A to Z Musicals ~ ♬ “A” is for AIN’T MISBEHAVIN’

~ Martha Reynolds

a

‘A Musical Bow to Fats Waller’

After three months in a Manhattan cabaret, Ain’t Misbehavin’ opened on Broadway in May 1978 and ran for nearly four years and 1,604 performances. The musical revue, a tribute to the black musicians of the 20s and 30s, was named after the Fats Waller song of the same name (1929). In a 1941 interview, Waller claimed the song was written while “lodging” in alimony prison, and that is why he was not “misbehavin’.”

The show won a Best Musical Tony Award in 1978 and Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical went to the fabulous Nell Carter (1948-2003), who sings the title song here:

 

 

 

Published by Martha Reynolds

I am the bestselling author of nine novels, including the Swiss Chocolate trilogy and VILLA DEL SOL, which won the 2018 Book Award in Literary Fiction from the Independent Publishers of New England. My newest series includes the books A JINGLE VALLEY WEDDING, APRIL IN GALWAY, and ALL’S WELL IN JINGLE VALLEY. Find my books online at Amazon, locally at Stillwater Books (Pawtucket, Rhode Island) and Ink Fish Books (Warren, Rhode Island).

40 thoughts on “A to Z Musicals ~ ♬ “A” is for AIN’T MISBEHAVIN’”

  1. Pingback: The 2019 A to Z Challenge THEME REVEAL – Martha Reynolds Writes

  4. I LOVE musicals and theatre, and am looking forward to seeing which ones you cover over the course of the challenge. One of my favourite things about living in and around London for a couple of years was the easy access to the West End and all the shows it had to offer. I grew up in a small country town in central Queensland so didn’t get to see a lot of shows when I was younger. As an adult with more disposable income, I would often (a couple of times a year) fly to Brisbane or Melbourne to see a show or two. Now I live in Brisbane, I love that I only have to pay for the ticket itself and not flights and accommodation! All the best with the challenge!
    Ros from Fangirl Stitches

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  5. Hi Martha, I was going to do the theme musicals in the AtoZChallenge but then just thought I would follow you and relive my memories through your challenge. I changed my theme to Hockey. My true passion as I have raised a lot of boys and they love hockey. It was either come to the table and eat or go hungry. I decided to join and I’m glad I did. We have made so many happy memories plus it’s hard to find things to share with your son’s when they become grown men.
    The theater has always played a huge part in our lives. Our oldest got his piano performance degree and plays in the pit for musicals. Our other son’s are professional Ballet Dancers on Richmomd Ballet and one of them is actually choreographing his own ballet to the music of Phillip Glass. It will debut this week out in Richmond !!!! They have danced on Joffrey in Chicago, Houston Ballet, San Francisco. We couldn’t be prouder. It’s a hard life, especially the traveling companies, but they are young. We love, love, love the theater so I’ll be following your challenge. Good Luck and Blessings ❤

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      1. It’s a great motivator for me and I love sharing and reading other’s blogs…I’ll be reading along with your challenge and I’m pretty sure you’ll hit a musical that I have a story for. When we raised our family, it wasn’t disneyworld for summer vaca… It was broadway. I’m sure you can appreciate the expense that was for a middle class family of 6 OMG. That’s where the boys fell in love with ballet and the theater. We’ve seen Fosse in New York. I remember on our first trip there, a waiter took pity on us because we had no idea how expensive it was. He gave us the sausage for free. There definitely was some adjusting that needed to be done. My boys audition there all the time and it drive me nuts… I think maybe college would’ve been better. Who knew, it’s their dream ❤

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  11. Awesome! What a great theme Martha. I have heard the title before, but never knew how it came about; musical history……so exciting. Can’t wait for more! Zulu Delta

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  14. I’ve seen Ain’t Misbehavin twice, it is a great show! The musical score can’t help but draw you in to the cast. See it if you have the chance!

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