The Night Boat

The Night Boat
(L) Louise Groody with ensemble players; (R) John E. Hazzard
Music	Jerome Kern
Lyrics	Anne Caldwell
Book	Anne Caldwell
Basis	farce by Alexandre Bisson
Productions	1920 Broadway

The Night Boat (1920) is a musical in three acts, based on a farce by Alexandre Bisson, with a book and lyrics by Anne Caldwell and music by Jerome Kern. The story lampoons the notorious New York City-to-Albany night boat, on which clandestine romances were common.

After out-of-town tryouts, the musical was produced on Broadway by Charles Dillingham, where it opened on February 2, 1920 at the Liberty Theatre under the direction of Fred G. Latham and Ned Wayburn, with music direction by Victor Baravalle. The Night Boat had a successful initial run of 313 performances, closing on October 30, 1920 and opening for a new run in Boston soon afterwards, followed by successful tours.

The team that created the famous Princess Theatre musicals broke apart acrimoniously in 1918, and Kern was eager to work with the affable Caldwell. The Night Boat was an immediate hit in New York, and her role in the musical made Louise Groody a Broadway star, going on to play, among others, the title role in No, No, Nanette in 1925. Kern and Caldwell collaborated a few more times in the 1920s before each turned to other collaborators. Since the original run and tours, the show has never been revived in a full production. The New Amsterdam Theatre Company revived the show in concert in 1983 in New York, as did 42nd Street Moon in 1996 in San Francisco.

In order to enjoy romantic evenings or weekends away from home, Bob White has convinced his wife, Hazel, and his mother-in-law that he is the captain of an Albany night boat. Becoming suspicious, the mother-in-law directs an investigation which brings Bob's relatives down upon him during one of his trips. Bob borrows the real captain's uniform, but he must soon explain away two love triangles.