Saturday, September 15, 2012

A LOOK BACK AT THEATER SPOOFS 2009-2011


Hearing the talk by some of the critics about what was worth parodying in theatre from 2009 to 2011. No one does it on the level of "Forbidden Broadway" in terms of hitting the bulls-eye of critical acumen and connection with the wide audience, but there were lots of parody writers in cabarets and on the net taking gleeful advantage of Forbidden Bway's  three years off to try our hands at the silliness of the theatre goings-on.  I compiled a blog of some of my own (with some terrific collaborators) that I thought were fun on topics that seemed hot on the chat boards in 2009-11.  I hope you like them.

HERE'S THE LIST OF TOPICS, THEN THE LINKS ARE BELOW
Hair - Diane Paulus - Will Swenson, actors invade the audience!
Hugh Jackman on Broadway, I Go To Rio spoof
Priscilla / Bette Midler does the talk shows for her investors (The Gross, tune of The Rose)
40-year lookback, I'm Still Queer 1969-2009
Come Fly Away's gratuitous disrobing "celebrated" in Fly me in the nude
Kristin wants more - asks Neil for more songs in Promises (Say a Little Prayer spoof)
A Little Site Music - Catherine and Angela sell out - at the Kerr!
John & Abigail Adams family mash-up (in honor of Peter Marks Addams family review)
Times reports Stritch's agents making some interesting requests.  We speculate!
Free Shakespeare With Al
More Stritch!  Sit (tune of Zip) as Stritch strives to be the best Mme Armfeldt ever!
Knowing When to Close, as Promises Promises makes tough choice NOT to re-cast
Losing My Sign, Henry Miller Theatre becomes the Sondheim Theatre 
Shylock (tune of Skylark), Merchant producers beg Al Pacino to extend
Oklahoma in DC - Everything's up to date at the Arena
On a Clear Day He'll Be She Forever - What did I Have I don't have now parody
Speed-the-Plow - Jeremy Piven sushi scandal (though Mr. Piven was cleared by Equity later)
I'd Rather a Jew - Funny Girl casting
Pray for Grosses - Donny & Marie 2010 Christmas show - audio 
Queen of "Wishful Drinking" - Carrie Fisher pricing spoof
Roles for Betty White:  Great Auntie Mame
Roles for Betty White:  In Betty's Eyes (Much Older Sally in Follies spoof)
Book of MoreMoney - tune of South Park's Kyle's Mom's a B*tch - a quickie
The Mother With the Hat - the perfect show to take Mom to for Mother's Day?
Actors playing instruments - Ten Cents a Dance (It Never Entered My Mind regional parody)
What I Did Got Snubbed - What I Did For Love parody (Kiss the Dough Goodbye)

 THE CAST OF "HAIR" INVADING THE AUDIENCE
I GO TO RIO - Hugh Jackman on Broadway parody
PRISCILLA QUEEN OF THE DESERT - tune of THE ROSE as Bette gets on the talk shows
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5CCbK-Qvoc    sung by Jan Horvath
"I'M STILL QUEER" -COVERING 40 YEARS OF THEATRE TUNE OF "I'M STILL HERE" 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bt40nQGc1I4     sung by William Parry
LOOKING FOR A WAY TO PAY TRIBUTE TO THE DISROBING IN TWYLA THARP'S SINATRA SHOW "COME FLY AWAY" - HERE'S "FLY ME IN THE NUDE"
ADDITION OF SONGS TO “PROMISES” TO LENGTHEN KRISTIN PART 
- Affectionate Kristin parody, of “I Say A Little Prayer”
MINI-MUSICAL "A LITTLE SITE MUSIC, OR EVERY DAY A LITTLE NET" - 
ACT ONE is at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2mMKTJhdMc  sung by Jan Horvath

