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{{use mdy dates|date=October 2025}}
{{Use American English|date=October 2025}}
{{Short description|1957 stage musical by Meredith Willson}}
{{About|the stage musical|the 1962 film adaptation|The Music Man (1962 film)|the 2003 made-for-television adaptation|The Music Man (2003 film)|other uses|Music Man (disambiguation){{!}}Music Man}}
{{Infobox musical
| name        = The Music Man
| image       = The Music Man poster, 1957.jpg
| caption     = Original Broadway poster
| music       = [[Meredith Willson]]
| lyrics      = Meredith Willson
| book        = Meredith Willson <br> [[Franklin Lacey]]
| productions = 1957 [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] <br /> 1961 [[West End theatre|West End]] <br /> 2000 Broadway revival<br /> 2022 Broadway revival<!-- Please do not include regional productions in the Infobox: Include only long-running major-market productions THAT HAVE OFFICIALLY OPENED. -->
<!-- Please do not include production-specific (acting, directing, etc.) awards -->
| awards      = [[Tony Award for Best Musical]]
}}

'''''The Music Man''''' is a [[musical theatre|musical]] with book, music, and lyrics by [[Meredith Willson]], based on a story by Willson and [[Franklin Lacey]]. The plot concerns [[confidence trick|con man]] Harold Hill, who poses as a boys' band organizer and leader.  He sells band instruments and uniforms to naïve [[Midwestern United States|Midwestern]] townsfolk, promising to train the members of the new band. Harold is no musician, however, and plans to skip town without giving any music lessons. Prim librarian and piano teacher Marian sees through him, but when Harold helps her younger brother overcome his lisp and social awkwardness, Marian begins to fall in love with him. He risks being caught to win her heart.

In 1957, the show became a hit on [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]], winning five [[Tony Award]]s, including Best Musical, and running for 1,375 performances.<ref name=Kenrick2010/> The [[cast album]] won the first [[Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album]] and spent 245 weeks on the Billboard charts. The show's success led to Broadway and [[West End theatre|West End]] revivals, a popular [[The Music Man (1962 film)|1962 film adaptation]] and a 2003 [[The Music Man (2003 film)|television adaptation]]. ''The Music Man'' is frequently produced by both professional and amateur theater companies and is a popular choice for high school and college productions.<ref name="Kenrick2010">{{cite book |author=Kenrick |first=John |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=n1DKBAAAQBAJ&pg=PT238 |title=Musical Theatre: A History |date=25 March 2010 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |isbn=978-1-4411-4811-7 |page=238}}</ref>

==Background==
[[Meredith Willson]] was inspired by his boyhood in [[Mason City, Iowa]], to write and compose his first musical, ''The Music Man''.<ref>Original 1962 Movie Soundtrack CD booklet</ref> Willson began developing this theme in his 1948 memoir, ''And There I Stood With My Piccolo.''<ref name="Suskin">{{Cite book |last=Suskin |first=Steven |title=Opening night on Broadway: a critical quotebook of the golden era of the musical theatre, Oklahoma! (1943) to Fiddler on the roof (1964) |date=1990 |publisher=Schirmer Books |isbn=978-0-02-872625-0 |location=New York, NY |pages=460-64}}</ref> He first approached producers [[Cy Feuer]] and Ernest Martin for a television special, and then [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer]] producer [[Jesse L. Lasky]]. After these and other unsuccessful attempts, Willson invited [[Franklin Lacey]] to help him edit and simplify the libretto. At this time, Willson considered eliminating a long piece of dialogue about the serious trouble facing River City parents, but 
realizing that it sounded like a lyric. He transformed it into the [[patter song]] "[[Ya Got Trouble]]".<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Bloom |first1=Ken |title=Broadway musicals: the 101 greatest shows of all time |last2=Vlastnik |first2=Frank |date=2004 |publisher=Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers |isbn=978-1-57912-390-1 |location=New York |pages=215–6}}</ref> Willson wrote about his trials and tribulations in getting the show to Broadway in his book ''But He Doesn't Know the Territory''.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Filichia |first=Peter |date=1999-02-17 |title=Stagestruck by Peter Filichia: But He Did Know the Territory? Willson & The Music Man |url=https://playbill.com/article/stagestruck-by-peter-filichia-but-he-did-know-the-territory-willson-the-music-man-com-80116 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230125052540/https://playbill.com/article/stagestruck-by-peter-filichia-but-he-did-know-the-territory-willson-the-music-man-com-80116 |archive-date=2023-01-25 |access-date=2024-11-18 |work=[[Playbill]]}}</ref>

The character Marian Paroo was inspired by Marian Seeley of [[Provo, Utah]], who met Willson during [[World War II]], when Seeley was a medical records librarian.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=March 2005 |title=A Pair of Marians |journal=American Libraries |publisher=American Library Association |page=12}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Show History |url=https://www.mtishows.com/show-history/517 |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250615090051/https://mtishows.com/show-history/517 |archive-date=2025-06-15 |access-date=2025-10-20 |website=[[Music Theatre International]] |language=en}}</ref> In the original production (and the film), the School Board was played by the 1950 International Quartet Champions of the [[Barbershop Harmony Society|Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barber Shop Quartet Singing in America]] (SPEBSQSA),{{efn|Although SPEBSQSA retains its full name for legal purposes, it is now known by its decades-old official alternate name, [[Barbershop Harmony Society]].|}} the [[Buffalo Bills (quartet)|Buffalo Bills]]. [[Robert Preston (actor)|Robert Preston]] claimed that he got the role of Harold Hill despite his limited singing range because, when he went to audition, they were having the men sing "Trouble". The producers felt it would be the most difficult song to sing, but with his acting background, it was the easiest for Preston.{{Citation needed|date=March 2008}}

Originally titled ''The Silver Triangle'', early versions of the story focused on a partially paralyzed boy, Jim Paroo, whom the townspeople wanted to consign to an institution for children with disabilities.<ref name=Morris>{{Cite news|last=Morris|first=Amanda|date=December 15, 2021|title=''The Music Man'' Once Had a Disabled Character. Then He Was Erased.|work=[[The New York Times]]| url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/15/theater/music-man-disability-meredith-willson.html |access-date=December 24, 2021|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The plot revolved around Harold Hill finding a musical instrument that the boy could play: a [[Triangle (musical instrument)|triangle]]. In some drafts, Jim was also [[Muteness|nonverbal]].<ref name=Morris/> Willson had an epiphany while reflecting on the "Wells Fargo Wagon" song, in which a lisping youngster sang one of the verses. "Here's this kid who isn't even identified," recalled Willson in his 1957 memoir. "Just a lisping kid but you get hit with some magic anyhow. Imagine if the lisping kid were somebody we know – some character in the story."{{sfn|Willson|2020|p={{page needed|date=July 2022}}}} Willson suddenly realized that this youngster could be the child with the disability. In the finished book, Winthrop Paroo is almost silent and hesitates to speak because of a lisp, but unexpectedly bursts into song when the Wells Fargo wagon arrives with his new cornet.{{sfn|Willson|2020|p={{page needed|date=July 2022}}}}

==Productions==
[[File:Joan Weldon-Forrest Tucker in The Music Man.jpg|thumb|Weldon and Tucker in the National Tour, 1960]]

===Original Broadway production===
After years of development, a change of producers, almost forty songs (twenty-two were cut), and more than forty drafts, the original [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] production was produced by [[Kermit Bloomgarden]], directed by [[Morton DaCosta]] and choreographed by [[Onna White]]. ''The Music Man'' opened on December 19, 1957, at the [[Majestic Theatre (Broadway)|Majestic Theatre]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Filichia |first=Peter |title=Let's Put on a Musical!: How to Choose the Right Show for Your School, Community, or Professional Theater |date=2004-05-01 |publisher=[[Watson-Guptill Publications]] |isbn=978-0823088171}}</ref> It played at the Majestic for nearly three years before transferring to [[The Broadway Theatre]] and completing its 1,375 performance run there on April 15, 1961. The original cast included [[Robert Preston (actor)|Robert Preston]] (who reprised his role in the [[The Music Man (1962 film)|1962 screen adaptation]]) as Harold Hill, [[Barbara Cook]] as Marian, [[Eddie Hodges]] as Winthrop, [[Pert Kelton]] as Mrs. Paroo, [[Iggie Wolfington]] as Marcellus Washburn and [[David Burns (actor)|David Burns]] as Mayor Shinn.{{citation needed|date=July 2025}}

