by Paula Gail Benson
Before she became famous for 84 Charing Cross Road, Helene Hanff wrote a book about her experiences getting started in the theatre. That book, Underfoot in Show Business, recounts a time when Hanff served in the press office for the Theatre Guild. She watched Oklahoma! becoming a reality. Just before the opening, it was decided to add the exclamation point to the title. Hanff spent her day handwriting on the mark on the press releases and was too tired to attend the Broadway opening of the legendary musical.
Interestingly, the original title for Oklahoma!, which
was Away We Go!, also contained an exclamation mark.
Remembering the story of Hanff’s experience made me wonder
how many Broadway musicals had exclamation marks in their titles. When I did a
search, I found a number of people also had been curious about this question
and had written what they had discovered.
In a June
30, 2022 article, David Benkof, a political commentator responsible for the
Broadway Maven online messages, says his friend and mentor, critic and author Peter
Filichia, examined musical titles from Oklahoma! to shows from the early
21st century and found that 5% had exclamation marks.
You can find Broadway musicals that use exclamation marks if the title is a character’s name. Examples include: Eubie! Fiorello! George M! Hello Dolly! Mama Mia! Oliver! Sarafina!
Something Rotten! tells the story of the Bottom
brothers who compete with Shakespeare’s rock star image by creating the
musical. Another Shakespeare inspired musical, Play On! is an adaptation
of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night featuring music by Duke Ellington.
A few musicals have multiple exclamation marks, including: Drat!
The Cat!, I Do! I Do!, and Oh! Calcutta!
Most writing guides urge that exclamation marks be used
sparingly. What does an exclamation mark bring to the title of a musical?
Definitely, it’s an attention getter, but it cannot ensure success. I wondered
if it might suggest a more light-hearted quality, but looking at the list, I
see stories that include serious elements along with uplifting moments.
