After 42 Years, Forbidden Broadway Will Make Its Broadway Debut

For the first time, the Tony-honored Broadway spoof revue Forbidden Broadway is coming to Broadway. Forbidden Broadway on Broadway: Merrily We Stole a Song, directed by creator Gerard Alessandrini, will begin performances at the Hayes Theater on July 29 ahead of an official opening on August 15. The limited engagement will end November 1.

“I’d never have believed that Forbidden Broadway would end up on the street that we love—and love to lampoon,” said Alessandrini in a statement. The five-person cast and creative team will be announced at a later date.

Forbidden Broadway on Broadway: Merrily We Stole a Song is set to include spoofs of new and upcoming Broadway musicals and plays including The Great Gatsby, The Notebook, Water for Elephants, Hell’s Kitchen and Back to the Future, as well as current and recent Sondheim revivals Sweeney Todd, Into the Woods, Company and Merrily We Roll Along. It will also feature weekly guest stars.

Created in 1982, when it played to Palsson’s Supper Club on 72nd Street, Forbidden Broadway has spawned several editions, gone on to play in over 200 cities around the world and given rise to such classic numbers as “Be Depressed” (sung to the tune of “Be Our Guest), “You Can't Stop the Camp” (sung to the tune of “You Can’t Stop the Beat”) and “Ladies Who Screech” (to the tune of “Ladies Who Lunch”). The show and Alessandrini were awarded Tony Honors for Excellence in Theatre in 2006.