| Señor Discretion Himself | |
| Lyrics: | Frank Loesser |
| Basis: | a short story by Budd Schulberg |
| Productions: | Arena Stage, Washington, D.C. (2004) |
| Awards: | 2005 Helen Hayes Award Hayes Award (Outstanding Resident Musical) |
Señor Discretion Himself is a musical with book, music and lyrics by Frank Loesser, adapted from the short story of the same name by Budd Schulberg. It was never completed before Loesser died in 1969, but it was revised and "completed" in 2004, with a new libretto by Culture Clash, vocal arrangements by Brian Cimmet and directed by Charles Randolph-Wright.
Señor Discretion Himself ran April 9-May 23, 2004 at Arena Stage[1] in Washington, D.C. The production was directed by Charles Randolph-Wright, choreography by Doriana Sanchez, music direction and vocal arrangements by Brian Cimmet, orchestrations by Larry Hochman. The production starred Shawn Elliott, Elena Shaddow, Ivan Hernandez, Margo Reymundo, and John Bolton.[2]
Frank Loesser worked on what would have been his final musical from 1965 to 1968.[3] Suffering from terminal illness, he ultimately wrote to Budd Schulberg, claiming to have abandoned work on Señor Discretion Himself.
In the 1980s, a developmental workshop was done of the show, for which new arrangements of the music were devised. The libretto was completed by Schulberg, but after the unsuccessful 1985 workshop, the show disappeared back into obscurity.[4]
In 2003, a reading and subsequent workshop were put together in preparation for the 2004 production at Arena Stage.
In 2005, another reading and a demo recording were created.
The workshop
The cast from the world premiere: