Follow the Girls

Follow the Girls
Al Hirschfeld Promotional Caricature
Music	Dan Shapiro Milton Pascal Phil Charig
Lyrics	Dan Shapiro Milton Pascal Phil Charig
Book	Guy Bolton and Fred Thompson
Productions	1944 Broadway 1945 West End

Follow the Girls is a musical with a book by Guy Bolton, Eddie Davis and Fred Thompson and music and lyrics by Dan Shapiro, Milton Pascal, and Phil Charig.

A major wartime hit in both New York City and London, its thin plot about a burlesque striptease queen who becomes the star attraction at the Spotlight, a servicemen's club in Great Neck, Long Island, serves as an excuse for a series of songs, dance numbers, and comedy routines.

The Broadway production, produced by Albert Borde, conceived and directed by Harry Delmar and choreographed by Catherine Littlefield, opened on April 8, 1944 at the New Century Theatre. It transferred to the 44th Street Theatre and then the Broadhurst to complete its 888-performance run. The cast included Jackie Gleason, Danny Aiello, Walter Long, and Gertrude Niesen.

The West End production, presented by Jack Hylton, opened on October 25, 1945 at His Majesty's Theatre, where it ran for 572 performances. The cast included Arthur Askey and Evelyn Dall.

The Encyclopedia of the Musical Theatre by Stanley Green, published by Da Capo Press (1991), pages 131-32 ()