Tryouts and promotion

Julie Andrews as Queen Guenevere in the original 1960 Broadway production

The show premiered in Toronto, at the O'Keefe Centre on October 1, 1960. It overran drastically — it was supposed to last two hours forty minutes, and instead clocked in at four and a half hours. The curtain came down at twenty minutes to one in the morning; Lerner later noted that "Only Tristan and Isolde equaled it as a bladder endurance contest."^[8] Noël Coward is supposed to have remarked that the show was "longer than the Götterdämmerung ... and not nearly as funny!" In spite of this, the morning papers gave generally positive reviews, but hinted that the show needed much work, i.e., drastic editing, in order to succeed. Soon afterwards, Lerner was hospitalized for three weeks with a bleeding ulcer. Soon after he was discharged, Hart suffered his second heart attack, and Lerner stepped in as temporary director for the rest of the out-of-town run. Camelot then moved to Boston, edited, but still running well over the intended length. The production team tried to find another director, even phoning José Ferrer, who could not undertake the job.^[9] Lerner and Loewe disagreed on how to proceed with the show, as Loewe did not want to make any major changes without Hart's guidance. Lerner wrote: "God knows what would have happened had it not been for Richard Burton." Accepting cuts and changes, he radiated a "faith and geniality" and calmed the fears of the cast.^[10] Guenevere's song "Before I Gaze at You Again" was given to Andrews at the last minute before the first New York preview, which provoked her famous quote, "Of course, darling, but do try to get it to me the night before."^[11] After the show opened on Broadway, Hart was released from the hospital, and he and Lerner began cutting the play even further. Two songs, "Then You May Take Me To the Fair" and "Fie on Goodness," were cut a few months into the run (though they remain on the cast album, and the former featured in the 1967 film).

The New York critics' reviews of the original production were mixed.^[12] However, Ed Sullivan approached Lerner and Loewe to create a segment for his television variety program, celebrating the fifth anniversary of My Fair Lady. They decided to do very little from their previous hit and instead to perform four highlights from Camelot. The show stimulated ticket sales, and Camelot achieved an unprecedented advance sale of three and a half million dollars.^[13][14] Robert Goulet received favorable reviews, most notably for his rendition of the show-stopping romantic ballad "If Ever I Would Leave You", which became his signature song.^[15]

Aftermath

After Camelot's run, Goulet appeared on The Danny Thomas Show and The Ed Sullivan Show, which made him a household name among American audiences.^[16]

A week after the assassination of U.S. President John F. Kennedy in November 1963, Kennedy's widow, Jackie Kennedy, was interviewed by Theodore H. White, an interview that ran in the December 1963 issue of Life magazine. In the interview, Jackie stated that the show's original cast recording had been a favorite bedtime listening for her husband (who had been Lerner's classmate at Harvard University),^[17] and that his favorite lines were in the final number: "Don't let it be forgot/ That once there was a spot/ For one brief, shining moment/ That was known as Camelot".^[18] She also made a direct comparison to the Camelot storyline, saying, "There'll be great presidents again... but there'll never be another Camelot."

The veracity of her claim about her husband's love of Camelot has been disputed.^[19] Nevertheless, an association between Camelot and Kennedy's tenure as president formed immediately in the public consciousness, and has remained in the decades since.^[14][20] Lerner later wrote in his autobiography that, soon after the article came out, a touring production of the show at the Civic Opera House in Chicago had to be stopped after those lines were sung: "there was a sudden wail from the audience. It was not a muffled sob; it was a loud, almost primitive cry of pain. The play stopped, and for almost five minutes everyone in the theater - on the stage, in the wings, in the pit, and in the audience - wept without restraint. Then the play continued..."^[21]

The obstacles encountered in producing Camelot were hard on the creative partnership of Lerner and Loewe, and the show turned out to be one of their last collaborations (although they did work together to adapt their 1958 movie Gigi to the stage in 1973, and collaborated again the following year on the movie musical The Little Prince). Camelot was Hart's last Broadway show. He died of a heart attack in Palm Springs, California, on December 20, 1961.^[22]

