"Maaaaaaaaaaaa-rian! Madam Libraaaaaaaa-rian!"
It's a line sung by Professor Harold Hill in one of the truly iconic scenes in musical theater/movie musicals. Hill's advances toward the reticent Marian — with dancing on the library tables and the slap at the end of the number — are all the things of which good musical theater is made.
But that song could have had a different opening line if it hadn't been for Marian Seeley of Provo.
Now 89, Marian and her husband, Frank, knew "Music Man" creator/composer Meredith Willson. The two men were stationed together during World War II. Marian Seeley worked as a medical records librarian and was given the "Marian the Librarian" nickname by Willson.
"I would go in to visit and Meredith would point his finger at me, laugh and say, 'There is Marian the Librarian,"' Seeley said. "He was a very refined man with a lot of talent."
Seeley, who said she has very little in common with her namesake, had no idea Willson had used her moniker until the musical debuted on Broadway in 1957.
Fifty years later, Seeley sometimes "gets tired of being Marian the Librarian," but overall "feels great" to have unknowingly contributed to the world of musical theater. "How else could I feel? I'm a librarian and my name is Marian," she said.
The Egyptian Theatre, 328 Main, will honor Seeley on Friday night as they open a production of "The Music Man," starring Mark Gollaher as Prof. Hill and Carianne Jones as Marian.
"The Music Man" runs Friday through Dec. 28. Shows are Wednesdays through Saturdays, 7 p.m., with weekend matinees at 2 p.m. Tickets are $16-$30 (435-649-9371 or www.parkcityshows.com)
"Forever Plaid: Plaid Tidings," Thursday through Dec. 20, Rodgers Memorial Theatre, 292 E. Pages Lane, Centerville.
The Plaids are back and still having fun that the whole family will enjoy. Filled with Christmas standards, the boys do a holiday special. Unsure why they've returned to Earth, a phone call from the heavenly Rosemary Clooney lets them know they need to put a little harmony into the world. It stars Cameron Nichols, Robert Naylor, Aaron Ford and Ian Fife on Modays, Wednesdays and Fridays, and Brent Severe, Patrick States, Brady Barrett and Johnny Call on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
Shows are nightly, except Sundays, 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $9-$16 (801-298-1302 or www.rodgersmemorial.com)
E-mail: ehansen@desnews.com