Once on This Island 🌴

🌴 Once on This Island

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Once on This Island is a one-act musical with a book and lyrics by Lynn Ahrens and music by Stephen Flaherty. Based on the 1985 novel My Love, My Love; or, The Peasant Girl by Rosa Guy, it is set in the French Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean Sea. The show includes elements of the Romeo and Juliet story and elements of the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale The Little Mermaid. It concerns a peasant girl on a tropical island, who uses the power of love to bring together people of different social classes.

The original Broadway production ran from 1990 to 1991, and the West End production opened in 1994, where it won the 1995 Olivier Award for Best New Musical. The musical is currently being revived on Broadway in a production that opened on December 3, 2017 after being in previews since November 9, 2017 at the Circle in the Square Theatre.

Lynn Aherns and Stephen Flaherty’s Once on This Island is back! This gorgeous retelling of one of musical theater’s most beloved stories is bursting with Caribbean colors, rhythms and dance.

Synopsis

One stormy night in the Antilles archipelago, thunder booms, making a small girl cry in fear. To comfort her, the village storytellers tell her the story of Ti Moune, a peasant girl who falls in love with a grand homme, Daniel Beauxhomme – a story of life, pain, love, grief, faith, and hope. 

In this story, four gods: (GIFs by desiree-dieu-donne)

Asaka: Mother of the Earth

Agwé: God of Water

Erzulie: Goddess of Love

Papa Ge (Guédé): Demon of Death

rule an island known as the Jewel of the Antilles (also known as Haiti) where poor peasants worship them (Prologue/"We Dance"). The peasants, "black as night", live on one side of the island, and the grands hommes, lighter-skinned descendants of the original French planters and their slaves, live on the other. One day, Agwe unleashes a terrible storm upon the island, which in turn causes a disastrous flood, wiping out many villages. However, the gods save the life of a little orphan named Ti Moune by placing her in a tree above the flood's waves. She is found and subsequently adopted by the peasants Mama Euralie and Tonton Julian ("One Small Girl").

Years afterwards, a grown-up Ti Moune prays to the Gods to let her know her purpose, and to let her be like the fast-driving strangers on the roads near her village - the grands hommes ("Waiting for Life"). Hearing her plea, the Gods laugh at her. However, Erzulie says to give her love, because it is stronger than any of the other elements. Offended, Papa Ge proposes a bet to prove which is stronger: love or death. Agwe arranges for the car of Daniel Beauxhomme, a young grande homme, to crash during a storm so that Ti Moune may meet Daniel and restore him to health ("And The Gods Heard Her Prayer/Rain"). Despite the objections of the other peasants including her own parents, Ti Moune helps the intruder recover ("Pray"). Ti Moune falls in love with the stranger and as she cares for the unconscious boy, she imagines he loves her too. When Papa Ge comes to take Daniel's life, Ti Moune offers her life in exchange for Daniel's so that he will not die ("Forever Yours"). Papa Ge is angry but leaves, hinting he will return – sooner or later, as her life now belongs to him.

Tonton travels to the other side of the Island to seek Daniel's family at the Hotel Beauxhomme. When Tonton returns, he brings with him the story of Daniel's people: Four generations ago, during the Napoleonic era, a French aristocrat named Armand colonised the island. Although Armand had a wife, he had affairs with several natives, one of which bore him a son, named Beauxhomme. When Beauxhomme grew up, war broke out between the peasant locals and the French. The peasants won the war with Beauxhomme's help. Beauxhomme banishes Armand back to France, but before leaving, Armand curses Beauxhomme and his descendents saying their "black blood will keep them forever on the island, while their hearts yearn forever for France." To this day the curse causes future Beauxhommes to alienate the peasants for reminding them of their homeland ("The Sad Tale of the Beauxhommes") as well as some of Daniel's people to take the boy back. Ti Moune is tearfully separated from Daniel and tells her parents that she will go after Daniel to marry him. Ti Moune's parents reluctantly let her go ("Ti Moune"). During her travels, she encounters the goddess Asaka who tells her not to fear as the Earth will give her everything she needs on her journey to Daniel ("Mama Will Provide"). Ti Moune travels across the island ("Waiting For Life (Reprise)"). The storytellers then relate the story of her difficult journey to the city (including being forced to wear too-tight shoes) through the hotel gates and finding Daniel's room ("Some Say"). Daniel, still ill and unable to walk, does not remember her but believes her after she describes the scar on his chest. As they stay together, Erzulie gives them the gift of love ("Human Heart"). Daniel ignores the townspeople's gossiping ("Pray (Reprise)") over the unlikely relationship of a rich Beauxhomme and a poor peasant. Daniel delights in Ti Moune's differences from the rich girls in his life, noting that "some girls you marry, some you love" ("Some Girls").

At a ball held at the hotel, Andrea Deveraux, a daughter of Daniel's family friends, cajoles Ti Moune to dance for them (her ulterior motive being to make her look bad in front of the grande hommes). Ti Moune does dance and gains the admiration of the rich society members. Afterwards, Ti Moune learns that Daniel is engaged to be married to Andrea ("When We Are Wed"). Daniel, reminded of his responsibilities, must go through with the arranged marriage, although he insists they can be lovers forever. Ti Moune is crushed. Papa Ge reappears and reminds Ti Moune of her promise to exchange her life for Daniel's – but says she can revoke the bargain if she kills Daniel ("Promises/Forever Yours (Reprise)"). Ti Moune enters Daniel's room with a knife, but she still loves him too much to kill him - proving love is stronger than death. However, Daniel finds Ti Moune with the knife. Appalled at the attempted murder, the Beauxhommes throw her out of the hotel grounds.

