| Once Upon a Mattress | |
|---|---|
 Original cast recording | |
| Music | Mary Rodgers |
| Lyrics | Marshall Barer |
| Book | Jay Thompson Marshall Barer Dean Fuller Amy Sherman-Palladino (2024 production) |
| Basis | Fairy tale The Princess and the Pea |
| Productions | 1958 Camp Tamiment, PA 1959 Off-Broadway 1959 Broadway 1960 US Tour 1960 West End 1964 U.S. Television 1972 U.S. Television 1996 Broadway revival 2005 U.S. Television 2024 Encores! 2024 Broadway revival |
Once Upon a Mattress is a musical comedy with music by Mary Rodgers, lyrics by Marshall Barer, and book by Jay Thompson, Dean Fuller, and Marshall Barer. It opened off-Broadway in May 1959, and then moved to Broadway. The play was written as a humorous adaptation of the 1835 Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale "The Princess and the Pea".
Once Upon a Mattress was first written as a shorter play at the Tamiment adult summer camp resort. The play was later expanded for the Broadway stage. Initial reviews of the play were mixed, but critics and actors alike were surprised by the show's enduring popularity. Once Upon a Mattress is a popular choice produced by top-level high school and university music and drama programs.