BABES IN ARMS SYNOPSIS Babes in Arms is a 1937 coming-of-age musical comedy set during the worst days of the Great Depression. Communism appears to many as the best alternative to capitalism. Prejudice, white supremacy, male chauvinism and Confederate nonsense are alive and well. Vaudeville is on its deathbed and Hollywood is soaring, but child stars (a phenomenon led by Shirley Temple) are getting too old to get film roles. The nation is crisscrossed by “tramps”, including many young people down on their luck. Work farms have been created to sequester and put to work people without means, including the young. It’s the heyday of trans-Atlantic solo flight competitions. People listen to the radio to keep up with the news and the most popular songs come from Broadway shows. Babes in Arms is about a group of small-town Long Island youth (the term teenager wouldn’t be invented for nine more years) whose actor parents go on the road for five months in order to earn some money by reviving Vaudeville. While their parents are gone, the young people decide to put on a show to avoid being sent to a work farm by the town sheriff. If you could find a barn and get financing… you could put on a show. Only in this version, the youth are played by adults 55 years of age or older. MUSICAL NUMBERS ACT 1: Where or When: Val and Billie Babes in Arms: Ensemble I Wish I Were In Love Again: Dolores and Gus Light On Our Feet: Irma, Ivy and Regina Way Out West: Baby Rose and Girls, Ensemble My Funny Valentine: Billie Johnny One Note: Baby Rose and Girls, Ensemble ACT 2: Imagine: Ensemble You Took Advantage of Me: Val and Billie Mountain Greenery: Petra and Men Manhattan: Petra and Women Blue Moon: Petra, Lee and Women The Lady is a Tramp: Billie This Can’t Be Love: Dolores and Gus The Lady is a Tramp Reprise: Marshall and Billie Johnny One Note Reprise: Baby Rose, Ensemble Finale: Ensemble
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