Chess

• Original London Production (1986)
  London, England
• Broadway Production (1988)
  New York, NY
• Carnegie Hall Concert (1989)
  New York, NY
• National Tour (1990)
• UK Tour (1990)
• Australian Production (1991)
  Sydney, Australia
• Off-Broadway Revival (1992)
  New York, NY
• Australian Revival (1997)
  Melbourne, Australia
• New York Concert (1998)
  New York, NY
• Actor's Fund of America Concert (2003)
  New York, NY
• BC/EFA Concert (2007)
  Los Angeles, CA
• Royal Albert Hall Concert (2008)
  London, England
• UK Tour (2010)
• Toronto Revival (2011)
  Toronto, Ontario, Canada
• Actor's Fund Concert (2012)
  New York, NY
• Melbourne Concert Production (2012)
  Melbourne, Australia

Click on the title for info on the song.

Added to Off-Broadway production

• Confrontation

Original score

• Prologue: The Story of Chess
  • aka The Story of Chess [no note]
• Merano
• What a Scene! What a Joy!
• Commie Newspapers
• Press Conference
  • aka Smile, You Got Your First Exclusive Story [used in Chicago version]
• Anatoly and Molokov
  • aka The Russian and Molokov [no note]
• Where I Want to Be
• U.S. Versus U.S.S.R.
  • aka U.S. vs. U.S.S.R. [alternate title]
• Arbiter's Song
• Chess Hymn
  • aka Hymn to Chess [no note]
• Merchandisers' Song
• Chess
• Quartet
  • aka Model of Decorum and Tranquility, A [no note]
• The American and Florence
  • aka 1956 - Budapest is Rising [alternate title]
  • aka You Want to Lose Your Only Friend? [no note]
• Nobody's Side
  • aka Nobody's on Nobody's Side [no note]
• Mountain Duet
  • aka Terrace Duet [used in US Productions]
• Florence Quits
  • aka So You Got What You Want [no note]
• Pity the Child
• Embassy Lament
• Heaven Help My Heart
• Anthem
• One Night in Bangkok
• Florence and Anatoly
• You and I
• The Soviet Machine
• Interview
• Deal, The
  • aka No Deal [no note]
  • aka The Deal (No Deal) [used on the concept album]
• I Know Him So Well
• Frederick and Anatoly
• Endgame
• The Argument
• Don't You Find it Rather Touching?
• Florence and Molokov
• Anatoly and the Press

Cut During London Run

• Der Kleine Franz
• Golden Ballet

Added to Broadway production, but cut

• East or West?
• Postponement
• A Major Story

Added to Broadway production

• How Many Women
  • aka How Many Women? [no note]
• Someone Else's Story
• Hungarian Folk Song
  • aka Budapest [no note]
• No Contest
  • aka Winning [no note]
• A Whole New Board Game
• Let's Work Together
• Lullaby
  • aka Apukad Eros Kezen [no note]

Added to later versions

• Who'd Ever Think It?

Added to Australian production

• Tournament Anthem
• Cocktail Chorus

• Concept Album (1984) [audio]
• "Chess Moves" Concept Video (1984) [video]

The story involves a romantic triangle between two players in a world chess championship, and a woman who manages one and falls in love with the other.

Tim Rice began thinking about writing a Cold War musical in 1979. He approached Andrew Lloyd Webber about it, but Lloyd Webber was busy with Cats (1981) at the time. In 1980, Rice wrote a five-page synopsis and producer Richard Vos became interested. He helped Rice find Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, who were looking to branch out from ABBA at the time. The four of them met in Sweden in 1981 and discussed several projects, but it was Chess in which Andersson and Ulvaeus were most interested. While in London on a 10th anniversary tour with ABBA, they announced the project publicly.