ShowBusiness: The Road to Broadway (2007)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Director:

Dori Berinstein

Writers:

Dori Berinstein (writer)
Richard Hankin (writer)

Genre:

Documentary

Tagline:

The Real Drama is Behind the Curtain.

Plot:

Going behind the curtain to capture the most controversial, passionate, risky and high-profile Broadway season in decades.

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

US TV Schedule:

Thur. July 23

10:00 AM

SHOW

Cast

Alissa Anderegg	...	Herself
Kristin Anderson-Lopez	...	Herself
Rob Ashford	...	Himself
Chris Boneau	...	Himself
Ben Brantley	...	Himself
Harrison Chad	...	Himself
Carol Channing	...	Herself
Kristin Chenoweth	...	Herself
Wayne Cilento	...	Himself
Hope Clarke	...	Herself
Jennifer Cody	...	Herself
Dioni Michelle Collins	...	Herself
Nancy Marlowe Coyne	...	Herself
Alan Cumming	...	Himself
Stephanie D'Abruzzo	...	Herself
Raúl Esparza	...	Himself
Edie Falco	...	Herself
Harvey Fierstein	...	Himself
David Finkle	...	Himself
Boy George	...	Himself
William Goldman	...	Himself
Robyn Goodman	...	Herself
Susan Haskins	...	Herself
Charles Isherwood	...	Himself
Hugh Jackman	...	Himself
Donna Karger	...	Herself
Pat Kiernan	...	Himself
Billie Jean King	...	Herself
Tony Kushner	...	Himself
John Lahr	...	Himself
Rocco Landesman	...	Himself
Nathan Lane	...	Himself
Cyndi Lauper	...	Herself
John Leguizamo	...	Himself
Jacques le Sourd	...	Himself
LL Cool J	...	Himself
Robert Lopez	...	Himself
Joe Mantello	...	Himself
Rob Marshall	...	Himself
Jeff Marx	...	Himself
Ron Marx	...	Himself
Wendy Marx	...	Herself
Kevin McCollum	...	Himself
Idina Menzel	...	Herself
Jerry Mitchell	...	Himself
Jason Moore	...	Himself
Euan Morton	...	Himself
Rosie O'Donnell	...	Herself
Stephen Oremus	...	Himself
Brad Oscar	...	Himself
Patrick Pacheco	...	Himself
Sarah Jessica Parker	...	Herself
Tonya Pinkins	...	Herself
Marc E. Platt	...	Himself (as Marc Platt)
Cece Rafter	...	Herself
Michael Rafter	...	Himself
Michael Riedel	...	Himself
Ken Roberson	...	Himself
Stephen Schwartz	...	Himself
Jeffrey Seller	...	Himself
Sue Simmons	...	Herself
David Stone	...	Himself
John Tartaglia	...	Himself
Jeanine Tesori	...	Herself
Tom Titone	...	Himself
Roma Torre	...	Herself
Glenn Weiss	...	Himself
Jeff Whitty	...	Himself
Linda Winer	...	Herself
George C. Wolfe	...	Himself
Renée Zellweger	...	Herself

MPAA:

Rated PG for language and some sexual references.

Runtime:

USA:102 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:PG

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Dramatic Forces

Trivia:

The song that Idina Menzel sings over the credits is a much-changed version of "Lullaby of Broadway," written by Al Dubin and Harry Warren. The song originally appeared in the Warner Brothers film Gold Diggers of 1935 (1935)and won the 1936 Academy Award for Best Original Song. It was one of many Warren and Dubin songs eventually included in the 1980 jukebox musical "42nd Street" (based mostly, but not entirely, on their 1933 movie of the same name). The version that Menzel sings in this documentary was arranged by Jan Folkson and Jeanine Tesori and given an almost entirely new tune, as well as some new lyrics--a spoken interlude drawn from Harlem Renaissance poet Claude McKay's 1920 poem "On Broadway;" Billy Porter performed the McKay portion of the song.

Soundtrack:

Tradition

A business like any other

"Show Business" provides us with a behind-the-scenes glimpse into the making of four original musicals that debuted on Broadway during the 2004 season: "Wicked," an inside-out re-interpretation of "The Wizard of Oz," told from the viewpoint of the Wicked Witch of the West; "Taboo," a Rosie O'Donnell-backed chronicle of the life of Boy George; "Avenue Q," a parody of "Sesame Street," done with live actors and puppets; and "Caroline, or Change," a civil rights drama set in the Deep South of the 1960s.

The movie follows all four shows through their various stages of rehearsal, their opening (and sometimes closing) nights, their reception by audiences and critics, and their recognition (or lack thereof) by the Tony Awards. To bring this self-contained and exclusive world to life, director Dori Berinstein interviews a healthy dose of Broadway insiders and hangers-on, including producers, performers, writers, composers, fans and reviewers. The movie captures all the joy and heartbreak, along with all the pressures - both artistic and financial - that go into the creation of a Broadway show (there's a reason, after all, why they call it "show BUSINESS"!).

This doesn't quite qualify as a must-see documentary, but fans of musical theater - and of these shows in particular - should relish all the juicy backstage info they'll find here.