In January 1959, Preston left the show and was replaced by [[Eddie Albert]] for 18 months. Preston returned for two weeks In June 1960, until his successor, [[Bert Parks]], could replace him. Parks finished the Broadway run while Preston was busy filming the screen version. [[Paul Ford]] was a replacement for David Burns as Mayor Shinn, later reprising the role in the film version.{{citation needed|date=July 2025}}

[[Howard Bay (designer)|Howard Bay]] designed the sets. [[Don Walker (orchestrator)|Don Walker]] orchestrated the score.<ref name="IBDB">{{Cite web |title=The Music Man |url=https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-production/the-music-man-2664 |access-date=2024-11-18 |website=[[Internet Broadway Database]]}}</ref> The musical won five [[Tony Award]]s, including Best Musical, winning in the same year that ''[[West Side Story (musical)|West Side Story]]'' was nominated for the award.  Preston, Cook and Burns also won.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Music Man |url=https://playbill.com/Show/Detail/7849/The-Music-Man |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160625085102/https://playbill.com/Show/Detail/7849/The-Music-Man |archive-date=2016-06-25 |access-date=2024-11-18 |website=[[Playbill]]}}</ref> [[Liza Redfield]] became the first woman to be the full-time conductor of a Broadway pit orchestra when she assumed the role of music director for the original production's final year of performances beginning in May 1960.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Genzlinger |first=Neil |author-link=Neil Genzlinger |date=2018-12-28 |title=Liza Redfield, Who Broke a Broadway Barrier, Is Dead at 94 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/28/obituaries/liza-redfield-dead.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230720152133/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/28/obituaries/liza-redfield-dead.html |archive-date=2023-07-20 |access-date=2024-11-18 |work=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref> The long-running American tour began in 1958, starring [[Forrest Tucker]] as Hill and [[Joan Weldon]] as Marian.<ref name=Ovrtur>{{Cite web |url=http://www.ovrtur.com/show/120385/productions|title=Productions|website=Ovrtur.com|access-date=2016-01-12}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Hudson |first=Edward |date=1986-10-27 |title=Forrest Tucker, 67, Is Dead; Film, TV and Stage Veteran |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/10/27/obituaries/forrest-tucker-67-is-dead-film-tv-and-stage-veteran.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231122043201/https://www.nytimes.com/1986/10/27/obituaries/forrest-tucker-67-is-dead-film-tv-and-stage-veteran.html |archive-date=2023-11-22 |access-date=February 7, 2017 |work=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref>

===First Australian and UK productions===
The first Australian production ran from March 5, 1960, to July 30, 1960, at the [[Princess Theatre, Melbourne|Princess Theatre]] in Melbourne, and at the [[New Tivoli Theatre, Sydney|Tivoli Theatre]] in Sydney from December 13, 1960, to February 4, 1961.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2018 |title=The Music Man |url=https://www.ausstage.edu.au/pages/work/918 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181215122048/https://www.ausstage.edu.au/pages/work/918 |archive-date=2018-12-15 |access-date=2025-10-20 |website=AusStage}}</ref> The first UK production opened at [[Bristol Hippodrome]], transferring to London's [[West End theatre|West End]] at the [[Adelphi Theatre]] on March 16, 1961, starring [[Van Johnson]], Patricia Lambert, [[C. Denier Warren]], [[Ruth Kettlewell]] and [[Dennis Waterman]]. It ran for 395 performances at the Adelphi.<ref name="Ovrtur" />

===Subsequent productions===
A two-week revival at [[New York City Center]] ran in June 1965, directed by [[Gus Schirmer Jr.]] and starring [[Bert Parks]] as Harold. [[Doro Merande]] and [[Sandy Duncan]] played, respectively, Eulalie and Zaneeta Shinn.<ref name=Ovrtur/> In 1987, a Chinese translation of the musical was staged at [[Beijing]]'s Central Opera Theater.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Gargan |first=Edward A. |date=1987-04-19 |title=Trouble in River City, Right Here in Beijing |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/04/19/theater/trouble-in-river-city-right-here-in-beijing.html/ |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20251005021117/https://www.nytimes.com/1987/04/19/theater/trouble-in-river-city-right-here-in-beijing.html/ |archive-date=2025-10-05 |access-date=2025-10-20 |work=The New York Times |department=Theater |page=5 |language=en}}</ref>

A US tour, directed and choreographed by [[Michael Kidd]], ended at City Center, where it played for three-weeks in June 1980. The cast included [[Dick Van Dyke]] as Hill, [[Meg Bussert]] as Marian, [[Christian Slater]] as Winthrop, [[Carol Arthur]] as Mrs. Paroo, and Iggie Wolfington (who played Marcellus in the 1957 production) as Mayor Shinn.<ref name=Ovrtur/><ref>{{Cite web |title=The Music Man (Broadway, City Center, 1980) |url=https://playbill.com/production/the-music-man-city-center-vault-0000013122 |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20251005021118/https://playbill.com/production/the-music-man-city-center-vault-0000013122 |archive-date=2025-10-05 |access-date=2025-10-20 |website=Playbill |language=en-US}}</ref> 

[[New York City Opera]] staged a revival from February to April 1988, directed by Arthur Masella and choreographed by [[Marcia Milgrom Dodge]], starring [[Bob Gunton]] as Hill, with [[Muriel Costa-Greenspon]] as Eulalie and [[James Billings]] as Marcellus.<ref name=Ovrtur/>

A Broadway revival, directed and choreographed by [[Susan Stroman]], opened on April 27, 2000, at the [[Neil Simon Theatre]], where it ran for 699 performances and 22 previews. The cast included [[Craig Bierko]] (making his Broadway debut) as Hill and [[Rebecca Luker]] as Marian. [[Robert Sean Leonard]] and [[Eric McCormack]] portrayed Hill later in the run. The production was nominated for eight Tony Awards but did not win any. In 2008, there was a revival at the [[Chichester Festival Theatre]], England, starring [[Brian Conley]] as Hill and [[Scarlett Strallen]] as Marian.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Connor |first=Sheila |date=2008 |title=Theatre review: The Music Man from In association with Paul Elliott and Duncan C Weldon at Chichester Festival Theatre |url=https://www.britishtheatreguide.info/reviews/CFTmusicman-rev |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20251005021117/https://www.britishtheatreguide.info/reviews/CFTmusicman-rev |archive-date=2025-10-05 |access-date=2025-10-20 |website=British Theatre Guide |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Billington |first=Michael |date=2008 |title=The Music Man |url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2008/jul/05/theatre.reviews1 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251005021117/https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2008/jul/05/theatre.reviews1 |archive-date=2025-10-05 |access-date=2025-10-20 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>

In 2019, a semi-staged concert production at the [[Kennedy Center]] starred [[Norm Lewis]] as Harold, [[Jessie Mueller]] as Marian, [[Rosie O'Donnell]] as Mrs. Paroo, [[John Cariani]] as Marcellus, [[Veanne Cox]] as Eulalie, [[Mark Linn-Baker]] as Mayor Shinn (a role he reprised on Broadway in 2022), and [[David Pittu]] as Charlie.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Franklin |first=Marc J. |date=2019-02-08 |title=A Look at The Music Man at the Kennedy Center |url=https://playbill.com/article/a-look-at-the-music-man-at-the-kennedy-center |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20251005021117/https://playbill.com/article/a-look-at-the-music-man-at-the-kennedy-center |archive-date=2025-10-05 |access-date=2025-10-20 |website=Playbill |language=en-US}}</ref>

