View source for Keating!

{{Short description|Sung-through musical portraying Paul Keating}}
{{For|the Australian politician and subject of this play|Paul Keating}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2020}}
{{Use Australian English|date=February 2025}}
{{Infobox Musical
|name         = Keating!
|subtitle     = The Musical We Had To Have
|image        = Keating_poster.jpg
|image_size   = 180
|caption      = Poster for the Company B production
|music        = Casey Bennetto
|lyrics       = Casey Bennetto
|book         = [[Casey Bennetto]]
|basis        = The life of [[Paul Keating]]
|productions  = 2005–2006 Australian tour ([[Drowsy Drivers]])<br />2006–2008 Australian tour ([[Company B (theatre)|Company B]])<br />2010 [[Theatre Royal, Hobart]] ([[Old Nick Company]])
<!-- Please do not include
     production-specific (acting,
     directing, etc.) awards -->
|awards       = 2005 [[Melbourne International Comedy Festival|MICF]] [[Barry Award (for comedy)|Barry Award]]<br />2005 MICF [[Golden Gibbo Award]]<br />2005 ''[[The Age]]'' Critics' Award<br />2006 [[Green Room Award]] for Best Original Score<br />2006 [[Helpmann Award]] for Best Original Score<br />2007 [[Helpmann Award for Best Musical]]<br />2008 [[Helpmann Award for Best Regional Touring Production]]}}

'''''Keating!''''' is a [[sung-through]] musical which portrays the political career of former Australian [[Prime Minister of Australia|Prime Minister]] [[Paul Keating]].  Keating was Prime Minister between 1991 and 1996; the musical follows him from his ascent to the leadership through to his eventual electoral defeat by [[John Howard]]. It was written by [[Casey Bennetto]], who was inspired to write the show by his disappointment at the results of the [[2004 Australian federal election|2004 federal election]], which saw Howard's [[Coalition (Australia)|Coalition]] government returned for a fourth term.  The musical takes a humorous, [[satire|satirical]] tone and presents a positive image of Keating while frequently criticising the [[Howard government]]. Bennetto describes the show as "ridiculously pro-Paul Keating".

Originally performed by musical group the Drowsy Drivers, the show achieved rapid success from its low-budget premiere at the 2005 [[Melbourne International Comedy Festival]] where it enjoyed a sold-out run and won an unprecedented three festival awards. In 2006, [[Neil Armfield]] directed an extended [[Company B (theatre)|Company B]] production of ''Keating!'', now with two acts and six new songs written by Bennetto. The Company B production toured Australia, receiving favourable reviews and winning [[Helpmann Award]]s for Best Musical and Best Regional Touring Production. In 2008 a live recording of the show was broadcast nationally on [[ABC2]]; it was released on DVD in November 2008, through [[Madman Entertainment]].

