U-M Musical Theatre Presents Me & My Girl

Department of Musical Theatre
Directed & Choreography by Linda Goodrich
Music Direction by Catherine A. Walker
The Story: The story is set in 1930s England. Thrilled to have found its long-lost heir to the Earldom of Hareford, the residents are equally horrified to discover that the heir is an unapologetically unrefined cockney bloke from the wrong side of London, Bill Snibson. According to the will, Bill’s uncouth ways must change if he has any hope to earn the approval of the executors and gain the title. His Lambeth sweetheart, Sally, is immediately declared an ‘inappropriate’ match. Encouraged by Sally to take his rightful place, Bill’s efforts at refinement don’t always go as planned to hilarious and chaotic effect. As Bill strains to get up to snuff without his love, Sally’s own efforts on his behalf may ultimately provide his acceptance into the nobility.
Background:Me and My Girl, by Noel Gay, L. Arthur Rose and Douglas Furber, premiered in 1937 on London’s West End. The successful musical comedy was one of the first to be broadcast live on the BBC and was faithfully adapted into the 1939 movie The Lambeth Walk. In 1984, a production with a revised script by British comedian and writer Stephen Fry, with contributions by Mike Ockrent (the show’s director), opened to renewed critical acclaim in London. The musical earned two Olivier Awards, including Musical of the Year before transferring to Broadway in 1986 and winning three Tony Awards. The show features a number of Noel Gay’s inescapably hummable tunes including “The Sun Has Got His Hat On,” “The Lambeth Walk,” “Leaning on a Lampost,” and the title song. The New York Post declared, “It has humor, music, dancing, charm, wit and a deft expertise that takes your heart away.” Filled with non-stop tomfoolery and unaffected sweetness, Me and My Girl is a frothy, escapist, old-fashioned musical comedy that is sure to delight.