===2022 Broadway revival===
[[File:Winter Garden Theatre Nov 2021 01.jpg|275px|thumb|Branding of the 2022 Broadway revival, as seen on the [[Winter Garden Theatre]]]]
A Broadway revival began previews on December 20, 2021, and opened on February 10, 2022, at the [[Winter Garden Theatre]]. The production starred [[Hugh Jackman]] as Harold and [[Sutton Foster]] as Marian with [[Jefferson Mays]] as the Mayor, [[Jayne Houdyshell]] as Mrs. Shinn, [[Shuler Hensley]] as Marcellus, [[Marie Mullen]] as Mrs. Paroo, Benjamin Pajak as Winthrop, [[Remy Auberjonois]] as Charlie Cowell, [[Phillip Boykin]] as Olin Britt and [[Eddie Korbich]] as Jacey Squires. It was produced by Kate Horton, [[Barry Diller]], [[Evan McGill]], and [[David Geffen]] and directed by [[Jerry Zaks]], with choreography by [[Warren Carlyle]].<ref name=Franklin>{{Cite web|last=Franklin|first=Marc J|title=Take a Peek Inside Rehearsal for the Broadway Revival of ''The Music Man''| url=https://www.playbill.com/article/take-a-peek-inside-rehearsal-for-the-broadway-revival-of-the-music-man| date=November 19, 2021 |access-date=December 15, 2021| website=Playbill}}</ref> It features sets and costumes by [[Santo Loquasto]], lighting by [[Brian MacDevitt]], and sound by Scott Lehrer. The production was set to open in 2020 but was delayed due to the [[COVID-19 pandemic]].<ref>{{Cite web| last=McPhee| first=Ryan| date=June 24, 2020|title=Broadway Revival of ''The Music Man'', Starring Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster, Sets New Dates| url=http://www.playbill.com/article/broadway-revival-of-the-music-man-starring-hugh-jackman-and-sutton-foster-sets-new-dates|access-date=June 26, 2020|website=Playbill}}</ref> It suspended performances from December 28, 2021, through January 5, 2022, after Jackman tested positive for COVID-19.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Gans|first=Andrew|date=December 29, 2021|title=Hugh Jackman Sets Return Date in Broadway's ''The Music Man'', Now Canceled Through January 5|url=http://www.playbill.com/article/hugh-jackman-sets-return-date-in-broadways-the-music-man-now-canceled-through-january-5|access-date=2021-12-31 
 |website=Playbill}}</ref> The production closed on January 15, 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Evans |first=Greg |date=2022 |title=‘The Music Man’ Extends Broadway Run By Two Weeks |url=https://deadline.com/2022/11/music-man-broadway-run-extended-hugh-jackman-1235165402/ |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20221116230011/https://deadline.com/2022/11/music-man-broadway-run-extended-hugh-jackman-1235165402/ |archive-date=2022-11-16 |access-date=2025-10-20 |website=Deadline |language=en-US}}</ref>

The production was a success at the box office, taking in $3.5 million in ticket sales during the week of March 22, 2022, more than any show since the pandemic began.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Paulson |first=Michael |date=2022-03-22 |title=‘Music Man’ Sets Box Office Record for a Reopened Broadway (Published 2022) |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/22/theater/music-man-broadway.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251005021117/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/22/theater/music-man-broadway.html |archive-date=2025-10-05 |access-date=2025-10-20 |work=The New York Times |language=en}}</ref><ref>Evans, Greg. [https://web.archive.org/web/20220322214158/https://deadline.com/2022/03/broadway-box-office-26-million-music-man-march-20-grosses-report-1234984341/ "Broadway Box Office Climbs 19% to $26.6M; ''The Music Man'' Takes $3.4M as Industry Resumes Detailed Weekly Reports"], Deadline.com, March 22, 2022</ref> Critical reaction was mixed: on the negative side, Jesse Green, in ''[[The New York Times]]'', declared the revival, "flat" and "old-fashioned".<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/10/theater/the-music-man-review.html|title= Review: Even with Hugh Jackman, The Music Man Falls Flat|website= [[The New York Times]]|date= 11 February 2022| accessdate= February 11, 2022|last1= Green|first1= Jesse}}</ref> He criticized Jackman's "smart but strangely inward performance" and felt that Foster's witty and front-facing performance was compromised by her vocal miscasting. Johnny Oleksinski of the ''[[New York Post]]'' described the production as a "let-down", writing, "Sometimes the show is dark and moody, determined not to have too much fun with a story about a con artist who wins in the end despite his misdeeds. At others, it's ... painfully corny".<ref>{{cite web|url= https://nypost.com/2022/02/10/the-music-man-review-hugh-jackmans-revival-is-a-let-down/|title= 'The Music Man' review: Hugh Jackman's revival is a huge let-down|work=[[New York Post]]|date= 11 February 2022|accessdate= February 11, 2022}}</ref> Frank Scheck of ''[[The Hollywood Reporter]]'' gave the production a lukewarm review, calling Jackman "neither a great singer nor a particularly accomplished dancer" and commenting that Foster's "voice doesn’t have the crystalline beauty of such predecessors as [[Barbara Cook]] and [[Shirley Jones]], and many of the songs aren’t really suited for her". He concluded, however, that "the show ironically feels urgently timely."<ref>{{cite web| url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lifestyle/arts/hugh-jackman-and-sutton-foster-in-the-music-man-theater-review-1235091456 |title= Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster in 'The Music Man': Theater Review|website= [[The Hollywood Reporter]]|date= 11 February 2022|accessdate= February 11, 2022}}</ref> On the positive side, in ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'', [[Marilyn Stasio]] gave the production a rave review, praising all the performances, direction and designs, and calling it "vintage Broadway, but gussied up in grand, glorious style".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Stasio |first=Marilyn |date=2022 |title=‘The Music Man’ Review: Hugh Jackman Shines in Smashing Broadway Revival |url=https://variety.com/2022/legit/reviews/music-man-review-hugh-jackman-broadway-1235177555/ |access-date=2025-10-21 |website=Variety |language=en-US}}</ref> It was nominated for six Tony Awards, including Best Revival of a Musical,<ref name=noms2022>{{cite web |url=https://www.tonyawards.com/news/2022-tony-awards-nominations/|title=2022 Tony Award Nominations|work=Tony Awards |date=May 9, 2022|accessdate=May 9, 2022}}</ref> but it did not win any.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lewis |first=Hilary |date=2022 |title=Tony Awards: ‘A Strange Loop’ Takes Best Musical as ‘The Lehman Trilogy,’ ‘Company’ Dominate With Five Wins Each |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lifestyle/arts/2022-tony-awards-winners-list-1235163971/ |access-date=2025-10-21 |website=The Hollywood Reporter |language=en-US}}</ref> A special [[Theatre World Award]] for "Outstanding Ensemble" was presented to the 21 cast members making their Broadway debuts in the revival.<ref name="playbill.com">Gans, Andrew. [https://playbill.com/article/76th-annual-theatre-world-awards-honoring-sharon-d-clarke-patrick-j-adams-jaquel-spivey-more-presented-june-6 "76th Annual Theatre World Awards, Honoring Sharon D Clarke, Patrick J. Adams, Jaquel Spivey, More, Presented June 6"], ''Playbill'', June 6, 2022</ref> 

An official cast recording was released on September 23, 2022.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Rabinowitz |first=Chloe |title=THE MUSIC MAN Cast Recording to be Released This Friday |url=https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/THE-MUSIC-MAN-Cast-Recording-to-be-Released-This-Friday-20220921 |access-date=2024-02-03 |website=BroadwayWorld.com}}</ref> In the fall 2022 fundraising for [[Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS]], ''The Music Man'' broke the Red Bucket fundraising record by raising $2,002,612 toward the charity.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hornik| first=Caitlin| date=December 8, 2022 |title=''The Music Man'' breaks all-time Red Bucket fundraising record for Broadway Cares |url=https://www.broadwaynews.com/the-music-man-breaks-all-time-red-bucket-fundraising-record-for-broadway-cares |access-date=2024-02-02 |website=Broadway News}}</ref>

==Synopsis==
===Act I===
In the early summer of 1912, aboard a train leaving [[Rock Island, Illinois|Rock Island]], Illinois,{{efn|Rock Island is the departure point in the script of the musical; in the film adaptation, the reference was changed to [[Brighton, Illinois]], the hometown of Willson's mother.{{sfn|Skipper|2015|p=200}}}} Charlie Cowell and other traveling salesmen debate whether modern conveniences are making their profession more difficult. "Professor" Harold Hill is discussed as one whose sales skills make him immune from such changes ("Rock Island"). Charlie says that Hill is a [[confidence trick|con man]] who promises to form boys' marching bands, then skips town after taking payments for instruments and uniforms. Upon the train's arrival in River City, Iowa, a passenger leaves the train with a suitcase labeled "Professor Harold Hill".

After townspeople of River City describe their reserved, "chip-on-the-shoulder attitude" ("[[Iowa Stubborn]]"), Harold sees his old friend and [[shill]], Marcellus Washburn, who has "gone legit" and now lives in the town. Marcellus tells Harold that the only person who might expose him is the only trained musician in town, Marian Paroo, the librarian who gives piano lessons. He also informs Hill that a new [[pool table]] was just delivered to the town's local [[billiard parlor]] so, to launch his scheme, Harold convinces River City parents of the "trouble" that can come from a pool table in the community ("[[Ya Got Trouble]]"). Harold follows Marian home, attempting to flirt with her, but she ignores him. Marian gives a piano lesson to a little girl named Amaryllis while arguing with her widowed mother about her high "standards where men are concerned"; she mentions the man who followed her home ("Piano Lesson/If You Don't Mind My Saying So"). Marian's self-conscious 10-year-old brother Winthrop arrives home. Amaryllis, who secretly likes Winthrop but teases him about his [[lisp]], asks Marian to whom she should say goodnight on the evening star, since she doesn't have a sweetheart. Marian tells her to just say goodnight to her "someone" ("Goodnight, My Someone").

