Percy, The Poor Little Penguin is a musical with book and lyrics by William Schermerhorn and music by Mary Elinger.[1] The musical's title song was first heard in a Macy's Holiday Revue in 1992. The show premiered in 1996 as a 22-minute marionette show for Macy's Puppet Theatre at the flagship Herald Square Department store's Santaland, running through 2002.
The musical, dubbed the "Coolest Show on the Planet," stars a penguin named Percy who has the bad luck of being allergic to snow. His friends, which include Santa Claus, a flamingo and a polar bear, try and help Percy to find someplace warm.[2] Percy, The Poor Little Penguin featured puppets that were constructed by Nicolo Coppola's Puppetworks. The cast included Roger Bart as Percy and Florence Henderson as the Narrator, with additional cast members Liz Callaway, Mario Cantone, Anthony Rapp, David Engel, John McDonough, Jonathan Freeman, Alix Korey and Harvey Fierstein.
History with the Macy's Parade[]
Percy, the Poor Little Penguin was first represented in the Parade in 2001, with a cold-air inflatable version of the show's titular Percy riding in the coal car of the classic Santaland Express float. The two-story inflatable figure featured Percy waving to Parade spectators while he carried his signature monogramed hanky. Appearing on the float was a costumed version of Percy and Florence Henderson as Mrs. Claus, joined by actor Jon Secada who performed the show's title song.
The Percy cold-air inflatable returned on the Santaland Express in the 2002 Parade. Joining in the festive fun were costumed characters of the show's cast - Percy himself, PB Polar Bear, Adele Lee, King, Dr. Tusk and Nurse Fish. Judy Kaye appeared on the float that year, and performed a number from the show known as "What Good Is Being Cranky When It's Christmastime." The Percy inflatable was removed from the Santaland Express after the 2002 parade.
Percy, The Poor Little Penguin received a stand-alone float for the 2003 Parade. The float, titled "Percy & The P-Birds," stood at 25-feet tall, 24-feet long and 12-feet wide. An exact replica of a 1960’s drop top Ford Thunderbird served as the hot rod for the crew as the Percy the Poor Little Penguin cold-air balloon follows in tow, on skis. Spreading holiday cheer down Broadway was Harvey Fierstein and the Dynamites from Hairspray, who performed "Santa Knows" from the show's soundtrack. The "Percy and The P-Birds" falloon was retired after only one appearance.
Through retired from the Macy's Parade, the "Percy and The P-Birds" falloon would make appearances for several years in the Macy's Holiday Parade at Universal Studios, with costumed versions of Adele Lee and King along for the ride. Following the 2008 holiday season, the Percy inflatable was replaced by the Northern Lights Jukebox.
See also[]
- Macy's Santaland, where the show was performed for seven years.
- Santaland Express
- The soundtrack for Percy, The Poor Little Penguin.