History Of The Bye Bye Birdie Play On Broadway

By Author: Al Terry
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Bye Bye Birdie is being staged for the third time on Broadway. This teenage fun musical is based on the life of Conrad Twitty and what happens to the lives of a bunch of teenagers in a small town in Ohio when he is drafted into the US army. Originally titled "Let's go steady", this Broadway play is actually based on the Rock N Roll legend Elvis Presley and his draft into the US army.

The name Conrad Birdie is a word play on one of Presley's rivals Conway Twitty. Conrad is the main character in the play.

Bye Bye Birdie has been nominated and has won several tony awards, including the award for the best musical and award for the best actor and actress in a musical. The musical is filled with a host of catchy songs and numbers which are also available from RCA records as a film soundtrack. All the great songs were also released by Cameo Records. However the original cast recording was released by Columbia Masterworks in 1960.

Here is a list of songs from Bye Bye Birdie the play from both acts of the musical:

Act 1:
Overture
An English teacher
The telephone hour
How lovely to ...
... be a woman
We love you, Conrad
Put on a happy face
A healthy, normal , American boy
One boy
One boy (reprise)
Honestly sincere
Hymn for a Sunday evening
One last kiss
Act 2:
Entr'acte
What did I ever see in him?
A lot of livin' to do
Kids
Baby, talk to me
Shriner's ballet- this is a dance
Kids- reprise
Spanish rose
Rosie
Finale

The original Broadway Bye Bye Birdie play has also been made into an original film in 1963. It was with some of the original characters and some new ones. The film made it to number 38 on the list of Entertainment Weekly's list of 50 best high school movies.

However many significant changes were made to the film, along with the order of the songs and the context. The film also has a happier ending as opposed to the play. That lead to actor Dick Van Dyke, who acted in both the Broadway musical and the film, to constantly complain to his wife about the changes in the script.

In 1995 Bye Bye Birdie the play was adapted into a TV movie. This was a better version which was more in line with the original. However, the order of several songs was rearranged with some added songs and some dialogues rewritten as songs.

This is the third time Bye Bye Birdie is being staged as a Broadway play. Produced by Roundabout Theatre Company, it is limited-run till April 25 2010. Tickets are available for purchase through online retailers, who make the hassle of selecting a date and seating much easier to cope with along with offering some great prices and deals.
The author of this articles writes online reviews and theater content for musicals and plays as well as history with some useful tips for locating Great Ways To Locate Bye Bye Birdie Play Tickets On The Net. The articles he writes include all news on the events with tips for fans about Bye Bye Birdie play tickets on Broadway.