The next day, bumbling Mayor Shinn and his overbearing wife Eulalie MacKecknie Shinn lead the festivities for [[Independence Day (United States)|Independence Day]] at the high school gym ("[[Columbia, the Gem of the Ocean]]") but are interrupted by a firecracker set off by troublemaker Tommy Djilas. Harold takes the stage and announces to the townspeople that he will prevent "sin and corruption" from [[Moral panic|the presence of the pool table]] by forming a boys' band ("Ya Got Trouble [reprise]/[[Seventy-Six Trombones]]"). Mayor Shinn, who owns the billiard parlor, tells the bickering school board to get Harold's credentials, but Harold gets them to sing as a [[Barbershop Quartet]] to distract them ("Ice Cream/Sincere"). Harold also sets up Zaneeta, the mayor's eldest daughter, with Tommy, and persuades Tommy to work as his assistant. After another rejection by Marian, Harold is determined to win her ("The Sadder But Wiser Girl"). The town ladies are very excited about the band and the ladies' dance committee that Harold plans to form. He mentions Marian, and they imply (falsely, it turns out) that she had an affair with a now-deceased miser, who willed the library building to the town but left all the books to Marian. They warn Harold that she advocates "dirty books" by "[[Geoffrey Chaucer|Chaucer]], [[François Rabelais|Rabelais]] and [[Honoré de Balzac|Balzac]]" ("Pick-a-Little, Talk-a-Little"). The school board arrives to review Harold's credentials, but he leads them in song and slips away ("[[Goodnight, Ladies]]").

The next day, Harold walks into the library to woo Marian in earnest ("Marian the Librarian"). For a moment, she forgets her decorum and dances with Harold and the teenagers. Harold kisses her; when she tries to slap him, she accidentally hits Tommy instead. With Tommy's help, Harold signs up all the boys in town to be in his band, including Winthrop. Mrs. Paroo likes Harold and tries to find out why Marian is not interested. Marian describes her ideal man ("My White Knight", rewritten for the film version as "Being in Love"). She sets out to give Mayor Shinn evidence against Harold that she found in the ''Indiana State Educational Journal'', but they are interrupted by the arrival of the [[Wells Fargo#History|Wells Fargo]] [[Stagecoach|wagon]], which delivers the band instruments ("The Wells Fargo Wagon"). When Winthrop is so happy about his new [[cornet]], and totally abandons his shyness and self-consciousness, Marian begins to see Harold in a new light.  She tears the incriminating page out of the Journal before giving the book to Mayor Shinn.

===Act II===
The ladies rehearse their classical dance in the school gym while the school board practices their quartet ("It's You") for the [[ice cream social]]. Marcellus and the town's teenagers interrupt the ladies' practice, taking over the gym as they dance ("[[Shipoopi]]"). Harold grabs Marian to dance with her, and all the teenagers join in.  At the end of the dance, the Mayor angrily denounces Tommy's relationship with his daughter. Regarding Winthrop's cornet, Marian later questions Harold about his claim that "you don't have to bother with the [[Musical note|note]]s". He explains that this is what he calls "The Think System", and he arranges to call on Marian to discuss it. The town ladies ask Marian to join their dance committee, since she was "so dear dancing the Shipoopi" with Professor Hill ("Pick-a-Little, Talk-a-Little" [Reprise]). They have reversed their opinions about her books, and they eagerly tell her that "the Professor told us to read those books, and we simply adored them all!"

That night, the school board tries to collect Harold's credentials again, but he gets them to sing again and slips away ("Lida Rose"). Marian, meanwhile, is sitting on her front porch thinking of Harold ("Will I Ever Tell You?"). Winthrop returns home after spending time with Harold and tells Marian and Mrs. Paroo about Harold's hometown ("Gary, Indiana"). As Marian waits alone for Harold, traveling salesman Charlie Cowell enters with evidence against Harold, hoping to tell Mayor Shinn. He only has a few minutes before his train leaves, but stops to flirt with Marian. She delays him so he won't have time to deliver the evidence, eventually kissing him. As the train whistle blows, she pushes him away. Charlie angrily tells Marian that Harold has a girl in "every county in Illinois, and he's taken it from every one of them&nbsp;&ndash; and that's [[List of counties in Illinois|102 counties]]!"

Harold arrives, and after he reminds her of the untrue rumors he's heard about her, she convinces herself that Charlie invented everything he told her. They agree to meet at the footbridge, where Marian tells him the difference he's made in her life ("[[Till There Was You]]"). Marcellus interrupts and tells Harold that the uniforms have arrived. He urges Harold to take the money and run, but Harold refuses to leave, insisting, "I've come up through the ranks... and I'm not resigning without my commission". He returns to Marian, who tells him that she has known that he is a fraud since the third day after he arrived. (Harold earlier claimed to have graduated from the Gary Conservatory in 1905, but Gary, Indiana, was not founded until 1906.) Because she loves him, she gives him the incriminating page out of the ''Indiana State Educational Journal''. She leaves, promising to see him later at the Sociable. With his schemes for the boys' band and Marian proceeding even better than planned, Harold confidently sings "Seventy-Six Trombones". As he overhears Marian singing "Goodnight My Someone", Harold suddenly realizes that he is in love with Marian; he and Marian sing a snatch of each other's songs.

Meanwhile, Charlie Cowell, who has missed his train, arrives at the ice cream social and denounces Harold as a fraud. The townspeople begin an agitated search for Harold. Winthrop is heartbroken and tells Harold that he wishes Harold had never come to River City. But Marian tells Winthrop that she believes everything Harold ever said, for it did come true in the way every kid in town talked and acted that summer. She and Winthrop urge Harold to get away. He chooses to stay and tells Marian that he never really fell in love until he met her ("Till There Was You" [Reprise]). The constable then handcuffs Harold and leads him away.

Mayor Shinn leads a meeting in the high school gym to decide what to do with Harold, asking, "Where's the band? ''Where's the band?''"  Marian defends Harold. Tommy enters as a drum major, followed by the boys in uniform with their instruments. Marian urges Harold to lead the River City Boys' Band in [[Beethoven]]'s [[Minuet WoO 10, No. 2 (Beethoven)|Minuet in G]]. Despite the boys' limited musical ability, the parents in the audience are nonetheless enraptured by the sight of their children playing music. Even Mayor Shinn is won over, and, as the townspeople cheer, Harold is released into Marian's arms ("Finale").

==Music==

===Musical numbers===
{{col-begin}}
{{col-2}}
; Act I                                                            
* "Rock Island" – Charlie and Salesmen
* "[[Iowa Stubborn]]" – Townspeople
* "[[Ya Got Trouble|(Ya Got) Trouble]]" – Harold Hill and Townspeople
* "Piano Lesson" – Marian, Mrs. Paroo and Amaryllis
* "Goodnight, My Someone" – Marian
* "[[Seventy-Six Trombones]]" – Harold, Boys and Girls
* "Sincere" – Barbershop quartet (Olin, Oliver, Ewart, Jacey)
* "The Sadder-But-Wiser Girl" – Harold and Marcellus
* "Pickalittle (Talk-a-Little)" <!--the title is "Pickalittle", per the ibdb; Suskin & Green and other sources add the "Talk-a-Little" -->– Eulalie, Maud, Ethel, Alma, Mrs. Squires and Ladies of River City
* "[[Goodnight, Ladies]]" – Quartet
* "Marian The Librarian" – Harold, Boys and Girls
* "My White Knight" – Marian
* "The Wells Fargo Wagon" – Winthrop and Townspeople
{{col-break}}

; Act II
* "It's You" – The Quartet, Eulalie, Maud, Ethel, Alma and Mrs. Squires
* "[[Shipoopi]]" – Marcellus, Harold, Marian and townspeople
* "Pickalittle (Talk-a-Little)" (reprise) – Eulalie, Maud, Ethel, Alma, Mrs. Squires and Ladies
* "Lida Rose" – Quartet
* "Will I Ever Tell You" – Marian
* "Gary, Indiana" – Winthrop, Mrs. Paroo, Marian
* "It's You" (reprise) – Townspeople, Boys and Girls
* "[[Till There Was You]]" – Marian, Harold
* "Seventy-six Trombones/Goodnight, My Someone" (reprise) – Harold and Marian
* "Till There Was You" (reprise) – Harold
* "Finale" – Company
{{col-end}}

