Delray Beach Playhouse Lights Up the Stage with ‘THE PAJAMA GAME,’ a Golden-Age Musical Comedy that’s as Touching, Lively, and Relevant Today as When it Won Three Tonys in the 1950s

When it comes to that all-American artform of “the musical,” you can’t go wrong by visiting or revisiting a blockbuster show from its heyday of the 1940s and 1950s. So when one happens to be playing in our area, run to see it because, no matter the subject, you’re guaranteed a highly entertaining and competently produced experience! 

You might even be surprised – as I often am – at how many songs and ideas that have become an intrinsic part of our popular culture first appeared in a golden-age musical. The Pajama Game, based on Richard Bissel’s 1953 novel 7 ½ Cents, debuted on Broadway in 1954, ran for 1,063 performances, and won three Tony Awards, including Best Musical. The popular creation of musical theater legends boasts a book by George Abbot and Richard Bissel, music & lyrics by Jerry Ross and Richard Adler, and dance by Bob Fosse in his choreography debut. Then, as if to prove the staying power of the show’s score, choreography, and message, The Pajama Game went on to win another Tony in 2006 for Best Revival of a Musical. 

Historic Delray Beach Playhouse on Lake Ida (a Palm Beach County theatrical institution since 1947!) provides the ideal, nostalgic, just-right-sized venue for THE PAJAMA GAME. The musical was chosen as the Playhouse’s 2025-26 Main Stage Plays Series opener – directed and choreographed by Danielle Jolie Dale-Hancock with assistant choreographer Lauren Wickerson and music director Sally Brown – and is playing now through December 7.  

The show opens as factory foreman (and obsessive efficiency expert/timekeeper) Vernon Hines (Steven Toffler) walks down an aisle between our rows of seats (actors passing us in the aisles tends to occur quite often). He stops beneath the raised stage, whose curtain is still drawn, to address the audience, introducing the musical’s location and theme. We’re about to visit the Sleep-Tite pajama factory of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where a dispute is brewing between labor and management over a 7 ½ cent pay raise. And where a romance between feisty, attractive union rep Babe Williams (Lili Mueller) and newly hired, handsome superintendent Sid Sorokin (Tanner Fults) is suddenly brewing as well. 

Foreman Hines sings “The Pajama Game Opening” as the curtain rises to rows of low-wage, female, sewing-machine operators (typical of the time). We’ll get to hear this titular song again, with Full Company, as the show’s closing number. Of course, labor unions continue to struggle for a fair living wage to this day. And there are still plenty Scrooge-like, shady owners, like Sleep-Tite’s “Old Man” Hasler (Jeff Morgan), whose pride in being “a fighter” takes precedence over everything else, while he keeps his true accounting book hidden. 

As for company romances that may not be all that appropriate? – nothing new here. Whether reflecting opposing ambitions and positions – like those of Union Grievance Committee leader Babe and superintendent Sid – or between married but always-on-the-make union head Prez (Brandon Kraut) and Grievance Committee member Mae (Michelle Lara) who accepts his advances. 

Boss Hassler’s secretary Gladys (Anna Cappelli) is also pursued by Prez, is dating always-jealous Hines, but still harbors a secret attraction for the handsome new superintendent. Superintendent Sid’s secretary Mabel (Rosie Prieto), who generally comes across as a kindly mother hen, is not averse to a little flirtation, herself. It’s all just your typical, incestuous circle of office romance and intrigue – no matter the generation. And made all the merrier when shaped into strikingly original and memorable song-and-dance numbers!

What I especially love about The Pajama Game’s score and choreography is that it’s not wedded to one musical genre. You can enjoy traditional showtunes, but also a Spanish Tango and a Western-sounding duet (not exactly Country but more evocative of old Cowboy films)! There’s even a fast-paced Gilbert and Sullivan operetta-style number. And most songs come with specially choreographed dances to reflect the lyrics and mood. 

Let’s start with the ones you’ll instantly recognize. When Sid’s advances are initially rebuffed by Babe in Act One, Tanner Fults’ beautiful baritone (maybe it’s the era, but I couldn’t help thinking of Robert Goulet) sings “Hey There” … “you with the stars in your eyes. Love never made a fool of you, you used to be too wise.” It’s such a sweet, romantic ballad on how one can’t fight true love, that I wouldn’t mind hearing it again. And we do, in Act Two, when the “her with her nose in the air” object of his affection, Lili Mueller as Babe, gets her chance to sing “Hey There” in her lovely soprano. 

Popular “hot” and radiator-hissing “Ssssteam Heat” opens Act Two, starring The Steam Heat Dancers – Anna Cappelli (as Gladys), Eric Woodland, and Daniella Coby – all decked out in black suits and bowler hats (that are raised and lowered in sync) for the trio’s Cabaret-style dance number. Act Two also often features the infamous nightclub “Hernando’s Hideaway,” a rendezvous site for secret lovers. The showtune by that name, performed by Gladys and Company, is accompanied by elaborate Spanish and Tango dances. 

I have a few more personal favorites, though I must say, unlike many contemporary musicals whose songs tend to blend together, every single Pajama Game number is musically unique, hummable, and memorable! I also remembered loving evocative Western-sounding “There Once Was a Man,” starring Sid and Babe. I could almost hear the hoofbeat of galloping horses as Tanner Fults and Lili Mueller exclaim, with a Yippee lilt, “I love you more!” 

When Mabel (Rosie Prieto) rebukes boyfriend Hines (Steven Toffler) for his bouts of jealousy, he promises “I’ll Never Be Jealous Again,” citing ever-increasing and comically ridiculous scenarios! 

The curtain rises to a busy Sleep-Tite factory floor scene, where workers are continually pressed by Hines to “Hurry Up” in “Racing with the Clock.” The time-obsessed foreman is no less strict when it comes to not wasting a second in his personal life. In Act Two’s “Think of the Time I Save,” featuring Hines and Factory Girls, Hines goes from sleeping in his clothes to save time getting dressed in the morning all the way to pre-digging his own grave. He presents one ludicrously obsessive “time saver” after another, and gets more hilarious by the minute! 

I’ll end by saying attending this classic musical that The New Yorker called “One of the Greatest Musicals Ever” is well worth your time, not to mention sooo entertaining, time will move far too quickly. Fast-rolling scene changes are adeptly performed, thanks to Kat Davis’s scenic design, master carpenter Jeff Davis, with props by Elizabeth Guerra. Lowell Richard’s lighting design enhanced every scene, especially the moody red lights of Hernando’s Hideaway, where Penelope Williams’ costume design shined (there and everywhere) as well. All backed by Christian Taylor’s deft technical direction, stage managers Maya Chelle & Lauren Wickerson, and producer Kevin Barrett. 

Pick your favorite jammies to snuggle into for later. But for now, get moving because, as Hines would say, there’s no time to waste! THE PAJAMA GAME is playing only through December 7 at the Delray Beach Playhouse, 950 NW 9th Street, Delray Beach 33444. For tickets visit www.delraybeachplayhouse.com or call 561-272-1281.