Photo Flash: A Look Back at LEGS DIAMOND Before Its 30th Anniversary Reunion at Feinstein's/54 Below

Feinstein's/54 Below (254 West 54 Street NYC), Broadway's Supper Club, presents the Original Broadway cast of the much heralded musical in Legs Diamond 30th Anniversary Reunion Concert on Sunday, December 3 at 7:00 pm and 9:30 pm. Scroll down for photos from the original Broadway production!

The concert, which musicalized the prohibition era, is being produced and directed by original cast member Jonathan Cerullo.

For the first time in NYC since its opening in 1989, the original cast of one of Broadway's biggest and brightest flops, Legs Diamond reunites for one night only! With a beautiful score conceived and written by Grammy and Academy Award winner Peter Allen, and book by Harvey Fierstein and Charles Suppon, the concert features Christine Andreas, Brenda Braxton and Bob Stillman, and original cast members. Songs which never made it to the Broadway stage will also be highlighted. Carol Baxter is the associate producer.

Despite its short run, Legs Diamond received three Tony Award nominations, including "Best Costume Design" for the legendary Willa Kim for her glorious 20's designs, "Best Choreography" for Alan Johnson, and a nomination of "Best Featured Actress in a Musical" for the divine Julie Wilson for her show stopping number "The Music Went Out of My Life." Set in a speakeasy during the Prohibition Jazz age, Legs Diamond presented a fully automated set with computerized scenery, for the first time ever on a Broadway stage. Brenda Braxton's role was expanded with "Speakeasy" written for her. She went on to perform various roles on Broadway including Jelly's Last Jam, Smokey Joe's Cafe (Tony Award Nomination) and Chicago. The unique show featured dancers emerging from a piano to reveal a forbidden speakeasy, showgirls dripping in diamonds and lounging in giant champagne glasses, and the Gangland Ballet.

After a six-week workshop, Legs Diamond went straight to Broadway. The musical opened at the Mark Hellinger Theatre on December 26, 1988, and had a record-breaking 72 previews, where production problems and technical issues were reported endlessly in the media. After another 62 problems performances, Legs Diamond closed on February 19, 1989. It was the first time that the closing of a Broadway show was covered in the news. This would mark not only the end of the show, but the end of the Mark Hellinger Theatre which became the Times Square Church.

Peter Allen played "Legs" Diamond, based on real-life gangster Jack "Legs" Diamond who, among all other things was a song and dance man. The plot was filled with scenes of unrequited love and jealousy by the women who competed for Legs Diamond's heart, played by Julie Wilson, Randall Edwards, and Brenda Braxton. Unfortunately, Christine Andreas and Bob Stillman ("Leg's" wife and brother) whose voices and songs brought tears to cast members in rehearsals fell victim to the many cuts during previews. Their characters never made it to opening night.

Christine Andreas, Brenda Braxton and Bob Stillman will be joined by Adrian Bailey (Smokey Joe's Cafe, La Cage aux Folles, The Little Mermaid), Randall Edwards (Biloxi Blues, Threepenny Opera), Jim Fyfe (Biloxi Blues, A Thousand Clowns), Ruth Gottschall (Mary Poppins), Norman Kauahi (Miss Saigon), Mark Manley (Fiddler On The Roof) Shaelynn Parker (King of Hearts), Kevin Weldon, and assistant choreographer Jennifer Paulson Lee, with Musical Direction by Phil Hall (Phantom of the Opera, Cats, 42nd Street).

In addition to performing songs from the show, which include "When I Get My Name in Lights," "Sure Thing Baby," "Only an Older Woman," "The Man Nobody Could Love," "All I Wanted Was the Dream," "The Music Went Out of My Life," and "Say it Isn't So;" cast members will share backstage anecdotes and their personal memories of working with the incomparable and charming Peter Allen.

The Legs Diamond 30th Anniversary Reunion Concert plays Feinstein's/54 Below (254 West 54th Street) on Sunday, December 3 at 7:00 pm and 9:30 pm. There is a $35.00 - $45.00, as well as a $75.00 Premium ticket, and $25.00 food and beverage minimum. Tickets and information are available at www.54Below.com. Tickets on the day of performance after 4:00 are only available by calling (646) 476-3551.

Photo Credit: Martha Swope