Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
In this quintessentially and unmistakably American take on the war between the sexes, seven empowered frontier women take charge of their destinies (and their men) in 1850s Oregon.
Show Essentials
19
Roles
+ Ensemble
PG
Rated
2
Acts

Full Synopsis

Act One

It is 1850. Adam Pontipee is on his farm, packing his gear in preparation for a trip to town. He looks downriver in anticipation. He hasn't met her yet, but he's looking for the gal for him ("Adam Introduction"). When he arrives in the town, the suitors, brides and townsfolk are dancing together, making it clear that there are already ten men for every woman in town ("Gallant and Correct"). At Mayor Hoallum's trading store, Adam offers to trade some of his beavers for a bride; Mrs. Hoallum is not pleased by the suggestion. Despite the odds against him, the girls in the town are drawn to Adam, and he goes around town to meet them, vowing not to leave until he's found a wife. He sees Milly going into Mr. Sander's restaurant and is intrigued. ("Bless Your Beautiful Hide.")

Adam goes into the restaurant and, not only sees Mr. Sander ordering Milly around, but also the Lumbermen upon whom she is waiting, giving her a hard time. When one of the Lumbermen grabs Milly, Adam takes issue and throws him out the door. Milly thanks him with a bowl of stew, which she cooked. This information, along with everything else, makes Adam certain that Milly is the "gal" for him. He finds her chopping wood out back and introduces himself. They talk about how she lives alone after having arrived in town a few months back; her parents died on the trail. He proposes marriage. Milly is taken aback because she barely knows him, but after he describes his farm, she accepts, and feels it might be nice to go somewhere a bit more remote after the restaurant. He goes off to clean up and find a preacher, telling her that he'll be back soon.

Once he's gone, the other women in town question Milly about what she is doing. Mrs. Hoallum can't believe that Milly is marrying a man that she just met. Mrs. Hoallum tries to tell Milly something that she "needs to know" about Adam's family, but Milly doesn't want to hear it, she is sure that he is her dream man. The other women try to warn her of all of the possible complications, but she won't hear them ("Wonderful, Wonderful Day"). Soon after, a clean-shaven Adam returns with a preacher, and they get married.

Adam takes Milly back to his family home. She is surprised to be introduced to an incredibly messy house and his six scruffy brothers: Benjamin, Caleb, Daniel, Ephraim, Frank and Gideon. As Adam explains all the chores that he wants Milly to do, Milly realizes that she should have listened to Mrs. Hoallum and Mrs. Sander. Nevertheless, she begins to make dinner, declaring for herself that she will show them that she will not become their slave ("I Married Seven Brothers"). When she complains to Adam about his brothers' atrocious table manners, he doesn't understand. Frustrated, she lifts the corner of the table – turning the whole supper over onto them – and storms off.

While Milly is locked in her room reading The Bible, the brothers wait to see what Adam will do, as he reluctantly waits downstairs. Finally, in order to save face in front of them, Adam goes to her and tries to act as if nothing is wrong. However, Milly confronts him, saying that he doesn't want a wife... he wants a hired girl! To Milly, a hired girl's "got a right to her own sleeping place." She sends him outside to sleep in a tree, and he has to sheepishly walk down the stairs, past his brothers. Once out in the tree, Adam makes a big show of trying to find a comfortable position in which to lie. In the ensuing comic scene, he wins Milly over with his contrition and repeated insistence that he wanted to marry her, not just find a hired girl. He insists that his brothers will soon have wives of their own, and it will be just them.

The next morning, Milly wakes up the brothers, telling them that she has washed their clothes, and they're now out on the line. She requests that they give her the undergarments in which they were sleeping. While the brothers refuse at first, they eventually give in as Milly "seduces" them with hotcakes, bacon and coffee. After removing their dirty clothes, the brothers re-emerge, covered in blankets, and start breakfast. Gideon tells Milly that he's glad she is the lady that Adam chose for his wife. He and the others confess that they, too, would like wives, but don't know anything about women. Milly decides to teach them etiquette so that they can go to the next social in town and meet some nice girls ("Goin' Courting"). Time passes, and the men transform themselves from wild country bumpkins to clean-shaven gentlemen.