==Background==
Paul Keating was the [[Australian Labor Party|Labor]] Prime Minister of Australia from 1991 to 1996, ascending to the office after two leadership challenges against his predecessor, [[Bob Hawke]].  As Prime Minister, he was interested in a "big picture" approach to government, engaging with issues such as a closer [[Foreign relations of Australia|relationship with Asia]], [[Indigenous Australians|Aboriginal]] reconciliation and the formation of an [[Republicanism in Australia|Australian republic]].<ref>{{cite book  | last = Watson  | first = Don  | author-link = Don Watson  | title = Recollections of a Bleeding Heart  | publisher = Random House  |date=October 2002  | location = Sydney  | pages = 92  | isbn = 978-0-09-183517-0}}</ref> His government was defeated in the [[1996 Australian federal election|1996 federal election]] by the [[Liberal Party of Australia|Liberal]]-[[National Party of Australia|National]] [[Coalition (Australia)|Coalition]] under John Howard.  Writer Casey Bennetto was inspired to write a musical about Keating following his disappointment at the result of the 2004 federal election, which saw the Howard government returned for a fourth term.<ref>{{cite web |author=Strickland, Katrina |url= http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,12815531-16947,00.html | title=Operatic vision of Keating's career |work=The Australian |date=11 April 2005 | access-date=6 October 2008}}{{dead link|date=March 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>  "It was time to have a laugh at it," he said.<ref name="right note">{{cite web |author=Clarke, Suzanna |url= http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,20797,23408148-7642,00.html?from=public_rss |archive-url= https://archive.today/20121230120809/http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,20797,23408148-7642,00.html?from=public_rss |url-status= dead |archive-date= 30 December 2012 | title=Paul Keating musical hits the right note |work=The Courier-Mail|date=22 March 2008 | access-date=6 October 2008}}</ref> He says Keating's story appealed to him because of its classic dramatic structure, that of a man who struggles, "makes it to the top" and must compete against "three bad guys"—successive Opposition leaders [[John Hewson]], [[Alexander Downer]] and John Howard.<ref name="domingo" /> Bennetto believed Keating's colourful personality made him an "ideal" character for musical theatre, citing the former Prime Minister's reputation for being sharp-tongued, wearing [[Zegna]] suits and collecting antique clocks.<ref name="right note" /> Bennetto wrote the show in eight weeks,<ref name="domingo">{{cite web |author=Roberts, Jo |url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/arts/the-opera-we-had-to-have/2005/07/22/1121539135085.html |title=The return of Placido Domingo |work=The Sydney Morning Herald |date=23 July 2005 |access-date=6 October 2008 |archive-date=17 April 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080417162549/http://www.smh.com.au/news/arts/the-opera-we-had-to-have/2005/07/22/1121539135085.html |url-status=live }}</ref> drawing on Keating biography ''[[Recollections of a Bleeding Heart]]'' by [[Don Watson]].<ref name="arse">{{cite web |author=Staff writer |url=http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2007/08/10/1186530622418.html |title=Bleeding heart songs from the 'arse end' |work=The Age |date=11 August 2007 |access-date=6 October 2008 |archive-date=2 November 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121102074430/http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2007/08/10/1186530622418.html |url-status=live }}</ref> He describes it as a "ridiculously pro-Paul Keating" piece which ultimately aims to be funny and entertaining.<ref name="right note" />

==Production history==
Originally performed by musical group the Drowsy Drivers, ''Keating!'' premiered at the 2005 Melbourne International Comedy Festival as a low-budget, single-act show in a 100-seat venue at the [[Melbourne Trades Hall]].<ref name="domingo" /> Mike McLeish played the lead role, with Bennetto as "the three Hs – Hawke, Hewson and Howard", Enio Pozzebon as [[Gareth Evans (politician)|Gareth Evans]] and Cam Rogers as Alexander Downer.<ref name="domingo" /><ref>{{cite web |author=Gill, Raymond |url=http://www.theage.com.au/news/Arts/Comic-opera-earns-a-special-audience/2005/04/15/1113509926741.html |title=Comic opera earns a special audience |work=The Age |date=16 April 2005 |access-date=6 October 2008 |archive-date=29 May 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060529210237/http://www.theage.com.au/news/Arts/Comic-opera-earns-a-special-audience/2005/04/15/1113509926741.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Despite the musical's success in Melbourne, Bennetto did not have any plans for ''Keating!'' after the end of the comedy festival. However, producer Catherine Woodfield (Bennetto's partner and Trades Hall publican) insisted they develop it further.  Between 2005 and 2006 they took it on tour across Australia, including a week of shows in the [[Sydney Opera House]], a return season at Melbourne's Trades Hall, a two-week season at the [[Adelaide Cabaret Festival]], a week of shows at the [[Brisbane Powerhouse]] and two nights in [[Darwin, Northern Territory|Darwin]].<ref name="right note" />

Also in 2006, renowned director Neil Armfield offered to direct a production of ''Keating!'' at Sydney's [[Belvoir St Theatre]] with [[Company B (theatre)|Company B]].<ref name="right note" /> For the Company B production Bennetto reworked the musical into a two-act piece, writing six new songs for the show.<ref name="crunch">{{cite web |author=Roberts, Jo |url= http://www.theage.com.au/news/comedy-festival/keating-prepares-to-crunch-the-big-numbers/2007/04/08/1175970936552.html | title=Keating! prepares to crunch the big numbers |work=The Age |date=9 April 2007 | access-date=6 October 2008}}</ref> Of the original cast, only McLeish, Pozzebon and Bennetto were retained; McLeish returned as Keating and Pozzebon as Evans, while Bennetto took on the roles of Hewson and Downer. [[Terry Serio]] joined the cast as Hawke and Howard.<ref name="right note" /> Bennetto says that both he and McLeish were worried that Armfield would turn "relatively simply staged, roughly hewn" musical into "the ''[[Amadeus (play)|Amadeus]]'' version" without the original show's sense of fun,<ref>{{cite web |author=Barrett, Peter |url= http://www.theage.com.au/news/culture/capturing-keating/2007/04/12/1175971226213.html | title=Capturing Keating |work=The Age |date=12 April 2007 | access-date=6 October 2008}}</ref> but instead felt it became a "more accomplished, buffed-up version of the original show".<ref name="crunch" />

