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EspañolTHE PRODUCERS (MUSICAL)
'''The Producers''' is a critically acclaimed comedy-musical adapted by Mel Brooks from his 1968 film of the same name. As in the film, the story concerns two theatrical producers who scheme to get rich by overselling interests in a Broadway flop. Complications arise when the show unexpectedly turns out to be successful. The humor of the show is accessible to a wide range of audiences, and draws on ridiculous accents, caricatures of homosexuals and Nazis, and many show business in-jokes. The musical was a hit in New York, spawning national tours and successful productions in London and internationally.
David Geffen persuaded Mel Brooks to turn his movie into a stage musical. When Brooks met with Jerry Herman to discuss their working together, Herman declined, telling Brooks that he should do the job himself, as he was a good songwriter. Brooks then asked Thomas Meehan to join him in writing the book for the stage. Brooks persuaded Mike Ockrent and his wife Susan Stroman to join the creative team as director and choreographer. After Ockrent's death on December 6, 1999, Stroman agreed to continue as both director and choreographer. The last addition to the creative team was Glen Kelly as the musical arranger and supervisor. [1] [2]
A 2005 film was made based on the musical, starring Lane, Broderick and Uma Thurman.
Plot summary
;Act I
New York, 1959. It's the opening of a new Max Bialystock play called "Funny Boy", a musical version of Hamlet. Everyone ends up hating it and the show closes on opening night ("Opening Night"). Max, who was once called the King of Broadway, sings to a crowd of down-and-outs of his past achievements and that he will return to form ("King of Broadway").
The next day Leo Bloom, a mousy PA from the accounting firm Whitehall and Marks, arrives in Max's office to look at his books. However, a couple of seconds later, one of Max's "investors" arrives, and he tells Leo to go wait in the bathroom until she leaves. His investor, a little old lady who constantly repeats the phrase, "Hold Me, Touch Me" starts playing a sex game with Max (The virgin milkmaid and the well-hung stableboy) which he later pauses and she gives him a cheque for his next play (which he hasn't yet produced and calls "Cash"). Leo comes out of the bathroom and reveals his lifelong dream to Max: he's always wanted to be a Broadway Producer. After a serious panic attack when Max touches his blue blanket, Leo calms down enough to give Max the news that he has found an accounting error in his books: Max raised $62,000 for "Funny Boy", but the play only cost $60,000. There's $2,000 unaccounted for. Max begs Leo to cook the books. "Look at me", he pleads. Once the King of Broadway, now reduced to romancing little old ladies to back him and wearing cardboard belts. Leo reluctantly agrees and returns to Max's books. After some calculations, he realizes that "under the right circumstances, a producer could actually make more money with a flop than he can with a hit." Max sits up, an idea forming in his unscrupulous head.
Leo explains. The IRS isn't interested in a show that flopped, so a producer could raise a million dollars, put on a $100,000 flop and keep the rest. Max proposes the ultimate scheme:
"Step 1: We find the worst play ever written. Step 2: We hire the worst director in town. Step 3: We raise two million dollars...One for me, one for you. There's a lot of little old ladies out there! Step 4: We hire the worst actors in New York and open on Broadway and before you can say Step 5, we close on Broadway, take our two million and go to Rio."
However, Leo refuses to help Max with his scheme and returns to work the books at Whitehall and Marks, even after much pleading ("We Can Do It"). When he gets back to work, he daydreams of becoming a Broadway producer and "driv[ing] those chorus girls insane." ("I Wanna Be a Producer"). He realizes that his job is terrible, quits his job, and returns to Max ("I Wanna Be A Producer Reprise/We Can Do It - Reprise"). Overnight, they look for the worst play ever written without much luck. Finally, Max finds the sure-fire flop: ''Springtime for Hitler: A Gay Romp with Adolf and Eva at Berchtesgaden'' written by Franz Liebkind. They head down to his home in Greenwich Village to get the rights to the play. They discover Franz on the roof of his tenement with his birds: Hilde, Heidi, Hans, Heidrich and Adolf, reminiscing about the grand old days "In Old Bavaria". After listening to Franz rave, Leo and Max are only able to get their contract signed after singing Adolf Hitler's favourite tune, "Der Guten Tag Hop Clop" with him, and saying the Siegfried Oath, promising never to dishonour "the spirit and the memory of Adolf Elizabeth Hitler" with Franz.
