DIRECTOR'S NOTES
Written By: Hal Prince

The question I have been asked more frequently than any other since I began to work on this version of Jerome Kern’s and Oscar Hammerstein II’s masterpiece, SHOW BOAT, is why I would be interested, after all these years of directing new musicals, in mounting a revival.  Well, SHOW BOAT is not just another American musical.  First presented in 1927, it is the first great contemporary modern musical.  The first to merge the traditional, happy-go-lucky naivete of Broadway musical comedy with serious themes.  The first with a score ranging from lighthearted, popular 32-bar songs to nineteenth century operetta and grand opera.
SHOW BOAT is essentially a celebration of the family (the nuclear family, yes, but also the extended family) and it is a love affair with theatre people.  Ironically, the original version of the play seems to be more modern than the 1946 revival, which, while slick (in 1946 terms), lacked the sweep and historical punch of the original.  Some of the most beautiful material written by Kern and Hammerstein (“Mis’ry’s Comin’ Aroun’”) never saw the light of day because it was deemed too serious for its time.
In the old days, musical theatre was restricted by the need for “in-one” shallow scenes in front of drops or curtains, while major scenery was changed upstage.  Today, we can move more fluidly from full-stage set to full-stage set.  We can employ motion picture techniques such as cross-fades, dissolves and even close-ups.  In this version the designer and I have taken advantage of modern techniques to create montages which integrate a leap of years, restore serious incidents and clarify plot and character motivations.  Further, we have chosen to replace the conventional second-act opener at the Chicago World’s Fair, returning instead to our principal story.  
Prior to SHOW BOAT’s opening in Toronto in the autumn of 1993, a minority within the city’s black community expressed concern about a revival of SHOW BOAT on the basis of alleged racism.  Throughout pre-production and rehearsal, I was committed to eliminate any inadvertent stereotype in the original material, dialogue which may seem “Uncle Tom” today.  However, I was determined not to re-write history.  The fact that during the 40-year period depicted in our musical there were lynchings, imprisonment and forced labor of the blacks in the U.S. is irrefutable.  Indeed, the U.S. still cannot hold its head high with regard to racism.
The creators of SHOW BOAT were men and women of moral stature, particularly Oscar Hammerstein II who time and time again (the subject of miscegenation was central to SOUTH PACIFIC 22 years later) took fierce aim at prejudice in our society.  “You’ve Got to Be Carefully Taught” are his words.  Once the production was premiered in Toronto, the protesters’ allegations were proven to be unfounded and the protests ended.
I hope it is clear that SHOW BOAT’s creators (including, of course, the cast and creative team of the 1994 production) share the deepest solidarity with those who have been victims of racism.

EDNA FERBER on SHOW BOAT
Written By: Edna Ferber

As the writing of the musical play proceeded (and its ups and downs were even more heartbreaking than those of most musical plays) I heard bits and pieces of the score. Once or twice everything was seemingly abandoned because Ziegfeld said he couldn't produce the play. Almost a year went by. I had heard 'Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man' with its love-bemused lyric...I had melted under the bewitching strains of 'Make Believe' and of 'Why Do I Love You?'...And then Jerome Kern appeared at my apartment late one afternoon with a strange look of quiet exultation in his eyes. He sat down at the piano. He didn't play the piano particularly well and his singing voice, though true, was negligible. He played and sang 'Ol' Man River.' The music mounted, mounted, and I give you my word my hair stood on end, the tears came to my eyes, I breathed like a heroine in a melodrama. This was great music. This was music that would outlast Jerome Kern's day and mine. I have never heard it since without that emotional surge. When SHOW BOAT was revived at the Casino Theater in New York just four years after its original production at the Ziegfeld I saw a New York first-night audience, after Paul Robeson's singing of 'Ol' Man River,' shout and cheer and behave generally as I've never seen an audience behave in any theater in all my years of playgoing.