The Company B version of ''Keating!'' enjoyed sold-out seasons in Melbourne, Sydney, [[Adelaide]], [[Brisbane]], [[Perth]], [[Canberra]], [[Wollongong]], [[Albany, Western Australia|Albany]] and elsewhere (including a run of shows at the 2007 Melbourne International Comedy Festival) before coming to a close on 31 August 2008.<ref name="end">{{cite web |author=Morgan, Clare |url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/arts/all-good-things-must-end/2008/08/02/1217097547028.html |title=All good things must end |work=The Sydney Morning Herald |date=2 August 2008 |access-date=17 October 2008 |archive-date=15 September 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080915070733/http://www.smh.com.au/news/arts/all-good-things-must-end/2008/08/02/1217097547028.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ausstage.edu.au/pages/work/742|title=AusStage|access-date=24 February 2016|archive-date=4 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304090225/https://www.ausstage.edu.au/pages/work/742|url-status=live}}</ref> On 20 August 2008, ABC2 broadcast a live performance of the show from Sydney's [[Seymour Centre]].<ref>{{cite web |author=Mercado, Andrew |url= http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,24112042-5006014,00.html | title=Kenny makes a comeback |work=The Daily Telegraph |date=3 August 2008 | access-date=6 October 2008}}</ref> The recording was released on DVD by Madman Entertainment in November 2008.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.madman.com.au/actions/catalogue.do?method=view&releaseId=11475 |title=Keating!|access-date=5 October 2008 |work=Madman Entertainment}}</ref>

==Response==
The premiere of the Drowsy Drivers' production at the 2005 Melbourne International Comedy Festival was met with enthusiastic reviews. Comedian [[Chris Addison]] praised the musical as "the best show I've seen at this festival in five years"<ref>{{cite web |author=Roberts, Jo |url=http://www.theage.com.au/news/Arts/Wipe-off-that-grin-its-over/2005/04/17/1113676644127.html |title=Wipe off that grin: it's over |work=The Age |date=18 April 2005 |access-date=23 October 2008 |archive-date=30 August 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080830065555/http://www.theage.com.au/news/Arts/Wipe-off-that-grin-its-over/2005/04/17/1113676644127.html |url-status=live }}</ref> and ''[[The Age]]'''s Daniel Ziffer described it as "clever and superbly funny".<ref>{{cite web |author=Ziffer, Daniel |url=http://www.theage.com.au/news/Reviews/Keating/2005/04/01/1112302233755.html | title=Keating |work=The Age |date=2 April 2005 | access-date=23 October 2008}}</ref> Within the first week it had become one of the most popular shows of the festival, having sold out by the fifth show.  By the end of its Melbourne run, the show had won three major festival awards—the Barry, ''The Age'' Critics' Award and the [[Golden Gibbo]]—the first time any production had ever done so.<ref name="domingo" /> For the songs of ''Keating!'', Bennetto won both the 2006 Helpmann and [[Green Room Award]]s for best original musical score.<ref>{{cite web |author=Creagh, Sunanda |url=http://www.theage.com.au/news/arts/satire-scoops-awards/2006/07/31/1154198074608.html |title=Satire scoops awards |work=The Age |date=1 August 2006 |access-date=17 October 2008 |archive-date=13 September 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060913142801/http://www.theage.com.au/news/arts/satire-scoops-awards/2006/07/31/1154198074608.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author=Gill, Raymond |url= http://www.theage.com.au/news/arts/green-room-awards-go-live/2006/04/09/1144521206520.html | title=Green Room awards go live |work=The Age |date=10 April 2006 | access-date=17 October 2008}}</ref>

