[1] Written originally for television, the musical focuses on Charles (Anthony Perkins), a poet who takes refuge from the world by hiding out in a department store after closing.

He meets a community of night people who live in the store and falls in love with a beautiful young girl named Ella (Charmian Carr).

Should someone try to return to the outside world and risk revealing the group's existence, the Dark Men take them away and another mannequin appears in the clothing department.

The store opens the next morning with a couple on the sidewalk who resemble Ella and Charles from behind, but turn out to be strangers when the camera pans to their faces.

Directed by Ian Marshall Fisher, it starred Betsy Blair as Mrs. Monday, Michael Matus as Charles Snell, Jennifer Higham as Ella Harkins, James Vaughan as Store Doorman/Night Watchman, and Gary Raymond as Roscoe, with Sylvia Seymour, Martin Gaisford, Myra Sands, David O'Brien and Andrew Beavis in supporting roles.

[3] On October 22, 2010, the St. George's Society in New York City had a one night only semi staged performance at the Gerald W. Lynch Theater at John Jay College of Criminal Justice.

The cast had Carmen De Lavallade (Mrs. Billbee) --she also directed some choreography, Jessica Grové (Ella), Sean Palmer (Charles), Candice Bergen (Mrs. Monday), John Cunningham (Roscoe Potts), Sondra Lee (Augusta), and William Duell (Billy).

[7] "I Remember" has been recorded by David Kernan on the recording of the musical revue Side by Side by Sondheim, as well as Sarah Brightman, Judy Collins, John Pizzarelli, Mark Murphy, Cleo Laine, Maureen McGovern, Betty Buckley, Julia Migenes, Dianne Reeves, Myrra Malmberg, Madeline Eastman, Bernadette Peters, Victoria Mallory, and Barbra Streisand.

Barbra Streisand recorded "Take Me to The World" with Antonio Banderas for her 2016 album Encore: Movie Partners Sing Broadway; Sondheim altered the song's lyrics for the project.

The progressive rock band The Alan Parsons Project references Evening Primrose heavily in the 1984 music video for their single "Prime Time" from the album Ammonia Avenue.

After he makes a distraught farewell and walks away, the woman overcomes her mannequin state and flings herself out the store window, coming back to life.