Based on Characters created by Al Capp

Performed November 19th-22nd, 1998

at Holy Cross Hall in Notre Dame College

2321 Elm Street, Manchester NH

Pictures

Click HERE for Pictures from our production

About the Show

LI'L ABNER was a popular comic strip that appeared

in American News Papers from 1934-1977 and was

read at its peak by 60,000,000 people daily.  The tale

of hillbilly Li'l Abner and his sweet, long suffering

girlfriend Daisy Mae was brought to life on

Broadway when it originally opened in 1956.

The Play takes place in Dogpatch, U.S.A a very small

southern town. The husbands of Dogpatch who are

otherwise "lean & lanky" volunteer to drink the Yokum

Miracle Drug, Yokum Berry Tonic. The Husbands are

transformed and beautified into Muscular good-looking

men.  Aj played one of the beautified husbands with

5 of the other Male Physique Calendar Hunks.

Although excited about their husbands new looks, the wives are disappointed to find that their men no longer have interest in them. They want them turned back!

>> Scroll Down for a detailed Synopsis of the Show <<

Director: Beth Ann O'Hara

Asst Director: Pat Delzell

Music Director: Peter Bridges

Costume Designer: Terry McKay

Choreographer: Betty Thomson

Lighting Design: Dave Nelson

Set Design: Terance McCafferty

Stage Manager: Sara Desrosiers

Technical Coordinator: TJ Davis

Sound Design/Run: Mike Farrel

Lighting Run: Debbie Hull

House Manager: Fran White

Tickets: Kathy Tilton

Makeup: Nanna Baldvinsdottir

Asst Costumers: Wendy Trommer, Madeleine Lessard

Synopsis

Al Capp's world famous characters have been placed in an upbeat musical extravaganza. It is a satisfying mixture of hillbilly nonsense and sharp, critical humor that appeals to the sophisticated theatregoer as well as the child within us all.

    The curtain opens on "A Typical Day" in Dogpatch, U.S.A. where the motley and lovable characters who inhabit this burgh introduce themselves to the audience. There is the homely Scragg family and Marryin' Sam, as well as Earthquake McGoon, Daisy Mae, Li'l Abner and Mammy Yokum. It only takes a moment to see that leisure time is at the heart of the local economy and drinking Kickapoo Joy Juice, fishing and the popular Sadie Hawkins Day Dance are the favorite pastimes for Dogpatch's citizens.

    What starts out as a calm day down at the fishing hole is quickly interrupted for Abner and his friends when a "Cornpone Meetin'" is called in the town square by Senator Jack S. Phogbound. This can mean one of two things-either an event of national importance has occurred, or there's to be "a hideous change in the Dogpatch way of life." Sure enough, a change is in the wind because the government has completed a study finding Dogpatch to be "the most unnecessary, no-account" place in the whole country, thereby setting the stage for evacuation of the town so that atomic testing can take place.

    Consternation abounds among the townsfolk. If they are to be evacuated, Dogpatch's annual Sadie Hawkins Day Dance will be cancelled. And that means that Daisy Mae won't have a chance to catch her sweetheart Li'l Abner in what is the only way that boy can join girl in Dogpatch. Oh no! A solution must be found-something that proves their town is a "necessary" place after all. An extensive search ensues and Mammy finally comes up with the item to save the town from extinction-it's the Yokumberry tonic which she has fed her muscle-bound son, Abner, every day of his 'natcherel life. The potion is sped off to Washington for further testing, and it looks like Dogpatch and its way of life will be saved.

    The communal sigh of relief doesn't last long before things take another twist. It seems that while Abner is interested in doing the "100% Red-Blooded American" thing, and will give his potion to the U.S. of A., General Bullmoose wants to control the potion himself. If Abner won't sell it to him, Bullmoose will get it some other way, namely in the form of his shapely girlfriend Appasionata Von Climax. Suddenly Daisy Mae's future as Mrs. Abner Yokum looks grim, and she and the rest of Dogpatch descend on Washington to save Abner from Bullmoose and Appasionata.

    The evening before the Yokumberry tonic is to be released as the cure-all for puny men who want to be strong, a flaw is found in the formula. Abner's life is saved, but once again the town of Dogpatch is in jeopardy. Isn't there anything that can be done to save it from becoming a nuclear wasteland? Just as all seems lost, Jubilation T. Cornpone, Dogpatch's founder, saves the day. It seems his statue was declared a "national shrine" by Abraham Lincoln, given all that Cornpone had done in bringing down the Confederacy during the Civil War. The day is truly saved: Abner can marry Daisy Mae and everyone settles down for a peaceful life of rustic simplicity in Dogpatch, U.S.A.

    Among the wonderful tunes included in LI'L ABNER are Abner and Daisy's gentle duet Namely You, a dream ballad If I Had My Druthers, the hilarious showstopper Jubilation T. Cornpone, General Bullmoose's Progress is the Root of All Evil, and the political satire The Country's in the Very Best of Hands. The Sadie Hawkins Day Ballet and fine choral work also contribute to making this a classic American musical.

Original Musical Information

Music by Gene de Paul

Lyrics by Johnny Mercer

Book by Norman Panama & Melvin Frank

Produced by Norman Panama, Melvin Frank & Michael Kidd

Directed by Michael Kidd

Choreography by Michael Kidd

Based on Al Capp's creations

Opened November 15, 1956 at he St. James Theater, New York and ran for 693 Performances

Movie was made in 1959

Song List

Act I

Overture  

A Typical Day

If I Had My Druthers

If I Had My Druthers (reprise)

Jubilation T. Cornpone

Jubilation T. Cornpone (encore)

Rag Off'n The Bush

Dogpatch Dance

Namely You

Unnecessary Town

What's Good For General Bullmoose

There's Room Enough For Us

The Country's In The Very Best Of Hands

The Country's In The Very Best Of Hands (encore)

Sadie Hawkins Ballet

Act II

Entr'acte

Oh, Happy Day

I'm Past My Prime  

Love In A Home

Progress Is The Root Of All Evil

In Society

Progress Is The Root Of All Evil (reprise)

Put 'em Back  

Namely You (reprise)

The Matrimonial Stomp

Put 'Em Back (reprise)

The Matrimonial Stomp (reprise)

Jubilation T. Cornpone (Finale)

Info