Hungarian playwright Ferenc Molnar’s elaborate fantasy had its American premiere under the auspices of the Theatre Guild, in a 1921 production translated by Benjamin F. Glazer that starred Joseph Schildkraut in the title role and Eva Le Gallienne as Julie. The property was rich with musical potential, but before it could be transformed Helburn and Langner had to convince not only their skeptical American authors, but also their Hungarian one.

Molnar had already turned down several requests to turn LILIOM into an opera. And he was ready to resist again, until, at the Guild's invitation, he attended a performance of OKLAHOMA! and was instantly won over. LILIOM could sing, he decreed, if Rodgers & Hammerstein wrote the score.

But Rodgers & Hammerstein had their doubts too. It was not the themes of domestic violence and fateful tragedy in LILIOM that deterred the authors—in fact these issues only served to whet their appetite for challenging work—but the play's locale: Budapest, Hungary. In 1944 Budapest was ravaged by war and setting a play there would only compete with the headlines or, worse, seem exploitative.

If a musical of LILIOM were to work, they concluded, it would have to be relocated, and Rodgers and Hammerstein were reluctant to do so. Helburn suggested a New Orleans setting, with Liliom turned into a tough and exotic Creole character. Oscar Hammerstein II demurred on the grounds that his lyrics, which were always steeped in the dialect of their locale, would become riddled with the "ze's" and "zose's" of the Creole accent and end up sounding like a chorus of buzz saws.

But then Richard Rodgers came up with the concept of New England in the late 19th century and everything fell into place. Liliom would become Billy Bigelow, barker on a carousel in a small fishing village, and Julie would be featured as one of the local millworkers. While images of clambakes and lighthouses danced in their heads, the authors went to work. The very first song they wrote for the score was the most daunting—Billy’s powerful and insightful "Soliloquy." As daring as anything in the groundbreaking OKLAHOMA!, this number provided character, motivation, passion and heartfelt emotion—in an unprecedented eight-minute solo.

Structurally, CAROUSEL proved as daring as OKLAHOMA! in style and form, while telling a story that was far more sophisticated. Here, in addition to Billy’s "Soliloquy," the innovations included the opening, which scuttled the traditional overture entirely and replaced it with a lush "Carousel Waltz" that underscored a storied prologue in mime; and the now-classic "If I Loved You" scene, in which dialogue and fragments of song were intermingled to breathtaking effects.

CAROUSEL began rehearsals in early 1945. Guiding it was OKLAHOMA!'s stellar creative team: authors Rodgers & Hammerstein, producers Helburn and Langner, director Rouben Mamoulian, choreographer Agnes de Mille and costume designer Miles White. Featured in the original cast were John Raitt as Billy, Jan Clayton as Julie Jordan, and Jean Darling as Carrie.

After tryouts in New Haven and Boston, CAROUSEL opened at Broadway's Majestic Theatre on April 19, 1945, and eventually ran for 890 performances. Even the skeptics were confounded: while it could never be the unexpected revelation that OKLAHOMA! was, CAROUSEL did the impossible—it followed a smash hit by succeeding in its own right. Audiences in the throes of World War II responded deeply to its story of a young widow raising a child alone, and its spiritual imagery had a profound impact on those who had lost a loved one overseas. The effects of CAROUSEL and its authemn, "You’ll Never Walk Alone" are haunting to this day.

Winner of the New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award as Best Musical of 1945, the Broadway run was followed by a two year national tour. In London CAROUSEL followed OKLAHOMA! directly into the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, opening in June of 1950 and playing for over a year and a half. In 1956 the motion picture version was released by Twentieth Century Fox. Filmed on location in Boothbay Harbor, Maine, it was originally slated to star Frank Sinatra as Billy and Judy Garland as Julie. However, she withdrew prior to filming and he left over a contract dispute during the first weeks of shooting. They were replaced by the OKLAHOMA! movie co-stars Gordon MacRae and Shirley Jones.

CAROUSEL has been performed by hundreds of theatre and opera companies throughout the world. Notable productions include the Music Theater of Lincoln Center with John Raitt re-creating the role of Billy (1965); a television version starring Robert Goulet with choreography by Edward Villella, broadcast on ABC-TV (1967); and a summer run at the U.S. Pavilion of the 1958 Brussels Exposition, with Jan Clayton re-creating the role of Julie.

Director Nicholas Hytner, choreographer Sir Kenneth MacMillan and designer Bob Crowley collaborated on the revelatory 1992 Royal National Theatre production of CAROUSEL in London, which played to sold-out houses in the Lyttleton Theatre before transferring to the Shaftesbury Theatre in the West End the following September, where it was presented by Cameron Mackintosh.

In March 1994, CAROUSEL marked its first return to Broadway since the original run, playing for a year at the Vivian Beaumont Theater. Presented by Lincoln Center Theater, this CAROUSEL went on to receive a record-setting five Tony Awards (the most of any show that season), including Best Director of a Musical (Hytner), Best Choreography (MacMillan), Best Scenic Design (Crowley) and Best Revival of a Musical 1994. A Japanese production played extended engagements in Tokyo, Nagoya and Osaka in 1995, and a U.S. National Tour visited over 40 cities from February of 1996 through May of 1997, and starred Broadway stars to be Patrick Wilson, Sarah Uriarte Berry and Jennifer Laura Thompson. In 2002, Carnegie Hall hosted a concert performance with Hugh Jackman, Audra McDonald, Philip Bosco, Blythe Danner, John Raitt, Norbert Leo Butz, Jason Danieley, Judy Kaye and Lauren Ward. That same year, Emily Loesser appeared in CAROUSEL at the Royal Festival Hall in London. Shirley Jones played Nettie at the Reagle Theatre in 2005. In 2007, the Boston Pops' CAROUSEL featured Aaron Lazar, Liz Callaway, Jason Danieley and Marin Mazzie.

CAROUSEL had always been Rodgers & Hammerstein’s personal favorite; the latest turns on the CAROUSEL prove that their opinion is still shared by audiences everywhere.