''Notes:''<br>
As this musical concerns a [[marching band]], the orchestration for several of the numbers includes band instruments.<ref>[http://www.mtishows.com/show_detail.asp?showid=000053 "''The Music Man''"], MTI Enterprises, accessed October 11, 2013</ref><ref>[http://guidetomusicaltheatre.com/shows_m/music_man.htm "''The Music Man''"], ''The Guide to Musical Theatre'', showing a reduced orchestra arrangement, accessed October 11, 2013</ref>

"Lida Rose" and "Will I Ever Tell You", sung first separately and then simultaneously, are examples of Broadway counterpoint (songs with separate lyrics and separate melodies that harmonize and are designed to be sung together). Similarly, "Pickalittle" and "Good Night Ladies" are also sung first separately, and then in counterpoint.  Willson's counterpoint is lampooned, along with two counterpoint song pairs from [[Irving Berlin]] musicals, in the 1959 musical ''[[Little Mary Sunshine]]'', where ''three'' counterpoint songs are combined: "Playing Croquet," "Swinging" and "How Do You Do?" "Goodnight, My Someone" is the same tune, in waltz time, as the march-tempo "Seventy-six Trombones".<ref>{{cite book|author=John C. Skipper|title=Meredith Willson: The Unsinkable Music Man|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SzB1CQAAQBAJ&pg=PA163 |access-date=5 April 2016|date=12 January 2015|publisher=Savas Publishing|isbn=978-1-882810-78-9|page=163}}</ref>

In the 1962 movie,<ref>[http://www.allmusic.com/album/the-music-man-original-soundtrack-mw0000193178 "'The Music Man' Original Soundtrack"], AllMusic, retrieved June 22, 2019</ref> the 1980 and 2000 revivals,<ref>[https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-production/the-music-man-12495#Songs " ''The Music Man'' Songs, Broadway 2000"] ibdb.com, retrieved June 22, 2019</ref> and some amateur and regional productions, "Gary, Indiana" is sung in Act 1 by Harold (1962 movie) and Mrs. Paroo (between "Marian the Librarian" and "My White Knight"), with Winthrop singing a reprise of it in Act 2 (with Mrs. Paroo and Marian Paroo in 2000).{{citation needed |date=July 2015}}

==Casts and characters==

===Casts===
{| class="wikitable" style="width:10; text-align:center;"
|-
! rowspan=2 style="width:10%;" | Character
! style="width:10%;" | Broadway
! style="width:10%;" | West End
! style="width:10%;" | Broadway Revival
! style="width:10%;" | Broadway Revival
<!-- DO NOT ADD NEW CASTS UNTIL A NEW BROADWAY OR WEST END PRODUCTION OPENS -->
|-
!1957
!1961
!2000
!2022
|-
! Prof. Harold Hill 
| style="text-align:center;" | [[Robert Preston (actor)|Robert Preston]]
| style="text-align:center;" | [[Van Johnson]]
| style="text-align:center;" | [[Craig Bierko]]
| style="text-align:center;" | [[Hugh Jackman]]
|-
! Marian Paroo
| style="text-align:center;" | [[Barbara Cook]]
| style="text-align:center;" | Patricia Lambert
| style="text-align:center;" | [[Rebecca Luker]]
| style="text-align:center;" | [[Sutton Foster]]
|-
! Marcellus Washburn
| style="text-align:center;" | [[Iggie Wolfington]]
| style="text-align:center;" | [[Bernard Spear]]
| style="text-align:center;" | [[Max Casella]]
| style="text-align:center;" | [[Shuler Hensley]]
|-
! Mayor Shinn
| style="text-align:center;" | [[David Burns (actor)|David Burns]]
| style="text-align:center;" | [[C. Denier Warren]]
| style="text-align:center;" | [[Paul Benedict]]
| style="text-align:center;" | [[Jefferson Mays]]
|-
! Eulalie Shinn
| style="text-align:center;" | [[Helen Raymond]]
| style="text-align:center;" | Nan Munro
| style="text-align:center;" | Ruth Williamson
| style="text-align:center;" | [[Jayne Houdyshell]]
|-
! Mrs. Paroo
| style="text-align:center;" | [[Pert Kelton]]
| style="text-align:center;" | [[Ruth Kettlewell]]
| style="text-align:center;" | [[Katherine McGrath]]
| style="text-align:center;" | [[Marie Mullen]]
|-
! Winthrop Paroo
| style="text-align:center;" | [[Eddie Hodges]]
| style="text-align:center;" | [[Dennis Waterman]]
| style="text-align:center;" | Michael Phelan
| style="text-align:center;" | Benjamin Pajak
|-
|}

=== Notable replacements ===
==== 2022 Broadway revival ====
*Mayor Shinn: [[Mark Linn-Baker]]

=== Main characters ===
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="width:90%;"
|-
! scope="col" | Character
! scope="col" class="unsortable" | Description
|-
! scope="row"| Harold Hill
| A [[Confidence trick|confidence]] man who pretends to be a traveling salesman and professor of music
|-
! scope="row"| Marian Paroo
| The town librarian and part-time piano teacher
|-
! scope="row"| Marcellus Washburn
| Harold's old friend and former [[shill]], who now lives in River City
|-
! scope="row"| Mayor George Shinn
| A pompous politician who is suspicious of Hill
|-
! scope="row"| Eulalie Mackecknie Shinn
| The mayor's wife
|-
! scope="row"| Mrs. Paroo
| Marian's widowed, Irish immigrant mother
|-
! scope="row"| Winthrop Paroo
| Marian's shy, younger brother who [[lisp]]s
|}

===Secondary characters===
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="width:90%;"
|-
! scope="col" | Character
! scope="col" class="unsortable" | Description
! scope="col" class="unsortable" | Original Broadway performer
|-
! scope="row"| The School Board (Barbershop Quartet)
| Four bickering local businessmen united as singers by Hill (Olin Britt, Oliver Hix, Ewart Dunlop and Jacey Squires)
| Bill Spangenberg, Wayne Ward, Al Shea and Vern Reed ([[Buffalo Bills (quartet)|The Buffalo Bills]])
|-
! scope="row"| Pickalittle Ladies
| Eulalie's four gossipy friends (Alma Hix, Mrs. Squires, Ethel Toffelmier and Maud Dunlop)
| Adnia Rice, Martha Flynn, [[Peggy Mondo]] and Elaine Swann
|-
! scope="row"| Tommy Djilas
| A young man "from the wrong side of town"; secretly dating Zaneeta Shinn
| Danny Carroll
|-
! scope="row"| Zaneeta Shinn
| The mayor's oldest daughter; secretly dating Tommy Djilas
| Dusty Worrall
|-
! scope="row"| Charlie Cowell
| An anvil salesman who tries to expose Hill as a fraud and con man
| [[Paul Reed (actor)|Paul Reed]]
|-
! scope="row"| Constable Locke
| The town peace officer
| Carl Nicholas
|-
! scope="row"| Amaryllis
| Marian's young piano student
| Marilyn Siegel
|}

==Setting and popular culture references==
The ''Music Man'' is set in the fictional town of River City, Iowa, in 1912. The town is based in large part on Willson's birthplace, [[Mason City, Iowa]], and many of the musical's characters are based on people that Willson observed in the town.<ref>"[https://www.walnutstreettheatre.org/about/news.php?id=244#: Join the Big Parade with THE MUSIC MAN!]" Walnut Street Theatre, October 3, 2012; accessed 2022.01.31.</ref> The "river" in River City is probably the [[Mississippi River]] near [[Davenport, Iowa]]: the Rock Island conductor's announcing "River City, Iowa! Cigarettes illegal in this state" implies crossing the Mississippi from [[Rock Island, Illinois]], into Iowa.{{citation needed|date=May 2012}}

