Marshall's Civic Band

Composed in 1895. An operetta in three acts. 
 
    "Libretto by Charles Klein, Lyrics by Tom Frost and John Philip Sousa. First 
produced at the Tremont Theatre, Boston, April 13, 1896. 
    "'El Capitan' earned a place among the great operettas of its day and was by 
far the most successful of Sousa's stage works. It played almost continuously 
for four years in the United States and Canada and for another six months in 
England. It has been produced in several other countries and still enjoys an 
occasional revival. 
    "The libretto of 'El Capitan' was the first libretto written by the 
dramatist Charles Klein. It was read by comedian De Wolf Hopper, who immediately 
wanted it for himself, and then by Sousa, who was equally enthusiatic. Sousa's 
enthusiasm did not wear off; a quarter century later he was still referring to 
it as the finest libretto ever produced in America. Inasmuch as Klein had never 
written lyrics, Sousa teamed up with Tom Frost to produce them, each furnishing 
approximately half the total. Sousa's most notable contribution to this effort 
was 'Typical Tune of Zanzibar,' which was set to the words of an old poem he 
reportedly had written for a periodical. 
    "....Since 'El Capitan' experienced such a long life, there was little need 
for transplanting any of its tunes into later works, and Sousa made the most of 
its popularity by programming many excerpts with the Sousa Band. Outstanding 
among these was the 'El Capitan' march, which still ranks as one of Sousa's most 
popular compositions." (text continues to give synopsis and list of songs) 
 
The Works of John Philip Sousa 
pgs. 19-20 
Paul E. Bierley 
Integrity Press 
1984