Starring Will B. Able, Jodi Williams, John Joy, and David Lile
Directed by Nick Havinga
Music by Jim Eiler; Lyrics by Jeanne Bargy
On Saturday for the rest of this month, we're going to dive into the series of family musicals put out by New York's Prince Street Players. They were a popular troupe of actors who specialized in children's shows in New York in the 60's and 70's. They were successful enough for some of their best-known shows to be broadcast on CBS as family specials. We're going to start with their version of the beloved Italian fantasy novel. How well do they pull off the story of the puppet who learns to become a real boy? Let's begin with woodcarver Antonio (Able) and find out...
The Story: Geppetto (Lile) is regarded as eccentric by the townspeople and his housekeeper (Marcie Stringer) for speaking to his puppets as if they were alive. He's especially enamored with his latest creation, a life-size puppet that resembles a real boy he names Pinocchio (Joy). The Blue Fairy (Williams) brings Pinocchio to life after Geppetto is kind to her.
She promises that he can be a real boy if he's good and obeys his father, but there are far too many temptations in town. Two bad boys from town encourage him to join the Coachman (Eiler) and have fun at the Land of Toys, but the wicked Coachman turns him into a donkey. After the Blue Fairy frees Pinocchio from that and gives him five coins, he ends up letting a cat (Robert Lussier) and fox (Robert Dagny) talk him into burying the coins, which they proceed to steal. He flings himself into the water, where he finally finds Geppetto swallowed by a whale. It's Pinocchio who ends up rescuing them from the belly of the creature, proving once and for all that he loves his father...and are a truly good boy, wood or not.
The Song and Dance: If this is typical of the Prince Street Players shows, no wonder many of them still turn up in regional theaters to this day. The songs are tuneful, the Italian costumes colorful, and the actors quite charming. Joy makes an adorable Pinocchio with a beautiful voice, especially singing the all-Italian number during Geppetto's show. Williams is a sweet and sensible Blue Fairy, and Hal Holden and Fred Graves are a riot as the naughty boys who pull Pinocchio off the straight and narrow the first time. I'm also impressed with how relatively well this sticks to the original book. Geppetto's show with Pinocchio replaces Stromboli's show, but otherwise, this is pretty close to the original book.
The Numbers: We kick off with our narrator Antonio introducing us to the typical Italian small town where much of the story is set with the chorus number "Bonjourno!" Geppetto sings of his desire for a "Boy to Love" to love him more than any puppet could. The Blue Fairy shows Pinocchio how he's an "Almost Real Little Boy." The townspeople and Geppetto explain to Pinocchio "That's a Show!" and join Pinocchio at Geppetto's puppet show for the title number.
Gino and Candlewick explain to Pinocchio why "I Don't Want to Go to School." The Coachman encourages them to join him at "The Land of the Toys." Geppetto sadly reprises the title song when he's searching for his missing son. The toys sing of all the wonders they'll see...until the boys realize that the other kids have gone missing. Senor Volpore and Senior Gatto introduce themselves with their own operatic spoof, "The Cat and Fox's Song." Pinocchio laments "Everything I Do Goes Wrong" after he loses the money the Blue Fairy gives him. The special ends with a joyful reprise of the title song after Pinocchio has been turned to a real boy.
What I Don't Like: Pretty typical TV production of the 50's and 60's. The costumes are colorful, but the sets are nothing special. and the effects that probably looked decent enough in 1965 come off as chintzy today. None of the actors are terribly well-remembered, either. This is not a huge extravaganza and isn't for those looking for widescreen spectacles or a big, loud show. There's also a few things cut from the original story, likely for time and because they didn't have the budget for it on TV (notably Jiminy Cricket isn't mentioned).
The Big Finale: If this is what all of the Prince Street Players musicals are like, no wonder they were so popular in the 60's. Recommended for families with elementary-school age kids looking for a fairly no-frills version of the famous story.
Home Media: Alas, the only place you can see any of the Prince Street Players musicals at the moment is YouTube.
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