"Prop 8: The Musical" on the Great White Way

Variety is reporting that as part of a fundraiser for multiple same-sex marriage organizations, “Hairspray” composer Marc Shaiman’s satirical “Prop 8: The Musical” will be staged live. The event called “Defying Inequality” will be performed on a dark night on the set of “Wicked” at the Gershwin. The star-studded Internet video was released in response to the Scott Eckern episode in which Marc Shaiman was a central figure.

I’m sorry, but this is just bad writing. I think I’ve been pretty fair on these pages about giving liberal writers their due when they are talented and create great work. I’m glad Mr. Shaiman had years and years of royalties from the Broadway run of “Hairspray” (not to mention the modestly successful movie version) because I really think he’s jumping the old hammerhead with this thing. At this point, Mr. Shaiman seems to be wrapping himself in a rainbow flag and beating the Prop 8 drum like Pete Best on a bad night at the Cavern Club.

Since it’s a dark night, the audience at the Gershwin will be made up mostly of members of the industry (who know how many will be compelled), so they’ll scream with delight, but honestly, it’s a bad sketch that is full of lies… please, someone find me the verse in the bible that calls a homosexual an abomination. It doesn’t exist. The act is described that way, but not the person, a very important distinction. Not to mention, the idea that nefarious religious figures snuck Prop 8 onto the ballot when people weren’t looking? Does anyone really believe that? Even all the tattoos on Margaret Cho can’t cover up the fact that these guys are grasping at straws and resorting to lies and distortions.

Broadway will embrace this mess because they’ve never met a gay cause they didn’t embrace. But they better hope that Bob and Sue from Minneapolis don’t wander into the Gershwin thinking they got tickets to that “Wizard of Oz” show because what happens up on that stage will not be the best advertisement for the finest that Broadway has to offer.

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