HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING  

Power, ambition, greed, women... it's just another day at the office.
Show Dates: May 3, 4, 6, 7, 2012

Please Audition only if you are able to firmly commit to the rehearsal schedule
and especially you must not have any conflicts from April 23 until May 7

Callout Date:   Friday     Feb 10 @ 3pm           
Audition Date: Monday  Feb 12 @ 6pm        
Callbacks:        Thursday Feb 16 @ 6pm
 

PRIMARY AUDITION SONG:  "Brotherhood of Man" -  Male (2 Measures before O to Q) / Female (Q to S)

CALLBACK SONGS Male:       "How To..." (Start to D)
                                                  "A Secretary is Not a Toy" (Start to D)

CALLBACK SONGS Female:    "Happy To Keep His Dinner Warm" (Start to 1 measure after C)
                                                   "Been a Long Day" (Start to 1 measure after C)

A satire of big business and all it holds sacred, HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING follows the rise of J. Pierrepont Finch, who uses a little handbook called "How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying" to climb the corporate ladder from lowly window washer to high-powered executive, tackling such familiar but potent dangers as the aggressively compliant "company man," the boss' whiny, nepotistic nephew, the office party, backstabbing co-workers, caffeine addiction and, of course, true love.

Characters

Male
J. Pierrepont Finch - a window washer who applies for a job at the World Wide Wicket Company. Rosemary's love interest.

Bud Frump - Biggley's arrogant and snobbish nephew who thinks he can get away with anything because he is J.B. Biggley's nephew.

J.B. Biggley - The boss of the World Wide Wicket Company. Hedy's love interest, although he is already married.

Mr. Bert Bratt - Personnel manager.

Mr. Twimble - Head of the mailroom for 25 years; finally gets promoted to the shipping department.

Mr. Milton Gatch - a wise-cracking executive, who is almost successful but his penchant for ladies becomes his downfall.

Mr. Benjamin Burton Daniel Ovington - head of the advertising department until he is fired by Biggley for being a "Chipmunk."

Mr. Wally Womper - the Chairman of the World Wide Wicket Company. (Tradition goes, played by the same actor as Twimble)

 

Female
Rosemary Pilkington - a secretary who works at the World Wide Wicket Company. Finch's love interest.

Hedy LaRue - Biggley's attractive and dim-witted mistress. The future Mrs. Wally Womper.

Smitty - a secretary who works at the World Wide Wicket Company. Rosemary's best friend.

Miss Jones - Biggley's immovable secretary

Miss Krumholtz - a secretary of Mr. Gatch, then J. Pierrepont Finch.

 

Executives and Secretaries - Chorus

Book voice - the narrator

 

Act I

·                    Overture

·                    How To - J. Pierrepont Finch

·                    Happy To Keep His Dinner Warm - Rosemary Pilkington

·                    Coffee Break - Smitty, Bud Frump & Chorus

·                    The Company Way - Finch & Twimble

·                    The Company Way (Reprise) - Bud, Twimble & Company

·                    A Secretary is Not a Toy - Bratt, Bud & Men

·                    Been a Long Day - Smitty, Finch & Rosemary

·                    Been a Long Day (Reprise )- Bud, JB Biggley & Hedy LaRue

·                    Grand Old Ivy - Finch & Biggley

·                    Paris Original - Rosemary, Smitty, Mrs. Jones & Girls

·                    Rosemary - Finch & Rosemary

·                    Act I Finale - Finch, Rosemary & Bud

Act II

·                    Cinderella, Darling - Smitty & Girls

o                               1995 revival replacement: How to Succeed (reprise)

·                    Happy To Keep His Dinner Warm (Reprise) - Rosemary

·                    Love From a Heart of Gold - Biggley & Hedy

·                    I Believe in You - Finch & Men

·                    I Believe in You (Reprise) - Rosemary

·                    Brotherhood of Man - Finch, Wally Womper, Mrs. Jones & Men

·                    Finale (The Company Way) - Company

 

Long Synopsis
Act I

J. Pierrepont Finch, a young window cleaner in New York City, has a mind for advancement. The "Book Voice" tells him that everything he needs for success is contained within the book in his hand, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. He enters the World Wide Wicket Company searching for a job. ("How To")

Finch bumps into J.B. Biggley, the president of the company, who dismisses him to the personnel manager, Mr. Bratt. Rosemary Pilkington, a secretary, is impressed with Finch and offers to help him meet Mr. Bratt. Finch uses Biggley's name with Mr. Bratt to get a job in the mailroom, where he works with Mr. Biggley's lazy and nepotism-minded nephew Bud Frump. Rosemary dreams of a life with Finch in the suburbs and tells her friend Smitty that she will do what it takes to get Finch to fall for her ("Happy To Keep His Dinner Warm").

The fatigued workers rush to get their coffee break, only to find that Frump got the last cup. The crew elaborately dances while expressing their angst due to lack of coffee while Frump teases them with his cup before it's snatched by Mr. Gatch ("Coffee Break"). In the mailroom, Finch earns favor with the long-time head of the mailroom, Mr. Twimble, who tells him the secret to longevity at the company is to be absolutely unambitious and unthinking ("The Company Way"). 

As Twimble is being promoted to a new position as head of the shipping department, the head of the mailroom position is opening up, but as the book warns not to stay in the mailroom too long, Finch passes over the promotion to Bud Frump. Twimble is reluctant to allow Frump this position because of his slacker behavior, but Frump promises to follow Twimble's methods and be a good employee ("The Company Way (Reprise)"). Twimble and Bratt are impressed by Finch, and Bratt offers him a job as a junior executive in the Plans and Systems department, headed by Mr. Gatch. Frump, seeing that he has been outdone, fumes. 

