9 TO 5 - THE MUSICAL Musical in 2 acts. Music and lyrics by Dolly Parton. Book by Patricia Resnick Los Angeles' Ahmanson Theatre 20 September, 2008 Marquis Theatre, Broadway : First Preview: April 7, 2009. Opening: April 30, 2009. Closed 6th September, 2009 (24 previews, 148 perfs) Savoy Theatre, London - February 2019 SYNOPSIS Act I As the clocks ring and the workers wake up, Violet, Doralee, and Judy prepare for work (“9 to 5”). The workers begin another mundane and hellish day at work under Franklin Hart, Jr., president of Consolidated Industries. Judy and Violet meet for the first time and Judy reveals she does not have any work experience, but Violet states she will be proud to train her and gives her a few tips and pointers for surviving office life (“Around Here”). Franklin Hart, Jr., is a domineering and equally lecherous man, who lusts after his secretary, Doralee, and has no shame in making those feelings known, which discomfits Doralee (“Here for You”). Judy is having major issues on her first day (such as being unable to work a Xerox machine) and feels there is something more inhibiting her. All three women, in separate settings, share mutual feelings, but all feel they can overcome it and make it all work out in the end (“I Just Might”). A new day rises upon the begrudged workers of Consolidated and life resumes as normal. Around the lunch hour, Doralee and Judy speak for the first time as Doralee asks Judy to go to lunch with her, but Judy subtly refuses and Doralee doesn’t know why. She then reflects on her whole life, about just being a pretty face and nothing much more (“Backwoods Barbie”). Violet is passed over for yet another promotion, which angers her since it is somebody that she personally trained. After a heated confrontation in Hart’s office, Doralee finds out about Hart’s rumour about their supposed ‘affair’, which infuriates her to the point of threatening him. All three of the women, who are now seemingly united in their contempt for Hart, go back to Violet’s house and light up a joint. Suddenly, each woman lapses into a murderous fantasy involving Mr. Hart; Judy as an unforgiving femme fatale (“The Dance O’ Death”), Doralee as a crack rodeo star (“Cowgirl’s Revenge”), and Violet as a deranged Snow White (“Potion Notion”). All these sadistic fantasies soon culminate into a celebration of Hart’s death, which is quickly nixed after Hart is discovered alive (“Joy to the Girls”). The next day at the office, Violet unwittingly acts out her fantasy and believes she put rat poison into Hart’s coffee. They all go to the hospital in a panic but learn he was never there. Roz overheard the ladies in the bathroom and tells Hart, who concocts a plan to scare them by pretending he was poisoned and to threaten them with the police. After Hart leaves, Roz sings a song confessing her obsessive love and fantasies for him (“Heart to Hart”). Hart confronts Doralee with the information and Doralee, acting on a fight or flight instinct, rips the phones out and ties up Hart with the wires, which he seems to get a quasi-sexual pleasure from. The women are seemingly puzzled as to what to do with Hart, but Judy and Violet create a plan in which they will imprison Hart in his own house. As they are carrying out their plan, they sing to Hart their issues with him and the problems in their own lives but will begin to make the changes in their lives and have the confidence to succeed (“Shine Like the Sun”). The women, empowered, have restrained Hart to a mechanical harness above his bed. ACT II After the Entr’acte, in Hart’s office, the three women are pondering on how they can keep the office in the dark about Hart’s disappearance when Doralee’s skill of being able to forge Hart’s signature comes into play. Judy and Doralee both point out to Violet that she is, in a sense, the new Operating Officer of the company. Violet then lapses in fantasy and sings a song about she is now a hard hitter like the rest of the male employees (who seems to rank above the women) (“One of the Boys”). Roz begins to get nosy and wonders
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