Radio Gals
by Mark Hardwick, Mike Craver

Name: Radio Gals
Brand: Mark Hardwick
SKU: 9780573696459
Rating: 4 (3 reviews)

Radio Gals Book Cover — Radio Gals Cover

Highlights

Small Cast

Female

Male

90 mins 1920s Reduced Casting (Doubling Possible) Interior Set Period Costumes American

Synopsis

The official Samuel French script of RADIO GALS."RADIO GALS" is a musical by Mike Craver and Mark Hardwick, set in the late l920's, and concerning an enterprising woman, Hazel Hunt, of Cedar Ridge, Arkansas who, upon her retirement as the town music teacher, receives a Western Electric 500 watt radio transmitter and begins broadcasting as radio station "WGAL".

What comes out over the local airwaves is a small town diary, calendar, and stream of consciousness -- sort of a Molly Bloom crossed with the Farmers' Almanac -- with generous dollops of singing and playing by Hazel's "all-girl" orchestra, "the Hazelnuts", and that lovesick flapper Gladys Fritts.

However, due to Hazel's habit of "channel wandering", her broadcasts are not always so local.

And listeners as far away as Montreal and Manhattan can testify.

Enter O. B. Abbott, Federal Radio Inspector, intent on rescuing the airwaves from gypsies like Hazel Hunt.

However, Mr. Abbott soon falls prey to the blandishments of the Hazelnuts, and the Shangri-La that is Cedar Ridge.

Inspector Abbott, it turns out, also has a fine tenor voice, plays a mean accordion, and in the course of things falls for the flapper...

Press Reviews

"The nonstop music keeps the action cranking along like a well-tuned Model T."
— The Los Angeles Times

"The magic of Radio Gals is in its loving re-creation of America's innocent musical past. Hardwick and Craver have brilliantly recaptured the spirit of small-town America in the '20s with a remarkable sense of authenticity. This is a fun, moving tribute to the pure, lighthearted innocence that was once America, and may still be lurking somewhere deep in our hearts."
— Variety

"Radio Gals is a throwback to summer theatre the way it used to be. It is dizzy, daffy and silly, demanding enough for the performers to have fun exerting themselves, undemanding enough for the audience to relax and have a good time... Radio Gals salutes the core American value of individual initiative. And while it has fun with the absurd side of earlier styles of popular entertainment, it also cherishes their enduring value, and that is not an exercise in nostalgia."
— The Boston Globe

Characters

Character	Gender	Age	Description
Gladys Fritts Middle-aged; more dramatic than Hazel; thin; high strung, and single; Gladys is a small town gal who yearns for greater horizons. She considers herself artistic and sophisticated. She possesses a deep love of poetry, and has studied voice. Vocal Requirements: Lyric soprano.	female	—	Middle-aged; more dramatic than Hazel; thin; high strung, and single; Gladys is a small town gal who yearns for greater horizons. She considers herself artistic and sophisticated. She possesses a deep love of poetry, and has studied voice. Vocal Requirements: Lyric soprano.
O.B. Abbott 35-45; bureaucratic and self-important, yet underneath Abbott has the soul of a poet. Abbott is a “closet” musician and singer. Vocal requirements: Tenor or light baritone. Plays accordion.	—	35-45	35-45; bureaucratic and self-important, yet underneath Abbott has the soul of a poet. Abbott is a “closet” musician and singer. Vocal requirements: Tenor or light baritone. Plays accordion.
America Breezy; sunny; open young woman. Unsophisticated, but enthusiastic. Vocal Requirements: Soprano w/country belt. Violin, saxophone, clarinet, flute.	female	—	Breezy; sunny; open young woman. Unsophisticated, but enthusiastic. Vocal Requirements: Soprano w/country belt. Violin, saxophone, clarinet, flute.
Rennabelle America's cousin, perhaps a little older. Somewhat more tomboyish and “liberated.” Vocal Requirements: Alto, with belt. Drums, trumpet.	—	—	America's cousin, perhaps a little older. Somewhat more tomboyish and “liberated.” Vocal Requirements: Alto, with belt. Drums, trumpet.
Miss Azillee Swindle Elderly lady; friend and associate of Hazel’s. Vocal Requirements: Tenor/light baritone w/falsetto. Upright bass, tuba, guitar.	female	—	Elderly lady; friend and associate of Hazel’s. Vocal Requirements: Tenor/light baritone w/falsetto. Upright bass, tuba, guitar.
Miss Mabel Swindle Sister to Azilee; elderly lady; friend and associate of Hazel’s. Vocal Requirements: Tenor/baritone w/falsetto. Piano.Note: Two of the elderly lady musicians/characters can be played by men dressed as elderly ladies. Not neccessary, but fun!	female	—	Sister to Azilee; elderly lady; friend and associate of Hazel’s. Vocal Requirements: Tenor/baritone w/falsetto. Piano.Note: Two of the elderly lady musicians/characters can be played by men dressed as elderly ladies. Not neccessary, but fun!
Hazel Hunt Retirement age; matronly; shrewd; enthusiastic; perhaps a bit dotty, but definitely in control; Hazel is the town’s beloved music teacher and patroness of the arts. Vocal Requirements: Low female range.	female	—	Retirement age; matronly; shrewd; enthusiastic; perhaps a bit dotty, but definitely in control; Hazel is the town’s beloved music teacher and patroness of the arts. Vocal Requirements: Low female range.