Theater:
Around the World in 80 Days
Around the World in 80 Days was Welles' one attempt at musical comedy, and he could have done far worse than choose Cole Porter as a collaborator. Despite the pedigrees of Welles and Porter, the show flopped, and it stands as a unique entry in Welles' theatrical canon. Part of the problem Welles brought about in producing the show was its huge scale; it required more than 50 stagehands and involved filmed sequences, like Too Much Johnson. The sheer cost of everything involved made it imperative that the show make money quickly, in order to keep it going, particularly after Welles and producer Mike Todd argued over production costs, causing Todd to remove himself (and his money) from the show. Welles was sinking his own cash into the project (unlike Porter, who apparently knew better), and he was unable to get anyone to bankroll a run into the fall, when its fortunes might have picked up. Inadvertantly, the film helped jumpstart Welles' next film, Lady From Shanghai, as Welles was forced to call on Columbia chief Harry Cohn for money to get the costumes out of hock. Welles agreed to do a film for Columbia in exchange for the money, and so go the ways of show business...
| April 27-May 4, 1946 (Boston Opera House) |
| May 7-11 1946 (Shubert Theater, New Haven) |
| May 13-20, 1946 (Philadelphia) |
| May 31-August 3, 1946 (Adelphi Theater, New York); 71 perfs. |
| Directed and Written by Orson Welles |
| Music and Lyrics by Cole Porter |
| Choreography by Nelson Barclift |
| Settings by Robert Davison |
| Costumes by Alvin Colt |
| Musical Director: Harry Levant |
| Principal Cast: |
| Arthur Margetson: Phileas Fogg |
| Orson Welles: Dick Fix |
| Brainerd Duffield: Multiple roles |
| Mary Healy: Multiple roles |
| Julie Warren: Molly Muggins |
| Larry Laurence: Passepartout |
| Victoria Cordova: Lola |
| Guy Sprall: Multiple roles |
Theater Program:
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