You may not be familiar with the tradition of the Gypsy Robe, renamed in July “Legacy Robe”, yet it has been around for 58 years! Discover the funny story behind this dress and its ritual.
A little bit of history
The tradition dates back to 1950. When the first performance of Gentleman Prefer Blondes (Men prefer blondes) on Broadway, Bill Brady who was in the choirs persuaded Florence Baum, also in the production, to lend her her dressing gown. To laugh a little, the day of the premiere of Call me madam (Call Me Madam), he sent the dress to his friend Arthur Partington, in the set of the show, making her believe it had been worn by all the Ziegfeld Beauties (the girls in the troupe of the shows Ziegfeld Follies). Arthur added a rose from Ethel Merman's dress (who played in Call me madam) and then sent it to a member of the choir of Guys and Dolls for their first performance. The dress was then passed fairly randomly from show to show on each premiere night. It was often awarded to a choir member based on popularity or to a friend of the former winner.
Over the years, the presentation of the Dress has become a real ceremony with very precise rules.
The ritual
On the day of the premiere, before the audience arrives, the entire company gathers on stage.
a representative of Equity (the union of actors) announces all the people who are making their Broadway Debut!
He then invites all those who have already received this famous dress to the center of the stage and to say during which show they received it.
A former recipient reads a speech that tells the story of the "Gypsy Robe". Together, they announce “Gypsy,” the choir member with the most Broadway credits (the one who has been in the backing vocals on the most Broadway shows) and they hand her her own dress. On it appear all the productions in which the Gypsy has been.
To continue the ritual, he must "bless" the production by circling the stage three times counterclockwise while the actors touch the dress to attract good luck!
The Gypsy must then visit each of the boxes before the show begins and all sign on the dress. Once this is finished, the show is blessed and ready to start!
An example of a Gypsy Robe award given to Jeremy Davis at the premiere of Frozen the 22 last march.
This tradition is repeated at every first since 1950!
Recently, there has been a debate around the name which would be seen as degrading. Equity announced on April 18 that the name has a cultural implication that is no longer appropriate. Equity therefore launched a survey among its members to rename the Dress; among the choices: the Baum Bradley Robe, the Legacy Robe and the Chorus Robe.
On July 13th, La Gyspy Robe was renamed 'Legacy Robe'! Long live the Legacy Robe!