The musical includes numerous references to popular culture of the time. For example, in making his pitch, Harold Hill lists popular musicians and composers: [[Patrick Gilmore|Gilmore]], [[Patrick Conway|Pat Conway]], [[Giuseppe Creatore]], [[W.C. Handy]] and [[John Philip Sousa]].<ref>[http://www.doggedresearch.com/wilson/glossary.htm Wilson]. Doggedresearch.com</ref> Some of the cultural references are anachronistic: "Trouble" contains references to both ''[[Captain Billy's Whiz Bang]]'', a monthly humor magazine that did not begin publication until October 1919, and the nonalcoholic "[[near-beer]]" [[Bevo (beverage)|Bevo]], which was first brewed in 1916.<ref>[http://www.compedit.com/whiz_bang.htm "From Scatology to Sociology: Captain Billy's Whiz Bang"]. ''Studies in American Humor'', accessed May 18, 2010</ref><ref>Axelrod, Karen and Bruce Brumberg. [http://www.factorytour.com/tours/anheuser-busch-st-louis.cfm "Anheuser-Busch Factory Tour in St. Louis, MO"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220506214918/http://www.factorytour.com/tours/anheuser-busch-st-louis.cfm |date=2022-05-06 }}. ''Watch it Made in the U.S.A.: Your Guide to Factory Tours'', Avalon Travel Publishing, Fourth Edition, {{ISBN|1-59880-000-0}}, accessed May 18, 2010</ref> In addition, [[Rafael Méndez]] (referred to by Hill as "O'Mendez," a great "Irish" trumpeter) was six years old in 1912.<ref>{{Cite news |date=1981-09-19 |title=RAFAEL MENDEZ, 75; MUSICIAN PERFORMED FOR HEADS OF STATE (Published 1981) |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1981/09/19/obituaries/rafael-mendez-75-musician-performed-for-heads-of-state.html |url-status=live |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20251005021117/https://www.nytimes.com/1981/09/19/obituaries/rafael-mendez-75-musician-performed-for-heads-of-state.html |archive-date=2025-10-05 |access-date=2025-10-21 |work=The New York Times |pages=21 |language=en}}</ref>

==Recordings==
{{main|The Music Man (Broadway cast recording)}}
The first recording of "[[Till There Was You]]" was released before the original cast album version. Promotional copies of the 45 rpm single, Capitol P3847, were released on November 26, 1957, even before the Broadway production had premiered. Produced by [[Nelson Riddle]], it featured his orchestra and 17-year-old vocalist [[Sue Raney]].

The [[cast album|original cast recording]] was released by [[Capitol Records]] on January 20, 1958, in [[stereophonic]] & [[monaural]] versions and held the #1 spot on the [[Billboard 200|Billboard charts]] for twelve weeks, remaining on the charts for a total of 245 weeks. The [[cast album]] was awarded "Best Original Cast Album" at the first [[Grammy Awards]] ceremony in 1958 and was inducted in 1998 as a Grammy Hall of Fame Award winner.<ref>[http://www.grammy.org/recording-academy/awards/hall-of-fame Official Grammy Awards site (The Grammy Foundation)] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110122042616/http://www.grammy.org/recording-academy/awards/hall-of-fame |date=2011-01-22 }}, accessed July 4, 2012</ref>

In 1959, jazz composer and arranger [[Jimmy Giuffre]] released ''[[The Music Man (album)|Jimmy Giuffre and His Music Men Play The Music Man]]'', consisting of jazz arrangements of tunes from the musical.<ref>[http://www.discogs.com/Jimmy-Giuffre-And-His-Music-Men-The-Music-Man/release/1853037 "''Jimmy Giuffre and His Music Men* – The Music Man''"], Discogs, accessed July 6, 2015</ref> "Till There Was You" was covered by [[Anita Bryant]] in 1959 as a single for [[Carlton Records]], reaching No. 30 on the [[Billboard Hot 100]].<ref>[http://www.billboard.com/artist/279363/anita-bryant/chart?page=1&f=379 "Chart History: Anita Bryant"], Billboard.com, accessed January 11, 2015</ref> [[The Beatles]] covered "Till There Was You" on their 1963 album ''[[With the Beatles]]'' (issued on ''[[Meet the Beatles!]]'' in the United States). Rosemary Willson later told ''The New York Times'' that her husband's estate had received more money from the royalties of the Beatles' recordings of "Till There Was You" than it did from the musical's original production.<ref name=CommunityPlayers>[https://web.archive.org/web/20121028005813/http://thecommunityplayers.com/tcpshows/musicman12/TheCommunityPlayer2012.pdf "The Music Man, On Stage, Screen – and LP"], ''The Community Player'', May 2012, accessed February 24, 2017</ref>

A cast recording featuring the 2022 revival cast was recorded at [[Manhattan Center]] and was released on December 9, 2022 by Accidental Jacket Entertainment, produced by Robert Sher, Brian Gillet and Huck Walton.<ref>Hornik, Caitlin. [https://broadwaynews.com/2022/07/27/the-music-man-to-release-broadway-cast-recording "''‘The Music Man’ to release Broadway cast recording''"], Broadway News, July 27, 2022, accessed August 6, 2022</ref>

==Adaptations==
{{Main|The Music Man (1962 film)|The Music Man (2003 film)}}
Preston starred in the [[The Music Man (1962 film)|1962 film adaptation]], with [[Shirley Jones]] as Marian, [[Buddy Hackett]] as Marcellus, [[Hermione Gingold]] as Mrs. Shinn and [[Ron Howard]] as Winthrop.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/33905/The-Music-Man/awards |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090502212242/http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/33905/The-Music-Man/awards |url-status=dead |archive-date=2009-05-02 |department=Movies & TV Dept. |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=2009 |title=NY Times: The Music Man |access-date=2008-12-25}}</ref>

The success of the 2000 stage revival prompted a [[The Music Man (2003 film)|2003 television film]] starring [[Matthew Broderick]] as Hill and [[Kristin Chenoweth]] as Marian, with [[Victor Garber]] as Mayor Shinn, [[Debra Monk]] as Mrs. Paroo and [[Molly Shannon]] as Mrs. Shinn.

==Reception==
Though ''[[West Side Story (musical)|West Side Story]]'' had opened nearly three months earlier, ''The Music Man'' captured audiences, critics and five Tony Awards, including Best Musical. [[Steven Suskin]] wrote that it was one of only eight musicals that opened on Broadway between 1943 and 1964 to "unanimous raves from the major first-night newspaper critics".<ref>[[Steven Suskin|Suskin, Steven]]. [https://playbill.com/article/on-the-record-spotlight-on-mary-martin-and-beatrice-lillie-com-166077 "On the Record: Spotlight on Mary Martin and Beatrice Lillie"], ''[[Playbill]]'', 21 February 2010</ref> ''The New York Times'' theatre critic [[Brooks Atkinson]] wrote in his review "If [[Mark Twain]] could have collaborated with [[Vachel Lindsay]], they might have devised a rhythmic lark like ''The Music Man'', which is as American as apple pie and a Fourth of July oration.... ''The Music Man'' is a marvelous show, rooted in wholesome and comic tradition."<ref>Atkinson, Brooks.  [http://theater2.nytimes.com/mem/theater/treview.html?html_title=&tols_title=THE%20MUSIC%20MAN%20(PLAY)&pdate=19571220&byline=By%20BROOKS%20ATKINSON&id=1077011428963 Theatre Review: of ''The Music Man'']. ''[[The New York Times]]'', December 20, 1957, accessed May 1, 2010</ref>

Walter Kerr of the ''[[New York Herald Tribune|Herald Tribune]]'' glowingly described the opening scene of the musical: "It's the beat that does it. The overture of ''The Music Man'' drives off with a couple of good, shrill whistles and a heave-ho blast from half the brass in the pit, with the heartier trombonists lurching to their feet in a blare of enthusiasm. The curtain sails up to disclose the most energetic engine on the Rock Island Railroad (circa 1912) hurtling across the proscenium with real smoke pouring out of its smokestack and real steam rolling along the rails".<ref name=Suskin/> Kerr called Preston "indefatigable: he's got zest and gusto and a great big grin for another slam-bang march tune".<ref name=Suskin/> Robert Coleman of the ''[[New York Daily Mirror]]'' wrote that the producer "made a 10-strike in landing Robert Preston for the title role", stating that Preston "paces the piece dynamically, acts ingratiatingly, sings as if he'd been doing it all his life, and offers steps that would score on the cards of dance judges".<ref name=Suskin/>

Frank Aston of the ''[[New York World-Telegram|New York World-Telegram and Sun]]'' declared "It deserves to run at least a decade", especially praising Barbara Cook's performance as Marian: "If all our stack-tenders looked, sang, danced, and acted like Miss Barbara, this nation's book learning would be overwhelming".<ref name=Suskin/> John Chapman of the ''[[Daily News (New York)|Daily News]]'' pronounced ''The Music Man'' "one of the few great musical comedies of the last 26 years", stating that ''[[Of Thee I Sing]]'' (1931) "set a standard for fun and invention which has seldom been reached. Its equal arrived in 1950 – ''[[Guys and Dolls]]'' – and I would say that ''The Music Man'' ranks with these two".<ref name=Suskin/> In the ''[[New York Journal American|Journal-American]]'', John McClain deemed the show "a whopping hit. This salute by Meredith Willson to his native Iowa will make even ''[[Oklahoma!]]'' look to its laurels".<ref name=Suskin/>

==In popular culture==
{{More citations needed section|date=April 2010}}
''The Music Man''{{'}}s popularity has led to its being mentioned, quoted, parodied or pastiched in a number of media, including television, films and popular music.

