Flopped and Forgotten

We talk about Broadway musicals that weren't exactly hits: the good, the bad, and the downright ugly.

Lestat 10/31/2022

Lestat It's Halloween. Let's talk about vampires. /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/24861354

Mrs. Doubtfire 10/13/2022

Mrs. Doubtfire We're back! And we've brought a fresh flop with us. /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/24671820

Juno 04/30/2022

Juno Since we don't talk about Bruno, this week we are talking about Juno, a musical set in Ireland during the Irish War of Independence. We've got some legendary people behind this one, so grab a Guiness and meet us at the Winter Garden Theatre! /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/22961924

Ain't Broadway Grand 03/22/2022

Ain't Broadway Grand Bio musicals are all the rage right now and have we got one for you! Ain't Broadway Grand tells the story of producer Mike Todd (kind of) and a show he never actually produced. Confused? So are we. /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/22524218

Triumph of Love 03/01/2022

Triumph of Love This week, we travel to Greece... again. We're looking at Triumph of Love from 1997, which starred Betty Buckley and Susan Egan. /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/22291958

The Frogs 02/03/2022

The Frogs We are paying tribute to the late, great Stephen Sondheim in our special way this week. His 1974 musical The Frogs found its way to Lincoln Center in 2004 with some help from Nathan Lane and boy did he put his own spin on things. We've got frogs, gods, Google, and jockstraps to talk about so let's hop to it. /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/22006241

Diana: The Musical 01/13/2022

Diana: The Musical We're back! And we've got a fresh flop to talk about. The people's princess got the Broadway treatment and while the show may not have been a hit with critics, we're giving it a fair chance. Join us for this musical romp through Kensington Palace and while we're there we'll discuss dancing corgies, RuPaul's Drag Race, and whether Eric knows what year it is. /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/21761990

Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark 09/16/2021

Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark This musical had everything: beloved characters, a legendary director, spectacular sets, great costumes, Bono, most of the cast of Hadestown... so what could possibly have gone wrong? Oh, so very many things. From producers dying to budgets growing out of control to those famous cast injuries, we are looking at everything that made Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark the biggest financial flop in the history of musical theatre. /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/20490635

Flahooley 08/31/2021

Flahooley This week, we head back to 1951 for Flahooley. This musical tells the story of a toy company that produces a brand new doll only to be nearly driven out of business by a confused but well meaning genie. Yes, that's right, a genie. Join us on this strange adventure and we'll try and make it make sense as we talk about puppets, pizza rolls, and the Red Scare. Oh, and racism. Because 1951. /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/20316260

Mack & Mabel 08/05/2021

Mack & Mabel Mack and Mabel is a favorite among flop enthusiasts thanks to its unforgettable score and stellar cast album. But what else is there to this musical about (probably) real life lovers from the silent film era? We peel back the celluloid to explore that question, as well as a religious pretzel craze, our favorite Bernadette Peters roles, and the fascinating real lives of Mack Sennett and Mabel Normand. /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/20027795

Darling of the Day 07/28/2021

Darling of the Day Picture it: London, 1905. A troubled artist fakes his own death and begins a romance with the suitor of the actual dead man he's now impersonating. This is the basic plot of Jule Styne's Darling of the Day, a musical that couldn't quite earn the distinction of being a masterpiece. What went wrong? We'll paint the picture for you and we'll throw in some New York style pizza, a very funny dame, and a critique from Lisa's dog. /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/19953143

Bring Back Birdie 07/06/2021

Bring Back Birdie This week, we have a rarity: a Broadway sequel! Bring Back Birdie was the 1981 sequel to the hit 1960 musical Bye Bye Birdie, but how did it stand up to its predecessor? Let's just say we wish they'd opted for a revival of the original. /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/19715033

Fade Out -- Fade In 06/07/2021

Fade Out -- Fade In It's back to the sixties we go for this Carol Burnett star vehicle, although the word "vehicle" may be triggering to Carol when she thinks about how this show came crashing down around her. Join us for all the details on that as well as the jobs we've stumbled into, Lisa's disappointing-yet-delightful lunch, and our new favorite Broadway star: Smaxie the seal. /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/19367408

The Capeman 05/24/2021

The Capeman This week, we discuss a musical that was inspired by the true story of a teenaged murderer turned poet. Oh yeah, it was also inspired by a ghost's visit to Paul Simon. Listen to learn how it all went down! /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/19206785

Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown 03/22/2021

Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown We're keeping it in the family this week with our second show in a row to star a LuPone sibling. This time, Patti's up to the plate and she's bringing some very big stars (and a million wigs) with her. So pour some sangria and join us in sunny Spain for conversation about bad accents, soup, and the questionable roles we had in high school. /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/18414158

Late Nite Comic 03/05/2021

Late Nite Comic This week's episode is a doozey. Late Nite Comic ran for an impressively brief four performances in 1987, but why? No, really, why? Why did it close so quickly? Why are there two albums with the score, but neither involve the actual cast? And why, oh why, did it run in the first place? We may not have all the answers, but we definitely crack more jokes in this episode than there were in this disastrous musical comedy. /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/18198857

