Snoopy!!! The Musical is a musical comedy based on the Peanuts comic strip by Charles M. Schulz. It was the second stage musical based on the comic strip, the first having been You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown in 1967. Snoopy!!! The Musical was first performed in 1975, the book was written by Michael Grace, Warren Lockhart and Arthur Whitelaw, the songs were composed by Larry Grossman with lyrics by Hal Hackady.
Performance history
The show premiered on December 9, 1975 at the Little Fox Theater in San Francisco, California. It later ran Off-Broadway at Lamb's Theater from December 20, 1982 to May 1, 1983. Snoopy!!! The Musical ran for four hundred and seventy-nine performances from September 20, 1983 to November 11, 1984 at the Duchess Theatre in London's West End. The West End production was nominated for an Olivier Award and for Musical of the Year. The show was revived in London, away from the West End, at the Jermyn Street Theatre, running for fourteen performances in February 2003 and was revived again at London's New Players Theatre in July 2004.
Snoopy!!! The Musical has been performed by several regional theaters in the United States and there have been numerous amateur productions. The show was adapted for television in 1988.
In 2017, the musical was revised and re-titled The World According to Snoopy. It was performed at Texas State University and ran from June 7-18.
Plot and featured songs
The Peanuts characters, Snoopy, Woodstock, Charlie Brown, Sally Brown, Lucy van Pelt, Linus van Pelt and Peppermint Patty are depicted in the musical. The show takes the form of a series of self-contained vignettes but the overall theme is of Snoopy's growing independence which makes Charlie Brown feel increasingly insecure. The following songs are featured in the musical, those marked (*) were originally added for the 1982 London performance.
"The World According to Snoopy" features an additional song by Andrew Lippa, titled "Husband Material", and sung by Sally.
Act I
- "Overture" - Performed by the orchestra.(*)
- "The World According to Snoopy"/"Snoopy's Song" - Sung by the whole cast.
- "Woodstock's Theme" - Performed by the orchestra.
- "Hurry Up Face" - Sung by Peppermint Patty, about her big nose.(*)
- "Edgar Allan Poe" - Sung by Charlie Brown, Sally, Linus, Lucy and Peppermint Patty.
- "Mother's Day" - Sung by Snoopy.(*)
- "I Know Now" - Sung by Peppermint Patty, Sally and Lucy.
- "The Vigil" - Sung by Linus as he waits for the Great Pumpkin.
- "Clouds" - Sung by the whole cast.
- "Where Did That Little Dog Go?" - Sung by Charlie Brown.
- "Dime a Dozen" - Sung by Lucy van Pelt, Snoopy, Peppermint Patty and Sally Brown.(*)
- "Daisy Hill" - Sung by Snoopy.
- "When Do the Good Things Start?" - Sung by the whole cast.(*)
The original cast recording from San Diego includes a different finale entitled "Friend" performed by the company. This has been removed from all subsequent performances, though it was re-added for "The World According to Snoopy."
Act II
- "Entr'acte" - Performed by the orchestra.
- "The Great Writer" - Sung by Snoopy.
- "Poor Sweet Baby" - Sung by Peppermint Patty.
- "Don't Be Anything Less Than Everything You Can Be" - Sung by Sally, Linus, Peppermint Patty and Charlie Brown.
- "The Big Bow Wow" - Sung by Snoopy as he celebrates his promotion to Head Beagle.
- "Just One Person" - Sung by the whole cast.
Cast
1975 Off-Broadway cast
- Snoopy - Don Potter
- Charlie Brown - Garry Imhoff
- Lucy van Pelt - JJ Lewis
- Linus van Pelt - JJ Jepson
- Sally Brown - Deborah Walker
- Peppermint Patty - Freyda-Ann Tomas
- Woodstock - Nicole Wiener
1982 West End
- Snoopy - Teddy Kempner
- Charlie Brown - Robert Locke
- Lucy van Pelt - Zoe Bright
- Linus van Pelt - Mark Hadfield
- Sally Brown - Susie Blake
- Peppermint Patty - Nicky Croydon
- Woodstock - Alfred Mazza
2017 revival original cast
- Snoopy - Ryne Nardecchia
- Charlie Brown - Grayson Samuels
- Lucy van Pelt - Maggie Bera
- Linus van Pelt - Ty Hunter Taylor
- Sally Brown - Reagan Roberts
- Peppermint Patty - Adria Swan
- Woodstock - Nick Eibler