Act I

King Arthur is nervous about his upcoming arranged marriage and is hiding in a tree. Merlin the Magician, his wise tutor, calls Arthur down to warn the young king that he must learn to think for himself. Merlin, who lives backward in time and remembers the future as well as the past, knows he will soon be separated from Arthur. Merlin persuades Arthur to climb down and chides him for his unkingly behavior. Arthur then left alone, ponders both his subjects and his own feelings about the intended nuptials (“I Wonder What the King is Doing Tonight?”). Arthur hears someone coming and scampers up the tree again. Guenevere, Arthur's intended bride, comes to the woods. She does not like the idea of being Queen, preferring to live the life of an ordinary nobleman's daughter, (“Simple Joys of Maidenhood”). She stumbles into Arthur, who initially calls himself “Wart” (his childhood nickname), and then, hearing of her reluctance to marry, tells her of the joys of life in Camelot (“Camelot”). It is love at first sight, and they almost kiss but are interrupted when Arthur's attendants come upon the two of them. He is revealed as the King. He tells Guenevere the story of how he pulled the sword from the stone and became king, and she finally agrees to marry him. The wizard Merlin is amused by this development, but his joy turns to sorrow as his memories of the future begin to fade. He realizes that Nimue, a beautiful water nymph, has come to draw him into her cave for an eternal sleep (“Follow Me”). He begs Nimue for answers, as he has forgotten if he has warned Arthur about two important individuals, Lancelot and Mordred. His memories fade permanently, though, and he is led away.

Five years later, Arthur sits with Guenevere in his study, discussing his views on knights and chivalry. He explains that he wishes to create a new kind of knight — one that does not pillage and fight but tries to uphold honor and justice. He is eventually inspired, with Guenevere's help, to establish the Round Table with the motto “might for right.” Within a few years, Arthur's idea leads to the Knights of the Round Table being renowned all over England, and their fame even spreads to France. A young, pretentious and over-religious French prince from Joyous Garde named Lancelot du Lac has heard of the Round Table and is determined to come to Camelot and join Arthur's knights, confident that he is perfect for the post (“C’est Moi”). King Pellinore, an elderly man who was a friend of Arthur's family, also comes to Camelot to witness Arthur's greatness for himself. He inadvertently wanders into the May Day festivities organized by Guenevere (“The Lusty Month of May”). On learning who he is, Guenevere orders a guestroom to be prepared, and has one of the knights escort him to the castle. Pellinore becomes part of the family — he is still present at the musical's conclusion, many years later. As Pellinore departs, King Arthur arrives with Lancelot, and introduces him to the company. Guenevere is put off by Lancelot's boastful manner and her attempts to draw him into conversation seem only intended to prove him wrong about his apparently unrealistic claims about his own prowess. The knights and ladies of the court watch in amusement. Guenevere incites three of the knights — Sir Dinadan, Sir Sagramore and the burly Sir Lionel — to challenge Lancelot to a joust (“Then You May Take Me to the Fair”). Arthur (who, unlike everybody else, is friendly with Lancelot) is dismayed by this, and is at a loss to understand a woman's ways — though he cannot be angry with Guenevere (“How to Handle a Woman”).

In the jousting match Lancelot easily defeats all three knights. He wounds Sir Lionel, who fights him last, so badly that the crowd thinks he is dead. But the dismay of the crowd turns to awe as Lancelot's distraught cries for Sir Lionel to live seem to resurrect a dead man. Whether it is an actual miracle or not, the entire court believes it to be one, and all the knights and ladies bow or curtsy to Lancelot, paying homage to him as he passes by. Guenevere curtsies to him, too, and as he kneels before her, their eyes lock, and both seem to realize something that neither understood before. Arthur notices their silent exchange. In the scenes that follow, Guenevere is torn between her new love for Lancelot and her love and loyalty for Arthur. She wishes Lancelot would leave Camelot (“Before I Gaze at You Again”). In spite of Lancelot's boasts that he is immune to pleasures of the flesh, he is also madly in love with Guenevere, and also torn by the conflict between that love and his devotion to Arthur, who makes Lancelot a Knight of the Round Table. Arthur, realizing that Lancelot and Guenevere have feelings for each other, hopes it will blow over and soliloquizes to his sword Excalibur that they will rise to the challenges they will all face together.

