Kiss of the Spider Woman (musical)
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| Kiss of the Spider Woman | |
| Music | John Kander |
|---|---|
| Lyrics | Fred Ebb |
| Book | Terrence McNally |
| Based upon | Manuel Puig novel Kiss of the Spider Woman |
| Productions | 1992 West End 1993 Broadway |
| Awards | Tony Award for Best Musical Tony Award for Best Book Tony Award for Best Score |
Kiss of the Spider Woman is a musical with music by John Kander and Fred Ebb, book by Terrence McNally. It is based on the Manuel Puig novel El Beso de la Mujer Araña. The musical enjoyed both West End (1992) and Broadway (1993) productions, directed by Harold Prince, with choreography by Vincent Paterson and Rob Marshall, and won the 1993 Tony Award for Best Musical.
The show opened in New York to mixed reviews. Despite a pan by Frank Rich, the musical ran for a solid 994 performances.
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[edit] Plot
Luis Alberto Molina, a gay window dresser, is in a prison in a Latin American country, serving his third year of an eight-year-sentence for corrupting a minor. He lives in a fantasy world to flee the prison life, the torture, fear and humiliation. His fantasies turn mostly around movies, particularly around a vampy diva, Aurora. He loves her in all roles, but one scares him: This role is the spider woman, who kills with her kiss.
One day, a new man is brought in his cell: Valentin Arregui Paz, a Marxist revolutionary, already in a bad state of health after torture. Molina cares for him and tells him of Aurora. But Valentin can't stand Molina and his theatratical fantasies and draws a line on the floor to stop Molina from coming nearer to him. Molina, however, continues talking, mostly to block out the cries of the tortured prisoners, about Aurora and his mother. Valentin at last tells Molina that he is in love with a girl named Marta.
Again, Valentin is tortured, again Molina has to care for him afterwards. In his fantasies, Aurora is next to him, helping him do so.
The prison director announces to Molina that his mother is very ill and that Molina will be allowed to see her. Condition: He must tell the name of Valentin's girlfriend.
Molina tells Valentin about his love: A waiter named Gabriel. Only a short while afterwards, Molina gets hallucinations and cramps after knowingly eating poisoned food intended for Valentin. He is brought to the hospital ward, talking to Aurora and his mother. As Molina is brought back, Valentin starts suffering from the same symptoms, also from poisoned food. Molina is afraid that Valentin will be given substances that might make him talk and so protects Valentin from being taken to the hospital. As Molina nurses him, Valentin asks him to tell him about his movies.
Molina is happy to do so; Valentin also shares his fantasies and hopes with Molina. Molina is allowed a short while at the telephone with his mother, back he announces to Valentin that he's going to be freed for his good behaviour the next day. Valentin begs him to do a few telephone calls for him, Molina at first refuses, but Valentin knows how to persuade his cell mate...
Molina is brought back the next day, heavily injured. He has been caught in the telephone call, but refuses to tell whom he has phoned. The warden draws his pistol, threatening to shoot him, if he doesn't tell. Molina confesses his love to Valentin and is shot. Aurora bends over him and gives her deadly kiss.
[edit] Songs
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[edit] Productions
Kiss of the Spider Woman was given a work-shop production at the State University of New York at Purchase. The producer Garth Drabinsky became involved, and his company, Livent, produced the show in Toronto in summer of 1992. When the show transferred to London, it won the Evening Standard Award for Best Musical. [1]
Kiss of the Spider Woman first opened on the West End at the Shaftesbury Theatre on October 20, 1992, where it ran for 390 performances. It opened on Broadway on May 3, 1993 and played 904 performances. The opening night cast included Brent Carver, Anthony Crivello and Chita Rivera, all of whom won Tony Awards for their performances, as well as Merle Louise and Kristy Carnahan. Replacements included: Brian Stokes Mitchell (Valentin), Howard McGillin and Jeff Hyslop (Molina); and, as Aurora: Maria Conchita Alonso, Vanessa L. Williams, and Carol Lawrence.
[edit] Awards and nominations
- Tony Award for Best Musical (winner)
- Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical (winner)
- Tony Award for Best Original Score (winner) (tie)
- Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical (Carver) (winner)
- Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical (Rivera) (winner)
- Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical (Crivello) (winner)
- Tony Award for Best Scenic Design (Sirlin) (nominee)
- Tony Award for Best Costume Design (Klotz) (winner)
- Tony Award for Best Lighting Design (Binkley) (nominee)
- Tony Award for Best Choreography (Paterson and Marshall) (nominees)
- Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical (Prince) (nominee)
[edit] References
- ^ Broadway North: The Dream of a Canadian Musical Theatre, Mel Atkey, page 220, 2006, Natural Heritage/Natural History, Inc., ISBN 1-897045-08-5
[edit] External links
- Kiss of the Spider Woman at the Internet Broadway Database
- New York Times review retrieved April 13, 2007
| Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Crazy for You |
Tony Award for Best Musical 1993 |
Succeeded by Passion |
| Preceded by Falsettos by William Finn |
Tony Award for Best Original Score 1993 by John Kander and Fred Ebb |
Succeeded by Passion by Stephen Sondheim |
| Shared with The Who's Tommy by Pete Townshend |
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| Preceded by Falsettos by William Finn and James Lapine |
Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical 1993 by Terrence McNally |
Succeeded by Passion by James Lapine |
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