Mike Nichols ("The Graduate," "Angels in America") directs the new musical inspired by the 1975 feature film comedy "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" which landed at Broadway's Shubert Theatre for a St. Valentine's Day (Feb. 14) start and a St. Patrick's Day (March 17) opening.
The self-proclaimed "lovingly ripped-off" show features a book by Eric Idle, based on the screenplay he co-wrote with Monty Python creators Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones and Michael Palin.
Spamalot tells the tale of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table on their quest from God (voiced by a familiar actor) for the Holy Grail — with a short stop in the dazzling Spam-filled land of Camelot. The show boasts "a chorus line of dancing divas and knights, flatulent Frenchmen, killer rabbits and one legless knight" who sing and dance. (Python devotees will be happy to know The Knights Who Say "Ni!" also make an appearance.)
Featuring a completely new score with music and lyrics by Idle and composer John Du Prez ("A Fish Called Wanda"), Spamalot also includes songs ("Brave Sir Robin," "He's Going to Tell" and "Knights of the Round Table") from the original film.
The new musical stars Tim Curry (The Rocky Horror Show, "Clue") as King Arthur, David Hyde Pierce ("Frasier," The Heidi Chronicles) as Sir Robin, Hank Azaria ("The Birdcage," Sexual Perversity in Chicago) as Sir Lancelot, Christopher Seiber (Into The Woods) as Sir Galahad, Michael McGrath (Wonderful Town) as Patsy et al., Steve Rosen (The Golem) as Sir Bedevere, Christian Borle (Thoroughly Modern Millie) as various roles and Sara Ramirez (A Class Act) as The Lady of the Lake. The ensemble includes John Bolton, Brad Bradley, Thomas Cannizzaro, Kevin Covert, Jennifer Frankel, Lisa Gajda, Jenny Hill, Emily Hsu, James Ludwig, Abbey O'Brien, Ariel Reid, Pamela Remler, Greg Reuter, Brian Shepard, Rick Spaans, Scott Taylor and Darlene Wilson.
The musical played its world premiere at Chicago's Shubert Theatre and has already been recorded for an upcoming original cast album release on Decca Broadway in April.
The score includes the songs "Fisch Schlapping Song," "King Arthur's Song," "I Am Not Dead Yet," "Come With Me," "The Song That Goes Like This," "All For One," "Knights of the Round Table," "The Song That Goes Like This (Reprise)," "Find Your Grail," "Run Away," "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life," "Brave Sir Robin," "You Won't Succeed on Broadway," "The Diva's Lament," "Where Are You?," "Here Are You," "His Name is Lancelot," "I'm All Alone," "The Song That Goes Like This (Reprise)," "The Holy Grail" and "Find Your Grail Finale - Medley."
Todd Ellison is musical director and vocal arranger. Larry Hochman provides orchestrations, Glen Kelly handles music arrangements and Michael Keller is musical coordinator.
The design team for Spamalot features Tim Hatley (set, costume), Hugh Vanstone (lighting), Gregory Meeh (special effects) and ACME Sound Partners (sound).
Ostar Boyett Productions, The Shubert Organization, Arielle Tepper, Stephanie McClelland/Lawrence Horowitz, Elan V. McAllister/Allan S. Gordon, Independent Presenters Network, Roy Furman, GRS Associates, Jam Theatricals, TGA Entertainment, and Clear Channel Entertainment produce the musical reportedly capitalized at $11 million — compared to the original movie's approximate budget of $500,000.
Monty Python's Spamalot plays at the Shubert Theatre, located at 225 West 44th Street. The show website can be found at www.montypythonsspamalot.com.
