Please, a moment of silence for THE PRODUCERS, one of the most financially successfully and - in a lot of other ways - artistically important shows in musical comedy history.
Do you remember 2001? The way the critics roared for Nathan and Matthew, for Mel Brooks' hilarious songs, for Susan Stroman's delightfully amiable staging?
I went back to the show three months ago, when Tony Danza played Max. It was, to say the least, a very depressing experience. Here I was, back at the St. James Theatre, at a show that was once "the king of Broadway." But by then, it had become a disaster. The place was not even a third full. Danza could not sing any part of the score. Roger Bart, having no one to play off of, looked lost. And I just sat there feeling sadly nostalgic for the time when I first saw the show six years earlier.
I can't help but wonder who would want to attend today's final performance of THE PRODUCERS. Still, wait a few months, when YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN opens at the St. James. Chances are that history will repeat itself, and the St. James will again become the hottest ticket on Broadway.
Till then, goodbye Max, Leo, Ulla, Roger and company. We'll try to remember only the good years.