Character guide
Lord Evelyn Oakleigh
from Anything Goes
Lord Evelyn Oakleigh is a comic supporting character in Anything Goes, Cole Porter's 1934 shipboard musical comedy.
- Show
- Anything Goes
- Broadway premiere
- 1934
- Role
- Supporting
- Music by
- Cole Porter
Lord Evelyn Oakleigh on stage vs screen
Broadway compared with the 1936 film
In Paramount's 1936 film, Lord Evelyn Oakleigh becomes Sir Evelyn Oakleigh, played by Arthur Treacher as the English fiance standing between Hope Harcourt and Billy Crocker. The 1956 film drops him along with most of the original characters.
On stage, Leslie Barrie originated Lord Evelyn in 1934. The role has grown in revivals: the 1962 Off-Broadway version gave him Let's Misbehave with Reno Sweeney, and the 1987 and 2011 revivals hand him The Gypsy in Me, originally sung by Hope. In the finale he ends up with Reno, resolving the show's love triangle.
Who is Lord Evelyn Oakleigh?
Lord Evelyn is a proper, somewhat oblivious English aristocrat engaged to marry Hope Harcourt for reasons of family finances rather than passion. His stiff formality and constant mangling of American slang make him an easy source of comedy as he blunders through the ship's chaos of disguises and mistaken identities.
Despite standing in the way of Hope and Billy's romance, Lord Evelyn is never played as a true villain, and by the end of the show he finds an unexpected romantic match of his own with Reno Sweeney, resolving the plot's central love triangle.
Lord Evelyn's role in Anything Goes
Lord Evelyn is a supporting role built for a strong comic actor, prized for his fish out of water Englishness aboard the very American ship and his eventual pairing with Reno in the show's finale. The part offers rich opportunities for physical and verbal comedy throughout the shipboard farce.
Leslie Barrie originated the role on Broadway in 1934. Lord Evelyn remains a favorite among character actors for the way his stuffiness gradually gives way to genuine charm as the story unfolds.
Lord Evelyn Oakleigh: frequently asked questions
What show is Lord Evelyn Oakleigh from?
Lord Evelyn Oakleigh is a supporting character in Anything Goes, which opened on Broadway in 1934.
Is Lord Evelyn Oakleigh a lead or supporting role?
Lord Evelyn Oakleigh is a supporting role, initially engaged to Hope Harcourt.
Who wrote the music for Anything Goes?
Cole Porter composed the music and lyrics for Anything Goes.
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