As the new theater season begins, one may ask, "What shows are there to see in New York City?" There is, of course, the smash hit new musical Hairspray, but if you don't have at least 75 dollars to spare you're out of luck. Many of last season's hits like Thoroughly Modern Millie and Urinetown do not have any "cheap" seats either. To avoid this very annoying monetary dilemma, there are the old standbys like The Phantom of the Opera or Les Miserables, both of which have reserved their balcony and rear mezzanine seats in the much lower price range.
Here is a thought, though: If you are looking for some theatrical merriment and/or something that is a bit out of the ordinary (but do not have a bottomless pit for a bank account), there is Forbidden Broadway, an ever-changing (and very unique) musical review that spoofs past and present Broadway shows. Now in its 20th year, Forbidden Broadway pokes fun at both past and present Broadway fare — everything from Guys and Dolls to The Lion King.
Do not fret that you won't be seeing some notable theater marquee names at Forbidden Broadway, because the cast list boasts such distinguished luminaries as Julie Andrews, Mel Brooks, Bernadette Peters, Carol Channing, Liza Minelli, Mandy Patinkin, Sarah Brightman, Elton John, Bebe Neuwirth, Rita Moreno and Chita Rivera. At least, you'll think you are watching these stars. Such big names are presented throughout the show in the form of first-rate impersonations
In truth, the small ensemble of Forbidden Broadway is made up of only four performers and one pianist. These people work very, very hard to deliver a fast-paced and enjoyable evening and, for the most part, succeed in doing so. Each theatrical type is represented: the wide-eyed female ingénue (Donna English), the guy next door (Daniel Reichard) and the character actors (Valerie Fagan and Michael West). Each performer sticks to his or her type even though each portrays many different people throughout the show.
The show scores during its extended Les Miserables skit. With a long running show such as this, there is certainly quite a lot to make fun of — and they do. All the main Les Mis characters are brought to a slightly distorted, but very funny light — even young Cosette, complete with red, white and blue hair, as in the show's famous poster. During the skit, the actors struggle with their revolving stage (a staple of the real Les Mis), often missing their marks and cues. The actors also struggle with the overall solemn tone of the musical, singing how they wish there would be some sort of comic relief somewhere.
While the men are both great performers and do their jobs well, the women of Forbidden's ensemble are really the most enjoyable to watch (this is, however, quite possibly due to the fact that the women just have the funnier sketches). For example, English and Fagan both master all of their impersonations. Fagan's Liza Minelli is dead-on — in fact, one of the best this reviewer has ever seen. Without simply going for kitsch like most other Minelli impersonators, Fagan finds the humor in the reality that actually is the daughter of Judy Garland. Also, English does Julie Andrews better than even Julie Andrews does Julie Andrews. The absolute best impression of the night, though, has to go also to English and her take on The Phantom of the Opera's original leading Christine, Sarah Brightman. English depicts Ms. Brightman during the "classical crossover's" most recent tour, La Luna. Complete with buckteeth and bulging eyes, English masters the always enigmatic but often mystifying performer and her, um, quirks.
One, and perhaps the only, downside to Forbidden Broadway is that some of the jokes may fly right over the heads of those who do not know much about theater and the past and present New York theatrical seasons. For instance, an entire song about vanity is devoted to venerable theater performer, Mandy Patinkin. While the song will still indeed be funny even if you had never seen Patinkin in the original Broadway mounting of Evita or on television's Chicago Hope, it is simply that much funnier if you had.
Even though you might not completely be in the know about all of the humor presented during Forbidden Broadway's one-and-a-half-hour running time, you will have a good old-fashioned escapist evening just watching four people run around like loonies while lovingly making fun of everything Broadway. And, hey, the price definitely beats anything actually on Broadway.
