A Connecticut Yankee (musical)

A Connecticut Yankee
Original 1927 Sheet Music
Music	Richard Rodgers
Lyrics	Lorenz Hart
Book	Herbert Fields
Basis	Mark Twain's novel A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court
Productions	1927 Broadway 1943 Broadway revival 1955 television 2001 New York concert

A Connecticut Yankee is a musical based on the novel A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court by American writer Mark Twain. Like most adaptations of the Twain novel, it focuses on the lighter aspects of the story. The music was written by Richard Rodgers, the lyrics by Lorenz Hart, and the book by Herbert Fields. It was produced by Lew Fields and Lyle D. Andrews. It enjoyed an original run on Broadway in 1927 of 421 performances and a number of revivals.

The 1931 film of the same name starring Will Rogers was not adapted from this musical, nor was the 1949 musical film A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, which starred Bing Crosby. The Rodgers and Hart Connecticut Yankee, like many of the team's earlier musicals, has never been filmed for the big screen though a scene was staged for the 1948 biographical movie of the lives of Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart, Words and Music.

A Connecticut Yankee opened on Broadway at the Vanderbilt Theatre (which was demolished in 1954) on November 3, 1927 and closed on October 27, 1928, running for 421 performances. Directed by Alexander Leftwich, with dances by Busby Berkeley, it starred William Gaxton (Martin, the Yankee), Constance Carpenter (Alice Carter/The Demoiselle Alisande la Carteloise), and June Cochrane (Mistress Evelyn Al Belle-Ans).

A Broadway revival opened at the Martin Beck Theatre (now the Al Hirschfeld Theatre) on November 17, 1943 and closed on March 11, 1944, after 135 performances. Directed by John C. Wilson and choreographed by William Holbrook and Al White, Jr., it featured Vivienne Segal (Lt. Merrill/Queen Morgan Le Fay), Dick Foran (Lt. Martin Barrett), Vera-Ellen (Mistress Evelyn Al Belle-Ans), and Robert Chisholm (Admiral Arthur/King Arthur of Britain).