Forbidden Broadway

Last updated
Forbidden Broadway
Forbidden broadway logo color.gif
Logo
MusicVarious
Lyrics Gerard Alessandrini
Book Gerard Alessandrini
BasisBroadway musicals
Productions1982 Off-Broadway

Forbidden Broadway is an Off-Broadway revue parodying musical theatre, particularly Broadway musicals. It was conceived, written and directed by Gerard Alessandrini and has been updated many times to parody new musicals and productions. Typically, the revue is performed by a cast of four with a piano. Versions of the show have been seen in more than 200 cities in the U.S., as well as London, Tokyo and elsewhere. In 2024, after four decades of performances off-Broadway, a Broadway version of the revue is planned to be staged for the first time.

Contents

Background

The original version of the revue opened on January 15, 1982, at Palsson's Supper Club in New York City and ran for 2,332 performances. [1] Alessandrini has rewritten the show more than a dozen times over the years to include parodies of newer shows. In the original iteration of the show, Alessandrini was one of the original actors alongside the actress Nora Mae Lyng, whom Alessandrini said he "created it for.". [2] Michael Chapman directed and produced. [3] In 1982, Jeff Martin succeeded Chapman as director. Alessandrini assumed the directing position subsequently, with Phillip George, Alessandrini's long-time collaborator, co-directing or directing all of the editions of the revue since 2004. [4]

The show, in its various editions, received over 9,000 performances by 2009 and has been seen in more than 200 U.S. cities as well as playing in London, Tokyo, Singapore and Sydney. [5]

Description

The show is a cabaret revue sharply spoofing show tunes, characters and plots of contemporary and current Broadway musicals. Forbidden Broadway and its many sequels have mocked popular shows like The Phantom of the Opera , Wicked , Les Misérables , The Lion King , Spamalot , Annie , Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark , Rent , and Newsies . The revue also targets famous Broadway actors, writers, composers, directors, choreographers and producers, including Julie Andrews, Mel Brooks, Carol Channing, Kristin Chenoweth, Michael Crawford, Harvey Fierstein, Bob Fosse, Whoopi Goldberg, Robert Goulet, Jerry Herman, Dustin Hoffman, Elton John, Angela Lansbury, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Patti LuPone, Cameron Mackintosh, Mary Martin, Ethel Merman, Liza Minnelli, Rita Moreno, Mandy Patinkin, Bernadette Peters, Chita Rivera, Stephen Sondheim, Barbra Streisand, Julie Taymor, and Gwen Verdon. [3] [6] [7]

Forbidden Broadway is performed as a four or five-person show, with two men, two women (and in at least one production, a teen), with piano accompaniment. Forbidden Broadway has released more than a dozen albums, as well as Forbidden Hollywood , spoofing cinematic topics. The New York and Los Angeles-based companies of both Forbidden incarnations have served as a workshop for rising talent to hone their skills. Alumni include Jason Alexander, [8] Brad Oscar, [9] Christine Pedi, [10] Bryan Batt, [11] Michael McGrath, [12] Chloe Webb, [8] Barbara Walsh, [13] Ann Morrison, [8] and many more.

In 2006, the show and Alessandrini were awarded Tony Honors for Excellence in Theatre. [14] It has been nominated five times for the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revue, winning three times (2001, 2005 and 2008). [15] [16] [17] It also won Drama Desk Special Awards in 1985 [18] and 2009. [19] Forbidden Broadway Goes to Rehab ended its run Off-Broadway on March 1, 2009. [6] In 2009 a book of "Best of" lyrics and the show's history was published under the title Forbidden Broadway: Behind The Mylar Curtain. [20]

The show, in its various editions through 2009, received over 9,000 performances and been seen in more than 200 U.S. cities as well as in London, Tokyo, Singapore [5] and Adelaide, Australia, where it played for the only time with an orchestra at the 2002 Adelaide Cabaret Festival. [21] A 2009 review of the London production, in Britain's The Independent , commented: "Actors have always poked fun at the foibles of commercial theatre. ... Usually, though, they keep their parodies to themselves. It takes a touch of genius to turn them into something saleable, but writer Gerald Alessandrini has that Midas touch." [7] The original artwork advertising the show was designed by caricaturist Ken Fallin, who suggested the actors find the name "Nina" written on their bodies as an homage to Al Hirschfeld, who was known for working his daughter's name into his drawings. [22]

