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For updated information regarding Boop! The Boop-a-Doosical please read the Boop! article. Note to readers, this article was the "older" version of the early concepts for the planned Betty Boop on Broadway. Since then, all of the old concept for the original show has been scrapped. This page is now mainly about the early stages and the "multiple Broadway shows" throughout the decades featuring Betty Boop.

Betty Boop Broadway Musical


Betty Boop the Musical

Betty Boop Musical
Betty Boop Wikia Fandom 2022

Name

Betty Boop Musical
Boop!

This page features combined information from older scrapped Broadway shows, including the earlier David Foster Broadway show concept from 2014, since then a lot of the "original story" and "characters" featured on this page have been scrapped. For the new updated revamped Broadway show see Boop! the Musical. Throughout the decades, there have been many Betty Boop "Broadway" show ideas, however none came to fruition. The first Betty Boop show was planned during the 1980s, there were also numerous musical Broadway venues during the 1930s, some of which featured Little Ann Little, an official Fleischer and Paramount in-person Betty Boop Impersonator, hired by Lou Diamond and Max Fleischer.

Betty Boop Musical / Betty Boop Broadway 

The inimitable Betty Boop joins her friends Bimbo and Koko to work her irresistible charm in reuniting her grandfather (who has created the Greatest Invention of Mankind) with the long-lost, true love of his life, while saving the Happy Heart Theater from the developer's bulldozers.

The Broadway musical featuring Betty Boop has been in the works for years. The musical was first announced in 2003 and was set for a 2005 premiere but was later scrapped.

The musical was later taken over several years later by Sally Robinson and Oscar Williams, partnered with Susan Birkenhead and David Foster and was announced in 2008.[1] The musical was originally set to debut in 2010-2011 in the Nederlands. 

The completed story as of 2023, is set in New York City. The iconic Betty Boop sings a new toon on stage. The musical is directed and choreographed by Jerry Mitchell, with music by David Foster, lyrics by Susan Birkenhead and book by Bob Martin.

The musical about a young girl on a journey to find something that is missing. Betty possesses everything. But she can't quite put her finger on what's lacking. Grampy builds a device that transports Betty from the realm of black and white to the vibrant modern world, where her tale of love is told. Will she remain, though? Will she go, or not?

It appears as though other "prominent characters" from the series don't exist in the story, and Betty's decision to dump the majority of her pals is never fully addressed.

Quotes

  • David Foster: "I've been working on this show, Betty Boop, for fourteen years." (2022)
  • Katherine McPhee: "I'm actually not playing Betty Boop but maybe today will be my audition for Betty Boop." (2022)
  • David Foster: "It's coming, 2023, finally. All of the pieces are in place and we hope to be in Chicago in the fall and then, God-willing, Broadway!" (2022)
  • Jerry Mitchell: "Creating a new Broadway musical is such a gift. It is a special joy to be working on Boop! in Chicago, so close to my hometown, at the very theatre where I first fell in love with musicals when I saw a chorus line there back in 1978." (2023)
  • David Foster: "The whole cast is great, but Jasmine Rogers is a star. She plays Betty Boop. And she, I bet the bank of it, is a star." (2023)

Update (2014-2023)

Fosterbroad

Here is a photo of the original Broadway cast announced in 2014. The actors and actresses' names are blurred out in the photo. But the character names are readable.


On the 24th of October in 2014, David Foster posted an update on the Broadway production. He stated that they were in their first reading for the musical. Initially the Broadway musical was set for fall 2018, which gave David Foster and his team four years in total to debut the show. The "updated" Broadway for the "Betty Boop" musical has been in the works for years, and has nearly been scrapped several times.

According to Broadway World[2] and a recent casting notice the musical will continue development as of 2022. Broadway World also notes that Mae Questel provided Betty Boop's distinctive voice in the original series which is cited by most actresses in the business as being "very hard" to duplicate.

It is possible that this Broadway show will "re-invent" Betty. The musical was set for a 2023 release but had not been officially confirmed and was TBA, there were also rumors of a 2025 release date.

However in December of 2022, David Foster released information that the "Pre-Broadway Betty Boop Production Set For 2023" will be scheduled for its first run in Chicago, ironically once the birthplace of Baby Esther Jones.

Foster stated that he wants to conquer Broadway with his musicals. As of February 2023, it was revealed that the title of the show is Boop! The Boop-a-Doosical, and that the Pre-Broadway engagement will run from the 19th of November to the 31st of December at the CIBC Theatre in Chicago. The end-date was later changed from the 31st to the 24th.

The finalized musical to debut in New York City in springtime of 2025. New songs will be added for the New York debut. For "Act 2" they are going to strengthen the relationship between the main characters.

