The Theater: New Musical in Manhattan, Feb. 5, 1945

Up in Central Park (book by Herbert & Dorothy Fields; music & lyrics by Sigmund Romberg & Dorothy Fields; produced by Michael Todd) is a period musical about Manhattan that attempts to graft the nefariousness of the Tweed Ring onto the nostalgia of Currier & Ives. The grafting practiced by Boss Tweed and his Tammany henchmen (who "spent" $7,500 on two thermometers and $3,852,196.75 on carpets for the County Courthouse) was, while it lasted, considerably more successful. Pictorially delightful, with gay costumes, ruddy skating scenes, and stylish and evocative sets by Howard Bay,...