Gerard Alessandrini’s Forbidden Broadway, which has been parodying Broadway and its stars for decades, will make its Broadway debut this summer.
Forbidden Broadway on Broadway: Merrily We Stole a Song, directed by creator Alessandrini, will begin previews at the Hayes Theater July 29 prior to an official opening August 15. The limited engagement is currently scheduled through November 1.
In addition to a five-person cast to be announced (including the onstage pianist), the production will also welcome weekly guest stars.
Forbidden Broadway on Broadway: Merrily We Stole a Song will be created around the current and recent seasons of Broadway and will include spoofs of The Great Gatsby, The Notebook, Water for Elephants, Hell’s Kitchen, and Back to the Future, as well as current and recent Stephen Sondheim revivals like Sweeney Todd, Into the Woods, Company, and Merrily We Roll Along.
Alessandrini said in a statement, “I’d never have believed that Forbidden Broadway would end up on the street that we love—and love to lampoon.”
Forbidden Broadway debuted in 1982 at New York’s 130-seat Palsson’s Supper Club. The revue has gone on to play in over 200 cities around the world. The show has spawned multiple iterations with Alessandrini continually updating the material to reflect Broadway’s current slate; a few evergreens remain. For his work on Forbidden Broadway in all its forms, Alessandrini and the show received a Tony Honor for Excellence in the Theatre and several Drama Desk Awards. Alessandrini's spoof of Hamilton, entitled Spamilton, played New York and continues to tour the country.
The most recent version, Forbidden Sondheim: Merrily We Stole a Song, played several performances at Manhattan's Green Fig Cabaret Theater in November 2023.
Forbidden Broadway on Broadway will be produced by Broadway & Beyond Theatricals (Ryan Bogner, Victoria Lang, and Tracey Stroock McFarland) in association with John Freedson and Harriet Yellin.
The cast and the rest of the creative team will be announced. Tickets will be available through Telecharge at a later date.