Leo and Max then go down to the townhouse of Roger De Bris, the worst director in New York and a flamboyant homosexual to boot. At first, Roger and his "common law-''ass''istant" Carmen Ghia decline the offer to direct because of the serious subject matter. Shows should be more happy, blythe, bonney...gay, Roger avers. ("Keep It Gay") Finally, after much persuading (and Tony-name dropping), Roger agrees to do it, but only if the ending is changed so the Germans end up winning World War II. A celebratory conga line ensues. Leo and Max finally return to the office where they meet a Swedish bombshell who wants to audition for their next play. Her name is Ulla Inga Hansen Benson Yansen Tallen Hallen Svaden Swanson. That's her first name. Ulla for short. She auditions for them. ("When You Got It, Flaunt It") Bialystock and Bloom are floored, to say the least. They hire her to be their secretary/receptionist. Max then goes off to raise two million dollars for "Springtime for Hitler" by calling on all the little old ladies in New York. ("Along Came Bialy") Finally, after shtupping every little old lady in the greater Broadway area, Max has raised the two million. ("Finale")
;Act II
Scene from the London version of "the Producers", Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, London, April 2006
Leo and Ulla are left alone for a little while in Max's redecorated office (redecorated by Ulla during the intermission; See Photo right) and they start to fall in love. ("That Face") Leo, who has always decided to stay away from any relationship, breaks his own rule and starts to go out with Ulla.
The auditions for finding a terrible Hitler go unsuccessfully. One terrible actor after another is shooed away by Roger. After Franz is outraged by one auditioner's rendition of "Haben Sie Gehört Das Deutsche Band", he performs his own jazzy version and he is given the part by Max. Opening night for "Springtime for Hitler" arrives ("It's Bad Luck to Say Good Luck on Opening Night") and everyone is ready, until Franz falls down the stairs and ironically breaks his leg. Roger is the only one who knows the part of Hitler and he rushes to the dressing room to get ready.
The Curtain rises, and Max and Leo watch their failure unfold ("Springtime for Hitler"). Unfortunately, Roger's performance is so campy and so Garland-esque, the audience mistakes the show for a comedy and it becomes the talk of the town.
Back at the office, Max and Leo are near-suicidal. ("Where Did We Go Right?") Roger and Carmen come to congratulate the Producers of the new smash, only to find them fighting over the accounting books. Just then, Franz bursts in, outraged by Roger's portrayal of his beloved Fűhrer and wielding a pistol. The police hear the commotion and arrive, taking away Franz, Max and the accounting books. However, Leo hides and Ulla finds him and convinces him to take the two million dollars and run off to Rio as Max had planned ("That Face (reprise)").
In prison, Max receives a postcard from Leo and feels ("Betrayed") and, in his big eleven o'clock number recounts the whole show (including intermission). At his trial Max is found "incredibly guilty", but then Leo and Ulla arrive and tell the judge that Max is a good man who would never hurt anyone. ("'Til Him") The judge is touched by this and decides not to separate the two, instead sending both to Sing Sing prison for 5 years, along with Franz. In prison, they write a new musical entitled "Prisoners of Love" which goes to Broadway ("Prisoners of Love") (starring the stars of Springtime, Roger and Ulla) when they are pardoned by the Governor. Leo and Max continue to produce Broadway musicals and, at the end, the two fully-fledged kings of Broadway walk off into the sunset. ("Leo & Max") After the curtain call, there is one last song, with the cast telling the audience to leave. ("Goodbye")
Differences between the film and stage musical
Main articles: Differences between film and musical versions of The Producers
Although the musical has many scenes and jokes taken directly from the film, there are still many differences. For example, Ulla has a much larger role, as does ''Springtime for Hitler'' director Roger DeBris. The character Lorenzo St. Dubois (LSD), a hippie who played Hitler in the 1968 movie, does not appear in the new version. Overall the musical is much more upbeat and ends more happily, with even the Nazi character Franz Liebkind being portrayed more sympathetically and getting a happy ending.