At the social, Milly introduces each of the brothers to a prospective bride by pairing them up to help carry in the dishes: Dorcas and Benjamin, Ruth and Caleb, Liza and Daniel, Martha and Ephraim, Sarah and Frank, and Alice and Gideon. However, the town suitors do not take kindly to the arrival of the Pontipee Brothers, especially when they see that their dates are rather taken with the handsome lads. As the dance begins, the suitors cut in to claim their dates from the brothers, and tensions escalate ("The Challenge Dance"). Initially, everyone keeps their cool, but when Adam is slugged by one of the townsmen, a fight breaks out and pandemonium reigns.

Back at home, Milly gives the wounded brothers different remedies for their injuries, but Gideon's ailment is of a different nature: he confesses to Adam that he is in love with Alice. Adam tells him not to think of her, because every girl is the same. Simultaneously, Milly reflects on how Adam is the only man for her ("Love Never Goes Away").

The next morning, Benjamin tells Adam that he wants to go to town rather than stay snowed in all winter; it's clear that Gideon's not the only smitten brother. Adam is confounded that his brothers are "grieving" for girls that they just met, but Milly warns him that, if Benjamin leaves, the others will follow. He agrees to talk to them.

Adam sits his brothers down and tells them that they look like a bunch of "lovesick bull calves" and that they should just marry the girls if they love them so much. When Gideon responds that the fight means folks won't let them into town to court the girls, Adam questions the need for courting. He says that they should just do what the Romans did with the Sabine women – steal them. The brothers agree. Adam gathers the necessary equipment and leads them to town ("The Sobbin' Women").

Act Two

When the brothers arrive in town, they each go off to find their respective brides. Adam warns them to stay out of sight or they'll end up with a rifle to their noses. Each devises a plan to lure his bride away from whomever she is with at the moment, and then summarily throws a blanket over her head and carries her off. The one exception is Gideon, who can't bring himself to do that. He scares Alice with a mouse so that she'll faint, and then carries her off. When the townsmen and suitors realize what has happened, they chase the Pontipees back to the farm. The chase causes an avalanche to go off in Echo Pass, trapping the brothers and the brides at the farm (from a head start) and keeping the townspeople and suitors out until spring. The dismayed suitors and townsmen pray for their girls' virtue ("The Suitors' Lament").

Upon arriving at the farm, the brides tell Milly what happened. She is horrified. The brothers realize that they forgot the Parson – meaning that they can't get married until spring. A furious Milly tells the girls that no harm will come to them, so she sends them into the house and tells the men, including Adam, that they must sleep and eat in the barn. Adam and Milly have a heated argument. She is mad about what he's done, and he is mad that she has turned his brothers into "sissies." The brothers side with Milly, admitting that it would be improper to sleep in the house. Adam doesn't agree with them and says that he's leaving. Milly says that he should listen to his brothers. He tells her that, the last time he listened to them, he ended up married to her and he would have been better off with a hired girl. He insists that she doesn't know how hard it is to run the farm, like his parents did – Adam's Ma obeyed his Pa when times were tough ("Where Were You?"). He leaves.

The other six brothers stay in the barn, but want to come into the house. Milly refuses them loudly, but then quietly brings them food and blankets. The girls taunt them with snowballs and tricks. In the barn, the brothers longingly think about their brides ("We Gotta Make It through the Winter"). One day, while the girls are doing chores, the brothers approach them and apologize for what they did. Milly accepts the apology on the girls' behalf, but sends the boys back to their chores. Gideon tells Milly that he's worried about Adam, up on the ridge by himself. He offers to go try to talk to him, but Milly pretends that she doesn't care.

The girls have been placated by the brothers' apology and request to have dinner with them. Milly reminds them of the rules. She then reveals that she will be having Adam's baby, but that he doesn't know. The girls tell Milly that they want to stay with the brothers. She tells them that, if that's true, then they must wait until spring ("We Gotta Make It – Reprise"). Spring comes in the form of a dance that brings the couples closer together ("Spring Dance").

Meanwhile, Gideon finds Adam in the mountains and asks him to come back to the farm. Adam, still angry, has no intention of returning, even after learning that Milly gave birth to a baby girl. Gideon is ashamed of Adam for being so closed-minded. Adam is ashamed of his brothers for letting Milly change them for the worse, as he sees it. Gideon leaves Adam alone to ponder his situation ("Am I Stubborn?").

