How The West Was Done!

Book by ELIZABETH HANSEN & ELAINE HANSEN

Lyrics by C. MICHAEL PERRY & ELIZABETH HANSEN

Music and arrangements by C. MICHAEL PERRY

HOW THE WEST WAS DONE is fast paced, toe tapping’, rip roarin’ “Western” show full of authentic American music and original songs that will both delight the heart as well as tug at its strings. The story, I hear’d tell, is like this:

COOKIE, a right likable “swedish meat-ball” of a chuck wagon cook, has sent fer a mail-order bride. He shows up at a remote way-station to wait fer the stage coach when who should he find? A handful of our fav-o-rite Western types: LUCKY, the Gambler; CURLEY, the true-blue Cowboy; and SHERIFF, the…well…Sheriff. Well, sir, after talkin’ and singin’ a handful of great cowboy songs, the four of ‘em come to find that ever’ last one of ‘em is waitin’ fer someone on that stage. Suddenly, Curley gets a feelin’ and puts his ear to the ground. The stage is a comin’. They sing a rousin’ welcome song and head off at a dead run to meet the stage.

Meanwhile, back at the way-station, a ear-shatterin’ crash is heard real close. Then, four of the most disheveled fav-o-rite Western-type women come a staggerin’ on: FRENCHY, the dance hall girl “with the heart of gold;” MISS ELLANEOUS, the girl next door; BELLE, a Southern woman-of-the-world chanteuse; and SHOTGUN, a rough and tumble gal in buckskins. Well, after some talkin’ and singin’ some wonderful old tunes theirselves, they hear the faint voices of our Western heroes a callin’ fer ‘em. But where could these boys be? As good a scout as Shotgun is, she just can’t find where the voices ‘air a comin’ from. Will these poor gals end up a-wanderin’ the Western wilder-ness forever or will they find these menfolk that are a-lookin’ fer them. Well, not wantin’ to spoil it, let’s just say that like all good cowboy stories, everythin’ ends happily fer ever’one concerned.

The show is jam-packed with familiar tunes like SHENANDOAH, SHE’LL BE COMIN’ ROUND THE MOUNTAIN, SWEET BETSY FROM PIKE, RED RIVER VALLEY, STREETS OF LAREDO, HOME ON THE RANGE, DANNY BOY, and a whole bunch more, not to mention ORIGINAL SONGS that make the stage resound with glorious voices, laughs, and perhaps a touching moment or two. The show runs about 75 minutes and all in all is a wholesome and delightful yarn for the whole family.

SONG SAMPLES: made from the FINALE Music Notation files