This Is The Army is an American musical revue in two acts, designed to boost morale in the U.S. during World War II, with a book by James McColl and music and lyrics by Irving Berlin. It was produced by the U.S. army on Broadway in 1942, with a cast of U.S. soldiers, for the benefit of the Army Emergency Relief Fund. Production The revue ran on Broadway, at the Broadway Theatre from July 4, 1942, to September 26, 1942, for 113 performances. The show was directed by Sgt. Ezra Stone, choreographed by Cpl. Nelson Barclift and Pvt. Robert Sidney, with settings and costumes by Pvt. John Koenig and music direction by Cpl. Chester O'Brien. However, the opening night program states that the orchestra was under the direction of Cpl. Milton Rosenstock. Background In May 1941, ex-Sergeant Irving Berlin was on tour at Camp Upton, his old Army base in Yaphank, New York, before the U.S. joined the fighting in World War II. There he spoke with the commanding officers, including Capt. Doc Rankin of Special Services, about restaging Berlin's 1917 Army play Yip Yip Yaphank. Gen. George Marshall approved a Broadway production of a wartime musical for the army, allowing Berlin to make the arrangements and hold rehearsals at Camp Upton much like he had done during World War I. Sgt. Ezra Stone was selected as director for the new version of the play, and the two set up on base during the weekdays to put together the story and crew. Insisting on racial integration, Berlin was permitted to add African Americans into this play, which he was not allowed to do in Yip Yip Yaphank. This was unconventional for the United States Army. Still, whites and African Americans did not appear on stage simultaneously. According to the opening night program, the show opened with a military minstrel show. Prologue Magazine reports that "initially, [Berlin] expected the first half hour of This Is the Army to recreate a minstrel show, which was the way he had kicked off Yip Yip Yaphank – 110 men sitting on bleachers, and everyone in blackface. Ezra Stone, the director, was indignant. 'Mr. Berlin,' he said, 'I know the heritage of the minstrel show. Those days are gone. People don't do that anymore.' 'No, no, that's nonsense,' the songwriter replied. After considerable discussion, Stone adopted another approach to convince Berlin to skip the minstrel