| The Desert Song | |
|---|---|
 Original Sheet Music (cropped) | |
| Music | Sigmund Romberg |
| Lyrics | Otto Harbach and Oscar Hammerstein II |
| Book | Oscar Hammerstein II, Otto Harbach and Frank Mandel |
| Productions | 1926 Broadway 1987 New York City Opera |
The Desert Song is an operetta with music by Sigmund Romberg and book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, Otto Harbach and Frank Mandel. It was inspired by the 1925 uprising of the Riffs, a group of Berber fighters, against French colonial rule in Morocco.[1] It was also inspired by stories of Lawrence of Arabia aiding native guerrillas. Many tales romanticizing Saharan North Africa were in vogue, including Beau Geste and The Son of the Sheik.[2]
Originally titled "Lady Fair", after successful out-of-town tryouts in Wilmington, Delaware, and Boston, Massachusetts,[2] the original Broadway production opened at the Casino Theatre on November 30, 1926, and ran for a very successful 465 performances.[3] It starred Vivienne Segal as Margot Bonvalet and Edmund Elton as General Birabeau.[2] The piece enjoyed a London production and was revived on Broadway in 1946 and 1973. In the 1980s, it was played regularly by the Light Opera of Manhattan and revived by the New York City Opera.[4] It is a popular piece for community light opera groups.
The story is a version of plots such as The Scarlet Pimpernel, Zorro and later Superman, where a hero adopts a mild-mannered disguise to keep his true identity a secret. He loves a beautiful and spirited girl, who loves his hero persona but does not know his real personality, which he keeps hidden under the milquetoast facade.