Kiss of the Spider Woman

A CONCORD THEATRICALS TITLE

Kiss of the Spider Woman

Full-Length Musical, Drama  /  3w, 15m

Book by Terrence McNally
Music by John Kander
Lyrics by Fred Ebb
Based on the novel by Manuel Puig

This Tony Award-winning musical, with a brilliant book by Terrence McNally and a dynamic score by Kander & Ebb, presents a harrowing tale of persecution juxtaposed against a dazzling spectacle of liberating fantasy.

Image: 2013 BoHo Theatre Production (Peter Coombs)

  • Cast Size
    Cast Size
    3w, 15m
  • Duration
    Duration
    More than 120 minutes (2 hours)
  • SubGenre
    Subgenre
    Adaptation (Literature)
  • Audience
    Target Audience
    Adult, Teen (Age 14-18)
Accolades
Accolades
  • Winner! Seven 1993 Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical and Best Original Score
    Winner! Five 1993 Drama Desk Awards, including Outstanding Musical and Oustanding Music

Details

Summary
Kiss of the Spider Woman revamps a harrowing tale of persecution into a dazzling spectacle that juxtaposes gritty reality with liberating fantasy. Cell mates in a Latin American prison, Valentin and Molina immediately clash. Valentin is a tough revolutionary enduring torture and Molina is an unabashed homosexual serving eight years for deviant behavior. Over time, the men begin to connect as Molina shares his fantasies about an actress, Aurora, who famously portrayed a Spider Woman who can kill with a kiss.
History
Kiss of the Spider Woman premiered on Broadway at the Broadhurst Theatre on May 3, 1993. Directed by Harold Prince, the production featured Chita Rivera, Brent Carver and Anthony Crivello.
MOLINA
WARDEN
VALENTIN
ESTEBAN
MARCOS
SPIDER WOMAN / AURORA
MOLINA'S MOTHER
MARTA
RELIGIOUS PANATIC / PRISONER
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL OBSERVER / PRISONER
PRISONER FUENTES
GABRIEL / PRISONER
WINDOW DRESSER AT MONTOYA'S / PRISONER
AURORA'S MEN
  • Time Period Contemporary
  • Setting A prison in Latin America, sometime in the recent past.
  • Duration More than 120 minutes (2 hours)
  • Cautions
    • Gun Shots
    • Mild Adult Themes

Media

“Compelling, beautiful, funny and moving.” – New York Daily News

“Thrilling.” – The New York Times

“Compelling, beautiful, funny and moving... [Has] a cinematic fluidity and a poetic charge.” – N.Y. Daily News

“Creates an entire world out of a prison cell... Dazzling.” – Newsweek

“Capture[s] the magic musicals were meant for.” – Wall Street Journal

“[A] show with a wild heart and a fresh eye.” – N.Y. Newsday

Videos

  • Kiss of the Spider Woman youtube thumbnail

    Kiss of the Spider Woman

Photos

  • Kiss of the Spider Woman

    Image: 2013 BoHo Theatre Production (Peter Coombs)

Music

Music Samples

Act I

1. “Opening” – Orchestra, Prisoners, Spider Woman
2. “Aurora” – Molina, Aurora, Aurora’s Men
3. “Over the Wall 1” – Prisoners
3A. “Spider Woman Fragment 1” – Spider Woman
4. “Bluebloods” – Molina, Valentin
5. “Dressing Them Up/I Draw the Line” – Molina, Valentin
6. “Dear One” – Valentin, Marta, Mother, Molina
7. “Over the Wall 2” – Prisoners, Molina, Valentin
7A. “Prison Underscore 1” – Orchestra
8. “Where You Are” – Molina, Aurora, Aurora’s Men
8A. “Prison Underscore 2” – Orchestra
9. “Over the Wall 3 (Marta)” – Valentin, Prisoners
10. “Interrogation” – Warden, Spiderwoman, Orchestra
11. “I Do Miracles” – Aurora, Marta
11A. “Warden Underscore” – Orchestra
12. “Gabriel’s Letter/My First Woman” – Gabriel, Valentin
[There is no #13]
14. “Morphine Tango 1” – Orderlies
14A. “You Could Never Shame Me” – Molina’s Mother
14B. “A Visit” – Spider Woman, Molina
14C. “Morphine Tango 2” – Orderlies
15. “She’s a Woman” – Molina
15A. “Spider Woman Underscore” – Orchestra
16. “Let’s Make Love” – Men, Aurora
16A. “Act 1 Curtain” – Men, Molina

