Theresa Rebeck on the Broadway-Centric TV Series Smash: 'It's Like West Wing With Musical Numbers'

Theater fans are eagerly awaiting the February 6 premiere of Smash, the hour-long NBC series centering on the creation of a Broadway musical about the life of Marilyn Monroe. “It’s like West Wing with numbers,” quipped Theresa Rebeck, who wrote the pilot and spent her summer working on the show before heading to Broadway as the playwright of Seminar. “It’s a workplace drama about people who are obsessed with Broadway, and we’re actually making a musical, so it’s a 3-D puzzle with actresses vying to play Marilyn, songs and choreography, backstabbing, inappropriate sex…it’s got everything you want.”

Smash stars Debra Messing and Christian Borle as a songwriting team, Angelica Huston as a producer, Brian d’Arcy James as Messing’s husband, and Megan Hilty and American Idol finalist Katharine McPhee as dueling divas. “We’ve got an extraordinary team,” Rebeck told Broadway.com, including the real-life composer/co-lyricist Marc Shaiman and co-lyricist Scott Wittman.

Asked how the Smash creators plans to create a series accessible to an audience who may know nothing about the inner workings of Broadway, Rebeck replied, “By making it about the human beings. Everyone has dreams for their lives, and that’s certainly the case here. We have a character from the middle of the country [played by McPhee] who is moving into this world, so a lot of action is seen through her eyes. And I think everybody likes a good song!”

Smash will get the best possible launch, airing after a two-hour episode of The Voice. In the meantime, theatergoers can experience Rebeck's comedic sensibility live at Broadway's Golden Theatre, where Seminar begins previews on October 27, starring Alan Rickman.