A 2012/13 version of the show, Forbidden Broadway: Alive and Kicking!, played in New York [23] and was revived in 2014. [24] Another Off-Broadway version, Forbidden Broadway Comes Out Swinging, played in 2014 at the Davenport Theatre. [4] A London edition in 2014 began at the Menier Chocolate Factory [25] and transferred to the Vaudeville Theatre, starring Christina Bianco, Anna-Jane Casey, Damian Humbley and Ben Lewis, with Phillip George directing. [26] In 2019, Forbidden Broadway Salutes Carol Channing played a celebration show for the late Carol Channing in New York. [27]

Forbidden Broadway: The Next Generation began previews on September 18, 2019, and opened on October 16, 2019, at New York's The Triad Theatre. [28] The show was conceived, created and written and directed by Alessandrini [29] It closed on December 1, 2019, and played a limited engagement at the Kravis Center in West Palm Beach, Florida, from December 27 to 31, 2019. [30] On January 15, 2020, it resumed performances at the York Theatre. [31] The plays and musicals parodied in this version included Dear Evan Hansen , Moulin Rouge! , Tootsie , The Ferryman , Hadestown , Fiddler on the Roof , Harry Potter and the Cursed Child , Oklahoma , Mary Poppins , The Prom , and Fosse/Verdon . The personalities portrayed included Lin-Manuel Miranda, Judy Garland, Billy Porter and Harold Prince. [32] [31]

A production of Forbidden Broadway is planned to play for the first time on Broadway, at the Helen Hayes Theatre, from August 15 until November 1, 2024, as Forbidden Broadway on Broadway: Merrily We Stole a Song. In addition to the usual four-person cast and pianist, the show will also have a guest star for each week. As the title implies, the revue is set to target Merrily We Roll Along , as well as The Great Gatsby, The Notebook, Water for Elephants, Hell's Kitchen, Back to the Future and the revivals of Sondheim musicals such as Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Into the Woods and Company . [33] The show's producers are Ryan Bogner, Victoria Lang and Tracey Stoock McFarland of Broadway & Beyond Theatricals in association with John Freedson and Herriet Yellin. [34]

Editions of Forbidden Broadway

Albums

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Drama Desk Award</span> New York theater awards

The Drama Desk Award is an annual prize recognizing excellence in New York theatre. First bestowed in 1955 as the Vernon Rice Award, the prize initially honored Off-Broadway productions, as well as Off-off-Broadway, and those in the vicinity. Following the 1964 renaming as the Drama Desk Awards, Broadway productions were included beginning with the 1968–69 award season. The awards are considered a significant American theater distinction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeanine Tesori</span> American composer and musical arranger (born 1961)

Jeanine Tesori, known earlier in her career as Jeanine Levenson, is an American composer and musical arranger best known for her work in the theater. She is the most prolific and honored female theatrical composer in history, with five Broadway musicals and six Tony Award nominations. She won the 1999 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music in a Play for Nicholas Hytner's production of Twelfth Night at Lincoln Center, the 2004 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music for Caroline, or Change, the 2015 Tony Award for Best Original Score for Fun Home, making them the first female writing team to win that award, and the 2023 Tony Award for Best Original Score for Kimberly Akimbo. She was named a Pulitzer Prize for Drama finalist twice for Fun Home and Soft Power.

<i>Forbidden Broadway Strikes Back</i> Musical

Forbidden Broadway Strikes Back is a version of Forbidden Broadway created by Gerard Alessandrini. It previewed September 5, 1996 and opened at the Triad Theater October 16, 1996. The show won Alessandrini the 1997 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lyrics and was nominated for the 1997 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revue.

David Joel Zippel is an American musical theatre lyricist, director, and producer.

<i>Forbidden Broadway: Special Victims Unit</i>

Forbidden Broadway: Special Victims Unit is the ninth incarnation of Gerard Alessandrini's musical revue. The revue ran Off-Broadway from 2004 to 2007.

<i>Newsical</i>

Newsical is a musical with music, lyrics, and book written by Rick Crom. In ever-changing songs and sketches, it lampoons current events, hot topics, celebrities, politicians, and other well-known entities. New songs are added on a continual basis to keep up with the headlines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lynn Nottage</span> American playwright (born 1964)

Lynn Nottage is an American playwright whose work often focuses on the experience of working-class people, particularly working-class people who are Black. She has received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama twice: in 2009 for her play Ruined, and in 2017 for her play Sweat. She was the first woman to have won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama two times.

Rick Crom is an American actor, singer, comedian, lyricist, and composer. He has appeared in numerous television shows and specials, Broadway and off-Broadway musicals, as well as written several off-Broadway revues, and has 3 times been nominated for the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lyrics.

