Broken Broadway

Today we're talking about Merrily We Roll Along!

Merrily We Roll Along is a musical with a book by George Furth and lyrics and music by Stephen Sondheim. It is based on the 1934 play of the same name by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart. The musical ran on Broadway for 52 previews and 16 performances in 1981.

My Guest again is Kenny.

*NOTE: The music is from a bootleg since there is no available Broadway cast album.*

One of my favorite flops, American Psycho!

American Psycho is a musical with music and lyrics by Duncan Sheik and a book by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa. It is based on the controversial 1991 novel American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis, which also inspired a 2000 film of the same name, which starred Christian Bale. Set in Manhattan during the Wall Street boom of the late 1980s, American Psycho is about the daily life of Patrick Bateman, a wealthy young investment banker who is also a serial killer. It closed after 27 previews and 54 regular performances.

Kenny Reilly is my guest and brother. We talk about how I love the show and Kenny does not.

For our third episode, we discuss the silent movie musical: Mack & Mabel!

Mack and Mabel is a musical with a book by Michael Stewart and music and lyrics by Jerry Herman. The plot involves the tumultuous romantic relationship between Hollywood director Mack Sennett and Mabel Normand (transformed from an artist's model to a waitress from Flatbush, Brooklyn for the musical), who became one of his biggest stars. It closed after 66 performances and 6 previews.

My guest Leland Masek and I talk about how a sad, sad ending it a total bummer of a way to end a fun musical.

Today we cover Sondheim's first flop, Anyone Can Whistle!

Anyone Can Whistle is a musical with a book by Arthur Laurents and music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. The story concerns a corrupt mayoress, an idealistic nurse, a man who may be a doctor, and various officials, patients and townspeople, all fighting to save a bankrupt town. It closed after 9 performances and 12 previews.

I'm joined by Josh McDougle and we talk about even Sondheim can fail.

Our first flop is Paul Simon's The Capeman!

The Capeman is a musical play written by Paul Simon and Derek Walcott based on the life of convicted murderer Salvador Agrón. The play opened at the Marquis Theatre in 1998 to poor reviews and had an initial run of 68 performances.

This was also my first Broadway show, it also made me feel really uncomfortable. Found out why!

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