Bucks County Playhouse To Pay Homage To One Of America's Great Lyricists
By Brad Segall
NEW HOPE, Pa. (CBS) - The words of one of America's greatest lyricists will be celebrated this weekend during a first of its kind festival at the Bucks County Playhouse in New Hope.
Executive Producer Robyn Goodman says she's becoming concerned that lyric writing isn't getting the attention it deserves.
The Playhouse will host the Oscar Hammerstein Festival paying homage to the master write who penned the words to such classics as Oklahoma, The Sound of Music and South Pacific.
His grandson, Will Hammerstein, says it's those lyrics that somehow may have been lost on younger generations:
"Why is it when the story is good, the shows tend to do better and the story never gets the credit it deserves? Everyone is so focused on the spectacle, the singing, the dancing, the jokes."
The weekend launches a one-year music theater development program where young writers can be mentored.
For ticket holders, the festival features special events including a private tour of the Doylestown farm (see photo above) where Hammerstein wrote many of his classics.