Christine Pedi born in 1961-1962, is an American television and theatre actress, as well as a cabaret performer and radio personality.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gerard Alessandrini</span> American dramatist

Gerard Alessandrini is an American playwright, parodist, actor and theatre director best known for creating the award-winning off-Broadway musical theatre parody revue Forbidden Broadway. He is the recipient of Tony Honors for Excellence in Theatre, an Obie Award, four Drama Desk Awards, an Outer Critics Circle Award, and two Lucille Lortel Awards, as well as the Drama League Award for Lifetime Achievement in Musical Theatre.

The Lucille Lortel Awards recognize excellence in New York Off-Broadway theatre. The Awards are named for Lucille Lortel, an actress and theater producer, and have been awarded since 1986. They are produced by the League of Off-Broadway Theatres and Producers by special arrangement with the Lucille Lortel Foundation, with additional support from the Theatre Development Fund.

Leslie Rodriguez Kritzer is an American musical theatre actress and singer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alex Timbers</span> American writer and director

Alex Timbers is an American writer and director and the recipient of Tony, Golden Globe, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, and London Evening Standard Awards, as well as two OBIE and Lucile Lortel Awards. He also received the 2019 Drama League Founder's Award for Excellence in Directing and the 2016 Jerome Robbins Award for Directing. He was nominated for a 2020 Grammy Award. For his work on Moulin Rouge! The Musical, Timbers won a 2021 Tony Award for Best Director of a Musical.

<i>Forbidden Broadway Goes to Rehab</i>

Forbidden Broadway Goes to Rehab is the 2008 incarnation of Gerard Alessandrini's long-running hit Off-Broadway musical revue Forbidden Broadway, which parodies notable current Broadway and Off-Broadway musicals. It was initially announced that this would be the final version of the show, until the franchise was revived with Forbidden Broadway: Alive & Kicking! in 2012 and Forbidden Broadway Comes Out Swinging! in 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kate Baldwin</span> American singer

Katherine Baldwin is an American singer and actress known for her work in musical theater. She received a Tony Award nomination for her work in the 2009 Broadway revival of Finian's Rainbow. She also co-starred opposite Bette Midler, David Hyde Pierce, and Gavin Creel in the Broadway revival of Hello, Dolly!, for which she received Tony, Drama Desk, and Outer Critics Circle award nominations for her work as the saucy millineress Irene Molloy. Baldwin continued with the production until it closed in August 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Cromer</span> American actor and director

David Cromer is an American theatre director, and stage, film, and TV actor. He has received recognition for his work on Broadway, Off-Broadway, and in his native Chicago. Cromer has won or been nominated for numerous awards, including winning the Lucille Lortel Award and Obie Award for his direction of Our Town. He was nominated for the Drama Desk Award and the Outer Critics Circle Award for his direction of The Adding Machine. In 2018, Cromer won the Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical for The Band's Visit.

Christopher Ashley is an American stage director. Since 2007, he has been the artistic director of the La Jolla Playhouse.

Sergio Trujillo is a theater director, choreographer, dancer and actor. Born in Colombia and raised in Toronto, Canada, he is now an American citizen and resides in New York City. Trujillo was the recipient of the 2019 Tony Award for Best Choreography for Ain't Too Proud and the 2015 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Theatre Choreographer for Memphis. He is the first ever Hispanic recipient of the Tony Award for Best Choreography.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rachel Chavkin</span> American theatre director

Rachel Chavkin is an American stage director best known for directing the musicals Natasha, Pierre, & The Great Comet of 1812 and Hadestown, receiving nominations for a Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical for both and winning for Hadestown in 2019.

<i>Spamilton</i> Musical parody play

Spamilton: An American Parody is a musical parody of the Broadway show Hamilton. Written by Gerard Alessandrini, creator of the parody revue Forbidden Broadway, Spamilton also parodies several other musicals, including Gypsy, Chicago, The King and I, Assassins, Camelot, The Book of Mormon and Sweeney Todd, and personalities, like Patti LuPone, Audra McDonald, Stephen Sondheim, Stephen Schwartz, Barbra Streisand, Bernadette Peters, Carol Channing and Liza Minnelli.

