So, What’s It All About?
The Secret World of Archy & Mehitabel is a one act play that takes the best of journalist Don Marquis’s newspaper columns and weaves them into a comedic tour-de-force performed by a superb troupe of seasoned pros. In addition to Archy, a cockroach with the soul of a poet, you’ll meet his best friend Mehitabel the Cat, an alley cat who claims to have been Cleopatra in a past life, as well as a full complement of talking spiders, flies, gnats, rats, ticks, fleas, and many other denizens of the underside each with his or her own personality and worldview. Laugh-out-loud funny, insightful and just downright entertaining, the play runs approximately an hour and fifteen minutes and is suitable for audiences of 10 years old and up. Launching September 10th at the Whitefire Theatre in Sherman Oaks, California, the show runs through October 15th with Saturday matinees at 3PM and Saturday evening performances at 8PM.
A Note From the Author
Many years ago I ran across and old book in an antiquarian bookstore. It was entitled Archy & Mehitabel, and there in the aisles of that dusty old bookshop a love affair was born. I fell deeply in love with the characters, with the stories, with the illustrations done by the incomparable George Herriman, but most of all I fell in love with the ideas expressed by the book’s author, Don Marquis. I bought the book, brought it home and proceeded to devour it.
I read and reread that book countless times over the years, each time finding it fresh, funny and insightful.
But, as is often the case, life intervened, and over the years and many moves I lost track of the book. But then, just a few short years ago, lightning struck and I ran across it while going through some boxes stored in the attic. I dug it out and placed it on my bedside table. The next morning while reading it in bed, I recited a few passages from it to my wife, Joselle.
“Isn’t that great stuff?” I asked her.
“It’s wonderful,” she answered. “You ought to do something with it.”
“Like what?”
“I don’t know. A play, maybe?”
“A play, huh?”
“Yeah, a play.”
“Hmm.”
And so it began. I immediately went on Amazon and bought every book by and about Don Marquis I could find. After absorbing as much of this material as I possibly could, I began the process of transforming what was basically a series of unconnected newspaper columns into a cohesive evening of theater. Over the many months that followed, after innumerable readings and workshops, of rewrites and rewrites of rewrites, of input and suggestions by writers and actors of my acquaintance, the show slowly began to take shape.
And so it is with great pleasure and many thanks to all the people who helped make it happen, we proudly present:
“The Secret World of Archy & Mehitabel”
I hope you will enjoy the play, I hope you’ll find as much humor, heart and humanity in it as I have. But most of all I hope I have managed to honor the work produced by, in my opinion, one of the greatest American humorists of all time, Don Marquis.
Dan Gilvezan
Production Photos
Photos by Bill Dow
Best Friends
Dan Gilvezan as Archy
Carolyn Hennesy as Mehitabel
Trouble on the Homefront
Bill Chott as The Boss
Up in Central Park
Richard Horvitz as Warty Bliggins the Toad
Dan Gilvezan as Archy
A Tough Customer
Kelly Stables as the Flea
A Lesson in Metaphysics
Richard Horvitz as the Old Cockroach
Dan Gilvezan as Archy
Light Snack
Carolyn Hennesy as Mehitabel
They Haven’t Got it Here
Richard Horvitz as Old Tom the theatre cat
Caroline Hennesy as Mehitabel
Maestro!
Dan West, our incomparable composer and pianist
Reviews
The critics are raving about Secret World!
“STAGE RAW TOP 10… RECOMMENDED… rich with both silly moments and sincere ones… The humor is authentic and grabbing, and the deeper thoughts never trite… pro voice actors [who] know how to create distinct, bold characters with the slightest shifts in timbre and stance… You might find yourself lingering in the secret world long after the curtain has fallen.” — Stage Raw
Meet the Cast
Learn more about our incredible company of actors.
Bill Chott
The Boss
Bill Chott can currently be seen in the film Midcentury and will be in the upcoming Netflix series Monster. He just returned from Portugal where he performed improv and studied clown with Eva Ribiero. He has appeared at the Whitefire in Without Annette, Meshugeneh: The Musical, many of the Hollywood Shorts programs and directed and appeared in Live On Fire, which was nominated for a Valley Theater award.
He is best known as “Mr. Laritate” on Disney’s Wizards of Waverly Place. He played “Thomas” in the Johnny Knoxville film The Ringer. Bill’s brief turn as The Mailman on This is Us got a lot of attention on social media and as a result he was featured in the USPS employee newsletter.
