The “Gypsy Robe’ ceremony  is a time honored tradition that happens on stage, usually an hour before the audience is admitted into the theater on Opening Night of a Broadway Musical. All of the performers in the show gather on stage and form a large circle around the periphery of the stage. A representative from the Actors’ Equity Union is present and is the keeper of the current robe (there are at least 10 robes which are in safe keeping at various libraries and museums in NYC & at the Actors’ Equity offices in NYC & Los Angeles).

The Gypsy Robe (as of July 2018 called the Legacy Robe) tradition began in December 1949 when Bill Bradley a dancer in Gentleman Prefer Blondes took a fancy to a satin dressing gown trimmed in marabou worn by a young lady (Florence Baum)  in the chorus. He talked her into giving it to him so that he, in turn could offer it to his friend Arthur Partington (who was in the next musical to open on Broadway which was Call Me Madam) on opening night as a token of good luck for the show’s success. Before he sent it to Arthur, he sewed a memento (a cabbage rose)  from Gentlemen Prefer Blondes onto the gown.  Mr. Partington then passed the robe on to another friend who was opening in Guys and Dolls. And so the tradition was born.

I have had the honor of receiving the robe twice.  The first time, presented to me on opening night of Pacific Overtures (Jan. 10,1976) at the Winter Garden Theater in NYC by Donna McKechnie from A Chorus Line.

It was about a hour before the show would begin, the cast and crew were all on stage forming a big circle. My name was announced as the recipient, I shouted with joy, Donna helped me put the robe on and I did the three times run-around  inside of the circle while everyone forming the circle touched the robe as I passed them, and then still wearing the robe, visited each and every dressing room in the theater for Good Luck.

A few days later, because the robe was so full with signed memorabilia from 29 previous shows, I asked our head wardrobe mistress (Adelaide Laurino) if she would make a new robe so that I could pass it on to the next show and not damage any of the wonderful creations that were attached to this signed memorabilia laden one. Our mask and doll designer E.J. Taylor painted a Japanese motif on a beautiful hand fan;  Adelaide gave him one of the extra exquisite gold and white obi (waist band), the fan was attached to it and the obi with all of the cast members signatures on it, was sewn onto the front of the robe. 

The next musical to open on Broadway was Rockabye Hamlet. I was the only non-Asian in Pacific Overtures and being that “turnabout is fair play”, I presented the robe to Joanne Ogawa who was the only Asian performer in Rockabye Hamlet.

I collected the robe a few days later, gave Joanne the brand new totally empty robe for her to add  Rockabye Hamlet signed memorabilia onto and pass on when the next show opened.  In the meantime, I donated the robe I received in Pacfic Overtures to the Lincoln Center Library for the Performing Arts where it now resides.

Robe Number Two

I Moved to Los Angeles in 1977 and 20 years later, on Nov. 9th 1997 was back on Broadway opening in the new musical “The Scarlet Pimpernel”.  Much to my surprise, Darlene Wilson who was currently in the musical “Side Show” presented me with the robe on the stage of the Minskoff Theater. A week later, I passed it (with our Pimpernel logo autographed by the cast and attached to the robe) on to Frank Wright II on his Opening Night in The Lion King at the New Amsterdam Theater.  And the beat goes on………….