The Terry Hammond Theatrical Corporation - "Where Great Ideas Are Developed"

A musical for 5 men and one woman, exploring the diverse world of transvestites (TV's) and cross dressers, many of whom are married men.

The message of "Hello, Gorgeous!" is about the need for acceptance and the expression of individuality and courage. This is the theme that runs through the show.

Cast of Characters

Musical Numbers

 

CAST OF CHARACTERS
(in order of appearance)

TOOTS
A chubby transvestite in his forties...gay, personable, a somewhat nervous type...very show business oriented...dresses full time in women's attire.

JAMIE
An attractive gay male in his twenties...enjoys life, has his act together and loves to dress up in simple, unadorned drag for the sheer fun of it. His natural, boyish good looks make him equally appealing as a male or a female.

MANNY
A widower in his fifties...a laid back, gentle personality...totally heterosexual...a late-in-life cross dresser who dresses up to enjoy a feeling of closeness to women.

DIVA
A funny, sharp-tongued opera fanatic in his late thirties...a larger-than-life personality who dresses in drag for its theatrical effect. He possesses an astonishing soprano voice.

HARRY
The stage manager...in his thirties...heterosexual...a straight-appearing, 'in charge' kind of guy...and a family man, who is an occasional, but very 'closeted' cross dresser.

BELLE
An outgoing, loveable, somewhat eccentric, but still intelligent woman in her forties...heterosexual...completely at home with alternate lifestyles. She is Jamie's mother and owner of the 'Hello Gorgeous' consignment shop.

 

FURTHER CHARACTER INSIGHTS

  • The performers who are onstage want to be accepted by the audience for putting on a good show for BELLE'S charity benefit. They try hard and we know it. ("Hello, Gorgeous")

  • JAMIE, as a young man, seeks his mother's understanding and acceptance of his lifestyle. ("Mother's Clothes")

  • MANNY, a recent widower, is looking for a place where he can 'belong'...overcome is loneliness, and feel comfortable with his new-found cross dressing. He even seeks his late wife's approval ("Closer Than Ever Before"), but it is BELLE who gives MANNY that acceptance.

  • "The Internet" begins with BELLE commenting on the cross dressers' need for friendship, and where one might look to find it. It is about the same needs we all share.

  • TOOTS wants support from the others when he portrays his beloved Bette Davis, and, of course, he wants acceptance from the audience when he performs "Miss Bette D." Moreover, he wants us to feel as passionately about Bette Davis as he does. We really root for TOOTS in this scene.

  • DIVA'S love (even obsession) for opera, extends beyond the art form which he so adores, to his own amazing voice. When he performs the tour de force, "La Davina," it is surely a plea for acceptance of his own vocal abilities as well.

  • HARRY hides his own cross dressing activities, confining them to the group. But when he is attacked and 'outed' near the end of Act II, his own wife's acceptance now becomes critical to him. ("Would She Want Me If She Really Knew Me?")

  • When BELLE and the COMPANY sing "Be True To Yourself," it is the final and unquestionable entreaty for love and acceptance.

 

MUSICAL NUMBERS

ACT ONE

TV Land JAMIE, DIVA, TOOTS, MANNY, HARRY
Hello, Gorgeous MANNY, DIVA, TOOTS, JAMIE, with HARRY
Mother's Clothes JAMIE and BELLE
Accessorize BELLE and DIVA
Gotta Go HARRY, BELLE, MAITRE D'
(Maitre D' is played by TOOTS)
Closer Than Ever Before MANNY
The Internet DIVA, TOOTS, HARRY, with BELLE
Call Me Hank JAMIE and HANK 
(Hank is played by Harry)
Miss Bette D TOOTS
Just Keep On Tuckin' BELLE, HARRY, and COMPANY

ACT TWO

TV Land (Reprise) JAMIE, MANNY, HARRY, TOOTS, DIVA
La Divina DIVA
Plain Jane Jamie JAMIE
Boys In Boas COMPANY
Would She Want Me If She Really Knew Me? HARRY
Be True To Yourself BELLE and COMPANY
Dressed To Kill COMPANY
Finale COMPANY

 

COMMENTS ABOUT SONGS

  • The opening number, "TV Land," performed by the entire company,  reminds us which 'TV Land' we are really in: 

    "Lucy and Rick are dead . . . likewise are Ethel and Fred.
    Make or break . . . it's time to take a stand . . . in TV Land."

  • The title song, "Hello Gorgeous," transforms a dull unappealing husband into a glamorous starlet before our eyes.

  • In "Mother's Clothes," a high school student picks through his mother's clothes closet while she watches, unobserved. She is amazed that he looks better in her things than she does.

  • "Gotta Go" features a couple out on the town at the Russian Czar Cafe, with the man dressed in drag so he can drink for free on ladies' night. He is pursued  by a lusty Maitre 'd while he desperately attempts to use the restroom.

  • "Call Me Hank" finds a cross dresser on a deserted road, changing a flat tire . . . when a cop unexpectedly pulls up and offers to help.

  • "Just Keep On Tuckin'" is practical advice for Dolly Parton-esque cross dressers about what to do with their 'privates' during a country western hoe down.

  • "La Divina" (the opera queena) is an operatic tour-de-force for temperamental divas everywhere.

  • "Plain Jane Jamie" calls for the acceptance of cross dressers, by suggesting less glamour and more simplicity and refinement.

  • "Be True To Yourself" becomes the 'anthem' for TV Land when a closeted cross dresser is discovered by his co-workers who beat him and reveal his secret to his wife.

  • "Dressed To Kill" closes the show with the Femme Fatale Fancy Dress Ball, where the judges are about to pick the reigning queen and the five finalists will do anything to win.

 

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