Act II

Many years later, Guenevere and Lancelot are still tormented by their unfulfilled love. She tries to get rid of him, but Lancelot will not leave her (“If Ever I Would Leave You”). They both believe that Arthur is not aware of it. Nevertheless, she remains faithful to Arthur and helps him in carrying out the affairs of State.

Mordred, Arthur's illegitimate son, comes to Camelot to dishonor the King and tries to gain the throne for himself. Arthur puts him in charge of the knights’ training program, not knowing that Mordred is there to destroy the Round Table in revenge against Arthur for abandoning him, and that he detests the idea of being a Knight (“The Seven Deadly Virtues”). Arthur begins to feel the strain of ruling England, and both he and Guenevere wonder what commoners do without any such responsibilities (“What Do The Simple Folk Do?”).

Mordred, meanwhile, has devised a plan to ruin Arthur and his kingdom permanently. He enters an enchanted glade where his aunt, the sorceress Morgan le Fay, dwells in an invisible castle. Morgan has a sweet tooth, and though she likes Arthur, Mordred manages to bribe her with a large supply of sweetmeats to build one of her invisible walls around Arthur for one night, so that when he goes on his hunting trip the next day, he will not be able to get back to the castle (“The Persuasion”). Meanwhile, Mordred incites the Knights to remember their former days of fighting and pillaging and turns them against Arthur (“Fie On Goodness!”).

With Arthur gone, Lancelot, unable to stop himself, visits Guenevere in her chambers, as Mordred fully suspected he would. They kiss passionately (“I Loved You Once in Silence”). However, Lancelot and Guenevere's affair and Mordred's machinations come to a head when Mordred and some of the Knights of the Round Table interrupt, accuse Lancelot of treason, and try to take him prisoner. Lancelot fights them off and escapes, but Guenevere is arrested, tried, found guilty of treason by reason of her infidelity, and sentenced to be burned at the stake (“Guenevere”). At the execution, Arthur watches from a distance as Mordred taunts him for his failures; he is torn between upholding his law and doing his duty as a king, or sparing Guenevere, whom he still loves in spite of everything. At the last moment, Lancelot arrives with an army, rescues Guenevere and takes her off with him to France. But in the process, Lancelot has been forced to kill some of the other knights, leaving the survivors vowing revenge.

For the sake of his own honor and that of Camelot, Arthur must now wage war against Lancelot. Mordred has taken up his own army against Arthur, back in England. The war takes a terrible toll on Camelot, as more than half of the Knights of the Round Table are killed. Before the final battle, Arthur meets Lancelot and Guenevere. Lancelot and Guenevere's relationship has foundered, doubtless because of their guilty consciences. Guenevere has become a nun, and the Round Table is now broken. They offer to face up to justice in England, but Arthur will not see Guenevere burned or Lancelot beheaded. He forgives them both, and they depart separately. That night in camp, Arthur meets a young stowaway named Tom of Warwick (likely Sir Thomas Malory), who has come to join the Round Table. His speech reminds Arthur of the idealism and hope that he had as a young king, and inspires him. Arthur knights Tom and sends him back to England to grow up there, that he might pass on to future generations the ideals of chivalry and Camelot ("Camelot" (reprise)).