===Television===
''The Music Man'' has been parodied in a number of TV shows, including ''[[The Simpsons]]'' episode "[[Marge vs. the Monorail]]", written by [[Conan O'Brien]]. At some point during the second Broadway revival, O'Brien was approached about playing the role of Harold Hill for a brief run, but he ultimately could not fit it into his schedule. He says, on the DVD commentary track for the aforementioned ''Simpsons'' episode, that it was the hardest choice he's ever had to make professionally, because ''The Music Man'' is one of his favorites. O'Brien did, however, as host of the [[58th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards|2006 Emmy Awards]], sing a parody version of "Ya Got Trouble" in his opening monologue targeting [[NBC]] and their slide in the ratings.

The television program ''[[Family Guy]]'' has parodied the musical at least three times. In the episode "[[Brian Wallows and Peter's Swallows]]", Lois chastises Brian's high standards in a spoof of "Piano Lesson". In another episode, "[[Patriot Games (Family Guy)|Patriot Games]]", Peter showboats after scoring a touchdown by leading a stadium full of people in a rendition of "[[Shipoopi]]", complete with choreography from the film. In Episode 22 of ''[[Boston Legal]]'', "Men to Boys", Alan Shore sings a parody of the song "Trouble" to convince patrons of a restaurant not to eat the salmon.  Several ''Music Man'' songs were used in ''[[Ally McBeal]]'', for example in the season 2 episode "Sex, Lies and Politics" in which lawyer John Cage spurs the jury into singing "Ya Got Trouble" with him.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://allymcbeal.tktv.net/music2.html |title=Season Two Music |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=1 March 1999 |website=allymcbeal.tktv.net |access-date=5 August 2022 |quote='Ya Got Trouble' (Meredith Wilson) from 'The Music Man,' performed by Peter MacNicol and the jury}}</ref>  Season 2 Episode 15 (2012), "The Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000", of the TV show ''[[My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic]]'', makes numerous allusions to ''The Music Man'', including a song based on "Ya Got Trouble".<ref>Schenkel, Katie. [http://cliqueclack.com/tv/2012/01/28/cartoonclack-my-little-pony-music-man/ "Harold Hill comes to My Little Pony – CartoonClack"], Cliqueclack.com, January 28, 2012</ref>

[[MSNBC]]'s [[Keith Olbermann]] has numerous times referred to [[Fox News]] TV host [[Glenn Beck]] as "Harold Hill" on the air.<ref>[https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna30109453 Transcript of April 7, 2009 ''Countdown with Keith Olbermann'' in which Olbermann refers to Glenn Beck as Harold Hill], NBC News accessed April 27, 2010</ref><ref>[https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna29972795 Transcript of March 30, 2009 ''Countdown with Keith Olbermann'' (same)], NBC News, accessed April 30, 2010</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20110714123757/http://rss.msnbc.msn.com/id/30766456/ns/msnbc_tv-countdown_with_keith_olbermann/ Transcript of May 13, 2009 ''Countdown with Keith Olbermann'' (same)], MSNBC, accessed April 30, 2010</ref>

Robert Hanson stars in a community theater production of ''The Music Man'' in the Netflix original show ''[[Grace and Frankie]]''.

===Film===
In the 1960 film ''[[The Apartment]]'', [[Jack Lemmon]]'s character is given tickets to the show but is stood up at the Majestic Theatre. In ''[[Romy and Michele's High School Reunion]]'' (1997), Michele sings "The Wells Fargo Wagon". The next year, in ''[[The Wedding Singer]]'' (1998), Robbie teaches Rosie to sing "'Til There Was You" for her 50th wedding anniversary.

The 2006 [[mockumentary]]/[[documentary]] ''[[Pittsburgh (2006 film)|Pittsburgh]]'' centers on actor [[Jeff Goldblum]] as he attempts to secure a [[Permanent residence (United States)|green card]] for his Canadian actor/singer/dancer girlfriend, [[Catherine Wreford]], by appearing with her as the leads in a summer [[Regional theater in the United States|regional theatre]] production of ''The Music Man'' in Goldblum's hometown of [[Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania]].

===Music===
The political satire group the [[Capitol Steps]] parodies numerous songs from musicals, including ''The Music Man''.{{citation needed|date=July 2021}} To evoke turn of the 20th century [[Main Street USA]] at some of its theme parks around the world, [[Walt Disney Parks and Resorts]] uses songs from the show, including "[[76 Trombones]]" and "Wells Fargo Wagon".<ref>{{cite web|website=Attractions|url=https://attractionsmagazine.com/close-up-movies-behind-main-street-usa-disneyland-paris| title=Close-up on the movies behind Main Street, U.S.A. at Disneyland Paris|date=July 3, 2020|accessdate=July 17, 2021}}</ref> [[Bill Hayes (actor)|Bill Hayes]] parodied "Rock Island" in a 1959 industrial musical ''Good News About Olds'' written by [[Max Hodge]], with Oldsmobile product terminology serving as the "whatayatalk".<ref>Ruel, Todd. [http://www.goneautos.com/Blog/files/Podcast_009_Florence_Henderson_Bill_Hayes.html "Gone Autos Podcast #9: Florence Henderson & Bill Hayes-Let's Talk About a Rocket"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210506134035/http://goneautos.com/Blog/files/Podcast_009_Florence_Henderson_Bill_Hayes.html |date=2021-05-06 }}, GoneAutos.com, September 29, 2013, accessed October 27, 2018</ref>

The North Iowa Band Festival in [[Mason City, Iowa]], is a yearly event celebrating music with a special emphasis on marching bands. Willson returned several times to his home town of Mason City during the 1950s to participate in the event, including leading the "Big Parade", and the stars of the film version participated in the event in 1962.<ref>Skipper, John. [https://web.archive.org/web/20080525144645/http://nibandfest.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=20&Itemid=31 "North Iowa Band Festival"], nibandfest.com, May 25, 2008 (archived)</ref>

==Awards and honors==

===Original Broadway production===
{| class="wikitable" width="95%"
|-
! width="5%"| Year
! width="15%"| Award Ceremony
! width="35%"| Category
! width="30%"| Nominee
! width="10%"| Result
|-
| rowspan="11" align="center"| 1958
| rowspan="9"| [[Tony Award]]
| colspan="2"| [[Tony Award for Best Musical|Best Musical]]
| {{won}}
|-
| [[Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical|Best Actor in a Musical]]
| [[Robert Preston (actor)|Robert Preston]]
| {{won}}
|-
| [[Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical|Best Featured Actress in a Musical]]
| [[Barbara Cook]]
| {{won}}
|-
| rowspan="2"| [[Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical|Best Featured Actor in a Musical]]
| [[David Burns (actor)|David Burns]]
| {{won}}
|-
| [[Iggie Wolfington]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical|Best Direction of a Musical]]
| [[Morton DaCosta]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Tony Award for Best Choreography|Best Choreography]]
| [[Onna White]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Tony Award for Best Conductor and Musical Director|Best Conductor and Musical Director]]
| Herbert Greene
| {{won}}
|-
| [[Tony Award for Best Stage Technician|Best Stage Technician]]
| Sammy Knapp
| {{nom}}
|-
| colspan="2"| [[Theatre World Award]]
| [[Eddie Hodges]]
| {{won}}
|-
| [[New York Drama Critics' Circle|New York Drama Critics' Circle Awards]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=New York Drama Critics' Circle Awards Past Winners|url=https://www.dramacritics.org/dc_pastawards.html |access-date=31 January 2025 |website=New York Drama Critics' Circle|language=en}}</ref>
| Best Musical
| Meredith Willson
| {{won}}
|-
| align="center"| 1959
| [[Tony Award]]
| [[Tony Award for Best Stage Technician|Best Stage Technician]]
| Sammy Knapp
| {{won}}
|}

===1980 Broadway revival===
{| class="wikitable" width="95%"
|-
! width="5%"| Year
! width="15%"| Award Ceremony
! width="35%"| Category
! width="30%"| Nominee
! width="10%"| Result
|-
| align="center"| 1981
| colspan="2"| [[Theatre World Award]]
| [[Meg Bussert]]
| {{won}}
|}