EVERYONE WAS DOING ADDAMS FAMILY THEME SONG PARODIES, EVEN THE WASHINGTON POST CRITIC - So we did a snap-along John & Abigail Adams Family Theme ("1776" mash-up)
NY TIMES ANNOUNCEMENT THAT ELAINE STRITCH HAD CERTAIN “REQUIREMENTS” TO APPEAR IN A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC prompted some humorous looks online at what those might be.  A low-tech take on one of those silly hypothetical lists of supposed demands
FREE SHAKESPEARE WITH AL – Al Pacino in Merchant of Venice, at that time for FREE
, as people line up in Central Park, to tune of  FOR ME AND MY GAL
CAN NEVER EVER GET ENOUGH OF THE GREAT ELAINE STRITCH, so we wondered (to a parody of ZIP! called SIT!)  how she copes sitting for eight performances a week, three hours at a clip – as she strives to be the very best Mme. Armfeldt ever; 
IN SUMMER 2010, SPECULATION OF WHO MIGHT REPLACE SEAN HAYES & KRISTIN CHENOWETH in “PROMISES PROMISES” was big chat fodder. 
KNOWING WHEN TO CLOSE, another affectionate Kristin parody, of Knowing When to Leave
As the Henry Miller Theatre is re-named for the great Stephen Sondheim, 
we speculated on Henry Miller’s ghost reconciling himself with the name change
LOSING MY SIGN, parody of LOSING MY MIND from FOLLIES
Al Pacino’s transfer to Broadway was big box office, the producers trying to get him to extend
SHYLOCK, a parody of SKYLARK  
We tried a regional theater parody – A fun bit of news because friends work at the Arena at times was that the Arena Stage’s production of OKLAHOMA! managed to come into the “nationsl spotlight” with a rejuvenating production of the show.  It hasn’t come to NYC, but the attention for Arena was great news!
EVERYTHING’S UP TO DATE AT THE ARENA, 
parody of KANSAS CITY from OKLAHOMA!
A WHAT DID I HAVE THAT I DON'T HAVE audio parody, Alan Jay Lerner's ghost hanging out at Vassar as CLEAR DAY did its tryout in summer 2010 (it had looked promising there and at Vineyard, very surprised later on that it ultimately didn't gel finally, but maybe there will be another chance)   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lt9VtE_1TY8 

SPEED THE PLOW, JEREMY PIVEN 


And some others (these videos were often more quickly done, though) mostly from later in the period:
I’D RATHER A JEW – Funny Girl casting
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2w4qioo5Jg
AUDIO - DONNY & MARIE ON BROADWAY -
“PRAY FOR GROSSES” (tune of Paper Roses)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trjQcXLF6ww
The pricing at Carrie Fisher’s WISHFUL DRINKING
Parody of “King of Wishful Thinking”
Roles for Betty White #1:  “Great Auntie Mame”
Roles for Betty White #2: “Much Older Sally”- IN BETTYS EYES
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1rYtD0aXwVo   (feat. Mary Jay singing "Betty White") 
BOOK OF MoreMONEY, with great joy for them when they got their Tony sweep to
Tune of “KYLE’s MOM’s a B*TCH” from “South Park”
THE MOTHERF**ER WITH THE HAT
“The Mom With the Hat” – the perfect show for Mother’s Day
Regional parody of “Ten Cents a Dance” (actors playing instruments)
IT PAYS THE RENT, I DON’T MIND (to IT NEVER ENTERED MY MIND)
Parody of WHAT I DID FOR LOVE (KISS THE DOUGH GOODBYE)
WHAT I DID GOT SNUBBED - writer's anthem: Kleban parody 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZn00NbxLbM

 CABARET CORNER
"Piaf" -  postage stamp dedication, a parody of LA VIE EN ROSE  

PETULA'S HIGH-PRICED APPEARANCE AT FEINSTEIN's
TRY EATING AT SUBWAY, DARLING!

Nat King Cole - as the real Mona Lisa's Bones get dug up for reality TV
Mona Lisa parody - Bones of Lisa - ROUGH DEMO

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DoH2g1M-8o

 George and Ira Gershwin guest star - as their heirs go wild giving rights
Someone To Watch Our Estate - ROUGH DEMO
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fF8tBUVE24E



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