Nine
This musical adaptation of Federico Fellini's 1963 movie, EIGHT AND A HALF, had a book by Arthur Kopit, and music and lyrics by the Broadway newcomer, Maurey Yeston. It opened on 9 May 1982 at the 46th Street Theatre in New York. The story follows film director Guido Contini (Raul Julia) to Europe in his quest to recharge his physical and emotional batteries, and revitalize his personal life and career. This applies particularly to his continually changing relationships with the women in his life, such as his wife (Karen Akers), his first love, Saraghina (Kathi Moss), his mother (Taina Elg), his close friend and professional colleague, Liliane LaFleur (Liliane Montevecchi), his latest discovery, (Shelley Burch), and his current mistress, Carla (Anita Morris). Yeston's innovative and tuneful score was greeted with enthusiasm, and contained songs such as Be Italian, My Husband Makes Movies, Only With You, Be On Your Own, Folies Bergéres, A Call From The Vatican, Nine, Unusual Way, Simple, Getting Tall, and The Grand Canal. Tommy Tune and Thommie Walsh were responsible for the choreography and reprised their collaboration a year later for My One And Only. Tune also directed the piece, and his extraordinary staging of a production which only included one adult male, four boys, and 21 women, was generally acclaimed. He won a Tony Award for his work, and NINE gained further Tonys for best musical, score, and featured actress (Liliane Montevecchi). The show surprised many critics, and ran for 732 performances. Productions were mounted in other countries, including Australia, where it starred John Diedrich. A concert version was presented at London's Festival Hall in 1992, with Liliane Montevecchi and Jonathan Price, the versatile actor who came to prominence as the engineer in Miss Saigon. The resulting two-CD set featured Ann Crumb, Elaine Paige, and a chorus of over 100, and is regarded as the most complete recorded version of Yeston's score.