===2000 Broadway revival===
{| class="wikitable" width="95%"
|-
! width="5%"| Year
! width="15%"| Award Ceremony
! width="35%"| Category
! width="30%"| Nominee
! width="10%"| Result
|-
| rowspan="17" align="center"| 2000
| rowspan="8"| [[54th Tony Awards|Tony Award]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Music Man Tony Awards Info |url=https://www.broadwayworld.com/tonyawardsshowinfo.php?showname=The%20Music%20Man |access-date=2022-11-04 |website=www.broadwayworld.com}}</ref>
| [[Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical|Best Revival of a Musical]]
|Dodger Theatricals, [[John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts|The John F. Kennedy Center]], Elizabeth Williams, Anita Waxman, Kardana-Swinsky Productions, Lorie Cowen Levy, Dede Harris
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical|Best Actor in a Musical]]
| [[Craig Bierko]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical|Best Actress in a Musical]]
| [[Rebecca Luker]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical|Best Direction of a Musical]]
| rowspan="2"| [[Susan Stroman]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Tony Award for Best Choreography|Best Choreography]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Tony Award for Best Orchestrations|Best Orchestrations]]
| [[Doug Besterman]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Tony Award for Best Scenic Design|Best Scenic Design]]
| Thomas Lynch
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Tony Award for Best Costume Design|Best Costume Design]]
| [[William Ivey Long]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="8"| [[Drama Desk Award]]
| colspan="2"| [[Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival of a Musical|Outstanding Revival of a Musical]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical|Outstanding Actor in a Musical]]
| [[Craig Bierko]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical|Outstanding Actress in a Musical]]
| [[Rebecca Luker]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Director of a Musical|Outstanding Director of a Musical]]
| rowspan="2"| [[Susan Stroman]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Choreography|Outstanding Choreography]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Orchestrations|Outstanding Orchestrations]]
| [[Doug Besterman]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Set Design|Outstanding Set Design]]
| Thomas Lynch
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Costume Design|Outstanding Costume Design]]
| [[William Ivey Long]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| colspan="2"| [[Theatre World Award]]
| [[Craig Bierko]]
| {{won}}
|}

===2022 Broadway revival===
{| class="wikitable" width="95%"
|-
! width="5%"| Year
! width="15%"| Award Ceremony
! width="35%"| Category
! width="30%"| Nominee
! width="10%"| Result
|-
| rowspan="21"|2022
|-
| rowspan="7" |[[75th Tony Awards|Tony Awards]]<ref name=noms2022/>
|-
| colspan="2"|[[Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical|Best Revival of a Musical]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical|Best Actor in a Musical]]
| [[Hugh Jackman]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical|Best Actress in a Musical]]
| [[Sutton Foster]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical|Best Featured Actress in a Musical]]
| [[Jayne Houdyshell]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Tony Award for Best Costume Design of a Musical|Best Costume Design of a Musical]]
| [[Santo Loquasto]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Tony Award for Best Choreography|Best Choreography]]
| [[Warren Carlyle]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Drama Desk Awards]]<ref>{{Cite web|title=66th Drama Desk Awards|url=https://www.dramadeskawards.com/nominees/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160225151924/http://dramadeskawards.com/nominees|url-status=usurped|archive-date=February 25, 2016|access-date=2022-05-16|website=Drama Desk Awards}}</ref>
| [[Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Costume Design of a Musical|Outstanding Costume Design of a Musical]]
| [[Santo Loquasto]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="4" |[[Drama League Award]]s<ref>{{Cite web |title=2022 Drama League Award Winners Announced; Sutton Foster Earns Distinguished Performance Award |url=https://www.broadway.com/buzz/202243/2022-drama-league-award-winners-announced-sutton-foster-earns-distinguished-performance-award/ |access-date=2022-05-21 |website=Broadway.com}}</ref>
| colspan="2" |Outstanding Revival of a Broadway or Off-Broadway Musical||  {{nom}}
|-
|Outstanding Direction of a Musical ||[[Jerry Zaks]]||  {{nom}}
|-
|Distinguished Performance || [[Sutton Foster]]||  {{won}}
|-
| Distinguished Achievement in Musical Theatre Award || [[Hugh Jackman]] || {{won}}
|-
| rowspan="3" |[[Outer Critics Circle Award]]s<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Lehman Trilogy, Kimberly Akimbo & Harmony Lead 2022 Outer Critics Circle Award Nominations |url=https://www.broadway.com/buzz/202121/the-lehman-trilogy-kimberly-akimbo-harmony-lead-2022-outer-critics-circle-award-nominations/ |access-date=2022-04-26 |website=Broadway.com}}</ref>
| colspan="2" |Outstanding Revival of a Musical (Broadway or Off-Broadway)||  {{nom}}
|-
|Outstanding Choreography ||[[Warren Carlyle]]||  {{nom}}
|-
|Outstanding Costume Design (Play or Musical) || [[Santo Loquasto]]||  {{nom}}
|-
|[[Theatre World Award]]<ref name="playbill.com"/> 
|colspan="2" | Best Debut Ensemble ||  {{won}}
|-
|rowspan=4|[[Chita Rivera Awards for Dance and Choreography|Chita Rivera Awards]]<ref>{{Cite web |website=ChitaRiveraAwards.com |access-date=11 February 2025|language=en-US |url=https://www.chitariveraawards.com/index.php/2018-winners/14-chita/64-2022-winners-and-nominees|title=2022 Chita Rivera Awards Nominations and Winners}}</ref>
|Outstanding Choreography in a Broadway Show
|Warren Carlyle
|{{nom}}
|-
|colspan=2|Outstanding Ensemble in a Broadway Show
|{{nom}}
|-
|Outstanding Male Dancer in a Broadway Show
|Hugh Jackman
|{{nom}}
|-
|Outstanding Female Dancer in a Broadway Show
|Sutton Foster
|{{nom}}
|}

== Notes ==
{{Notelist}}

== Citations ==
{{Reflist}}

== Sources ==
* {{Cite book |last=Willson |first=Meredith |title="But He Doesn't Know the Territory": The Story behind Meredith Willson's The Music Man |last2=Feinstein |first2=Michael |date=2020 |publisher=University of Minnesota Press |isbn=978-1-4529-6502-4 |edition=Second |location=Minneapolis |oclc=1191777744}}

==Further reading==
* {{Cite book |last=Cabaniss |first=Mark |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Miracle_of_The_Music_Man/ha93EAAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1 |title=Miracle of The Music Man: The Classic American Story of Meredith Willson |date=September 15, 2022 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing PLC |isbn=978-1-5381-5465-6 |at=[[Google Books]] |language=en}}
* {{Cite book |last=McHugh |first=Dominic |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Big_Parade/4TkqEAAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0 |title=The Big Parade: Meredith Willson's Musicals from the Music Man To 1491 |date=2021 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-755473-9 |series=Broadway Legacies Ser |location=Oxford |at=[[Google Books]]}}
* {{Cite book |last=Skipper |first=John |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SzB1CQAAQBAJ |title=Meredith Willson: The Unsinkable Music Man |publisher=Savas Publishing Company |year=2000 |isbn=978-1882810789 |via=[[Google Books]]}}
* {{Cite book |last=Willson |first=Meredith |title=And there I stood with my piccolo |date=2009 |publisher=University of Minnesota Press |isbn=978-0-8166-6769-7 |edition=1st  |location=Minneapolis |orig-year=1948}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category|The Music Man}}
{{Wikiquote}}
* {{ibdb show|id=6353|title=The Music Man}}
* [http://www.meredithwillson.com Meredith Willson Official Website]
* [http://www.themusicmansquare.org The Music Man Square and Museum]
* [http://www.musicmanfoundation.org The Music Man Foundation]
<!--Use <ref...> to use the following sources to cite specific facts inline in the article, and remove them from this section, as they serve no encyclopedic purpose being external links instead of references.-->
* [http://www.doggedresearch.com/wilson/index.htm Information about ''The Music Man'' and Willson]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20000601122406/http://www.endresnet.com/mminfo.html Site with extensive information about ''The Music Man'']
* ''[http://www.mtishows.com/show_detail.asp?showid=000053 The Music Man]'' at the Music Theatre International website

{{The Music Man}}
{{Meredith Willson}}
{{Navboxes
| title = Awards for ''The Music Man''
| list = 
{{Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album}}
{{TonyAwardBestMusical 1947-1975}}
}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Music Man, The}}
[[Category:The Music Man| ]]
[[Category:1957 musicals]]
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[[Category:Broadway musicals]]
[[Category:Fiction set in 1912]]
[[Category:Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients]]
[[Category:Musicals by Meredith Willson]]
[[Category:Original musicals]]
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[[Category:Musicals set in libraries]]
[[Category:Tony Award for Best Musical]]
[[Category:Tony Award–winning musicals]]
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