Today we are saluting a versatile and unique figure in theatre history who grew up as the daughter of one of the most important composers in musical theatre and subsequently contributed recognizable and fondly remembered works of her own to the canon, as well - Mary Rodgers Guettel.
The Girl From... As the first-born child of world renowned composer and theatrical producer Richard Rodgers, Mary Rodgers was seemingly predestined to live a life relating to the arts. While many children of famous creators or artistic icons may eschew a career in the theatre or the arts altogether, Rodgers pursued it quite wholeheartedly, having her first full-fledged musical produced Off-Broadway and quickly transferring to Broadway before she was 30 via THE PRINCESS & THE PEA-inspired comedy ONCE UPON A MATTRESS, which arrived on the Great White Way in 1959. Although subsequent shows she herself generated or contributed to unfortunately failed to match that early success, Rodgers continued to pursue unique and unusual subjects for musicalization and eventually tried her able hand at other mediums, as well. Following ONCE UPON A MATTRESS, Rodgers penned a song titled "Hire A Guy" for the Hermione Gingold-led original Broadway revue FROM A To Z in 1960, which not only featured a book by a young Woody Allen, but also boasted illustrious fellow contributors such as Jerry Herman, Fred Ebb, Jonathan Tunick and more - all of whom were making their Broadway debuts, as it happened. Nevertheless, the show closed after only 21 performances, but Rodgers could justifiably boast of having contributed to two concurrently running Broadway musicals anyway.
Photo Credits: LIFE Magazine, Masterworks Broadway, etc.
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