Big: The Musical 02/15/2021

Big: The Musical We're kicking off our fourth season with a show that didn't quite live up to its name. Big is the musical version of the hit movie that made Tom Hanks a star, so where did it go wrong? Was it a case of too much product placement? Was the famous piano too big for the stage? And what does one of the stars of Grease have to do with it? Listen now to find out! /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/17939975

Here's Love (or, Miracle on 34th Street: The Musical) 12/07/2020

Here's Love (or, Miracle on 34th Street: The Musical) Christmastime is here, and what better way to celebrate than with a Christmas themed musical flop? When Meredith Willson adapted the movie Miracle on 34th Street for the Broadway stage, he gave it a misleading title that may have contributed to its demise. This week, we are talking about Here's Love, as well as the history of The Rockettes, our favorite Christmas movies, and Santa's credit score. /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/17085332

Allegiance 11/23/2020

Allegiance As the first Broadway musical to be created by Asian Americans, Allegiance would have been ground-breaking whether it flopped or not. Of course, it did flop, so we're talking about it this week. Starring the legends that are George Takei and Lea Salogna, Allegiance focuses on the internment of Japanese Americans in World War II. We will discuss that as well as the Pledge of Allegiance and our favorite baseball positions. /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/16913357

Bright Star 11/09/2020

Bright Star Back in 2016, actor Steve Martin and folk-rock singer Edie Brickell teamed up on the musical Bright Star, a fictional expansion on the true Iron Mountain Baby story. It may have brought bluegrass to Broadway but it couldn't bring in the crowds, so it ended up on our show. This week, we talk about why that is, as well as Peter, Paul and Mary songs, George Washington's favorite cocktail, and an idea of Lisa's that's truly terrifying. /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/16731908

Dear World 10/19/2020

Dear World This week, we look at Dear World, Jerry Herman's attempt to further capitalize on the success of Mame and its star Angela Lansbury. Come on down to yet another restaurant basement with us for tales of big hats, the McDonald's in Times Square, and the world premiere of Hello, Bobby! /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/16441466

Anna Karenina: The Musical 10/05/2020

Anna Karenina: The Musical Anna Karenina is one of the greatest books ever written, so how could the musical have flopped so badly? We're on a mission to find out how and on the way to our discovery we'll discuss breakfast cereals, gluten struggles, and of course, the famous novel itself. /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/16227632

Disaster! 09/21/2020

Disaster! Earthquakes and tidal waves and piranhas, oh my! This jukebox musical from Seth Rudetsky and Jack Plotnick pays homage to popular disaster films of the 1970s and is filled with some of the biggest hits from that decade too. Put on your best bell bottoms because we're off on an adventure that includes gambling nuns, death by ice sculpture, and our least favorite aspic fillings of all time. /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/16074071

House of Flowers 09/07/2020

House of Flowers This week we are living out Truman Capote's Caribbean fantasy with his musical House of Flowers, known for its Calypso inspiration and stars Pearl Bailey and Diahann Carroll. See you in the islands where we'll talk about a great turtle rescue, the perfect brothel snack, and Lisa's inability to remember a single name. /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/15898721

The Last Ship 08/24/2020

The Last Ship All aboard for our discussion of Sting's musical flop The Last Ship. How did one of the world's greatest songwriters manage to wreck this show? You'll have to listen to us talk through our shared fear of misplaced large machines, late night shopping at Kohl's, and (of course) our favorite songs by The Police to find out /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/15727067

Aspects of Love 08/10/2020

Aspects of Love This week we are taking on one of the true titans of musical theater: Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber. Aspects of Love was a smash success in the West End, but Broadway audiences did not fall in love with this 1990 show the same way as their British counterparts. Tune in for everything from 90s album art to a salute to Captain Tom. /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/15543260

I Had a Ball 07/28/2020

I Had a Ball Take a stroll with us down the famous Coney Island Boardwalk! We'll have a ball discussing millennial nostalgia, that one Bobby Darin song, our new favorite costumer designer, and some New York history that echoes loudly today. You won't need psychic powers to see how the fate of this 1964 musical turned out... /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/15377996

Play On! 07/13/2020

Play On! We're back! Play On! is both our first jukebox musical and the first show we've done with an all black cast. Join us as we set a Duke Ellington soundtrack to not only Shakespeare, but also our fantasy Antiques Roadshow musical and Lisa's "covid brain". /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/15181778

Wonderland 03/16/2020

Wonderland This week, we take a trip down the Yellow Brick Road to Wonderland. If you think we've just made a topical mistake, you might want to take a closer look at Frank Wildhorn's 21st century take on the classic Dorot--we mean, Alice tale. White rabbits and tea parties and existential crises, oh my! /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/13548227

Home Sweet Homer 03/02/2020

Home Sweet Homer Home Sweet Homer may have only lasted one day on Broadway, and it may have been all but erased from history, but that doesn't stop us from trying! No, really. We tried. In any case, join us for talks about our favorite myths, saganaki, and the current Broadway smash we'd clearly rather be discussing. /episode/index/show/floppedandforgotten/id/13353017

Flopped and Forgotten

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