Back at the Pontipee house, Milly sings a lullaby to her new daughter while everyone else, now happily paired off, gathers around ("Glad That You Were Born"). While everyone sings to the newborn, Adam silently enters the room. Rather than run to his wife and new daughter, he gruffly states that he said he'd be back when the pass opened up and it is now open. The brides are miserable when they hear this news. Milly warns Adam that this will be dangerous for the boys, as they're not welcome in town. Despite this, both girls and brothers are sent off to prepare for the return.

Adam is alone with Milly and the baby. Although he has rehearsed the moment, he's not sure what to say. Finally, he explains that he wants to be with her and the baby... and apologizes. They reconcile ("Love Never Goes Away – Reprise").

While Milly goes to check on the girls, the brothers come to Adam to say that they're not taking the girls back. Adam convinces them that the only way to keep the girls is to take them back to their families. Otherwise, there will be fighting involved, and somebody is bound to get hurt in the process. Milly bursts into the room with a note from the girls, informing everyone that they have run away. The girls don't want to go back. A rather stunned Adam pushes the boys off to find the girls and bring them back. A wacky chase ensues ("The Chase").

During the chase, the girls run right into the townsmen and suitors who have come to "rescue" them, but the women refuse go. Then, all hear the sound of a baby. The Preacher (also Alice's father) asks the girls whose baby it is. Suddenly and simultaneously, the girls declare: "Mine!" The townsfolk react in horror.

Milly and Adam prepare for their wedding, Milly holding the baby ("Wonderful Day – Reprise"). They join the other couples and The Preacher presides over a joint seven-way wedding. Now that they are lawfully wedded men and wives, the brothers kiss the brides, and a wonderful wedding dance ensues ("Wedding Dance / Act II Finale").

Casting
← Back to Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
Cast Size: Medium (11 to 20 performers)
Cast Type: Ensemble Cast
Dance Requirements: Standard

Character Breakdown

Milly
A feisty, beautiful, frontier woman with a vibrant sense of humor. Strong-willed, smart, and unafraid to say how she feels. She falls in love with Adam.
Gender: female
Age: 20 to 30
Vocal range top: E5
Vocal range bottom: G3
Adam
The eldest of seven brothers. A tall and attractive hunk. Farmer and hunter. Vigorous, confident, charming. He falls in love with Milly.
Gender: male
Age: 30 to 40
Vocal range top: A5
Vocal range bottom: B3
Alice
Sweet but very naïve and not too bright. Ultra clean. Very excitable and a hopeless romantic. Falls in love with Gideon.
Gender: female
Age: 16 to 19
Vocal range top: C5
Vocal range bottom: A3
Gideon
The youngest brother. Shy, sensitive, and deeply honest to a fault. Still rough around the edges like his brothers. Eventually falls in love with Alice.
Gender: male
Age: 18 to 21
Vocal range top: G5
Vocal range bottom: C4
Dorcas
She is feisty sexpot. Works in her parents' store and rebels against their overbearing nature. Pushes the dress code and acts as if she is not the virgin that she is. Falls in love with Benjamin.
Gender: female
Age: 20 to 25
Vocal range top: C5
Vocal range bottom: A3
Benjamin
The second eldest and second in command. A driven leader who is as quick to being hot tempered as he is to action. Falls in love with Dorcas.
Gender: male
Age: 25 to 35
Vocal range top: F5
Vocal range bottom: C4
Ruth
A buttoned-down teacher. Very practical with a sensuality underneath. A problem solver. The mother of the group of girls. Falls in love with Caleb.
Gender: female
Age: 20 to 25
Vocal range top: C5
Vocal range bottom: A3
Caleb
A brother. Solid and smart, he a hunter who is unaccustomed to women. The most levelheaded of the brothers. Falls in love with Ruth.
Gender: male
Age: 20 to 30
Vocal range top: F5
Vocal range bottom: C4
Liza
A homebody attached at the hip to Martha. She is very superstitious. Eventually falls in love with Daniel.
Gender: female
Age: 18 to 21
Vocal range top: C5
Vocal range bottom: A3
Daniel
A brother. He is rough-and-tumble, unkempt, and talkative. Falls in love with Liza.
Gender: male
Age: 20 to 25
Vocal range top: F5
Vocal range bottom: C4
Martha
A bit of a goody two-shoes who does everything with Liza. She eventually falls in love with Ephraim.
Gender: female
Age: 18 to 22
Vocal range top: C5
Vocal range bottom: A3
Ephraim
A brother. Rough-and-tumble and unkempt. He is like a twin with Daniel, but less talkative. Falls in love with Martha.
Gender: male
Age: 20 to 25
Vocal range top: F5
Vocal range bottom: C4
Sarah
A gardener and "tom boy" raised in a family of boys. She has a fiery sense of exuberance to match her red hair. Falls in love with Frank.
Gender: female
Age: 15 to 20
Vocal range top: C5
Vocal range bottom: A3
Frank
A brother. He is a hot head who is always ready to erupt. Reluctant to do anything that might be classified as sissy. The most rugged and "uncivilized" of all the brothers. Falls in love with Sarah.
Gender: male
Age: 20 to 25
Vocal range top: F5
Vocal range bottom: C4
Mr. Hoallum
Owner of the general store. He is also the town mayor and Dorcas' dad. Plays guitar and banjo, and is very protective of his daughter and girls in town.
Gender: male
Age: 45 to 65
Vocal range top: G5
Vocal range bottom: C4
Mrs. Hoallum
Mr. Hoallum's wife and Dorcas' mother. She is an accordionist. Snobby and uptight. Like her husband, she does not like Adam and his brothers.
Gender: female
Age: 40 to 55
Vocal range top: D5
Vocal range bottom: A3
Mr. Sander
Owner of the local restaurant and Ruth's father. Gruff and grumpy. He is conservative and very protective of his daughter.
Gender: male
Age: 45 to 65
Vocal range top: E5
Vocal range bottom: A3
Mrs. Sander
Mr. Sander's wife and Ruth's mother. Plays jug, washboard bass, and the autoharp. Snobby and conservative.
Gender: female
Age: 40 to 55
Vocal range top: D5
Vocal range bottom: A3
Preacher
Alice's father. A peaceful and deeply religious man who loves his daughter. Dislikes confrontation. He is a violinist.
Gender: male
Age: 40 to 55
Vocal range top: E5
Vocal range bottom: C4
Ensemble
Brothers; Lumbermen; Townsboys; Townsgirls; Suitors (Jeb, Joel, Nathan, Luke, Matt, Zeke)
Full Song List
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers: Overture
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers: Bless Your Beautiful Hide
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers: Wonderful, Wonderful Day
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers: Goin' Courtin'
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers: Love Never Goes Away
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers: Sobbin' Women
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers: Suitors's Lament
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers: We Gotta Make It Through The Winter
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers: Glad That You Were Born