Revisions to the 2023 Broadway revival

The Aaron Sorkin-penned revision of the book excises all magic,^[23] makes Merlin a sage, and Morgan Le Fay a scientist heralding the Age of Enlightenment, and removes the character of Nimue. The new book also underscores democracy and a more egalitarian society. Act I begins with Arthur’s retinue alert, waiting for the arrival of Guenevere’s carriage from France as part of a peace treaty, and critiquing her flouting of tradition by disembarking at the bottom of the hill instead of atop. Guenevere is more contemporary and is cold to Arthur in their meeting, replacing their love-at-first-sight encounter. She seems bound by duty in/to her marriage, rather than love, and serves as an advisor to Arthur rather than a mere consort. Despite this, near the conclusion of Act II, a tearful Guenevere admits to Arthur that she has loved him since their first meeting and wishes he could see himself the way she has.

The knights are mistrustful of Guenevere because she is a French foreigner. Pellinore is an older knight who takes on Merlin’s role of sage/advisor. Arthur steps in as the final jouster and is the one revived by Lancelot. It is revealed that Arthur has written Morgan Le Fay a letter every week for the past four years, despite never receiving a reply, begging her and Mordred to live in the castle. This long-standing faithfulness stirs Guenevere’s jealousy and fear when Arthur pays Le Fay a visit as a result of a forged letter from Mordred. Lancelot, torn between his duty to Arthur and the Knights and his forbidden love of Guenevere, agrees to guard her one final night before returning to France when Arthur pays Le Fay a visit.

Original production and tours

Camelot opened on Broadway at the Majestic Theatre on December 3, 1960, and closed on January 5, 1963, after 873 performances and 2 previews.^[24] Directed by Moss Hart, the choreography was by Hanya Holm, scenic design by Oliver Smith, costume design by Adrian (who worked on the designs prior to his death in September 1959) and Tony Duquette, and lighting design by Abe Feder. It won four Tony Awards. The original cast album was America's top-selling mono LP record for 6 weeks.^[25]

A two-year U.S. tour followed the Broadway closing, starring Kathryn Grayson and William Squire, who was succeeded by Louis Hayward. Grayson was dismissed in Cincinnati, OH, for having missed performances and replaced by her understudy, Jan Moody. There was also a 1963–1964 bus-and-truck tour starring Biff McGuire as Arthur, Jeannie Carson as Guenevere, and Sean Garrison as Lancelot. Yet another company toured with the show in 1964, starring Howard Keel as Arthur, Constance Towers as Guenevere, and Bob Holiday as Lancelot. Also in 1964 an Australian production opened at Her Majesty's Theatre, Melbourne, starring Paul Daneman and Jacqueline McKeever, with stage design by John Truscott. Truscott would later work on the film adaptation. The production, by the J. C. Williamson company, ran for two years.^[25]

Original and revived West End productions

The London production opened in August 1964 at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, and featured Laurence Harvey as Arthur, Elizabeth Larner as Guenevere and Barry Kent as Lancelot. It played for 518 performances.

Richard Harris again played Arthur in a West End revival at the Apollo Victoria Theatre, London, from November 23, 1982 to February 5, 1983 with Fiona Fullerton, William Squire and Robert Meadmore.

Broadway revivals

The show was revived on Broadway at the Winter Garden Theatre from November 15, 1981, to January 2, 1982, and was broadcast on HBO a year later, starring Richard Harris as Arthur, Meg Bussert as Guenevere, Muenz as Lancelot and Thor Fields as Tom of Warwick. Harris, who had starred in the film, and Muenz also took the show on tour nationwide. The book for this version was slightly revised, including the addition of a frame story in which the show opens with an older Arthur looking back on his life, a device taken from the 1967 film version. Scenes had their sequence changed, mainly in Act II.

Richard Burton reprised his role as Arthur in a revival that ran from July 8, 1980, to August 23, 1980, at the New York State Theater at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. Christine Ebersole played Guenevere, and Richard Muenz was Lancelot.