List of Songs
;Act I ★ Overture ★ Opening Night ★ The King of Broadway ★ We Can Do It ★ I Wanna Be a Producer ★ We Can Do It (Reprise) ★ In Old Bavaria ★ Der Guten Tag Hop-Clop ★ Keep It Gay ★ When You've Got It, Flaunt It ★ Along Came Bialy | ;Act II ★ That Face ★ Haben sie gehört das deutsche Band? ★ Opening Night (Reprise) ★ You Never Say Good Luck on Opening Night ★ Springtime for Hitler ★ Where Did We Go Right? ★ That Face (Reprise) ★ Betrayed ★ 'Til Him ★ Prisoners of Love ★ Prisoners of Love (Leo and Max) ★ Goodbye! |
Characters and original Broadway cast
★ Max Bialystock -- Nathan Lane
★ Leo Bloom -- Matthew Broderick
★ Roger De Bris -- Gary Beach
★ Carmen Ghia -- Roger Bart
★ Ulla Inga Hansen Benson Yansen Tallen Hallen Svaden Swanson -- Cady Huffman
★ Franz Liebkind -- Brad Oscar
The replacement cast starred Henry Goodman and Steven Weber in Lane and Broderick's respective roles, and the loss of the original stars had a detrimental effect on the success of the show, prompting the return of Lane and Broderick for another run, from December 30, 2003 until April 4, 2004.
Other "Max" performers included Tony Danza (who is slated to play that role in the Las Vegas production), John Treacy Egan, Henry Goodman, Richard Kind, Brad Oscar, and Lewis J. Stadlen. "Leo" players included Roger Bart, Hunter Foster, and Alan Ruck.
Broadway production history
The original Broadway production of ''The Producers'' opened at the St. James Theatre on April 19 2001 and ran for 2,502 performances, closing on April 22 2007. The director and choreographer was Susan Stroman. The show originally starred Nathan Lane as Max Bialystock (who reprised that role during the show's first few months on London's West End) and Matthew Broderick as Leo Bloom. It won 12 Tony Awards, breaking the record held for 37 years by ''Hello, Dolly!'' which had won 10.
After the opening, ''The Producers'' broke the record for the largest single day box-office gross in theatre history, taking in more than $3 million. It then broke its own record in 2003 when Broderick and Lane's return went on sale, with over $3.5 million in single day ticket sales.
Beginning in September 2002 there were two touring companies that played 74 cities in the United States grossing over $214 million.[3]. The 1st National touring company starred Lewis J. Stadlen and Alan Ruck. When the tour came to Los Angeles, Stadlen and Ruck were replaced by Jason Alexander and Martin Short for the duration of the show's run in that city.
Encouraged by the success of ''The Producers'', Brooks has created a musical theatre version of ''Young Frankenstein'', based on his eponymous movie, which is scheduled to start tryouts in Seattle's Paramount Theatre in August before moving to Broadway's Hilton Theatre in October 2007.
The London production
The Producers at Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
''The Producers'' opened in London's West End at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, on November 9 2004 and closed on January 6 2007. In addition to Lane, the production featured Lee Evans as Leo Bloom, Leigh Zimmerman as Ulla, Conleth Hill as Roger De Bris and James Dreyfus as Carmen Ghia. Franz Liebkind was played by Nicolas Colicos. The show enjoyed excellent box office success as it had in New York. Despite the later departure of Lane from the show, it continued to enjoy strong sales. Max Bialystock was later played by Cory English, among others), and Leo Bloom was later played by John Gordon Sinclair and Reece Shearsmith.
UK tour
The tour opened in Manchester for 3 months, commencing 19 February 2007. Peter Kay was cast in the role of Roger De Bris, with Cory English and John Gordon Sinclair reprising their roles of Max Biyalistock and Leo Bloom, respectively. For the remainder of the UK tour, running through until early 2008, Joe Pasquale will take over the role of Leo Bloom and Russ Abbot will play Roger DeBris. The tour's dates at the Bristol Hippodrome were cancelled due to reported poor ticket sales.
'UK Tour Cast:'
★ Max Bialystock - Cory English
★ Leo Bloom - John Gordon Sinclair (Manchester only), Joe Pasquale (rest of tour)
★ Ulla - Emma Jane Appleyard
★ Franz Liebkind - Alex Giannini
★ Roger DeBris - Peter Kay (Manchester only), Russ Abbot (rest of tour)
★ Carmen Ghia - Robin Sebastian
Las Vegas Production
The Las Vegas production of this show was trimmed to 90 minutes, deleting an intermission and many of the songs. Songs that were cut from the show were We Can Do It (reprise), That Face, That Face (reprise). The production was heavily promoted as starring David Hasselhoff, who played Roger DeBris. Apart from Hasselhoff, the cast featured Brad Oscar as Max (who played that role in the musical during its run in London's West End), Larry Raben as Leo, Leigh Zimmermann as Ulla, Fred Applegate as Franz and Rich Affannato as Carmen Ghia.