At the INNY Awards, he was awarded “Best Improv Coach”, and won “Best Featured Actor in a Musical” at the Broadway World Awards for his work as “Fred Mertz” in I Love Lucy Live on Stage.
Bill studied with Stephen Colbert at
The Second City and later performed in that theater’s touring company with Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. Then he later worked with Colbert and Steve Carell on The Dana Carvey Show. He voiced characters on SNL’s Ambiguously Gay Duo and X-Presidents cartoons.
Carolyn Hennesy
Mehitabel the Cat
On television, Emmy Award winning actress Carolyn Hennesy has dazzled as the deliciously vicious “Penelope Ellis” on ABC’s critically acclaimed series REVENGE. She also joined the cast for the fifth season of the sleek vampires-meet-world saga, TRUE BLOOD, and fast become a fan favorite as Rosalyn, the ageless vamp with a Texas twang. Prior to REVENGE and TRUE BLOOD, Hennesy was best known for her memorable work as “Barb” on ABC’s COUGAR TOWN and for her (twice) Emmy nominated work (15 years and counting) as “Diane Miller” on ABC’s GENERAL HOSPITAL. She has also guest starred on a long list of prime time favorites including CHAMPIONS, NCIS, THE COOL KIDS, THE MINDY PROJECT, MOM, AND LIZA ON DEMAND. Kids across America know her as the hilariously haughty Mrs. Chesterfield on Disney Channel’s JESSIE, and now as “Mrs. Godfrey” on the Nick/Paramount+ animated series BIG NATE.
On the big screen, Hennessy’s credits include CLICK, LEGALLY BLONDE 2, TERMINATOR 3 as well as starring in the horror film, ST. AGATHA (directed by SAW’s Darren Bousman,) RELENTLESS for Lifetime, and the soon to be released SECOND CHANCES and MORT IN SHERMAN OAKS…but the biggest recent large screen news is her role in J.J. Abrams STAR WARS: RISE OF SKYWALKER as fighter pilot Demine Lithe. Online, she’s starred in the independent series’ TAKE IT FROM THE TOP and THESE PEOPLE, BUSINESS DOING PLEASURE for TBS, TWO SENTENCE HORROR STORIES for Time/Warner, and THE BAY for Amazon Prime in the role of Karen Blackwell…for which she received her Emmy and the 2016 Indie Series Award. Most recently, she’s starred as Gloria in Sean Kanen’s series “STUDIO CITY,” for which she received Emmy nominations two consecutive years.
Hennesy received her training at the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. Her razor sharp comedic timing was honed as a member of The Groundling’s Sunday Company and in ACME Theatre’s main company.
Hennesy has appeared in over a hundred stage productions worldwide, most recently and to great acclaim as Maria Callas in Terrence McNally’s MASTER CLASS at the Garry Marshall Theatre for which she received the LA Stage Alliance Ovation Award for “Best Actress In A Play” for the entirety of Los Angeles, 2017-18. Among other accolades, the LA Drama Critics Circle has distinguished her with the Natalie Schafer Award and the LA Stage Alliance honored her with her first Ovation for THE FAN MAROO. For the past three years, Hennesy hosted the red carpet reception for the Daytime Emmy Awards for NATAS, FB, and nearly all social media platforms.
Hennesy’s creative endeavors also include a successful career as a writer; she created the wildly popular “Pandora” (Bloomsbury USA) children’s book series and penned the New York Times Bestseller “The Secret Life of Damian Spinelli” (Hyperion).
When not on set, Hennesy is privileged to lend her time to a number of causes but she focuses on veteran affairs and particularly animal rescue, preservation, conservation and advocacy as an ambassador for American Humane and her own Los Angeles Zoo. She previously hosted her animal advocacy podcast “Animal Magnetism” back episodes of which may be found on YouTube, and has recently launched her new podcast, “Life, Love and Conservation.”
On January 2nd. 2017, Hennesy crossed something off of her bucket list: she rode on a float (Lucy Pet Foundation) in the Tournament of Roses Parade. Now she simply has to go into space (difficult) and fly over Disneyland as Tinkerbell to set off the fireworks (impossible). She lives in her native Los Angeles with four dogs and one cat, rescues all, and…in what spare time is left…she flies trapeze. Seriously.
