Broadway Gems, pt. 3: Martin Guerre

The next musical in the series may be more well known for what didn't occur rather than what did. Originally touted as being the next epic "Mackintosh" Broadway show following in the steps of Les Miserables, Martin Guerre never actually made it to Broadway.

After opening in West End's Prince Edward Theatre on July 10, 1996 to reviews ranging from tepid to outright hostile, the show underwent a dramatic (no pun intended) rewrite that resulted in almost an entirely different libretto and a shift in character focus to explore the lead female role to a greater extent. Despite these changes, producers decided the show would not be ready for a Broadway opening and ended its run at L.A.'s Ahmanson Theatre in 2000. While it never had the chance to earn any Tony nominations, it did win the 1997 Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Musical.

The story is based on a real-life case of identity theft in medieval France. In an era when Catholics and Protestants ended their arguments with bloodshed, the religious community of Artegat arranges a marriage between Martin Guerre and Bertrande de Rols, both pre-teens at the time. Too young and scared to be a husband, Martin won't consummate the marriage and runs away to fight the Huguenots. He's wounded saving his friend, Arnaud Du Thil, who promises to return to Artegat to tell Martin's wife of his fate.

Upon Arnaud's arrival, however, the villagers think he is Martin and invite him to return to the life he "left behind"--much to the chagrin of Guillaume, who's had his eye on Bertrande since childhood. Arnaud still plans to keep his word...until he meets Bertrande. When Guillaume questions his identity, a trial is called to determine who he really is. Further complications arise when we see that Martin is, in fact, still alive...

Religious intolerance and the effects of mass hysteria are the backdrop for this love triangle (er, square?), answering the age-old question once and for all--"what's in a name?"

As with the other shows in this series I recommend getting the CD. There are two versions: the 1996 UK opening cast, and the post-renovation libretto that almost made it to Broadway. I prefer the latter, as it seems to be more concise and focused in its approach, but I can't find many (or any) videos on YouTube to reflect the version I recommend. That said, here's one clip of the first solo to give you a feel for the overall tone in the show:

I'm Martin Guerre: Martin explains how and why he left Artegat.


Thankfully I did find some audio clips of songs on the Internet. You'll have to get the CD if you want to hear the rest of the songs. if for some reason the links below don't work, here's the page you can go to for them: http://www.cduniverse.com/search/xx/music/pid/1201966/a/Martin+Guerre+(1999).htm

Don't: Arnaud fights his feelings for Bertrande, who has fallen for him in place of a husband who never accepted her.

Holy Fight: Bertrande takes Arnaud to a secret Protestant meeting, where believers steel themselves for an impending clash with the town's Catholics.

Who?: With what I consider brilliant lyrics, the village idiot Benoit is called to the stand to reveal Arnaud's name and cleverly flips every word back at the accusers.

The Imposter Is Here: The judge and witnesses begin to question what the word "identity" really means.

Justice Will Be Done: Guillaume uses the tension between religious factions to wage war against Bertrande and her lover. On an ironic note, this song has often been compared to Enjolras' "Do You Hear The People Sing?" from Les Miserables, which isn't surprising considering both songs were done by the same composers. It's interesting to note, however, how two characters with similar fervor can have two drastically different purposes--one fighting for equality of the social classes, the other twisting truth to serve his own selfish ends.

The Burning: Guillaume sets his plan into motion as the Catholic villagers attack their Protestant neighbors.

The Killing: WARNING--don't listen if you don't want a hint as to the ending. Martin and Arnaud both confront Guillaume.

It's truly a shame this show never made it to the Great White Way. When compared to shows like "Hairspray" and "Legally Blonde" I think it would have brought back some much-needed quality to an ailing creative culture.