Another Broadway revival ran from June 21, 1993 to August 7, 1993 for 56 performances at the Gershwin Theatre as a stop on a national tour, with Robert Goulet now cast in the role of Arthur. Goulet reprised this role at Toronto's O'Keefe Centre in 1993.^[14]

In March 2022, it was reported that Aaron Sorkin and Bartlett Sher were working on a reimagined production for Broadway, which was to begin performances on Thursday, November 3 and open on Thursday, December 8 at the Vivian Beaumont Theater.^[26] In June 2022, it was announced that the revival had been postponed to the spring of 2023. It began previews on March 9, 2023, with an official opening on Thursday, April 13, 2023.^[27] Cast members include Andrew Burnap as Arthur, Phillipa Soo as Guenevere, and Jordan Donica as Lancelot.^[28] The production closed on July 23, 2023, after 38 previews and 115 regular performances. A cast recording was released on June 2nd, 2023 ^[29] and plans for a U.S. national tour and West End production are underway.^[30]

Other productions

• David Carradine played Arthur in a 1967 production for the Dallas (TX) Summer Musicals. He was joined by Gaylea Byrne as Guenevere, Nolan Van Way as Lancelot, Alan Johnson as Mordred, Roderick Cook as Pellinore, and William LeMassena as Merlyn and Sagramore. The production ran August 7–20 at DSM's iconic 1925 Music Hall at Fair Park.
• Richard Harris again played Arthur in a West End revival at the Apollo Victoria Theatre, London, from November 23, 1982 to February 5, 1983 with Fiona Fullerton, William Squire and Robert Meadmore.
• An 18-month U.S. tour, starring Michael York as Arthur, Rachel York (no relation) as Guenevere, and James Barbour as Lancelot, began on January 9, 2007 and ended in April 2008. Alan Jay Lerner's son, Michael Lerner, contributed changes to the libretto, and Glenn Casale directed.^[31] From June 27–30, 2007, the tour played at Toronto's Hummingbird Centre, where the musical had premiered in 1960.^[32][33] While the 2007 Michael York tour was performing across the U.S., Candlewood International ran a separate, largely non-equity national tour that played to cities not visited by the union tour. The Morgan le Fay character was removed, as it had been in all previous productions since 1964. Jeff Buchsbaum directed and Paula Sloan choreographed a cast headed by Robert Brown as Arthur, Matthew Posner as Lancelot, Mollie Vogt-Welch as Guenevere, Gregory Van Acker as Sir Sagramore, Geoff Lutz as Mordred, and Heather Faith Stricker as Lady Catherine.
• From May 7 to May 10, 2008, the New York Philharmonic presented five semi-staged concerts of Camelot directed by Lonny Price and produced by Thomas Z. Shepard and starring Gabriel Byrne as King Arthur, Marin Mazzie as Guenevere, and Nathan Gunn as Lancelot. It featured Christopher Lloyd as Pellinore, Stacy Keach as Merlyn, Marc Kudisch as Lionel, Bobby Steggert as Mordred, Will Swenson as Sagramore, Christopher Sieber as Dinadan, Fran Drescher as Morgan le Fay and Rishi Mutalik as Tom of Warwick. The May 8 performance was broadcast nationally on Live from Lincoln Center on PBS.^[34]
• Camelot was produced in San Francisco at San Francisco Playhouse in July 2013.^[35]
• The 2018 production at Sidney Harman Hall set box office records for the Shakespeare Theatre Company in Washington, DC.^[36]
• In 2019, there was a Lincoln Center Theater gala production of Camelot starring Lin Manuel Miranda and Jordan Donica as Arthur and Lancelot respectively.^[37]
• A semi-staged concert performance of the musical ran at the Watermill Theatre, Newbury from 17 August to the 5th of September 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the concerts were held outdoors in the theatre's gardens and the audience were seated at socially distanced tables. It was directed by The Watermill Theatre's Artistic Director Paul Hart. The cast included real life married couple Michael Jibson & Caroline Sheen as Arthur and Guenevere, Marc Antolin as Lancelot and Peter Dukes as Mordred.

Original casts

Original Broadway production

1980 Broadway revival

Source: IBDB^[43]

2023 Broadway revival