Show History

Inspiration


Seven Brides for Seven Brothers began life as a fabulously successful MGM musical in 1954. Directed by Stanley Donen, with music by Saul Chaplin and Gene de Paul, and lyrics by Johnny Mercer, it starred Howard Keel, Jane Powell and Jacques D'Amboise. It also featured some of the greatest and most exciting choreography ever captured on film, created by Michael Kidd. The script (by Albert Hackett, Frances Goodrich and Dorothy Kingsley) is based on the short story, The Sobbin' Women by Stephen Vincent Bent, which was based, in turn, on the Ancient Roman legend of The Rape of the Sabine Women. The film was a 1954 Oscar nominee for Best Picture.

Critical Reaction

"This 'feel good,' all new presentation of Seven Brides for Seven Brothers brilliantly combines all elements that superb theatre represents. Columbo's inspiring dance numbers, accompany Kasha and Hirschhorn's marvelous new songs, amid Louizos' unique eye catching sets. Schwartz' exceptional direction of these 1850s frontier brothers and the blushing wives they kidnap, along with the acting expertise of Watts, Dawson and the contributions of the entire very motivated team, is a moment in theatre for all ages, not to be missed."
– New York Daily News



"...the show offers non-stop pleasure."
– NY Times



"The show is a spectacularly entertaining success: comedy taken with a lighthearted affection, comedy, sung with gusto and danced with celebratory muscular grace. It's exciting and joyful, warm-spirited, certainly funny and definitely sunny. I love this version of marital merriment so much I want to marry it."
– EDGE Publications



"The musical... fairly explodes off the stage in this robust and exuberant revival."
– Show Business Weekly



