Bullets Over Broadway the Musical is a jukebox musical written by Woody Allen, based on his and Douglas McGrath's 1994 film Bullets over Broadway about a young playwright whose first Broadway play is financed by a gangster. The score consists of jazz and popular standards of the years between World War I and about 1930 by various songwriters. It received its premiere on Broadway, in 2014, at the St. James Theatre, and closed on August 24, 2014 after over a hundred performances.
Production
Bullets Over Broadway the Musical premiered on Broadway at the St. James Theatre on March 11, 2014 in previews, officially opening on April 10, 2014. Directed and choreographed by Susan Stroman, the cast features Marin Mazzie, Zach Braff, Nick Cordero, Karen Ziemba, Vincent Pastore, and Brooks Ashmanskas. Scenic design is by Santo Loquasto, costumes by William Ivey Long, lighting by Donald Holder, sound by Peter Hylenski, musical arrangements and supervision by Glen Kelly and orchestrations by Doug Besterman. The musical contains jazz and popular standards from the years between World War I and about 1930, with additional lyrics written by Glen Kelly. The musical closed on August 24, 2014, after 156 performances and 33 previews. A touring production started in October 2015. It had a two-week stop at Playhouse Square in Cleveland, Ohio from October 6–18. This was a non-Equity tour, directed by Jeff Whiting. The first high school production in the United States opened April 28, 2017 and closed May 7, 2017 at Santa Barbara High School in Santa Barbara, Ca. It was directed by Otto Layman, with Musical Direction by Dr. Jon Nathan, Choreography by Christina McCarthy, and Costume Design by Bonnie Thor. The set was designed by Otto Layman and Jonathan Mitchell, with Lights designed by Mike Madden.
Background
The musical is based on the 1994 film Bullets over Broadway, which had a screenplay by Woody Allen and Douglas McGrath. Work on a musical version of Bullets started in 2000, with Marvin Hamlisch and Craig Carnelia writing the music and Allen writing the book. In 2003, Hamlisch confirmed that work on the musical was proceeding. In an interview on the opening night of the musical in April 2014, Allen said that he had resisted turning the film into a musical for years, having no interest in it as a musical. However, his sister Letty Aronson thought that it could be done as a period musical, and Allen then became interested. Marvin Hamlisch had played a few of the new songs for Allen, but Allen did not think they were right for the musical. His sister then proposed the idea of using songs of the 1920s, "and it suddenly came to life." Susan Stroman was brought into the creative team two years before the opening. Celebrities such as Barbara Walters, Regis Philbin, and Dianne Wiest showed up on opening night.
Plot
In 1929, playwright David Shayne is finally getting his first play God of Our Fathers produced on Broadway. The producer, Julian Marx, has enlisted the wealthy gangster Nick Valenti to pay for the show. Valenti wants to have his dim-witted and untalented girlfriend, Olive Neal, star as one of the leads. Valenti has assigned his strong-arm gangster Cheech to watch over Olive. Surprisingly, Cheech comes up with great ideas for improving the play. However, aging diva Helen Sinclair, the real star of the show, romances the younger David, who already has a girlfriend, Ellen. Meanwhile, the leading man, Warner Purcell, has his eye on Olive.
Songs
;Act 1
"Tiger Rag" – The Atta-Girls, Olive, Nick, Cheech and Gangsters
"Gee, Baby, Ain't I Good to You" – Nick and Olive
"Blues My Naughty Sweetie Gives to Me" – Ellen and David
"Tain't a Fit Night Out for Man or Beast" – Valenti Gang, Kustabeck Gang and Flappers
"They Go Wild, Simply Wild, Over Me" – Helen and Julian
"Up a Lazy River" – Cheech
"I'm Sitting on Top of the World" – David
"Let's Misbehave" – Warner and Olive
"There's a Broken Heart for Every Light on Broadway" – Helen and David
" You Rascal You" – The Atta-Girls
"Tain't Nobody's Biz-ness If I Do" – Cheech and Gangsters
"Runnin' Wild" – Full Company
;Act 2
"There's a New Day Comin'!" – Eden and Company
"There'll Be Some Changes Made" – Cheech, Warner and Gangsters
"I Ain't Gonna Play No Second Fiddle" – Helen and David
"Good Old New York" – The Red Caps
"Up a Lazy River " – Cheech
"I've Found a New Baby" – Ellen and David
"The Panic Is On" – David
"Tain't Nobody's Biz-ness If I do " – Cheech
"Runnin' Wild " – Company
"Up a Lazy River " – Cheech
"She's Funny That Way" – David and Ellen
"Finale"
Principal roles and original cast
Critical reception
According to Stagegrade, the reviews were mixed, with some praising and some panning the musical. The latter especially criticized the use of existing songs rather than having an original score. They conclude that this "may be among the most polarizing shows of the current season." Ben Brantley in his review for The New York Times, called the musical "occasionally funny but mostly just loud." Elysa Gardner, in her review for USA Today, commented that the musical has "playful wit and exuberance" and wrote that "Bullets offers as much sheer, shameless fun as any show you'll see this season." Alexis Soloski, reviewing for The Guardian, praised the way Stroman tells the plot through her choreography and especially noted the staging for Ashmanskas, Yorke and the tap numbers for the male ensemble. However, she found that the songs were not well integrated into the story.
