Setting the mood is the rollicking opening number “Sit Down You’re Blocking the Aisle.” It’s a lament about the lack of proper theatrical etiquette in today’s world; an usher (Jenny Lee Stern) decries how people don’t turn off their cell phones and an audience member (Chris Collins-Pisano) flatly refuses to sit down when asked.
From there, the production takes potshots at current Broadway shows, shows that recently departed the Great White Way, and others set to arrive shortly. Among the targets are “& Juliet,” where the lead actress complains about having to sing ever higher notes; and the upcoming two-part movie “Wicked,” based on the long-running Broadway hit of the same name.
The musical “Gatsby” is there too. Based on the classic novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald, its plot and characterization are distilled into a few brief sentences. Regarding the latter, as one performer noted, since Fitzgerald’s book is now in the public domain, producers can do anything they want to the property—such as adding in tap-dance sequences. “Forbidden Broadway” also takes aim at New York’s Lincoln Center and that institution’s history of presenting highbrow offerings.
Individual actors come in for a ribbing as well. These include such theater luminaries as Patti LuPone, Audra McDonald, Bernadette Peters, as well as Danielle Radcliffe and Ben Platt. The song shows how these performers took on the role of Rose in “Gypsy” or that of the Emcee in “Cabaret” and how the interpretations of these characters changed over the years.
A sketch of particular amusement is “The Power of Math,” where a character from the musical “Back to the Future” explains how combining elements of certain past shows can yield entirely new offerings—like how parts of “West Side Story” and “Grease” combine to form “The Outsiders.”
The title of this year’s version—“Merrily We Stole a Song”—and a good part of the show’s structure is a hat tip to last year’s smash Broadway revival of “Merrily We Roll Along.” The Stephen Sondheim musical originally debuted the same theatre season that “Forbidden Broadway” first appeared. Like “Forbidden Broadway,” “Merrily” has since gone through numerous revisions and stagings.
What makes everything so enjoyable—the night I attended, the audience roared with laughter—is that while the lyrics and dialogue often poke fun at their targets, nothing is deliberately cruel or hurtful. Alessandrini is careful to never stray from the show’s core purpose: to take down those who have gotten too big for their own good, and call attention to oft-questionable trends in the theater industry. One example is stunt casting. Yet Alessandrini always does it with humor and affection, so the subjects of these slings and arrows can laugh along with everyone else.
The cast of four (Collins-Pisano, Danny Hayward, Nicole Vanessa Ortiz, Stern), along with musical director Fred Barton at the piano, are all very good. Kudos to the cast for their ability to quickly change costumes, wigs, and accents in between the different numbers.
As with any revue, some jokes land better than others, and the success of the routines depends on each audience’s taste and how familiar they are with the shows or performers in question. But even those with only a passing interest in theater will find more than a few things that appeal to them. Those more fully invested in theater, be they perennial audience members or those actively involved in the business, will enjoy themselves from the first moment of the show to the last.
It’s been nearly five years since the last edition of “Forbidden Broadway,” yet attending this latest iteration feels a gathering of old friends. Not coincidentally, “Old Friends” is a song from “Merrily We Roll Along,” the use of which fits perfectly into the production. So to “Forbidden Broadway: Merrily We Stole a Song,” welcome back, old friend. You’ve been greatly missed.
