You would think by now Stage Door Records would have run out of old gems of Cast Recordings to release. But no, they keep on coming! The next addition to their ever-growing catalogue is the London cast recording of Two Cities - The Spectacular Musical. Charles Dickens’ classic novel A Tale Of Two Cities was developed as a musical in the mid sixties by theatre producer Jerry Wayne who commissioned his son Jeff to compose the score for the project. With a book by Constance Cox, music by Jeff Wayne and lyrics by Jerry Wayne; Two Cities opened at London’s Palace Theatre on February 27 1969.

The musical starred Edward Woodward (as Sydney Carton), Kevin Colson (as Charles Darnay), Elizabeth Power (as Lucie Manette), Nicolette Roeg (as Madame Defarge) and Leone Greene (as Monsieur Defarge). Although reviews were mixed, Two Cities was nominated for ‘Best Musical’ at the 1969 Variety Club and Evening Standard Awards with Edward Woodward winning for ‘Best Male Performance in a Musical’.

Reflecting on Two Cities, composer Jeff Wayne commented "Two Cities opened at the Palace Theatre, Cambridge Circus in February 1969, but very little has survived about it. What has survived reveals it being received by the critics in the way we feel about Marmite! Or perhaps as Mr. Dickensʼ opening line exclaims – 'It was the best of times, it was the worst of times...ʼ I have distinct memories of standing ovations on opening night (ʻthe best of times...ʼ) followed by the Marmite reviews and largely empty houses for the first few weeks (ʻthe worst of times...ʼ). But then 'word-of-mouth' spread that in fact Two Cities was pretty good, including an award-winning performance by its leading man, Edward Woodward. While the remaining run played to virtually sold-out audiences, 'Notice' from the theatre owners had already condemned Two Cities to the guillotine."

In the '60s (and later) cast albums were recorded on the first Sunday after opening night with the cast and musicians from the show. A few run-throughs and takes onto stereo tape were allocated, and that was your lot! The CD features previously unreleased original 1966 demo recordings for the show, including several songs that would be later cut from the production.

This is quite a curious recording. As you will probably know, Jeff Wayne went on to write a little piece called The War Of The Worlds (I wonder what happened to that...) but don’t expect any of that style to show here. This is a very measured and considered musical - I nearly used the word traditional, but it’s not traditional of the musicals of the time, a time in which Hair was in London, and the likes of Jesus Christ Superstar and Godspell were just around the corner. It’s a very enjoyable score none the less, and it’s clear to see why it gained momentum towards the end of its run.

It’s a full sounding score, and Stage Door have done their usual good job of producing the CD and excellent booklet. It’s a period piece, and you won’t go away humming all of the songs, but there is certainly quality in there. ‘Tender Love and Patience’ stuck with me, and is beautifully performed by Lucie Manette. ‘The Time Is Now’ reminded me very much of a Les Mis-esque chorus number, and works really well on the recording. The demo tracks are uncredited in the main, but they are excellent quality, and fully deserve a place on the recording. In fact, I enjoyed some of these more than their ‘cast recording’ partners earlier on the CD!

An interesting musical, another undiscovered gem, and an enjoyable listen.

8

Ian Gude