Wake Up and Dream
| Wake Up and Dream | |
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sheet music
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| Music | Cole Porter |
| Lyrics | Cole Porter |
| Book | John Hastings Turner |
| Productions | 1929 London 1929 Broadway |
Wake Up and Dream is a musical revue with a book by John Hastings Turner and music and lyrics by Cole Porter and others. The most famous song from the revue is the Porter standard "What Is This Thing Called Love?"
The revue opened in London while Porter's Paris was still running on Broadway. Producer Charles B. Cochran asked Porter to write the score, even though in their previous dealings Porter had treated him with some discourtesy. Opening on December 30, 1929, the production was the last to open on Broadway in the 1920s.
The title later would be used for unrelated films in 1934, 1942 and 1946.
The show was a revue with 24 sets, 500 costumes, a large international cast, and "a thread of a book." The song "Let's Do It, Let's Fall in Love" (performed in London) had "sensual choreography," and was set in front of a large African idol, with a tom-tom beat with Tilly Losch dancing and Elsie Carlisle singing in torch singer style. The elaborate ballet for the song "Wake Up and Dream" uses folklore and history. "Coppélia" is danced as seen from the wings. According to critic Brooks Atkinson of The New York Times, "A 'Gothic' number, to music by Bach, brings the reverence of the cathedral into the theatre."
Several songs in the London production, most notably "Let's Do It, Let's Fall in Love", were not included in the Broadway version.
The piece originally was called Charles B. Cochran's 1929 Revue. Tryouts began on 5 March 1929 at the Palace Theatre in Manchester, England. It then opened on 27 March 1929 at the London Pavilion and ran for 263 performances. The production was directed by Frank Collins with choreography by Jack Buchanan, Tilly Losch, and Max Rivers, with a cast that featured Jessie Matthews, Sonnie Hale, Tillie Losch, Douglas Byng and Elsie Carlisle.
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