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and Only" Show Page
My One and Only…the
story
MY ONE AND ONLY, the Tony
Award winning musical which opened on Broadway on May Day, 1983, concerns an aviator, a
Channel swimmer and the America of 1927 which knew exactly what it wanted -I Can't Be
Bothered Now. It features a sensational George and Ira Gershwin score.
Captain Billy Buck Chandler is determined to be the first
man in history to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. His mission is somewhat sidetracked
at a railroad station when he first lays eyes on Edith Herbert, ex-Channel swimmer and
current star attraction of Prince Nicolai Erraclyovitch Tchatchavadze's International
Aquacade -Blah, Blah, Blah. To the chagrin of his female mechanic Mickey, Billy
dreams of her -Soon while Edith dreams of romance -Boy Wanted.
Determined to meet and win her, Billy takes a crash course
in sophistication at Mr. Magix' Tonsorial and Sartorial Emporial, where the urbane,
all-knowing Mr. M tells Billy what it's all about -Sweet n'Low Down.
Arranging to run into Edith "accidentally" at the
movies where she often goes to fantasize - the Russian Prince Nikki keeps a tight rein on
her, having in his possession certain compromising photographs - Billy and Edith fall in
love -He Loves and She Loves.
Seeing Billy as her only hope of escaping Prince Nikki,
Edith persuades Billy to fly her to Cuba, but Nikki sabotages the plane and the two
lovebirds fall to earth on a seemingly deserted island which they quickly turn into
Paradise -It's Wonderful.
But when Nikki finds them and forces Edith to go back to the
Aquacade by threatening to reveal her past, Billy, left alone, bitterly returns to the
only dream left him - his flight to Paris and the fame he will achieve -Strike Up the
Band.
Life at the Aquacade goes on -In the Swim, but Edith
is despondent -Nice Work If You Can Get It, and decides to run away.
Billy, however, is unable to forget Edith. He returns to Mr.
Magix for fresh advice. What should he do now? Mr. M counsels him that only love matters -My
One and Only.
After a brief interlude that finds Prince Nikki and Billy's
female mechanic Mickey falling head over heels for one another -Funny Face, Billy
takes off in his plane, the Lone Star, in search of Edith.
He finds her in Morocco - it was the location of the movie
they fell in love at - and persuades her to return to America with him and get married,
which they do -Kickin' the Clouds Away. After the ceremony, happiness theirs, Edith
pauses to wonder at it all -How Long Has This Been Going On. To the surprise of
practically no one, they will live happily ever after.