The Company B version also received strong reviews, with a writer in Brisbane's ''[[Courier-Mail]]'' describing it as "brilliantly satirical"<ref name="right note" /> and a reviewer in Melbourne's ''Age'' awarding it the top rating of five stars.<ref name="woodhead">{{cite web |author=Woodhead, Cameron |url=http://www.theage.com.au/news/arts-reviews/keating/2007/04/02/1175366118223.html |title=Keating! |work=The Age |date=14 April 2007 |access-date=17 October 2008 |archive-date=17 June 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080617031316/http://www.theage.com.au/news/arts-reviews/keating/2007/04/02/1175366118223.html |url-status=live }}</ref> However [[Paul Sheehan (journalist)|Paul Sheehan]], writing for the ''[[Sydney Morning Herald]]'', criticised the musical's pro-Keating bias, calling the script "preachy and safe" and an insult to those who voted for Howard.<ref>{{cite web |author=Sheehan, Paul |url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/opinion/its-only-a-cabaret-old-comrade/2006/11/19/1163871269034.html |title=It's only a cabaret, old comrade |work=The Sydney Morning Herald |date=20 November 2006 |access-date=17 October 2008 |archive-date=17 May 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070517142327/http://www.smh.com.au/news/opinion/its-only-a-cabaret-old-comrade/2006/11/19/1163871269034.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2007 it won the [[Helpmann Award for Best Musical]], as well as the awards for [[Helpmann Award for Best Direction of a Musical|best direction]] for Armfield and [[Helpmann Award for Best Male Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical|best actor in a supporting role]] for Serio.<ref name="right note" /> The following year it won another [[Helpmann Award for Best Regional Touring Production|Helpmann for best regional touring production]].<ref name="end" /> By the end of its 2007 Sydney season, it had taken $500,000 in box office earnings,<ref>{{cite web |author=Lawson, Valerie |url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/arts/keating-musical-cashing-in/2007/01/12/1168105175196.html |title=Keating musical cashing in |work=The Sydney Morning Herald |date=13 January 2007 |access-date=6 October 2008 |archive-date=16 January 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070116171305/http://www.smh.com.au/news/arts/keating-musical-cashing-in/2007/01/12/1168105175196.html |url-status=live }}</ref> and by its final show in 2008 its total audience had reached over 223,000 people across Australia.<ref name="end" />

Keating, who has attended the show multiple times, believes that it is popular because politics and public life today are without humour.  "The game is very dour," he says, "But satire can get a lot across. It can cut out the humbug."  He believes another reason is an increased interest in the unsettled issues in the national debate, such as the question of a republic.<ref>{{cite web |author=Stephens, Tony |url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/arts/the-hot-seat-paul-keating/2006/11/09/1162661812146.html |title=The Hot Seat: Paul Keating |work=The Sydney Morning Herald |date=11 November 2006 |access-date=6 October 2008 |archive-date=25 July 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100725175131/http://www.smh.com.au/news/arts/the-hot-seat-paul-keating/2006/11/09/1162661812146.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Downer has also seen the show and commented afterwards that he enjoys satire and thought "''Keating!'' the musical was far better than Keating the prime minister."<ref name="arse" />

==Synopsis==
The following summary refers to the extended, two-act version of the musical.

===Act One===
The show begins with Bob Hawke introducing the political situation of 1990 and the contrasting personalities of Hawke—with his enthusiasm for "[[Australian rules football|footy]]" and cricket—and his deputy, Paul Keating, who is fond of "the works of [[Mahler]]" ("My Right Hand Man").<ref name="soundtrack" /> While Hawke admires Keating's economic prowess, he is perplexed by the other man's "[[un-Australian]]" interests.  Keating emerges and shares some of his life story and his hopes to gain the leadership from Hawke as they had agreed to in a deal known as the [[Kirribilli Agreement]] for the [[Kirribilli House|venue]] at which it was reached ("Do It in Style").  However, Hawke reneges on the deal and Keating returns to the [[backbencher|back bench]].  In a rock ballad, vaguely in the style of [[Queen (band)|Queen]], he sings of his desolation before resolving to challenge for the Prime Ministership ("I Remember Kirribilli").  He confronts Hawke with the [[blue-eyed soul]]-style "It's Time"; the song refers to the name of former Prime Minister [[Gough Whitlam]]'s famous 1970s [[It's Time (Australian campaign)|campaign]] and uses Keating's fondness for collecting antique clocks as a motif for his belief that it is indeed time for a change of leadership.  Keating becomes Prime Minister and sings of his ambitions for the nation—including a treaty with Indigenous Australians, an Australian republic and improved relationships with Australia's Asian neighbours—in a [[reggae]] song ("Ruler of the Land").<ref name="woodhead" />

