The new musical Cry-Baby, based on the John Waters movie of the same name, will play Broadway's Marquis Theater, recently vacated by The Drowsy Chaperone. The show recently played San Diego's La Jolla Playhouse to very solid reviews. According to the New York Times, tickets for previews will be $54, in honor of 1954, the year in which the musical is set.
The cast will include Tony winner Harriet Harris and newcomer James Snyder in the Johnny Depp role. The book is by Hairspray's Thomas Meehan and Mark O'Donnell. Mark Brokaw directs, and Rob Ashford choreographs. The score comes from a pair of Broadway tyros, David Javerbaum and Adam Schlesinger.
Baltimore Sun critic Mary Carole McCauley recently quoted musical-theater blogger Chris Caggiano about the show's chances for success:
"I hear that Cry-Baby might be the sleeper hit of the year," says Chris
Caggiano, a Boston Conservatory professor who teaches the history of
musical theater, and who is a longtime fan of Waters' films.
"In musical theater, there often is pressure on sophomore efforts. But
it always comes down to the merits of that particular show. The classic
example is Rodgers and Hammerstein's Oklahoma, which was a giant
watershed that changed the course of musicals forever. And they
followed that with Carousel, which might be even better than Oklahoma.
It's not a given that a second effort will be hyped so much that
audiences will be disappointed."
Oh, wait. That's me. (I mean, how friggin' self-aggrandizing can you get? Sometimes, I'm just unbearable...) Yeah, McCauley called me one day because she was looking for someone who was not only a theater queen but also a John Waters fan, and she came across my blog in the process. Even though I'm a member of the media, I still get a kick out of seeing my name in print. (An unquenchable thirst for attention? Yeah, so what's your point?)
BTW, when I said "I hear that Cry-Baby might be the sleeper hit of the year," I had just read that in Michael Riedel's column in the New York Post. It wasn't like it was based on all my fictitious inside connections in show biz. "My sources tell me it's the show to watch. There's a little something you can take to the bank, little lady..."
Cry-Baby begins previews March 15th, toward a planned April 24th opening.
Love the quote, Chris!
Posted by: Steve On Broadway (SOB) | January 16, 2008 at 12:13 PM