When In Dahomey premiered on Broadway in 1903, it was the first musical written and performed by African Americans that had ever appeared on Broadway. During its three year run, from 1902 to 1905, it was performed over 1,100 times all over the United States and in Europe.
The music was largely composed by Will Marion Cook, a student of Oberlin College in the 1880's. Paul Lawrence Dunbar contributed lyrics to the songs and to the libretto. Other composers and writers added songs and lyrics.
The music composed by Will Marion Cook is a rich gumbo of ragtime and late romanticism. It carries the listener's imagination along without lyrics or plot.
Selections from In Dahomey, consists of:
Overture Introduction: Overtures in the days prior to electricity served to alert the audience that the play was about to start. This overture introduction states a theme boldly, awakening the audience, then restates it quietly to gather their attention.
Governors Entrance: The rhythmic pulse, drone fifths, and modal nature of the melody create a primal dance feel.
Emancipation Day: Beginning in 1866, many African American communities celebrated Emancipation Day with parades on April 16. This joyous song, with lyrics by Paul Lawrence Dunbar, captures the mood of the celebration.
The Czar: The lyrics of this happy song tell the tale of a man who is very high up in society: "He is The Czar!"
Waltz from Society: Paul Lawrence Dunbar's lyrics in this gorgeous late romantic-era waltz speak of the power of love. "The pomp of kings, the pride of state, Are nought, when love o'ertakes the great."
On Emancipation Day Reprise This joyous song returns to end the piece with a rousing New Orleans Second Line drum groove.
In Dahomey's lyrics and libretto pose unique challenges for the modern stage, but they are filled with humor, much of it biting commentary on American society in 1900. Thomas L. Riis, author of the book The Music and Scripts of In Dahomey, said:
Although the dialogue and lyrics are occasionally marked by dated ethnic humor, they are also packed with witty slang that is neither vulgar nor offensive.
No apologies need be made for the music . . .
The humor is reminiscent of Dave Chappelle, had Chappelle been a comedian in 1890's America. It reflects the perspective of intelligent, well-educated, free black men who were commenting on the tumultuous society that surrounded them.
The plot of In Dahomey follows a group of formerly enslaved Americans who move from Florida to the country of Dahomey, which was a kingdom in West Africa that lasted from 1600 until 1904. The plot is action packed, and features a colony of formerly enslaved Americans, two con men, a trip to Africa, a magic silver casket, bribing an African king, and much more. It ends with the line, "We all better go back to Florida."