Official Betty Boop on Broadway

Jasmine Amy Rogers as Betty Boop 1

Jasmine Amy Rogers as Betty Boop.


It was decided that for Betty's official debut, that a Black woman would take on the role. This was proven when Kim Exum was the first person to work on the workshop sessions as Betty.

Jasmine Amy Rogers, another Black woman was trained by Rachelle Rak, and officially won the role of Betty Boop in Boop! the Musical at Chicago's CIBC Theatre. This makes Jasmine Rogers the "1st" official person to portray Betty Boop on Broadway, as previous appearances of the Betty Boop character on the Broadway stage throughout the years were never mainstream.

The producers and directors claim that Betty Boop is based on no one. However the make-up artists drew inspiration from Josephine Baker, Janet Jackson, Devon Aoki, Theda Bara, Dorothy Dandridge and white cartoon flapper girls for Jasmine Rogers' look.

Rogers won the role because producers felt that she had moxie, and she was just what they were seeking for their brand new "reimagined" Betty Boop. The cast also features Angelica Hale as Trisha, Anastacia McCleskey as Carol, Faith Prince as Valentina, Erich Bergen as Raymond, Stephen DeRosa as Grampy and Ainsley Melham as Dwayne.

Characters (2014) 

The characters from 2014 seem to have been scrapped, and the "original cast" announced in 2014 were let go and later removed from the project. As of 2022, Tara Rubin Casting held auditions.[3] They held the work session from the 16th of May to the 3rd of June in New York City. The roles pay $1,300 a week minimum per Tier III Equity Development Agreement. The principal submission was on the 17th of March, 2022 and had to be sent before 6:00pm. Videos that were submitted after the deadline were not viewed. People who auditioned had to prepare a video of them singing a pop or contemporary theater song. Betty Boop can also be portrayed by any ethnicity, Betty has also been written a new boyfriend by the name of Dwayne who was originally Latin and or Hispanic, and later officially Lebanese-Italian.

Characters (2022) 

Cast & Crew 

  • David Foster
  • Jerry Mitchell
  • Susan Birkenhead
  • Bill Haber
  • Mark Johnson
  • Jerry Mitchell

Betty Boop Musical Production (1933)

There was a Betty Boop production in 1933 that featured Catherine Wright, and Italian-American actress and ballerina Maria Gambarelli.[4] Wright was a well known "Boop-Boop-a-Doop" radio singer billed as The Mystery Girl. Wright was often mistaken for the official voice of Betty Boop, she never voiced Betty Boop in the cartoons, and was actually a Helen Kane radio impersonator, as she was unable to testify against Kane during a $250,000 Infringement Lawsuit. It is hinted that Wright possibly voiced Betty on radio, which is why she was asked to be part of the 1933 musical.

Betty Boop Musical Revue (1933-1945)

LittleAnnLittletheRealLiveBettyBoop

During the 1930s, Little Ann Little courtesy of the Fleischer Studios starred in numerous Broadway stage and musical shows as "Betty Boop" singing Betty Boop songs, dancing and performing comedy routines.

From 1933 to 1934, Little toured the country with artist Pauline Comanor in a Betty Boop act. Little sang the songs, while Comanor drew her, and Fleischer themed-art, such as Popeye the Sailor Man and Ko-Ko the Clown.

In 1935 the Fleischer Studios co-operated a deal for Ann to appear in the "Vanity Fair Revue" at the Criterion Theatre, and also an all-star revue at the Hippodrome Theatre.


In 1936 she appeared in 45 Minutes on Broadway, in a splendid array of singing, dancing and comedy talent. This was the most notable Broadway show to feature Ann as Betty Boop in-person.


In 1937, Little appeared at Cocoanut Grove and the Apollo Theater.

In 1938, Little starred in a musical all-star Hollywood Betty Boop revue featuring a dozen light class vaudeville acts. She also appeared at Tremont, Williams Grove, Mt. Vernon, Chene-Trombley Club and the Loew-Poli Palace Theatre.

In 1940 she appeared at Lou's Tavern, the Albany. The Zindah Grotto Jamboree, a giant stage show in 1941, and Manhattan Beach Army and Navy Center in 1945.

Clark Gesner's Betty Boop Broadway Musical (1980-1984) 

When plans for a Betty Boop Broadway musical feature came up during the 80s, Bernadette Peters was the initial choice for Betty Boop. It was announced on February 20 in 1980. Marvin Hamlisch was approached and asked to be composer for the musical.

On the 25th of November in 1983 Clark Gesner was writing a book and the lyrics for a Betty Boop musical. He was quoted as saying, "I'm trying mainly to catch the flavor of the cartoons."

