Mel Brooks
’ zany, over the top, wonderfully tasteless comedy “The
Producers” arrived in San Jose at the Center For the Performing
Arts. This is the most irreverent tribute to musical theater ever
produced. Just when you think it can’t get any more outrageous, it
gets more outrageous.
Mel Brooks’ zany, over the top, wonderfully tasteless comedy “The Producers” arrived in San Jose at the Center For the Performing Arts. This is the most irreverent tribute to musical theater ever produced. Just when you think it can’t get any more outrageous, it gets more outrageous. It hits on every race, creed, ethnic group and gender – no one is left out and you find yourself completely hysterical at situations you would never consider laughing at or even thinking about.
This production broke records by winning 12 Tony Awards in just about every category offered.
Taken from the original Brooks’ 1968 movie that starred Zero Mostel and Gene Hackman. (Which by the way won the Academy Award for best original screenplay that year.) Brooks must have saved all the outakes that they could not use and anything that had extraordinary bad taste that had to be thrown out because of censors and added it to this story. Somehow it works.
Susan Stroman’s award winning direction and choreography is wild and leaps to the outer fringe of imagination. From a backup group of hailing Nazi cooing pigeons to little old ladies doing a tap dance with walkers – the shtick never stops. Stroman’s repeats her creativeness from her highly lauded “Contact” and “Oklahoma,” which overflows into this show.
This burlesque-like kaleidoscope orbits around Max Bialystock (Bob Amaral) and his nebbish accountant Leo Bloom (Andy Taylor). These characters lack the redeeming qualities that make for fine gentlemen. They deliver and work hard and play off each other well.
The Bialystock role is demanding, physical and artistic at the same time. Amaral is in just about every scene with the fine-tuned timing of a burlesque comic pro. He is fun to watch and seems very at home in the role.
Andy Taylor in the Bloom role shoves it in right direction and gives the mousy bookkeeper trying to turn producer a heads up with a better than average singing voice and meshes with the overwhelming Bialystock character without getting lost.
Bialystock and Bloom decide to produce a flop so they won’t have to pay off backers, (little old ladies whom Bialystock shamelessly woos out of their life’s savings.) They find the worst most offense play possible, called “Springtime for Hitler.” They hire the worst director possible, Stewart Marshal, who plays the drag/queen director Roger De Bris to its campy hilt. Rich Affannato comes across as his assistant, Carmen Ghia with the persistence of a gay mosquito.
Another bright light of the production is Ida Leigh Curtis as Ulla who “is” the Swedish, extremely well built blond sexy secretary. She sings and dances with equal ease. She reprises the role from the original Broadway show and is a joy to behold.
Bill Nolte as Franz Liebkind is the “way out there” nutso Nazi, author of the fiasco. Only Mel Brooks could create such a weird, twisted character that you would not otherwise consider funny. He is hysterically comical in all his scenes..
Robin Wagner’s sets, William Ivey Long’s costumes and Peter Kaczorowski’s lighting add extra zing to this marvelous potpourri of glee. When you add a top notch supporting cast that seem to be having more fun than the audience, you then have an evening of pure enjoyment.
The “Springtime for Hitler” extravaganza production number gathers every piece of politically incorrect camp that can be found and unabashedly flings it at you with glittered swastika armbands, gorgeous Zigfield Follies style showgirls in stunning costumes; decorated with everything from beer steins, pretzels and wieners, to a take off of Judy Garland. Nothing is left out that will insult or affront but somehow, it works, and is one of the most outrageously, entertaining musical numbers and is completely off the wall.
“The Producers” is a hoot and hasn’t lost much from the Broadway production. The show is guaranteed to make you laugh. By the way this is an adult friendly show.
Camille Bounds, a Morgan Hill resident, is the arts and entertainment editor for Western Division of Sunrise Publications.