Other productions
The Producers has also been successful in many other countries. There have been Canadian, German, Australian, Israeli, South Korean, Argentine, Japanese, Danish, Italian, Hungarian, Spanish, Mexican, New Zealand, Czech, Finnish, Brazilian and English productions.
The following is specific information on other productions:
★ The Los Angeles, California, production opened on May 2, 2003 at the Pantages Theatre and closed January 4, 2004. Co-starring were Jason Alexander as Max Bialystock, and Martin Short as Leo Bloom.
★ Toronto, Canada, with actor Sean Cullen playing the role of Bialystock and Michael Therriault as Bloom. Due to low ticket sales, the musical closed after a 33-week run, two monts short of its announced closing. [4]
★ Berlin, Germany, opened in 2002.
★ Melbourne, Australia with Reg Livermore as Bialystock and Tom Burlinson as Bloom. Television veteran Bert Newton plays Liebkind and is a major drawcard. It also feature Chloe Dallimore as Ulla and Tony Sheldon as Roger DeBris. The show played in Melbourne for eight months, Brisbane for six weeks and for six months in Sydney.
★ Tel Aviv, Israel has a version of the musical, translated into Hebrew, starring Shlomo Bar Abba as Bialystock. The Nazi references in the show have been modified to account for local sensitivities. Hitler is portrayed as morbidly obese, and whenever the actors mention his name it is followed by 'Yimach shemo vezichro' (may his name and memory be obliterated); then they spit.
★ Seoul, South Korea
★ Buenos Aires, Argentina The stage version ran on the Lola Membrives Theater from March 29, 2005 to August 27, 2006, starring Enrique Pinti as Max Bialystock, Guillermo Francella as Leo Bloom (both renowned Argentinian comedians) and María Rojí as Ulla.
★ Tokyo, Japan. Japanese translated production at Aoyama Theatre in August 13–31 2005. Starring Yoshihiko Inohara as Max Bialystock and Hiroshi Nagano as Leo Bloom — both members of the popular band, V6.
★ Copenhagen, Denmark's production had its Scandinavian premier at ''Det Ny Teater'' on January 26 2006. The Danish language production starring Preben Kristensen as Max Bialystock and Mads Knarreborg as Leo Bloom has garnered critical acclaim and plays to packed houses. The run for the musical has been extended twice. The first extension was made less than two weeks after the premier with ticket sales topping 50,000. The show is also known as ''"Forår for Hitler"'' ("Springtime for Hitler"), after the Danish-language translation of the original movie title.
★ Milan, Italy. Premiere at Teatro della Luna on January 27 2006. Starring Enzo Iacchetti as Max Bialystock, Gianluca Guidi as Leo Bloom and Simona Samarelli as Ulla.
★ Budapest, Hungary. Premiere at Theatre Madách (Madách Színház) on June 2 2006. Péter Haumann, János Gálvölgyi, and Béla Szerednyei alternate as Max Bialystock; Sándor Nagy, Dávid Sándor, and Vajk Szente alternateg as Leo Bloom; and Nikolett Gallusz, Judit Ladinek and Szonja Oroszlán alternate as Ulla.
★ Madrid, Spain. Premiere at Teatro Coliseum on September 14, 2006. Starring Santiago Segura as Max Bialystock, José Mota as Leo Bloom and Dulcinea Juárez as Ulla. Closed on May 6, 2007.
★ Mexico City, Mexico. Produced by OCESA Teatro Premiere at Centro Cultural Telmex on December 13, 2006. Starring Pedro Armendáriz Jr. and Alejandro Calva alternating as Max Bialystock; Adal Ramones, Héctor Sandarti and Juan Manuel Bernal, alternating as Leo Bloom; and Natalia Sosa as Ulla.
★ Las Vegas, Nevada (USA). Premiered at Paris Casino on February 9, 2007. Starring Brad Oscar as Max Bialystock, Larry Raben as Leo Bloom and Leigh Zimmerman as Ulla. The cast also included David Hasselhoff as Roger De Bris (replaced by Lee Roy Reams in May 2007). The Las Vegas production is a 90-minute version of the original Broadway musical.
