Billy Bishop Goes to War is a
Canadian musical, written by
John MacLachlan Gray and
Eric Peterson. One of the most famous and widely-produced plays in Canadian theatre, it dramatizes the life of Canadian
World War I fighter pilot
Billy Bishop.
Productions
The play premiered at the
Vancouver East Cultural Centre in
Vancouver,
British Columbia on November 3, 1978. Peterson played 18 different characters, and Gray accompanied on piano and vocals. The original production toured across Canada, and also was staged in
Washington, DC, both on
Broadway and
off-Broadway in
New York City, at the
Edinburgh Festival, in
Los Angeles and at the
Comedy Theatre in
London. During the international tour, a second production, starring
Cedric Smith with musical accompaniment by
Ross Douglas, continued touring across Canada.
The
libretto was published in 1981 by
Talonbooks.
The show was produced on
Broadway at the
Morosco Theatre from May 29, 1980 to June 7, 1980, closing after 12 performances and 7 previews. It then moved to
Off-Broadway at the
Lucille Lortel Theatre from June 17, 1980 to August 24, 1980.
In 1998, Gray and Peterson revised the show, adding one new song and presenting events through the eyes of a much older Bishop recalling his wartime exploits. They again toured the new production across Canada.
The show was produced at the Soulpepper...
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