Text by Bertolt Brecht [and Elisabeth Hauptmann] (in German and English).

Synopsis
Song List
Performance Information
Recordings

Boxing ring set of original production, Baden-Baden, 1927.

Synopsis

There is no dialogue or character development. The songs, considered in order, tell a skeletal story similar to that of the opera Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny. As renowned Weill scholar David Drew writes, "The fleshpots of Mahagonny attract many visitors, but prove disappointing and expensive; God orders the inhabitants to hell, but they revolt, claiming they are there already" (Kurt Weill: A Handbook (U. of California Press, 1987), p. 171).

Song list

Auf nach Mahagonny
Alabama Song
Wer in Mahagonny blieb
Benares Song
Gott in Mahagonny
Finale: Diese ganze Mahagonny

Performance Information

Cast: Charlie (tenor), Billy (tenor), Bobby (bass), Jimmy (bass), Jessie (soprano), Bessie (soprano)
Orchestra: 2 cl (bass cl), alto sax; 2 tpt, tbn; piano, timp, perc; 2 vn.
Duration: 30 minutes
Published Editions: piano-vocal score, Universal Edition, UE 12889
Performance Rights and Rentals: USA, UK, BREV: EAMC
All other territories: UE
Authorized Translations: English -- Michael Feingold
Italian -- Emilio Castellani
First Production: July 17, 1927, Baden-Baden, Deutsches Kammermusikfest, Walter Brügmann, dir., Ernst Mehlich, cond.

Guide to orchestration, territory abbreviations, and publishers' symbols.

Recordings