Richard Horvitz
Actor #1
Richard Horvitz began his career in the entertainment industry as a child actor. His first love has always been the theater. His first major theatre role came when he starred with Dick Shawn and Stubby Kaye in the musical OLIVER (Aquarius Theater). He originated the role of Johnny Bubbles in Sam Bobrick’s highly successful play THE PSYCHIC, which premiered at the Falcon Theater. Other notable roles include: “Jeffrey” in Jeffrey Hatcher’s MRS. MANNERLY. Adam in the Los Angeles premier of Kristen Lazarian’s PUSH (Theatre 40), Aaron Goldman in Richard Martin Hirsh’s, THE MONKEY JAR, Uncle Hen in George and Ira Gershwin’s Tip Toes, Policy Pinkle in RED HOT AND BLUE, (White fire Theater) The East Witch, the Little Witch of Wichita (Geffen Playhouse)
Fans of animation will recognize Richard Horvitz as the voice of many iconic characters, including INVADER ZIM, Billy from THE GRIM ADVENTURES OF BILLY AND MANDY, Daggett from THE ANGRY BEAVERS and Alpha 5 from the original MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS. Currently Richard can be heard as the voice of Moxxie in the cult hit HELLUVA BOSS. In addition to Richard’s animation work, gamers will recognize him from his many video game roles in such classics as PSYCHONAUTS (RAZ), RATCHET AND CLANK series (Zoni, Pollyx ,Zurgo) DESTROY ALL HUMANS (Orthopox) and SKYLANDERS (Kaos) to name a few.
Richard continues to work on screen as well. Richard was seen in THE INFORMANT with Matt Damon and CRAZY, STUPID LOVE alongside Steve Carell. Many will remember Richard as the nerdy Alan Eakian in Paramount Pictures 1980’s cult classic SUMMER SCHOOL directed by Carl Reiner. Richard has appeared on Jimmy Kimmel and The Tonight Show. Fans of Fruit of the Loom Underwear commercials will also recognize Richard as the Green Grapes.
Kelly Stables
Actor #2
Kelly Stables is an American actress known for her comedic work on SUPERSTORE, TWO AND A HALF MEN, ROMANTICALLY CHALLENGED, THE EXES, and NO TOMORROW. Her Guest-Starring credits include MOM, GET SHORTY, BABY DADDY, GREEK, ‘’TIL DEATH, BONES, HUNG, MAD LOVE, LIFE, CAVEMEN, THE RING 2 and HORRIBLE BOSSES 2.
Kelly’s unique voice is featured on DOC MCSTUFFINS, SOFIA THE FIRST, ADVENTURES IN ODYSSEY, W.I.T.C.H., and TOM & JERRY: THE LAST DRAGON, in which she was nominated for the BTVA Best Female Vocal Performance in a Theatrical Short.
Kelly is active in local Los Angeles theatre, having performed in over two dozen plays and musical productions. She portrayed “Marion ‘Daisy’ Davies” in the world premiere musical W.R. & DAISY, “Wendy” in PETER PAN, “Tip Toes” in TIP TOES and “Cindy Brady” in A VERY BRADY MUSICAL, which she also choreographed.
Before moving to Los Angeles, Kelly graduated magna cum laude from the University of Missouri, earning a BA in Theatre and Communications. She enjoys catching a Cardinals baseball game and is married with two sons
Dan Gilvezan
Archy the Cockroach
Dan Gilvezan was born in St. Louis, Missouri and attended Webster University, a
Midwestern fine arts college, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in drama. Upon
graduation he embarked on a national tour bringing the classics to theaters and civic
auditoriums all over the country. After completing the tour he worked in repertory
theater, summer stock, children’s theater, and dinner theater all over the eastern
seaboard.
After moving to Los Angeles Dan found work voicing characters in a variety of
animated series such as Spider-Man/Peter Parker on NBC’s Spider-Man and His
Amazing Friends, and Bumblebee, on the original Transformers animated series. He also
provided lead voices in other series like, GI Joe, Jem and the Holograms, Sectaurs, Dino-Riders, Spiral Zone, and many, many others.
He has also lent his voice to numerous video games, two of his more prominent
roles being Spider-Man 2099 in Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions, and reprising one
of his most recognizable characters, G1 Bumblebee in Transformers: Devastation.
No stranger to on-camera television, Dan has appeared as a guest-star or recurring
character on Desperate Housewives, Bones, NYPD Blue, Boston Legal, The
Bernie Mac Show, Third Rock From the Sun, Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, Diagnosis Murder, Step by Step, She-Wolf of London, Murphy Brown, Perfect
Strangers, and many others. He played Bette Davis’s agent opposite Susan Sarandon in the
critically acclaimed television mini-series, Feud, and also had a recurring
role as Marcus the rodeo announcer on Baskets, Zach Galifianakis’s comedy series
airing on the FX network.