An air-headed woman named Hedy LaRue calls Mr. Biggley searching for a job and is hired as a secretary. The male employees see her and are instantly attracted to her, but Mr. Bratt warns them not to do anything stupid ("A Secretary Is Not A Toy").

While waiting for an elevator with Smitty and Rosemary, Finch runs into Mr. Biggley's secretary, Mrs. Jones and gains her favor through compliments. He learns from her that Biggley is a former alumn of the Old Ivy college, which gives him an idea. While going down the elevator, Rosemary and Finch ponder about their relationship while Smitty giddily narrates their situation to the audience before setting them up on a date ("Been A Long Day"). Frump runs into Biggley and Hedy, arguing about her job. Frump realizes their secret romantic relationship and blackmails Biggley into giving him a promotion ("Been A Long Day (Reprise)"). 

Finch arrives early Saturday morning and sets up the office to appear that he has been working all night. Biggley arrives and witnesses Finch "asleep" at his desk. Finch "absent-mindedly" begins humming the Old Ivy fight song and convinces Biggley that he, too, is a proud alumnus, which leads them both to perform the fight song together ("Grand Old Ivy"). Biggley insists that Finch be given his own office and secretary, Hedy. With the book's help, Finch realizes that Biggley must be Hedy's advocate, and sends her on an errand to Gatch, knowing that he won't be able to resist making a pass at her. Finch is soon promoted to Gatch's position, Gatch having been dispatched to Venezuela. 

A reception for the new Advertising Department head, Benjamin Burton Daniel Ovington, is being held, and Rosemary hopes to impress Finch with her new dress, but all the women of the office are wearing identical copies of it ("Paris Original"). Hedy tipsily exits to shower in Biggley's office, and Frump, hoping to trap Finch and Hedy, tells Finch that Biggley is waiting in his office for him. In the office, Hedy and Finch kiss, but Finch realizes that he is in love with Rosemary, who enters as Hedy returns to the bathroom ("Rosemary"). After some farcical complications, Finch and Rosemary embrace — just in time for Frump and Biggley to walk through the door. 

Ovington resigns when Biggley realizes that he graduated from Northern State, Old Ivy's bitter rival. Then, Biggley names Finch Vice-President in Charge of Advertising, just in time for a big meeting in two days. Biggley leaves as Finch and Rosemary declare their love for J. Pierrepont Finch, and Bud Frump vows to return ("Act I Finale").

 

Act II

It is the morning of the big meeting, and Rosemary is feeling neglected by Finch. She decides to quit but her fellow secretaries convince her to stay: she's living their dream of marrying an executive and living an easy life ("Cinderella, Darling"). (In the 1995 revival, this song was replaced with a reprise of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, with the lyrics suggesting ways in which a girl can get hold of a man's financial assets). 

The book warns Finch that as Vice-President of Advertising, he needs a brilliant idea. Bud Frump slyly tells Finch about his idea for a treasure hunt, which Finch loves, unaware that Biggley has already heard the idea and shot it down. Finch bounces the idea off Rosemary, who tells him that, no matter what, she'll stick by his side ("Happy To Keep His Dinner Warm (Reprise)"). 

Hedy tells Biggley she is extremely unhappy with her secretarial duties and is leaving for California. He begs her to stay and though she initially refuses, she ultimately accepts after he reveals that he loves her, a feeling she reciprocates ("Love From a Heart of Gold"). The other executives hold a meeting in the Executive Washroom, where Frump tells them that Finch's idea will fail, and with it so will his career. Finch enters and gives himself a pep talk, telling himself that he is the only person he can trust while, behind his back, the executives plot and cheer at his approaching demise ("I Believe In You"). 

Finch presents "his" idea: he will hide five thousand shares of company stock in each of the ten offices around the country and give the audience weekly clues as to their whereabouts. Biggley is about to reject this idea yet again until Finch explains that each clue will be given by the scantily-dressed World Wide Wicket Girl: Miss Hedy LaRue. 

During the first television show, Hedy is asked to swear on a Bible that she doesn't know the location of the prizes. Hedy, whom Biggley had told the night before where the treasure was hidden, panics and reveals the locations to the entire television audience, which prompts all the employees at Wicket to tear apart the offices looking for them. The book tells Finch, "How To Handle a Disaster. ...We suggest that your best bet if you are the cause of the Disaster is to review the first chapter of this book: 'How to Apply for a Job' ". 

Treasure hunters have wrecked World Wide Wicket Company offices across the country, and the executives, including Chairman of the Board Wally Womper, are waiting in Biggley's office for Finch's resignation. Before he goes in, Rosemary tells Finch once again that she'll stand by him no matter what ("I Believe in You (Reprise)"). About to sign his letter of resignation, Finch mentions that he'll probably be going back to washing windows. Womper is drawn to Finch as he, too, was a washer of windows and that they both "had a book," Wally's book being a book of betting records. Finch manages to place the blame for the treasure hunt on Bud, also mentioning that Frump is Biggley's nephew. Womper is about to "clean house from top to bottom", when Finch steps in on everyone's behalf. Finch tells the executives that despite the fact that the business world is a place filled with betrayal and competitiveness, the World Wide Wickett staff is like a family to him ("Brotherhood of Man"). Everyone is spared except Frump, who is fired because he is Biggley's nephew. 

In the end, Biggley is still president, Womper is retiring to travel the world with his new wife, Hedy, and Finch becomes Chairman of the Board. Rosemary stands by his side and inadvertently inspires him to aspire for Presidency of the United States. As the show ends, the entire company bids the audience goodbye in song while Frump is lowered onto the stage on a window washing platform. He swears revenge against Finch one final time before he falls off the platform and is left hanging upside down by a rope ("Finale (The Company Way)").