When the musical “Show Boat,” with a score by Jerome Kern and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, arrived on Broadway in 1927, sheet music sales exploded. By the time the 1936 and 1951 films hit movie theaters, the songs had become embedded in American culture.

Now, the Washington National Opera breaks tradition to mount a co-production of the musical with the Lyric Opera of Chicago, the San Francisco Opera Association and Houston Grand Opera. It arrives in Washington following its smashing success earlier this season in Chicago. For the Washington run, half of the Chicago cast is reprising its roles, among them opera star Alyson Cambridge, who plays Julie.