'Smash' fans debate: Is the new Broadway musical better than the cult TV show?
'Smash' fans debate: Is the new Broadway musical better than the cult TV show?
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NBC's 'Smash' gets a second life with Broadway musical
More than a decade after its two-season run on NBC, the much-maligned "Smash" has been reimagined as a Broadway musical.
NEW YORK — Like a peanut-laced smoothie or an airborne martini, 'Smash' is back with a vengeance.
NBC's soapy backstage drama was a pricey misfire when it premiered in 2012, hoofing along for two critically derided seasons before the network pulled the plug. But the cultishly beloved series has now found new life as a gleefully bonkers Broadway musical, which opened April 10 at the Imperial Theatre.
Exuberantly directed by Susan Stroman ('The Producers'), the ultra-meta comedy combines incisive showbiz satire with song-and-dance razzle dazzle, courtesy of the TV series' original choreographer, Joshua Bergasse. The show follows an eager-to-please actress named Ivy Lynn (Robyn Hurder) as she goes outlandishly Method for the role of Marilyn Monroe, alienating everyone she knows and bringing the (fictional) bio-musical 'Bombshell' to the brink of implosion.
Join USA TODAY's resident 'Smash' fans, Patrick Ryan and Anna Kaufman, as they unpack this wildly chaotic yet clever theatrical iteration, from its myriad scarves to the "Let Me Be Your Stars":
Patrick Ryan: So Anna, when did you first watch "Smash?"
Anna Kaufman: I watched it as a preteen and was immediately hooked. We didn't have cable TV, so I found it in bits and pieces on YouTube. I was just enraptured by the dance numbers, the glamour of New York, and the idea of the musical theater world as a rat's nest of broken relationships and grudges. At that age, I was too young to detect camp and therefore engaged in it in a really earnest sense. Years later, I can see that the show wreaked of cringe in the best way, but my love for the music remains earnest. What about you?
Ryan: I initially watched 'Smash' during a delirious weeklong binge with my partner in the early days of COVID lockdown, and then again this year in anticipation of the musical. Granted, there's way too much time wasted on Debra Messing's family (enough, Leo!), and Season 2 gets very bogged down with Pasek and Paul doing Jonathan Larson cosplay. And yet, I still love its nonsense. What other major network show had both Nikki Blonsky and Cole Escola? Or Megan Hilty leading a Rihanna singalong in Times Square while high out of her mind in an angel costume? I mean, how could any stage version match that lunacy?
Kaufman: I went into the musical with so few expectations, which was kind of freeing. I was hopeful those big power ballads that grounded the series would feel even more stunning on stage and was not at all disappointed. The same goes for the dance numbers, which were costumed to the gods by Alejo Vietti. I will say, as a 'Don't Forget Me' fangirl, I wanted to see at least two Marilyns perform it, maybe even all three. That may have been a lot to ask, though.
Ryan: I still can't fathom how with nearly two dozen songs, they couldn't make any room for "History is Made at Night," which is Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman at their best. But alas, enough of my soapbox.
I had read and heard so much negative buzz going into the Broadway show that my expectations were on the floor, which is maybe why it's the biggest surprise of the season for me. I loved that writers Bob Martin and Rick Elice didn't just hit copy-paste from the TV series, but actually gave us a book that – while convoluted – is such a deeply weird and often hilarious twist on everything we love about "Smash." The digs at Broadway TikTokers? "I never liked you, Jerry?" Kristine Nielsen essentially playing a witch? It's genuinely the most I've laughed at any musical this past year, and I say that with all reverence to Hilty and Jennifer Simard, who both carry "Death Becomes Her."
Kaufman: The comedic timing of Brooks Ashmanskas, who played "Bombshell" director Nigel, was so delightful. I don't remember the TV show being as intentionally funny as the musical was, and I really found myself reveling in his exasperation and subtle breaking of the fourth wall. Beowulf Boritt's scenic design was also stunning. Taking the expansiveness of a TV series and shrinking it for the stage is a challenge, and 'Smash' really rose to it.
Ryan: It also can't be overstated what a star Hurder is. She's one of the few legitimate triple threats that we have on Broadway right now, and I felt exhausted on her behalf just watching the opening number and "I Never Met a Wolf Who Didn't Love to Howl." I will admit, I wish we had more Bella Coppola, who is such a powerhouse as Chloe, "Bombshell's" unassuming associate director. One of my favorite things about the "Smash" TV series was the tension of who will and should play Marilyn. Sure, Ivy was perfect on paper, but in the moments when Karen really locked in and you could see the vision, it was thrilling. Yes, I know the musical is telling a mostly different story, but it never truly lets you sit in the suspense of whether Chloe or Karen (or someone else entirely) could usurp the part of Marilyn from Ivy.
Kaufman: The music and comedy of the show were a real high point, but the details of the plot disappointed a bit. It felt as though there were a lot of loose ends and ill-thought-out subplots that didn't jive together in a meaningful way. I was also disappointed by the way Karen (Caroline Bowman), who was integral to the TV show, was written. She felt a bit one-dimensional in the musical; confined to the role of the production's punching bag and easily walked over. Some of the unnecessary side-plots could have been axed to make more time for the audience to get to know her story (and hear her belt!).
Ryan: Agreed. The show loses a touch of momentum in the overlong second act, and spins its wheels with how far exactly to take Ivy's Marilyn-consumed delusion. But part of the appeal of "Smash" has always been how perfectly imperfect it was, and I love that we have an unbridled musical comedy that captures some of that insane energy. I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy it immensely.
Kaufman: It's a soft recommend for me. I think you can definitely enjoy it without having seen the TV series, but I think it's more theater-for-a-theater-person. In many ways, it was a love letter to Broadway, so for fans of the industry and people who grew up loving it, this show will hit the spot.
"Smash" is now playing at the Imperial Theatre (249 W. 45th Street).
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