As Keating celebrates his success, Gareth Evans cautions that the political life of a Prime Minister is limited in the minor-key Latin tune "The Beginning Is The End".  Both he and the ghost of [[Gough Whitlam]] counsel Keating to "maintain your rage".<ref name="soundtrack" /> Keating then faces off against Opposition Leader John Hewson in a freestyle [[rap battle]], arguing over the merits of Hewson's "[[Fightback! (policy)|Fightback!]]" policy platform, with Keating winning the battle due to his superior command of colourful invective, much of which is drawn from actual Keating quotes ("On The Floor").<ref name="coustley" /> Angered, Hewson challenges Keating to call an early election, but Keating refuses in the song "I Wanna Do You Slowly".  The song's title again refers to a well-known Keating quote, but takes on a sexual interpretation in the slow, [[Barry White]]-style funk number.<ref>{{cite web |author=Roberts, Jo |url=http://www.theage.com.au/news/Arts/Keating-inspires-loony-libretto/2005/04/06/1112489557456.html |title=Keating inspires loony libretto |work=The Age |date=7 April 2005 |access-date=19 October 2008 |archive-date=18 December 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071218231009/http://www.theage.com.au/news/Arts/Keating-inspires-loony-libretto/2005/04/06/1112489557456.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The Keating government contests the [[1993 Australian federal election|1993 federal election]], and in an animated video [[Kerry O'Brien (journalist)|Kerry O'Brien]], [[Michael Kroger]], [[Robert Ray (Australian politician)|Robert Ray]] and [[Antony Green]] report on the incoming results in [[Scat singing|scat]] over [[ukulele]] ("Antony Green").  Labor wins, and Keating sings about the unexpected victory as "the sweetest victory of all", using a famous phrase from his actual election night speech ("Sweet").<ref>{{cite web |author=Teiwes, Jack |url=http://www.australianstage.com.au/reviews/sydney/keating--company-b-877.html |title=Keating! Company B |work=Australian Stage Online |date=13 November 2007 |access-date=17 October 2008 |archive-date=8 August 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080808181545/http://www.australianstage.com.au/reviews/sydney/keating--company-b-877.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Act Two===
In the [[ska]] tune "The Arse End of the Earth", which refers to Keating's private description of Australia,<ref>{{cite web |author=Casey, Scott |url=http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/news/entertainment/keating-comes-to-brisbane/2008/04/04/1207249421408.html |title=Keating! Comes to Brisbane |work=Brisbane Times |date=10 March 2008 |access-date=20 October 2008 |archive-date=19 April 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080419131417/http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/news/entertainment/keating-comes-to-brisbane/2008/04/04/1207249421408.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author=Schultz, Julianne |url=http://www.newstatesman.com/australasia/2007/08/australia-immigration-howard |title=Still the lucky country |work=New Statesman |date=16 August 2007 |access-date=20 October 2008 |archive-date=20 August 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080820214802/http://newstatesman.com/australasia/2007/08/australia-immigration-howard |url-status=live }}</ref> both Keating and Evans complain about the day-to-day issues of the economy and their unfavourable portrayal in the commercial media getting in the way of their larger agenda, including republicanism, a [[Australian flag debate|new flag]], and Aboriginal reconciliation.  [[Alexander Downer]] replaces Hewson as Opposition Leader for a short and unsuccessful period.  In a costume of fishnets, corsetry and lipstick that alludes to a photograph of the actual Downer posing in fishnet stockings for a competition,<ref name="coustley" /> he sings his belief that he is just "too freaky" for the leadership ("Freaky").<ref name="soundtrack">{{cite book | last =Bennetto | first =Casey |   title =Keating! Company B Original Cast Recording | publisher =Company B | year =2007}}</ref> Meanwhile, Evans has an extramarital affair with [[Australian Democrats]] leader [[Cheryl Kernot]] (typically played by a male) ("Heavens, Mister Evans").  In an understated minor-key [[bossa nova]] song, Keating sings of the need to recognise and apologise for the damage done by white colonisation and subsequent subjugation of the Australian Aboriginal population ("Redfern"), before segueing into a more upbeat [[Mambo (music)|mambo]] about the [[Mabo v Queensland (No 2)|Mabo]] decision by the High Court of Australia and his attempts to use the decision to promote a reconciliation agenda ("Ma(m)bo").