References

  1. "List of long runs in London and the world". Archived from the original on April 2, 2010.
  2. Roberts, Sam (May 25, 2017). "Nora Mae Lyng, Actress at the Heart of 'Forbidden Broadway,' Dies at 66". Times. New York. Retrieved January 28, 2020.
  3. 1 2 Wilson, John S. "Upper West Side Is Home to Offbeat Music; Forbidden Broadway Spoofs Musical Theater", The New York Times, March 12, 1982, p. 1
  4. 1 2 Brantley, Ben. "Knee-Jerk Revivals and Other Punch Lines", The New York Times, May 6, 2014
  5. 1 2 "Forbidden Broadway" Archived 2015-09-24 at the Wayback Machine , Emelin Theatre, accessed August 30, 2015
  6. 1 2 Gans, Andrew. "'Forbidden Broadway Goes to Rehab 'Extends to March 2009", Playbill, December 9, 2008
  7. 1 2 Gilbert, Jenny. "Forbidden Broadway, Menier Chocolate Factory, London". The Independent, July 5, 2009, accessed November 9, 2010
  8. 1 2 3 Forbidden Broadway lortel.org, accessed August 30, 2015
  9. Forbidden Broadway 1993 lortel.org, accessed August 30, 2015
  10. Christine Pedi at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
  11. "Forbidden BroadwayCleans Up Its Act 1998" lortel.org, accessed August 30, 2015
  12. Forbidden Broadway 1988/1989 Archived 2012-09-30 at the Wayback Machine lortel.org, accessed August 30, 2015
  13. Rosati, Nancy."An Interview with Barbara Walsh" talkinbroadway.com, November 20, 2002
  14. Gans, Andrew. "The Tony Awards Administration Committee announced the recipients of the 2006 Tony Honors for Excellence in Theatre Sept. 22" Playbill, October 24, 2006
  15. Forbidden Broadway 2001: A Spoof Odyssey, Internet Off-Broadway Database, accessed August 29, 2015
  16. Forbidden Broadway: Special Victims Unit, 2004, Internet Off-Broadway Database, accessed August 29, 2015
  17. Forbidden Broadway: Rude Awakening, Internet Off-Broadway Database, accessed August 29, 2015
  18. "Drama Desk Awards, see 1985", Drama Desk, accessed August 29, 2015
  19. Gans, Andrew. "'Ruined' and 'Billy Elliot' Win Top Honors at Drama Desk Awards", Playbill, 2009
  20. Boslaugh, Sarah. "Book Reviews. Forbidden Broadway: Behind the Mylar Curtain", talkinbroadway.com, November 12, 2009
  21. "Adelaide Art Orchestra". Archived from the original on 2014-07-18. Retrieved 2014-10-10.
  22. "Caricaturist Captures the Corporate Market" Archived 2009-06-27 at the Wayback Machine , Biz Bash Orlando, August 11, 2008.
  23. Gans, Andrew. "Cast Recording of Off-Broadway's Forbidden Broadway: Alive and Kicking Arrives Nov. 27", Playbill, November 27, 2012, accessed October 9, 2014
  24. Wilhelm, Alex. "Forbidden Broadway is Alive and Still Kicking Beginning Feb 22 Off Broadwat". Playbill. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
  25. Shenton, Mark. "Forbidden Broadway Extends Run at London's Menier Chocolate Factory", Playbill, July 23, 2014
  26. Cavendish, Dominic. "Forbidden Broadway, Vaudeville Theatre, review: 'witty musical parodies'", The Telegraph, October 8, 2014
  27. Hetrick, Adam (February 27, 2019). "Forbidden Broadway Salutes Carol Channing to Play Feinstein's/54 Below". Playbill. Retrieved 2019-10-08.
  28. "Forbidden Broadway: The Next Generation Sets Closing Date Off-Broadway" November 15, 2019
  29. "Forbidden Broadway: The Next Generation! Brand New Edition at the York Theatre Company 619 Lexington Avenue - Ben Brantley of The New York Times calls it "A Godsend"!". www.forbiddenbroadway.com. Retrieved 22 January 2020.
  30. Twitter."Don’t miss these up to the minute Broadway spoofs!" December 26, 2019
  31. 1 2 Gans, Andrew."Return Engagement of Forbidden Broadway: The Next Generation Extends Run at York Theatre Company", January 14, 2020
  32. Meyer, Dan. Name Change: Forbidden Broadway Sets Closing Date Off Broadway" playbill.com, November 15, 2019
  33. Gans, Andrew (February 29, 2024). "Forbidden Broadway Will Make Broadway Debut With Merrily We Stole a Song". Playbill. Retrieved February 29, 2024.
  34. Paulson, Michael (2024-02-29). "Forbidden No More: Forbidden Broadway, Scrappy Spoof, Bound for Broadway". The New York times. Retrieved 2024-03-05.
  35. "Forbidden Broadway Comes Out Swinging! Closes Off-Broadway". Playbill. Retrieved 12 December 2014.
  36. "Forbidden Broadway: West End". London Box Office. Retrieved 22 September 2014.
  37. "Forbidden Broadway Will Return to New York This Fall". Playbill. Retrieved 7 October 2019.