Why I Love THE PRODUCERS and why you should, too

I have come to understand that Mel Brooks wrote THE PRODUCERS because, as a Jew and a World War II veteran, he hated the Nazis. Brooks figures the best way to beat the Nazis now, decades after the collapse of the Third Reich, is to make fun of them. He intends in The Producers to make Nazis appear ridiculous as that is how he sees them.

Brooks’ 1968 movie was a moderate success in its time but has come to be known as a comedy classic thanks to Brooks’ heavy satire and the seminel performances of Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder. There is no question the The Producers in 1968 was the darkest of dark comedies . . . what with the Holocaust in the living memory of just about anyone who might have seen the film in its original release. Even now the film seems a little on the edgy side.

Thirty years later the 2001 Broadway musical was transformed into farce. It is excellent fodder for a fantastically funny musical comedy even with its jarring images of dancing storm troopers as well as a very fey Adolph Hitler. In some ways, THE PRODUCERS you might see in our theatre is Mel Brooks’ greatest hits. He borrows heavily from his movies and is humor and world view well represented throughout the play. It could be a fun game to play: keeping score of the the lines and jokes from other Mel Brooks' movies.

Ultimately, the Producers is not about the Nazis who are so present in the story-telling. Instead, THE PRODUCERS is about the redemptive quality of true friendship. When the play is over, both Max and Leo are better people for having become friends. That’s a lesson we can all learn.

It's a Monster of a Show!

THE PRODUCERS is really kicking our butt.

I don't remember the specifics but what I do remember is not pretty. As I recall, when THE PRODUCERS was in its first previews in New York, some scence chages were taking up to 25 minutes. We have been told tht the running time was somewhere north of 5 hours. That's how hard this show can be on a stage crew.

We are no where near the 5 hour mark on our show -- it should be around 2 and half hours instead. We have also cut design elements that obviously appeared on Broadway. We have cut other elements we planned to include but ran out of time to create for our show. We are working very hard to get things finished in time for the first performacne on thursday, but, as they say, the paint might still be wet.