Flora, The Red Menace

Musicians

Gary Busby
   Piano

Colin Shipman
   Bass

Shuichi Komiyama
   Winds

Brian Boyce
   Drums

Flora, the Red Menace

Book by David Thompson, Lyrics by Fred Ebb
Music by John Kander/Based Upon the Novel
"Love is Just Around the Corner" by Lester Atwell
Originally adapted by George Abbott

Schoenberg Hall, UCLA
May 15 - 18, 1997

Produced and Directed by John Hall
Musical Direction by Gary Busby
Scenic Design by Robert Deman
Lighting Design by David Paul
Choreography by Carlos Jones

Flora, the Red Menace is the musical that John Kander and Fred Ebb wrote in 1965, just before they started on their award winning musical Cabaret. Flora lasted only eighty-seven performances on Broadway, but it captured the Tony for it's young star Liza Minnelli for her portrayal of Flora, the would-be fashion designer, who joins the Communist party to please her boyfriend.

The show has some wonderful numbers including "Sing Happy" and "A Quiet Thing" which is one of the composer's favorite songs. Flora, the Red Menace has long been a cult favorite for it's strong score and Kander and Ebb have revised the piece for a second look at one of their early endeavors for the American Musical stage.

Flora, The Red Menace

Musical Numbers

New York City - 1935

Act One

Prologue

Scene One
   "Opening/Graduation Song"
      Company

Scene Two
   Garret and Mellick's Department Store
"The Kid Herself"
    Flora, Artists

Scene Three
   The Street

Scene Four
   The Studio
"All I Need is One Good Break"
    Flora's Friends

"It's Not Every Day Of The Week"
   Flora, Harry

Scene Five
   The Park
"Sign Here"
   Harry

Scene Six
   The Studio

Scene Seven
   “Mr. Stanley's Verse"
      Mr. Stanley

"A Quiet Thing"
   Flora

Scene Eight
   Communist Party Meeting
"The Flame"
   Charlotte, Communists

Scene Nine
   The Studio
Reprise: "It's Not Every Day Of The Week"
   Flora, Harry

Scene Ten
   An elevator at Garret and Mellick's

Scene Eleven
   The Studio
"Dear Love"
   Flora, Company

Act Two

Scene One
   The Studio
"Keepin' It Hot”
   Kenny, Maggie

Scene Two
   Harry's Room
"Express Yourself"
   Charlotte

"Where Did Everybody Go?"
   Harry, Flora, Charlotte

Scene Three
   The Studio

Scene Four
   The Studio, the next day
"You Are You"
   Mr. Weiss, Elsa, Flora

Scene Five
   The Street
"The Joke"
   Harry, Company

Scene Six
   Mr. Stanley's Office

Scene Seven
   The Studio
"Sing Happy"
 Flora

Flora, The Red Menace

Staff for this Production

John Hall
   Director

Gary Busby
   Teaching Associate

Joan Colman-Hoytt
   Musical Preparation

Carlos Jones
   Movement

Stage Manager
   Diane Connor

Programs
   Kathleen Moon

We would like to thank Ed Richmond of the UCLA Film Archive for making the 1935 Newsreel Footage available to us and the to the staff of the Powell Library Media Center for their assistance in presenting this valuable resource. Thanks also to Brendan, Juan, Karen Ann, Coop, Mr. Guy, John Hayes, Nancy Papalexis, Leslie, and others unnamed for assisting us with this production. Finally, we would like to thank the Maxwell H. Gluck Foundation without whose support for the performing artists at UCLA this production would not be possible.