In 1984, according to King Features Syndicate and the Fleischer Studios, the Broadway musical was still in the works.[5] However the project was eventually scrapped.

Jason Robert Brown's Betty Boop Broadway (2002-2003) 

In 2002, Jason Robert Brown had a meeting with a producer about writing the score for a new musical based on Betty Boop, but it did not work out as expected. The original rights-holder of the cartoon character had approval of the entire creative team so, before he could be officially hired, he was asked to write two songs that might fit the show. Brown went into the studio with Nicole Van Giesen to record them and almost immediately heard from the producer that the rights-holder and all producers loved his songs. He got the job and was going to write the big Broadway musical about Betty Boop, and then got fired. Five years after his involvement there was a whole new creative team.

Robin Goodman's Betty Boop Broadway (2004)

In 2004 Andrew Lippa took over composing duties in collaboration with David Lindsay Abaire on Robin Goodman's project. Goodman stated that the script treated Betty Boop as a character and builds a story around her, drawing in part on the plots of Betty features. Goodman and fellow producer Andrew Faber had hoped to put together a workshop in Summer, 2004. With sources indicating that Kristin Chenoweth was in mind for the title role. The Broadway show was later scrapped.

Timberg Alley (2012)

A proposed "unofficial" Broadway musical by Sammy Timberg's family titled Timberg Alley[6] had been in the works but did not go into production. However the musical was performed once at "The Raw Space" on 42nd Street in New York City.

After producing the 2004 CD album "Boop-Oop-a-Dooin'", featuring Timberg's granddaughter Shannon Cullem as Betty Boop and Olive Oyl. Many years later, Patricia Timberg daughter of Sammy Timberg, wanted to share her father's legacy. She stated that in the original Fleischer Studios cartoons, her father "did not" receive any on-screen credit for his music.

"The credits on those cartoons were terse, to put it mildly," historian Leonard Maltin said. "They credited two animators and one director, always Dave Fleischer. The rest of the staff worked anonymously."

The Timberg's worked hard developing this show, the show would have featured a parody of Betty Boop portrayed by Shannon Cullem, called Betsy Boop and or Betsie Boop. Betsy would have been similar to Mae Questel and or Helen Kane, however the musical was more focused on the life of artist Sammy Timberg.

The Timberg Alley musical was later scrapped. However the Timberg family took part in the "World Animation Celebration" by celebrating the musical animator Sammy Timberg. The tribute featured musical performances by "Boop-Boop-Be-Doop" girl Cheryl Chase, Will Ryan, 1920s jazz singer Richard Halpern, notably known as "Mister Tin Pan Alley" and Dean Mora.

Betty Boop (Scrapped Casting) 

Scrapped Songs (2003-2004)

Official Songs (Broadway) 

Writer(s) / Singer(s) 

Trivia

  • Mae Questel, Margie Hines and Bonnie Poe also appeared in numerous early 1930s "Betty Boop" theme Broadway shows, however they more or less came on the stage as "themselves", imitating Betty Boop's voice, rather than "being Betty Boop" in comparison to Little Ann Little.
  • Baby Boop was going to appear in one of the earlier 2000s concepts for the original musicals.
  • In 2006 Kristin Chenoweth hinted to a fan that her music director Andrew Lippa was creating a Betty Boop musical and hinted that she would have gladly played the role.
  • 15-time Grammy® Award winner David Foster is currently writing the music for the Betty Boop Musical, which will Broadway in the 2010-2011 season at a Nederland theatre to be announced.
  • The Broadway was in development by David Foster and was supposed to have debuted somewhere between 2015-2016, but it never happened. 
  • The song "Say You Remember It" seems to have been rewritten, as the lyrics in the finalized version of the song are different to the original. 
  • David Foster and Katharine McPhee performed "Something to Shout About" on Live On The Today Show. The song was released by Chartmaker Records, Inc., under exclusive license to UMG Recordings, Inc., in 2019. Foster played the piano and McPhee provided the vocals. 
  • Duo "Kathrun Jooten" and "Orson Bean" who introduced the song "Say You Remember It" both passed away. Kathryn Joosten died on the 2nd of June 2012, and Orson Bean on the 7th of February 2020. 
  • Kim Exum stated that she "bombed" a Tara Rubin Casting audition, which was Boop!. In response, Jasmine Amy Rogers also said that she herself, also originally "bombed" her audition(s) for the musical too. Which included Trisha and Betty Boop. But later Rogers proved that the role she was auditioning for, was hers.
  • Lauren "Coco" Cohn who voices Betty Boop, says it would be her dream to portray Betty in a Betty Boop musical.

See Also 


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