On the Twentieth Century

On the Twentieth Century
Original poster artwork
Music	Cy Coleman
Lyrics	Betty Comden Adolph Green
Book	Betty Comden Adolph Green
Basis	Unpub. Play: Charles Bruce Millholland 1932 Play: Ben Hecht, Charles MacArthur 1934 Film: Twentieth Century
Productions	1978 Broadway 1980 West End 2010 London Off West End 2015 Broadway revival
Awards	Tony Award for Best Book Tony Award for Best Original Score Drama Desk Outstanding Music

On the Twentieth Century is a musical with book and lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green and music by Cy Coleman. Based partly on the 1930s film and play of the same name, the musical is part operetta, part farce and part screwball comedy. The story involves the behind-the-scenes relationship between Lily, a temperamental actress and Oscar, a bankrupt theatre producer. On a luxury train traveling from Chicago to New York in the 1920s, Oscar tries to cajole the glamorous Hollywood star into playing the lead in his new, but not-yet-written drama, and perhaps to rekindle their romance.

The musical ran on Broadway in 1978–1979, running for 449 performances and winning five Tony Awards. It showcased Madeline Kahn in the role of Lily Garland, and when Kahn left the show, the role launched the career of Judy Kaye. Several revivals followed in London and elsewhere, and a 2015 Broadway revival featured Kristin Chenoweth.

Comden and Green based the musical on three works: the 1934 Howard Hawks film Twentieth Century; the original 1932 play of the same name by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur; and Hecht's and MacArthur's inspiration, Charles Bruce Millholland's unproduced play about his experiences working for theater producer David Belasco, Napoleon of Broadway.

Cy Coleman, when asked to compose the score, initially refused. "I didn't want to do twenties pastiche – there was too much of that around," he recalled. "But when I realized the main characters had these larger-than-life personalities, I thought – ah, comic opera! Even the tikka-tikka-tikka patter of a locomotive train has the rhythm of comic opera." Coleman agreed to write the music for the show and produced an operetta-style score reminiscent of the works of Sigmund Romberg and Rudolf Friml.