Liza Minnelli (the name as published has been corrected in this text), Carol Channing, Robert Goulet and Jackie Mason may have mixed feelings about ”Forbidden Broadway,” but audiences have given this musical satire an emphatic thumbs up.
When the wickedly funny send-up of Broadway stars and famous musicals comes to Schaumburg`s Prairie Arts Center this weekend, comic mayhem will be wreaked on the sacred cows of American musical theater.
Mike Harmen, one of four singer/actors in the cast, describes his Richard Harris impersonation: ”Harris is known to be a pretty serious drinker, so we do a `Camelot` spoof where I play King Arthur, but the words have been changed from `I wonder what the king is thinking` to `I wonder what the king is drinking, tonight.`
”I wear a slightly red nose, and since I`m playing the king as if he were loaded, I have a heck of a time pulling the excalibur sword out of the stone,” Harmen said.
”After `King Arthur` I pull off my beard and moustache and play Yul Brenner singing `Do I Shave?` If you could see us back stage, it`s complete chaos with all the costume and makeup changes.”
Though the familiar melodies featured in ”Forbidden Broadway” have been written by dozens of famous composers, the lyrics are all by one man, Gerard Alessandri. Alessandri performed his song parodies at parties until someone suggested he stage a showcase to attract an agent for his acting career.
The showcase proved so popular that Alessandri traded his acting career for one of parody writing. Since its debut in 1981, ”Forbidden Broadway” has become one of New York`s longest running shows, updated every year by Alessandri to keep current. Besides its nine-year stint in New York, the show enjoyed a lengthy run in Chicago during the 1980s.
Ellen Saxton, who plays Ann Miller, Patty LuPone and Jennifer Holliday, among others, explained the show`s appeal.
”You don`t have to know about Broadway shows to enjoy the humor; a lot of the material really stands by itself. It`s always fun to poke fun at the stars. I do Patty LuPone singing to Barbra Streisand about how she`ll play
`Evita` in the movies. `I`ll go mental when she sings `Evita` like she sang
`Yentl.` People love it.”
One of Saxton`s favorite bits is a takeoff of ”Les Miz.”
”We do the 3 1/2 hour show in 9 minutes. When the Jean Val Jean character comes on, instead of singing `Bring Him Home,` he sings `God, It`s High,` because the ballad is so high pitched. Then they do this vast recitation of the entire plot in one minute.”
Harmen became acquainted with Alessandri during the course of several auditions over the years for the ”Forbidden Broadway” revue.
”Forbidden Broadway,” which also features Lori Hammel, Brad Van Nostrand and accompanist John Randall, will be presented at 8 p.m. Saturday and 3:30 p.m. Sunday.
For reservations and information, call 894-3600.
