Show guide
All Shook Up
All Shook Up brings the Elvis Presley songbook into a romantic comedy set in a small Midwestern town in 1955. Joe DiPietro's book borrows from Shakespeare's Twelfth Night.
- Broadway premiere
- 2005
- Music by
- Various Artists
- Genre
- Jukebox
- Setting
- 1950s
Based on a loose adaptation of William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. Songs from the Elvis Presley songbook, with songs by multiple writers.
All Shook Up: quick answers
What is All Shook Up about?
- A traveling guitarist named Chad shakes up a small Midwestern town, where mechanic Natalie and the other residents become entangled in romantic misunderstandings.
When did All Shook Up open on Broadway?
- All Shook Up opened at the Palace Theatre on March 24, 2005, and closed on September 25, 2005, after 213 regular performances.
Is All Shook Up a jukebox musical?
- Yes. It uses songs associated with Elvis Presley, with a book by Joe DiPietro loosely based on Shakespeare's Twelfth Night.
Where and when is All Shook Up set?
- The story takes place in a small Midwestern town over twenty-four hours in the summer of 1955.
The story of All Shook Up
Chad, a traveling guitarist, arrives in a quiet town and disrupts its routines. Natalie, a mechanic, falls for him, while the mayor tries to keep the community under control. The action unfolds over a single summer day and night.
Its tangled courtships draw on Twelfth Night, moving Shakespeare's romantic confusion into the world of motorcycles, jukeboxes, and small-town expectations. Chad is a fictional character rather than Elvis himself.
The Elvis songbook
The score assembles existing songs associated with Elvis Presley, including Heartbreak Hotel, Hound Dog, and Jailhouse Rock. Different songwriters created the numbers, so the show's music credit represents a catalog rather than one composer.
Stephen Oremus arranged the music, with orchestrations by Oremus and Michael Gibson. Familiar recordings become songs for an ensemble of fictional lovers, giving the musical its jukebox structure.
All Shook Up on Broadway
All Shook Up opened at Broadway's Palace Theatre on March 24, 2005, directed by Christopher Ashley. Cheyenne Jackson played Chad opposite Jenn Gambatese as Natalie.
The production closed on September 25, 2005, after 213 regular performances. Its Broadway premiere year is 2005, while its 1955 story supplies the separate setting clue in THEATERLE.
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