A new edition of Gerard Alessandrini's Forbidden Broadway will begin previews on August 31 and open on September 23 at the 47th Street Theatre. Dubbed Forbidden Broadway: Rude Awakening, the show will feature spoofs of current offerings including Spring Awakening, Curtains, A Chorus Line, Grease: You're The One That We Want, Legally Blonde, Frost/Nixon, Mary Poppins and the Disney Musicals, plus Company, Grey Gardens and others. Rude Awakening will replace The Roast of Utopia, the version currently playing at the 47th Street Theatre.
Directed by Phillip George and Alessandrini, the show stars Jared Bradshaw, Janet Dickinson, Valerie Fagan and Michael West, with David Caldwell on piano. Costumes are by the legendary Alvin Colt, who was just honored with an exhibit at the Museum of the City of York. Sets are by Megan Halpern and lighting is by Mark Janowitz.
Forbidden Broadway has been a popular favorite on the New York theater scene since 1982, when Alessandrini created the first parody that lampooned the Broadway shows and stars of the day. Many stars including Carol Channing, Kathleen Turner, Raul Esparza, Donna Murphy, Bernadette Peters, Tommy Tune, Stephen Sondheim, Patti LuPone, Cameron Mackintosh and Hal Prince have stopped by to laugh at the cast's depiction of them. The show's awards include a Tony Honor, Obie, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, Drama League and Lucille Lortel Awards. Forbidden Broadway is produced by John Freedson, Harriet Yellin and Jon B. Platt.