Act II

17. “Entr’acte – Prisoners, Spider Woman, Orchestra
18. “Good Times” – Aurora, Molina, Valentin, Warden, Company
[There is no #19]
20. “Day After That” – Valentin, Prisoners
20A. “Prison Underscore 3” – Orchestra
21. “Mama, It’s Me” – Molina
22. “Anything for Him” – Spider Woman, Molina, Valentin
23. “Kiss of the Spider Woman” – Spider Woman
23A. “After the Spider Woman” – Orchestra
24. “Over the Wall 4” – Prisoners, Warden, Molina
25. “Only in the Movies” – Molina, Company
26. “Bows” – Orchestra
27. “Exit Music” – Orchestra

Piano-Conductor

1 Reed 1 (Piccolo, Flute, Clarinet, Alto Sax)
1 Reed 2 (Flute, Alto Sax, Clarinet)
1 Reed 3 (Clarinet, Tenor Saxophone, Oboe, English Horn)
1 Reed 4 (Bass Clarinet, Clarinet, Baritone Sax)
1 Horn 1
1 Horn 2
1 Trumpet 1
1 Trumpet 2
1 Trombone
1 Percussion (Bells, Bongos, Conga, Cymbal, Glockenspiel, Maraca, Marimba, Mark Tree, Shaker, Tambourine, Timpani, Vibraphone, Vibraslap, Xylophone, Xylorimba)
1 Drums
1 Keyboard 1
1 Keyboard 2
1 Viola 1
1 Viola 2
1 Cello
1 Bass
  • Musical Style Classic Broadway
  • Vocal DemandsModerate
  • Orchestra Size Large

Licensing & Materials

  • Licensing fees and rental materials quoted upon application.

    Please submit a license request to determine availability.

Music Rentals

Concord offers a full suite of resources to help you put on the show of a lifetime!
1 Piano-Conductor (Act I)
1 Piano-Conductor (Act II)
20 Vocal Books

1 Reed 1
1 Reed 2
1 Reed 3
1 Reed 4
1 Horn 1
1 Horn 2
1 Trumpet 1
1 Trumpet 2
1 Trombone
1 Percussion
1 Drums
1 Keyboard 1
1 Keyboard 2
1 Viola 1
1 Viola 2
1 Cello
1 Bass
1 Piano-Conductor (Act I)
1 Piano-Conductor (Act II)
20 Vocal Books

Add-Ons

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Authors

John Kander

John Kander is a Tony, Emmy and Grammy-winning composer, a recipient of the Kennedy Center Honors Award, and a member of the American Theatre Hall of Fame. With frequent collaborator Fred Ebb, he composed the score to dozens of Broadway musicals, including Cabaret, Zorba, Chi ...

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Fred Ebb

Fred Ebb (1933–2004) was an award-winning lyricist, librettist and director who frequently and successfully collaborated with composer John Kander. Ebb's work for the theatre included Flora, The Red Menace; Cabaret; The Happy Time; Zorba; 70, Girls, 70; Chicago; The Act; Woma ...

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Terrence McNally

Terrence McNally (1938-2020) was the recipient of the 2019 Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement, the 2019 Dramatist Guild Lifetime Achievement Award, and the 2019 Lucille Lortel Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2018, he was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters. ...

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Author

Manuel Puig

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