Set in Virginia during the Civil War, Shenandoah was a musical based on a 1965 Jimmy Stewart movie. Opening in 1975, the show played for 1,050 performances on Broadway. While it lost the Tony for Best Musical to The Wiz, John Cullum won for Best Actor and it also won Best Book. For this Retrospective Series, I was able to view a 1994 production at the Goodspeed Opera House (East Haddam, CT) which has been preserved in the New York Public Library’s Theater on Film and Tape. Having just recently revisited The Wiz, I believe Shenandoah is the better musical.
“Raise the Flag of Dixie” opens this show with Confederate and Union soldiers setting the action. We quickly go to the Anderson’s 500 acre family farm. Charlie Anderson is a widower with many sons and a couple of daughters. As to why the family is ignoring the war despite its proximity, Charlie sings “I’ve Heard It All Before” noting “they always got a holy cause that’s worth dying for.” In the local church, the preacher condemns the northern barbarians and clearly states that the congregation’s duty is to God, to our neighbors and to the state of Virginia and our way of life.
Shenandoah’s plot then takes off with the family visited by some Confederate soldiers attempting to recruit Charlie’s sons into the war. An excellent scene is punctuated by “Next to Lovin’ (I Like Fightin’),” as the sons sing “next to smelling me a rose, I like thumpin’ on some toes.” Famous horseplay choreography follows with a recognizable nod to Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. As this story unfolds, the Anderson’s are drawn into the conflict which surrounds them and threatens their family and farm.
There are two meditations in this show, one in each Act. Charlie talks to his dead wife Martha. “Virginia’s gone crazy, ma. Everybody’s screaming state’s rights, war.” In the song “Meditation” we hear that “this farm don’t belong to Virginia…. my sons bleed, but not for the South.” While Shenandoah is definitely a period piece, its messages still have relevance today: “there’s always one trouble with the truth, once you see it you’re stuck with it. And it’s always in the middle, right between two angry ideas.” Given our current political climate, it would seem that now is exactly the right time to revive this show.
Shenandoah is a well-written story. There are romances, newborns and friendships. The strength of the book is this juxtaposition of family, values and a war which does and does not concern them. The youngest son Robert has a black best friend Gabriel who gets to sing the show’s most famous number “Freedom” with Robert’s sister at the start of Act II. Things get darker while Charlie tries to convince his grown children that “Papa’s Gonna Make It Alright.” In the final meditation, Charlie summarizes “it’s like all wars, the undertaker is the winner.”
The critics were a bit mixed in their reviews of Shenandoah ranging from dumb story to very likable to first-rate. This Goodspeed production makes a strong case for this show. The family relationships, in particular the nearly grown adult children, come across organically. That is obviously a credit to the actors and director. Because of that, the story picks up emotional depth and dimensions on the path to its climatic ending.
As a musical, I’d say The Wiz has far better tunes than the country and western tinged score of Shenandoah. As an evening’s entertainment, I’d say that Shenandoah is the stronger piece overall. This story about civil rights, family values, states’ right and war remains relevant. A show primed and ready for a new generation of theatergoers to experience.