Dan has written several books including Bumblebee & Me: Life as a G1 Transformer, a memoir of his time working on that seminal series, as well as three novels: Drowned in the Grenadine, a fictionalized account of his experiences working as an actor in Hollywood, Soul, a fantasy novel that takes place on Earth, in Heaven and a few places in between and Dead Money, a detective novel centering around a PI who is also an amateur magician.
As many with many other actors, Dan’s first love is the theater. During his time in Los Angeles he has appeared in plays in theaters like the Santa Monica PlayHouse, Globe Theater, La Mirada Civic Auditorium, Skylight Theater, the Odyssey, and, of course, the esteemed Whitefire Theatre.
The Secret World of Archy & Mehitabel is his first attempt at playwriting. Let’s hope it’s not his last.
Meet the Creative Team
The folks working behind-the-scenes to bring the show to life.
Joselle Celine Gilvezan
Producer
Joselle Celine Gilvezan was born in Verdun, France, during one of her father’s many military postings. As the daughter of a career military officer Joselle was exposed at an early age to many different countries and cultures, including Germany, Japan, the Philippines, Greece, Thailand, Taiwan, Austria, and Spain. This experience informed Joselle’s worldview creating in her an acceptance and appreciation of virtually anyone she comes across.
After settling finally in central Florida, Joselle attended the University of Florida majoring in photojournalism. After college she moved to Atlanta, Georgia and worked for a number of years in Atlanta’s bustling hospitality industry.
Although enjoyable work, she always felt she was made for bigger things.
And so, in 1995 she took the plunge and moved to Los Angeles where she almost immediately found employment as office coordinator at a recording studio. Satisfying work, to be sure, but when she was approached to interview for a job as an agent at one of Los Angeles’s premiere voice over agencies, she jumped at the chance. After securing the job she became the celebrity booking agent handling such notable clients as Carey Elwes, Billy Dee Williams and Lori Petty.
During her time at the agency she was asked by a friend to cover for her as executive assistant to a husband and wife team of Napa Valley vintners. This ‘temporary job’ led to a twenty year stint as overseer of the couple’s Los Angeles operations, both business and personal, where she is still employed today.
And now she finds herself in an entirely new area as co-producer, along with her husband, Dan Gilvezan, of a brand new theatrical production, “The Secret World of Archy & Mehitabel.” At first she was concerned she might not have what it takes to handle the job. What did she know, she wondered, about being a producer. She needn’t have worried. For as her husband recently remarked, “I’ve worked with many producers during my career and I couldn’t think of anyone better suited for the job.”
Moosie Drier
Director
Moosie Drier was born in Chicago and raised in Southern California. He started off in the entertainment industry as an actor at the ripe old age of five. He was the youngest series regular cast member on “Rowan and Martin’s Laugh-in”. Other acting credits include playing Jack Lemmon’s son in “The War Between Men and Women”, “Little Howie” on the “Bob Newhart Show”, John Denver’s son in “Oh God”, “Hollywood Knights” (Columbia Pictures), and portrayed Artie Moress, the president of the Buddy Holly fan club, in “American Hot Wax” (Paramount Pictures).
He joined the Directors Guild of America when he was brought on to direct Jennifer Love Hewitt, Fergie, and Mario Lopez in “Kids Incorporated” for the Disney Channel. Other television directorial credits include “Too Late with Adam Carolla” (Comedy Central), “Reba” (WB Network), and the “Peacemaker” (Pilot).
His love for theatre started as a teenager when he took the stage with Jack Klugman in Arthur Miller’s “All My Sons” at the Huntington Hartford Theatre. He enjoys the ever strengthening theatre community in Los Angeles. His stage directing credits include “God of Carnage”, “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof”, “Lend Me A Tenor”, and 23 other Los Angeles based stage productions.
His proudest accomplishment is playing the role of “Dad” to Clayton Drier, in “Real life”.
He’s beyond thrilled to be working with the amazing collection of talented people involved in “The Secret World of Archy and Mehitabel.”
Jeff G. Rack
Scenic Design
Jeff G. Rack worked in many different areas of the film and entertainment industry over the last thirty years, but is best known for his award-winning set designs. He has won or been nominated for multiple awards in creating designs for over 300 plays from Santa Barbara to Edinburgh, Scotland.