She waits for days to meet Daniel at the gate. As Daniel and Andrea are married, they follow an old tradition of throwing coins to the peasants outside the hotel gates. Ti Moune calls to Daniel who places a silver coin in Ti Moune's hand and leaves. The storytellers tell how Erzulie took her by the hand and led her to the ocean where Agwé allowed her to drown peacefully. Papa Ge received her gently and brought her back to shore where Asaka transformed her into a tree ("A Part Of Us").

The tree becomes a celebration of life and love that cracks open the gates of the hotel, allowing those of all social statuses to become one. Her legacy brings together another peasant girl and a new young grande homme, Daniel's son, as they play in her branches. The storytellers share with them a retelling of the story how a peasant girl proved the power of love could bring together the people of the island. It helps us to remember, to forgive - and out of what we live and we believe, our lives become the stories that we weave. As the musical ends, the little girl who was frightened by the storm begins to retell the story herself ("Why We Tell The Story").

Characters

1. Ti Moune - A peasant girl.
2. Little Ti Moune - Ti Moune as a child.
3. Daniel Beauxhomme - A grande homme; Ti Moune's love interest ("Beauxhomme" means "beautiful man").
4. Papa Ge - The sly Demon of Death who is the main antagonist of the show. He tricks the main character into giving her life for another. He is seen as a skeleton and is very sneaky. The people on the island fear him because of what he represents: the unknown that is death.
5. Erzulie - beautiful Goddess of Love; the foil to Papa Ge
6. Agwe - God of Water
7. Asaka - Mother of the Earth
8. Mama Euralie - Ti Moune's adoptive mother
9. Tonton Julian - Ti Moune's adoptive father
10. Andrea Deveraux - Daniel's promised wife; also "Madame Armand"
11. Armand Beauxhomme - Daniel's stern father.
12. "Armand" - The ancestor of Armand.
13. Gatekeeper - The Hotel Beauxhomme's fierce guard (commonly played by Armand).
14. The Little Girl - A young girl who is told the story of Ti Moune.
15. Daniel's Son - Daniel's young son (commonly played by Daniel's actor).
    Storytellers/Gossips - Various Grands Hommes and peasants (in most productions, the storytellers are shown as also playing the parts of the Gods).

Note: The original cast was chosen along racial lines with darker-skinned actors portraying the peasants and lighter-skinned actors portraying the upper-class landowners. In the script, the writers provide small line changes that can be used to remove references to skin color to accommodate multi-ethnic productions, while preserving the storyline about differences between the upper and lower classes. 

Production history

Once on This Island was originally staged at Off-Broadway's Playwrights Horizons, running from May 6, 1990 through May 27, 1990. The Broadway production opened on October 18, 1990 at the Booth Theatre and closed on December 1, 1991, after 469 performances and 19 previews. With direction and choreography by Graciela Daniele, the musical featured LaChanze as Ti Moune, Jerry Dixon as Daniel, Andrea Frierson as Erzulie, Sheila Gibbs as Mama Euralie, Kecia Lewis as Asaka, Gerry McIntyre as Armand, Milton Craig Nealy as Agwe, Eric Riley as Papa Ge, Ellis E. Williams as Tonton Julian and Afi McClendon as Little Ti Moune. In 2002, the original Broadway cast was reunited with special guest Lillias White to perform the show for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS and the Cantor Fitzgerald Relief Fund.

The European premiere took place in 1994, hosted by the Birmingham Rep, and then transferred to the West End Royalty Theatre (now the Peacock Theatre) in September 1994. The production won the Olivier Award for Best New Musical.

The musical was revived

1. in the UK in 2009 at Birmingham Rep, Nottingham Playhouse, and the Hackney Empire Theatre in London. Susie McKenna directed, with Sharon D. Clarke reprising her 1994 role as Asaka.
2. In June 2012, the Paper Mill Playhouse presented a production directed by Thomas Kail, Syesha Mercado as Ti Moune and Darius de Haas as Agwe.

The first Broadway revival of Once on This Island, planned by producer Ken Davenport and directed by Michael Arden, began previews on November 9, 2017 and officially opened on December 3 at the Circle in the Square Theatre. The choreographer is Camille A. Brown. The cast includes Hailey Kilgore as Ti Moune, Isaac Powell as Daniel, Alysha Deslorieux as Andrea, Phillip Boykin as Tonton Julian, Kenita R. Miller as Mama Euralie, Alex Newell as Asaka, Merle Dandridge as Papa Ge, Quentin Earl Darrington as Agwe, Lea Salonga as Erzulie and David Jennings as Armand.

1. Music     Stephen Flaherty
2. Lyrics     Lynn Ahrens
3. Book     Lynn Ahrens
4. Basis     My Love, My Love; or, The Peasant Girl
5. by Rosa Guy
6. Productions     1990 Broadway
7. 1994 UK/European Premiere
8. 1995 West End
9. 2009 UK Revival
10. 2017 Broadway revival

SOURCE:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Once_on_This_Island

GIFs By:   desiree-dieu-donne

http://desiree-dieu-donne.tumblr.com/post/168551507989/alluringlore-desiree-dieu-donne-ahh-such
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