"This high energy musical is stupendous from start to finish with fabulous direction by Scott Schwartz, excellent musical direction by Ed Goldschneider and show stopping choreography by Patti Colombo. Her breathtaking athletic ballet choreography is performed perfectly by this multi talented cast. Their acting, dancing and vocal prowess makes this show into a masterpiece. Run, do not walk, to purchase your ticket because this is the must see show of the season. Bravo."
– Theatre Mirror

Connect

Billing

Based on the MGM film and The Sobbin' Women by Stephen Vincent Benet

Requirements

You must give the authors/creators billing credits, as specified in the Production Contract, in a conspicuous manner on the first page of credits in all programs and on houseboards, displays and in all other advertising announcements of any kind.
Percentages listed indicate required type size in relation to title size.
SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS
(100%) 
 
Book by 
LAWRENCE KASHA and DAVID LANDAY
(50%) 
 
Lyrics by
JOHNNY MERCER
(50%)
Music by
GENE de PAUL
(50%)
New Songs by
AL KASHA and JOEL HIRSCHHORN
(50%)
Based on the MGM Film and 
"The Sobbin' Women" by Stephen Vincent Benet
(20%)
 
Originally Directed for Broadway by LAWRENCE KASHA
(30%) 
 
Originally Produced on Broadway by KASLAN PRODUCTIONS, INC.
(30%)
 
Arranger shall receive the following credit on the title page of all programs used in all productions of the Play:                               
          "Dance Music Arrangements by Sam Davis"
 
The Arranger's billing shall appear in a size and boldness of type equal in all respects to the size and boldness of type of the billing accorded to the designers of the Play and shall be accorded wherever and whenever the names of the designers of the Play are accorded billing.                           
In addition, Arranger shall be entitled to an approved bio in all programs whenever the music or design team members receive bios in the program.       
MTI Billing
In accordance with the Dramatic Performing Rights License, all publicity materials (posters, programs, etc.) MUST include the following credit:
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
Is presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI).
All authorized performance materials are also supplied by MTI.
421 West 54th Street, New York, NY 10019
Phone: 212-541-4684 Fax: 212-397-4684
www.MTIShows.com
 
Additional Billing Requirements

In addition to the biographies linked above, the biography for Sam Davis may be found here. - See more at: http://www.mtishows.com/show_detail.asp?showid=000393#sthash.dJIzQqIS.dpuf

Video Warning

In accordance with the Performance License, you MUST include the following warning in all programs and in a pre-show announcement:

ANY VIDEO AND/OR AUDIO RECORDING OF THIS PRODUCTION IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED.

Included Materials

ItemQuantity Included
LIBRETTO/VOCAL BOOK25
PIANO CONDUCTOR'S SCORE2

Production Resources

Resource
FULL SCORE ACT 1
FULL SCORE ACT 2
HOW DOES THE SHOW GO ON-10/CS
HOW DOES THE SHOW GO ON?
LOGO TEES SIX-PACK ADULT LARGE
LOGO TEES SIX-PACK ADULT MEDIUM
LOGO TEES SIX-PACK ADULT SMALL
LOGO TEES SIX-PACK ADULT X-LARGE
LOGO TEES SIX-PACK ADULT XX-LARGE
LOGO TEES SIX-PACK CHILD LARGE
LOGO TEES SIX-PACK CHILD MEDIUM
LOGO TEES SIX-PACK CHILD SMALL
PERFORMANCE ACCOMPANIMENT RECORDING
PRODUCTIONPRO-DIGITAL SCRIPT/SCORE
REFERENCE RECORDING
REHEARSAL ACCOMPANIMENT RECORDING
REHEARSCORE APP
STAGE MANAGER SCRIPT
STAGE WRITE APPLICATION
TRANSPOSITIONS-ON-DEMAND

STANDARD ORCHESTRATION

InstrumentationDoubling
BASS
DRUMSBELLS , COWBELL , RATCHET , SLEIGH BELLS , SLIDE WHISTLE , TAMBOURINE , TRAP SET , TRIANGLE , WOODBLOCKS , 2 TIMPANI (26",29") , 5 TEMPLE BLOCKS
GUITAR
HORN
HORN 2
KEYBOARD 1
KEYBOARD 2
REED 1FLUTE , PICCOLO
REED 2ENGLISH HORN , OBOE
REED 3CLARINET , FLUTE
REED 4BASSOON , CLARINET
TROMBONE
TRUMPET
TRUMPET 2
VIOLIN
VIOLIN 2
VIOLIN 3