It’s considered an honor for a show or performer to be skewered by Forbidden Broadway, which has been relished by the theater in crowd for the past 30 years. Who else but someone in the know would get the joke, “I live here with my two children and Sutton Foster’s brother” from The Bridges Of Madison County? Each edition features new material about current productions, and a few old favorites as well. The writing, by founder and director Gerard Alessandrini (with additional dialogue by co-director Phillip George) is wry, pointed, and sometimes silly. There are definitely groaners, but by and large, the mark is hit, albeit in a satirical way.
None of the lampoons would work were it not for the supremely talented cast. Carter Calvert’s take on Liza Minnelli is not only dead on, it’s also poignant. When she sings as Carole King, from Beautiful, the phrasing is just right. Her Les Miz chanteuse brings down the house.
Marcus Stevens is an actor willing to go right off the board with his comic turns. Yes, roasting Many Patinkin is not really current, but Stevens makes the pan of this supremely egocentric performer vintage, rather than tired. Watch his impression of Harvey Fierstein, and you’ll never be able to see a performance by the gravelly voiced original without thinking of Stevens. His Jason Robert Brown is side splitting, a real bull’s-eye.
Scott Richard Foster outdoes Alan Cumming as the red-nippled emcee of Cabaret. He’s hilarious in a huge, curly wig, conjuring up Steven Pasquale waiting and waiting, totally guilt free, to consummate his affair with the married Francesca, because “Adultery is only for ugly people.” He’s unrecognizable but perfect as Sly Stallone, giving advice on how to be an incoherent Rocky. Kudos for navigating on ridiculously high heels as Neil Patrick Harris in Hedwig.
Mia Gentile adds a youthful air to the proceedings, and like her cohorts, has both vocal and comedy chops. These performers sound terrific; in several cases, would that they had the Broadway roles they’re spoofing. Gentile certainly could handle being Girl in Once. She’s got Pippin’s Patina Miller down pat (or Patty, according to a lyric), with both her vocal quirks and her super-toned arms. She’s actually quite lovely as Cinderella. An audience favorite is Gentile’s song about Idina Menzel. It’s so amusing, and so true. No matter how much theater aficionados embrace the diva, she does belt out those high notes at a decibel level which cuts like a knife.
A nod to David Caldwell at the piano. Director George keeps the action moving, and the chaos organized; how do they make all those costume changes?
Alessandrini has lost none of his punch, especially since, at the base of the hijinks lie a lot of fact. It’s not possible to watch the new version of Les Mis, which is loaded with projections, without remembering the dearly departed turntable. (Plus, the shot of Hugh Jackman in a swimsuit gets a big laugh). We like watching child actors in Annie and Matilda, but is being put under the pressure of doing a Broadway show really the best thing for a happy childhood? The TV version of The Sound of Music was truly awful, and Carrie Underwood should never have been cast as Maria. The montage in Broadway’s Rocky just doesn’t work. And why, oh why, are there no original songs in Bullets Over Broadway? Cabaret and Les Miserables have both been revisited too often. And thank the Lord someone finally pegged The Book of Mormon for what it is: an exercise in the theory that “musicals should be disgusting.”
Most importantly, Forbidden Broadway points a finger at the big businesses who have taken over Broadway. American Airlines, Chrysler, Chase, and Disney are all far more interested in the bottom line than in presenting original work that challenges and advances the world of plays and musicals. It’s chilling to see cast members singing “Tomorrow Belongs to Me” about the corporations now calling the shots. Lucky for us that we have Forbidden Broadway to be the court jester, always pointing out the mediocre, boring, and tasteless in the current shows and management. Long may it continue to entertain and enlighten us.