John Howard becomes leader of the Opposition, presenting a new threat to Keating.  Howard describes his intense desire for power and his thirst for revenge against the petty humiliations put on him as a child in a menacing minor-key march ("Power").  However, in the media he presents himself as "a normal bloke and nothing more" ("The Mateship").<ref name="soundtrack" /> Through various costume changes, he attempts to cast himself as a sports fan, a friend of the Australian soldier and a farmer, though the song implies that these are only costumes.<ref>{{cite web |author=Noonan, Will |url=http://reviews.media-culture.org.au/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2726 |title=Who Da Man? Keating! Revisited |work=M/C Reviews |date=6 August 2008 |access-date=20 October 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110311083351/http://www.reviews.media-culture.org.au/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2726 |archive-date=11 March 2011}}</ref> The song also refers to the [[Children Overboard Affair|"children overboard" affair]], his criticism of [[political correctness]], and his use of immigration as a political issue, some of which occurred after the actual Howard's subsequent election to Prime Minister.  In a slow rock duet, Keating and Howard both beseech voters to "Choose Me".  However, as the 1996 electoral polls close, Keating concludes that he is doomed electorally.  He sings of his unachieved dreams and with some bitterness at what he sees as the backward-looking message of his opponent in a country-influenced ballad referring to former Labor Prime Minister [[Ben Chifley]]'s [[the light on the hill|description]] of Labor's overarching goals ("The Light on the Hill").<ref>{{cite web |author=Taylor, Darlene |url=http://www.thegroggysquirrel.com/articles/2007/04/05/2007-melbourne-comedy-festival-reviews/keating/ |title=Keating! |work=The Groggy Squirrel |date=13 April 2007 |access-date=19 October 2008 |archive-date=21 July 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080721045740/http://www.thegroggysquirrel.com/articles/2007/04/05/2007-melbourne-comedy-festival-reviews/keating/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In the final number, "Historical Revisionism", the election tightens dramatically and the results come to hang on a single polling booth—the theatre in which the musical is playing.  Keating wins and Howard concedes with the line "Well, I'm sorry... that I lost!" (a reference to his unwillingness to support a formal apology to the Aboriginal people).<ref name="soundtrack" /> As the song's title indicates, the actual Keating did not win the 1996 election.  The song segues into a reprise of "Ruler of the Land".

==Music==
The songs of ''Keating!'' employ a wide range of musical styles, including [[bossa nova]], [[blues]], [[hip hop music|rap]], reggae, [[soul music|soul]], [[swing music|swing]] and beer-barrel waltz.<ref name="right note" /> Mara Lazzarotto Davis has written an academic study of Casey Bennetto's "Keating!" as a generic hybrid - deftly blending vaudeville, theatre and musical comedy (""Flicking the Switch: Vaudeville Traditions and Myth-Making in Keating!" in Sydney Undergraduate Journal of Musicology, Vol. 5, December 2015). The lyrics frequently draw on quotes from the real Keating and other political figures, particularly in "On The Floor" which contains numerous verbatim quotes from Keating's debates with Hewson.<ref name="coustley">{{cite web |author=Magnusson, Michael |url=http://onstagemelbourne.blogspot.com/2008/02/interview-brendan-coustley-on-keating_08.html | title=Interview – Brendan Coustley on Keating! The Musical |work=On Stage and Walls Melbourne |date=8 February 2008 | access-date=9 October 2008}}</ref> In expanding the show for the Company B production Bennetto wrote six new songs, adding an Act One "curtain" number ("Sweet"), an exploration of Keating's time in office ("The Arse End of the Earth"), two songs on Aboriginal reconciliation and [[native title]] ("Redfern" and "Ma(m)bo") and another song for Howard ("The Mateship").  "Dogs of Damnation", a song from the original version in which Evans warns Keating that his political life is limited, was replaced by the similarly themed "The Beginning Is The End".<ref>{{cite book  | author=Company B | title = Company B presents: Keating! – Programme  | year =2008 }}</ref>