Jeff was one of the founders of Unbound Productions and its very successful flagship production, Wicked Lit, having written and directed numerous shows with them. Jeff recently directed the world premiere of Death, with Benefits, written by John Strysik, who also wrote Villainy, which Jeff also directed.
Under his own theater company, Arcane Theatreworks, he directed two other world premiere plays, Stories from the Zone and MARTIANS an Evening with Ray Bradbury, which, with Ray’s blessing, he co-wrote with his partner Charlie Mount. He is also involved in Production Design, Sculpting and EFX work for the film industry, having worked on Planet of the Apes, Armageddon, Flubber, Con-Air, and Universal Studios’ Back to the Future ride.
Nick Foran
Lighting, Sound & Rear Projections
Originally from Australia, Nick Foran has worked in LA as a stage manager and designer since 2014, working with directors such as Broadway legend Robert Allan Ackerman in Blood (2016) as well as touring with the Second City company.
Other credits include technical director of The Magic Show at the Roosevelt (2018-2020) and for Justin Willman Magic For Humans In Person (2022). Nick is the current resident sound designer at Theater 40 Beverly Hills, and has been the resident lighting and sound designer at the Stella Adler Academy of Acting since 2018.
He is Technical Director at the Zephyr Theater on Melrose and at the Whitefire Theatre and is thrilled to be working with such a talented group on The Secret World of Archy & Mehitabel.
Dan West
Musical Director & Pianist
Dan West is a rock and jazz musician, songwriter and producer.
West is known for his versatility as a multi-instrumentalist who shifts from genre to genre with a dazzling agility. West composes and arranges for orchestra and big band as well as music programming.
His songwriting and production credits include LoveyDove, Sidewalk Society, Mystery Rose, Frieda’s Roses and his solo project d’Animal. He also composed a jazz score for the feature length documentary ‘Mr. Movie Poster’ on the life of legendary movie poster illustrator Paul Crifo.
Dan’s jazz quartet The Studio City Scrub Jays perform regularly in the Los Angeles & San Fernando Valley area.
Buckley Sampson
Choreographer/Dancer
Buckley Sampson is happy to contribute to this production as a dancer. She start her career as a dancer working with the Dallas Metropolitan Ballet company and The Pittsburgh Ballet theater. She has been an actress in LA for 29 years and has worn many industry hats as an actor, producer, wardrobe stylist, and image consultant. She is excited to share her love of dance with the audience.
Lee Harry
Dance Video Producer
Lee Harry has been an award-winning editor and producer of movie trailers for over twenty-five years, including “No Country for Old Men,” “Barton Fink,” “Strange Days,” “Starship Troopers,” “We Were Soldiers” and “Legends of the Fall.”
Recent feature editing credits include “A Rock ‘n Roll Heart” and “Time Capsule.” As director, he won a Student Academy Award for the dramatic film “Button, Button.” He directed the cult favorite “Silent Night, Deadly Night Part 2” and “Street Soldiers.”
He is married to actress Jill K. Allen with whom he has a daughter Kathryn and son Kyle.
Bryan Rasmussen
Whitefire Theatre Artistic Director
Bryan Rasmussen is the recipient of the 2016 Valley Theatre Award for Artistic Director Achievement, is now in his 18th year as Producing Artistic Director of the Whitefire Theatre celebrating its 40th anniversary season. Bryan is one of the most prolific theatre producers in Los Angeles. He has produced over 1000 solo shows and hundreds of regular plays including numerous world premieres.
Directing credits include the 35th anniversary production of Sam Shepard’s Buried Child, Billie!..backstage with Lady Day, Firehouse, The Bellflower Sessions, and Stella’s Last JDate. He is currently developing theatre projects with Academy Award winner Bobby Moresco as well as launching multiple world premieres. He also produces the largest solo theatre festival on the West Coast called Solofest where over 80 shows premiere in 90 days now in its 12th year. He also founded the famous Itchey Foot Cabaret in downtown LA in the 1980’s as well as having been a member of the famed South Coast Repertory playing Young Scrooge for nine years and when they won the Tony for Best Regional theatre in 1985.
Numerous film and TV credits as an actor include “24”, “Sons of Anarchy”, “The Mentalist”, and “American Horror Story” opposite Jessica Lange. He trained at the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco after receiving his BA in theatre from Cal State Long Beach. Bryan is a proud member of the Actors Gym.
Further Reading
So just who was Don Marquis anyway?