★ The New Zealand premiere will be at the Court Theatre in Christchurch and will run from 24 November 2007–16 February 2008. It is yet to be cast.
★ The Czech version is running in Karlin Musical Theatre in Prague
★ A production is running in Finland. [5]
★ A production is also running in Sao Paulo, Brazil
★ The North Shore Music Theatre, which is the largest theater in all of New England, is preparing to perform a production for 2008, for theatre students ages 14 to 18 for their "Summer Stage Four" productions.
★ Vereinigte Bühnen Wien has announced that the Ronacher theatre in Vienna is preparing to re-open with the first German-language production on 30th June 2008[6].
Movie adaptation
Main articles: The Producers (2005 film)
In 2005, the musical was adapted into a musical film, becoming a movie based on a musical based on a movie about a musical. It was directed by Stroman and starred most of the original Broadway cast, except for Oscar and Huffman. Their roles were instead played by Will Ferrell and Uma Thurman, respectively. The songs "King of Broadway", "In Old Bavaria" and "Where Did We Go Right?" were not in the theatrical cut of the movie, although "King of Broadway" and "In Old Bavaria" appeared on the DVD as deleted scenes. Instead, two original songs, "You'll Find Your Happiness In Rio" and "There's Nothing Like A Show On Broadway" were added to the film. It opened on December 16, 2005 and received mixed reviews from critics.
Popular culture
On the television show ''Curb Your Enthusiasm'', ''The Producers'' was featured in almost every episode of season four. Larry David was offered the part of Max Bialystock by Mel Brooks opposite Ben Stiller. When David accidentally injured Stiller's eye, Stiller was replaced by David Schwimmer Leo Bloom. The story took a unique turn when Larry David's attempt to play the part is marred by his missing lines. However, he makes up some ad-lib comedy that keeps the audience laughing. In a "life imitating art" twist, it's revealed that Brooks cast David specifically so he would fail, end the show and "free" Brooks of its success. Brooks is seen at the theater bar with wife Anne Bancroft, both laughing at how bad David is and they no longer have to travel to every city for a premiere. Of course, David ends up being a hit and Mel leads Anne out, both weakly muttering "no way out..." This was Bancroft's final filmed appearance before her death.
In an episode of House, when Gregory House and James Wilson finish a job interview, as soon as the young lady they were interviewing leaves, Dr. Wilson quotes the musical by exclaiming "That's our Hitler!"
Awards and nominatons
'Tony Awards'
★ Tony Award for Best Musical 'WINNER'
★ Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical 'WINNER'
★ Tony Award for Best Original Score 'WINNER'
★ Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical (Matthew Broderick)
★ Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical (Nathan Lane) 'WINNER'
★ Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical (Roger Bart)
★ Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical (Gary Beach) 'WINNER'
★ Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical (Brad Oscar)
★ Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical (Cady Huffman) 'WINNER'
★ Tony Award for Best Scenic Design of a Musical 'WINNER'
★ Tony Award for Best Costume Design of a Musical 'WINNER'
★ Tony Award for Best Lighting Design of a Musical 'WINNER'
★ Tony Award for Best Choreography 'WINNER'
★ Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical 'WINNER'
★ Tony Award for Best Orchestrations 'WINNER'
'Drama Desk Awards'
★ Outstanding New Musical (WINNER)
★ Outstanding Book of a Musical (WINNER)
★ Outstanding Actor in a Musical - Nathan Lane (WINNER); Matthew Broderick (nominee)
★ Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical - Gary Beach (WINNER); Roger Bart (nominee)
★ Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical (WINNER)
★ Outstanding Choreography (WINNER)
★ Outstanding Director of a Musical (WINNER)
★ Outstanding Orchestrations (WINNER)
★ Outstanding Lyrics (WINNER)
★ Outstanding Set Design of a Musical (WINNER)
★ Outstanding Costume Design (WINNER)
★ Outstanding Lighting Design (nominee)
'New York Drama Critics' Circle' Award for Best Musical of the season
References
1. Information from the PBS website
2. Information from the CNN archives
3. http://www.playbill.com/news/article/107445.html
4. News from the Playbill.com website
5. Information about he Finnish production
6. [1]
'External links
★
★ Curtain Up reviews and information of various productions
★ PBS Great Performances "Recording the Producers"
★ Official site for the London production
★ Roger Bart and Brad Oscar - ''Downstage Center'' interview at American Theatre Wing.org
★ Official site for the Hungarian production
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