A live recording of the original single-act version played at the [[Sydney Opera House]] was released in 2006 by Bella Union Enterprises and is available through the Drowsy Drivers' ''Keating!'' website.  In 2007 Company B released a [[cast recording]] of the extended show containing all of the musical numbers featured on stage except for "Antony Green".  The CD features the Company B production's original cast, with McLeish as Keating, Serio as Hawke and Howard, Bennetto as Hewson and Downer, Pozzebon as Evans and Mick Stuart as Kernot.  The band consists of [[Alon Ilsar]] (drums), Eden Ottignon (bass), Pozzebon (keyboards), Guy Strazz (acoustic guitar) and Mick Stuart (electric guitar).<ref name="soundtrack" /> By 2008, the CD had sold over 5,000 copies.<ref>{{cite web |author=Appleton, Gil |url=http://www.stagenoise.com/featuresdisplay.php?id=62 |title=Keating! The Show Goes On |work=Stage Noise |date=16 February 2008 |access-date=17 October 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080502172821/http://www.stagenoise.com/featuresdisplay.php?id=62 |archive-date=2 May 2008}}</ref> Also that year, a live recording of the extended version was performed at Sydney's [[Seymour Centre]].<ref>{{Cite web|url = http://jamesobrien.id.au/2007/03/21/keating-the-musical|title = Keating – the Musical|date = 21 March 2007|access-date = 21 December 2011|archive-date = 25 April 2012|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120425024025/http://jamesobrien.id.au/2007/03/21/keating-the-musical/|url-status = live}}</ref> Among the audience members who attended the recording, the real-life Keating and [[Cheryl Kernot]] made an appearance. The recording is currently available on DVD.

===Musical numbers===
{{col-begin}}
{{col-2}}
;Act One<ref name="soundtrack" />
*My Right Hand Man&nbsp;– Hawke
*Do It in Style&nbsp;– Keating
*I Remember Kirribilli&nbsp;– Keating
*It's Time&nbsp;– Keating and Hawke
*Ruler of the Land&nbsp;– Keating
*The Beginning Is The End&nbsp;– Keating, Evans and Whitlam
*On The Floor&nbsp;– Keating and Hewson
*I Wanna Do You Slowly&nbsp;– Keating and Hewson
*Antony Green&nbsp;– Reporters
*Sweet&nbsp;– Keating
{{col-break}}
;Act Two<ref name="soundtrack" />
*The Arse End of the Earth&nbsp;– Keating and Evans
*Freaky&nbsp;– Downer
*Heavens, Mister Evans&nbsp;– Evans and Kernot
*Redfern&nbsp;– Keating
*Ma(m)bo&nbsp;– Keating
*Power&nbsp;– Howard
*The Mateship&nbsp;– Howard
*Choose Me&nbsp;– Keating and Howard
*The Light on the Hill&nbsp;– Keating
*Historical Revisionism&nbsp;– Scrutineer, Keating and Howard
{{col-end}}

==See also==
*[[TONY! The Blair Musical]]

==References==

{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070704045859/http://www.keatingtheopera.com/ Keating! – The Opera], official website for the single-act Drowsy Drivers version of the musical
*[http://www.thecentrecannothold.net/frontpage/keating-the-musical-annotations/ Keating! The Musical annotations], lyrics annotated with cultural and historical references
*[http://www.oldnick.org.au/keating Keating!] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111007204934/http://www.oldnick.org.au/keating |date=7 October 2011 }}, website of the Old Nick Company's production of the musical.
{{Good article}}
* http://openjournals.library.usyd.edu.au/index.php/SCM/article/view/10455/10321 - Mara Lazzarotto Davis: "Flicking the Switch: Vaudeville Traditions and Myth-Making in Keating!", Sydney Undergraduate Journal of Musicology Vol. 5, December 2015
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[[Category:2000s Australian musicals]]
[[Category:Works about politicians| Musicals]]
[[Category:2005 musicals]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of Australian people]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of politicians]]
[[Category:Satirical musicals]]
[[Category:Sung-through musicals]]
[[Category:Musicals set in Australia]]