DONALD ROBERT PERRY MARQUIS (pronounced MAR-kwiss) was born in Walnut, Illinois, on July 29, 1878 during, in Marquis’s telling, a total eclipse of the sun. Known as a fabulist and teller of tall tales it is difficult to establish fact from fancy regarding Marquis’s early years. It is known however that he was the son of the town doctor and as a boy worked a variety of odd jobs including delivery wagon driver, drugstore clerk and poultry plucker. After graduating from high school at age 15, he left Walnut to attend Knox College in Galesburg, Ill., but was forced to drop out for ‘financial reasons’ before he was able to complete his studies. Returning to Walnut, he taught in country schools and
edited a village newspaper—jobs that
required no college education.
Frustrated by the limitations of small town life, in 1900 Marquis moved to Washington D.C. where he worked for the
Census Bureau and briefly as a reporter for the Washington
Times. Following this he moved to Philadelphia and for a short time wrote filler material for a local newspaper. Unsatisfied with his current position he next moved to Atlanta where he wrote
newspaper editorials for the Atlanta News, the Atlanta Journal and later assisted
humorist Joel Chandler Harris by coediting, and writing for, Uncle Remus
Magazine.
In 1909 he moved to New York and after bouncing around from job to job, at last secured a position as a columnist for the New York Evening Sun. It was during his time at the Sun that Marquis developed the characters he would become famous for: Archy, the cockroach with the soul of a poet, and Mehitabel, an alley cat who claimed to have once been Cleopatra. Marquis would continue to write about the adventures of Archy & Mehitabel over the next twenty-odd years, to great approbation, during both his tenure at the Sun and later when he took a job a the New York Herald. The columns were syndicated in newspapers throughout the country and also appeared weekly in Collier’s Magazine.
In 1927 a collection of Marquis‘s columns was released in book form. Entitled Archy and Mehitabel and illustrated by cartoonist George Herriman, the creative force behind the wildly popular comic strip, Krazy Kat, the book was an instant bestseller spawning the follow ups, Archy’s Life of Mehitabel and Archy Does His Part. A prolific writer, Marquis also authored novels, short stories, plays, poetry and collections of essays.
In February of 1936 Marquis suffered a debilitating stroke that left him unable to continue his work. He retired to his home on Long Island where he was cared for by his spinster sisters, Maude and Neva. Over the following year Marquis suffered a series of strokes which eventually led to his death on December 29, 1937. He is buried in Maple Grove Cemetery in upstate New York.
Certain Maxims of Archy…
Live so that you
can stick out your tongue
at the insurance
doctor.
Procrastination is the
art of keeping
up with yesterday.
An optimist is a guy
that has never had
much experience.
The other day I heard an
ant conversing
with a flea. “Small talk,” I said, and went away from there.
A Bit of History
The Way it All Began
This image represents Marquis’s first mention of Archy the Cockroach in his daily column the Sun Dial in the New York Evening Sun published on March 29th, 1916. Marquis’s columns centering on the adventures of Archy and Mehitabel became immensely popular, entertaining readers worldwide. Click on the image for a closer look.
The Concept Album
In 1954 a concept album called Archy & Mehitabel: A Back Alley Opera was released by Columbia Records. It featured Eddie Bracken as Archy, Carol Channing as Mehitabel and David Wayne as the newspaperman who discovers Archy hopping on the keys of his typewriter. The book and lyrics were written by Joe Darion, the music composed by George Kleinsinger. Sales were modest, but enough to lead to the next step in the show’s evolution.
The Broadway Musical
Utilizing Darion’s words and Kleinsinger’s music and renamed Shinbone Alley, a Broadway musical was mounted in the spring of 1957 with Bracken reprising his role as Archy and Eartha Kitt taking the part of Mehitabel. Interestingly, a young Mel Brooks was credited as co-writer of the book. The show failed to catch on and closed after only 49 performances.
The Animated Feature
An animated feature film was released in 1971 by Allied Artists with music from the Broadway production and a retooled script by the film’s producer, John D. Wilson. Bracken once again provided Archy’s voice with Carol Channing returning as Mehitabel. Not a commercial success, the film was mostly relegated to art houses and second-run movie theaters.
And now, the Play
The previous iterations of Marquis’s work were unsuccessful, we believe, because they failed to remain true to Marquis’s vision. The Secret World of Archy & Mehitabel attempts to rectify this by retaining Marquis’s original concepts and ideas, oftentimes using his very own words to tell the story. The characters of Archy and Mehitabel speak and behave as Marquis intended them to. Will that make a difference? We think so. And we think you’ll think so, too.