Not All ‘Days of Wine and Roses’ Are Created Equal

The new musical’s libretto provides the marvelous leads, Kelli O’Hara and Brian d’Arcy James, with dialogue that can be fresh, funny, and wrenching, even if the book never fully shakes off the dated preachiness of the movie.

Ahron R. Foster
Brian d’Arcy James and Kelli O’Hara in 'Days of Wine and Roses.' Ahron R. Foster

Many consider the 1962 film “Days of Wine and Roses” an enduring classic even though its only Academy Award was for Henry Mancini and Johnny Mercer’s title song, which was subsequently covered by Frank Sinatra, Nancy Wilson, and Marvin Gaye, among other greats. Yet the tune, which is not included in Craig Lucas and composer/lyricist Adam Guettel’s new musical adaptation of the movie, was a bigger hit for Andy Williams, whose sentimental version hasn’t exactly aged like fine wine.

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