kept locked away by her controlling husband the prosecutor general with an unsavory past When Dusoleil miraculously gains the ability to walk through walls he begins to steal from the rich and give to the poor He also gains the self confidence to woo Isabelle who is intrigued by the news stories about Passepartout a mysterious criminal who can walk through walls Dusoleil s life as well as Isabelle s and the other characters takes a rich and for a while romantic turn As Dusoleil admits to being Passepartout he is put on trial in front of the prosecutor Before the trial progresses Isabelle reveals her husband s secret that he was a Nazi collaborator Dusoleil is pardoned and he spends one romantic night with Isabelle When he takes pills that the doctor has given him mistaking them for aspirin he loses his magic power He becomes stuck mid leap in a wall and his memory is carried on in story and song Song list Edit Overture Company Office Life Dusoleil Madeleine Claire Bertrand and Charles Going Home Alone Dusoleil Other People s Stories Isabelle and Dusoleil Street Vendors Waltz Whore Painter Newsvendor Policemen Prosecutor Isabelle and Dusoleil Dusoleil Walks Through the Wall Dusoleil The Doctor Doctor and Dusoleil Ordinary Guy Dusoleil Dusoleil s Revenge Boss Dusoleil Madeleine Claire Bertrand and Charles Somebody Isabelle Prosecutor s Song Prosecutor Whore s Lament Whore and Dusoleil Monsieur Passepartout Newsvendor Painter Whore Madeleine and Policemen Special Time of Day Isabelle and Dusoleil Waiting Dusoleil Latest News Newsvendor Whore and Painter Dusoleil in Jail Dusoleil Madeleine and Claire Painter s Song Painter Isabelle on Her Balcony Isabelle Dusoleil and Prosecutor Transformation Company The Advocate s Plea Advocate The Trial Monsieur le President Madeleine Whore Painter Prosecutor Dusoleil and Isabelle Duet for Dusoleil and Isabelle Dusoleil and Isabelle Whistling Ballet Dusoleil Painter Whore Newsvendor Madeleine and Policemen Amour Isabelle and Dusoleil Dusoleil Meets the Press Dusoleil Newsvendor Doctor and Company Serenade Dusoleil Isabelle and CompanyRecording EditA recording of the musical was released by Ghostlight on July 8 2003 5 Honors and awards EditOriginal Broadway production Edit Year Award Ceremony Category Nominee Result2003 Tony Award Best Musical NominatedBest Book of a Musical Jeremy Sams and Didier Van Cauwelaert NominatedBest Original Score Michel Legrand Jeremy Sams and Didier Van Cauwelaert NominatedBest Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical Malcolm Gets NominatedBest Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical Melissa Errico NominatedDrama Desk Award Outstanding Musical NominatedOutstanding Book of a Musical Jeremy Sams NominatedOutstanding Actor in a Musical Malcolm Gets NominatedOutstanding Featured Actor in a Musical Christopher Fitzgerald NominatedOutstanding Director of a Musical James Lapine NominatedOutstanding Orchestrations Michel Legrand NominatedOutstanding Lyrics Didier Van Cauwelaert NominatedOutstanding Music Michel Legrand NominatedOutstanding Set Design Scott Pask NominatedReferences Edit Brantley Ben Theater Review A French Milquetoast s Talent Lights the Fuse of Mischief The New York Times October 21 2002 Murray Matthew Broadway Review Amour Talkin Broadway October 20 2002 Wong Cary Amour Musical Review Archived 2004 06 26 at the Wayback Machine Filmscore Monthly November 2002 accessed November 28 2016 Jones Kenneth Will Amour Be Lovelier the Second Time Around Goodspeed Reconceives Legrand Musical Through Sept 4 Playbill August 12 2005 accessed November 28 2016 Amour Archived September 27 2007 at the Wayback Machine SH K Boom site Amour Barnes and NobleExternal links EditInternet Broadway Database listing Curtain Up review Links to international cast albums Synopsis at guidetomusicaltheatre com Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Amour musical amp oldid 1134486583, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
