Ain’t Misbehavin’
Throw on your dancing shoes and grab a drink as we travel back to the Manhattan nightclubs of the 20s and 30s. This rowdy musical revue celebrates the golden age of swing known as the Harlem Renaissance. Inspired by the music of jazz pianist Fats Waller, five of the hottest voices in Harlem bring down the house with explosive songs that perfectly capture the era’s obsession with pleasure and play. Winner of the 1978 Tony Award for Best Musical, Ain’t Misbehavin’ is a tribute to the musicians that defined a generation and took the nation by storm.
FATS WALLER was born Thomas Wright Waller on May 21, 1904 in New York City. The youngest of 11 children, he began to play the piano at age 6. Waller’s father was a minister who allowed his son to hone his gift on the pipe organ in his church but objected to his pursuit of a career in music. Despite his father’s objections, Fats Waller went on to become a pianist/singer/songwriter, achieving critical and commercial success in both the US and Europe. Musically, Waller is known for his innovation of the Harlem stride-piano style which would lay the groundwork for modern jazz piano. His lyrics highlighted a philosophy of pleasure and play that would become synonymous with his legacy. Waller contracted pneumonia and died on December 15, 1943 at the age of 39. Thirty years later, Murray Horwitz and Richard Maltby, Jr. conceived an idea for a musical revue that would bring to life the momentous years of Waller’s career and the Harlem Renaissance that he fueled. The musical Ain’t Misbehavin’ opened on Broadway at the Longacre Theatre on May
9, 1978 and closed four years later after 1600 performances. The production won
the Tony Award for Best Musical and starred Irene Cara, Nell Carter, Andre
DeShields, Armelia McQueen, and Ken Page. A Broadway revival was staged in 1988
as well as a national tour in 1995 starring the Pointer Sisters.