Original Illustration by Bret Schlesinger

The gala evening was a thoughtful and delightful combination of live entertainment mixed with classic TV and movie clips honoring the careers of the noted playwright, director and writer, Moss Hart and his wife Kitty Carlisle Hart who was a TV, movie and political celebrity in her own right. Co-Hosted by Julie Andrews and Beverly Sills, it featured many celebrities reminiscing and performing with Kitty Carlisle Hart at 94 accepting the plaudits.

Moss and Kitty Carlisle Hart represented in collaboration the quintessential accomplishments of that era. Moss Hart through his collaborations with George S. Kaufman wrote the classic American theatrical comedies including The Man who Came To Dinner, Merrily We Role Along and You Can’t Take It With You . He went on to write screenplays in Hollywood for Gentleman’s Agreement, Winged Victory and the first musical remake of A Star is Born among others. He also collaborated with such musical geniuses as Irving Berlin, Kurt Weill, Ira Gershwin and Cole Porter. If that weren’t enough he directed straight plays and musicals on Broadway including two by Lerner and Loewe: My Fair Lady and Camelot.
photo credits: Photofest

Kitty Carlisle Hart’s contributions complimented those of her celebrated husband. As a performer she left indelible impressions on stage, screen and television. As a singer she starred in Hollywood opposite Bing Crosby and with the Marx Brothers and conquered the opera world as Carmen in Carmen and Count Orlovsky in Die Fledermaus at the Metropolitan Opera. She then mastered the political arena by serving for several New York Governors of both parties as Chairman of the Council on the Arts for over 20 years. Is it any wonder that the Metropolitan Opera Guild should honored the contributions of this remarkable American couple at Avery Fisher Hall on November 21, 2004 with a gala called Hart To Hart . In front of a celebrity studded audience (this reviewer bumped elbows with Mario Cuomo, Mike Wallace and Karen Akers just to name a few) the performance began.

The gala was co-hosted by two formidable women who were touched by the Harts in their way: Julie Andrews and Beverly Sills. The two “ex -sopranos” both recounted their initial adventures and deftly guided the procedures and introduced the other guests and film clips.

Act One was appropriately (since it was the title of Moss Hart’s acclaimed autobiography) devoted to Moss Hart who died in 1961. Robert Goulet, Rosemarie Harris, Celeste Holm, Dina Merrill and son Christopher supplied first hand memories and clips of Moss Hart being interviewed by Edward R Murrow providing glimpses of him in life. In addition TV footage of Monty Wooly recreating his role as Sheridan Whiteside, a scene from the revival of You Can’t Take It With You , Ann Southern singing “Jenny Was A Lady” from Lady In The Dark and the young Julie Andrews doing “Oh Wouldn’t It Be Loverly” from My Fair Lady, plus film snippets from Gentlemen’s Agreement and A Star Is Born reminded all of the power of Hart’s contributions.

The Second Act highlighted Kitty Carlisle Hart. Orson Bean, Jane Alexander, Anna Moffo and daughter Catherine Hart saluted her as she sat looking down from a second tier box.

Less successful were the guest singers who sang songs and arias done originally by others. The snippets of Carmen, Die Fledermaus and “Begin the Beguine” lacked the excitement of the moment. Audra McDonald had the sense to say she was crazy to sing “The Man Who Got Away” with the image of Judy Garland hovering behind her. However in her case she proved to be more then up to the task.

Clearly the emotional highlight of the evening was when Ms Hart descended to the stage itself to receive homage from the audience. Not content to rest on her considerable laurels Ms Hart, at 94, after a brief speech belted out two songs ... and we mean belted. Her voice remarkably strong and on pitch, her stage presence honed to perfection showed everyone she still had it, better than ever.

Beverly Sills said coyly it was time for her to go to bed whereby Julie Andrews began to reprise her song from My Fair Lady , “I Could Have Danced All Night”. Then each of the female vocalists one by one came on stage singing a verse, followed by the male singers and chorus from the Tisch School of Performing Art at NYU until the stage was filled with their voices. A joyous finale if ever there was one.