If you didn’t already know that Chitty Chitty Bang Bang was the creation of Ian Fleming, you might get a clue from the names of its characters, say, Truly Scrumptious or Lord and Lady Bomburst, or from the abundance of spies, gadgets, despicable villains, and spectacular chases. The man behind 007 dreamt up the fanciful story for his son, Caspar. It was published in 1964 and shepherded to the screen four years later by the same man who produced the Bond films, Albert “Cubby” Broccoli. Inspired by the phenomenal popularity of Walt Disney’s Mary Poppins, Broccoli thought he could tap the family-film market with a different kind of Fleming property. He did his best to build on Poppins‘ successes, right down to raiding the film’s production team for its songwriters, Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman; its musical director, Irwin Kostal; its choreographers, Marc Breaux and Dee Dee Wood; and one of its stars, former chimney sweep Bert, aka Dick Van Dyke. Children’s author Roald Dahl (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) was engaged to pen the screenplay, along with director Ken Hughes. Broccoli lavished $10 million on the picture, which, alas, did not duplicate the box office magic of Mary Poppins. Still, the film was quite popular, especially in the UK, where it was shown annually on television.
Three decades after Chitty debuted on film, and following on the heels of another runaway Disney hit, the stage version of The Lion King, the idea of bringing Chitty Chitty Bang Bang to the theatre was hatched. “Cubby” Broccoli was gone – he died in 1996 – but wife Dana and daughter Barbara were still around to give the new version that Broccoli touch. The Sherman Brothers were invited to enhance their original score and add new songs, and Jeremy Sams was hired to write the script. To direct, the producers tapped Adrian Noble of the Royal Shakespeare Company. The show opened in London’s West End in April 2002 and did record-breaking business. An American version was a foregone conclusion.
This spring, that version hits Broadway in the Hilton Theatre, formerly the Ford Center for the Performing Arts, where Ragtime premiered. Starring are Raul Esparza as Caractacus Potts and Erin Dilly as Truly Scrumptious, with Broadway veteran Philip Bosco as Grandpa Potts. Previews start March 29, with opening on April 28. For more information, visit www.chittythemusical.com.
This article appears in February 4 • 2005.