Broadway's inexorable march toward a Gilligan's Island musical is almost complete
Sean O'Neal
Expertly timed to coincide with yesterday's Tony Awards and its celebration of live theater as a rarified and essential artform, then make a mockery of that celebration, Deadline reports that a musical version of Gilligan's Island is being developed for a Broadway run in 2013 or 2014—fulfilling both a trajectory the show began when it debuted on the local theater circuit in 1992, and the cycle of karmic retribution for every snooty theater critic who once sneered at the advent of television. As the ashes of their bones and pulverized monocles continue to stir while every movie from Animal House to Austin Powers to Ever After heads for the Great White TiVo, producer Dianne Fraser prepares to cram them with coconuts by reviving the play written by late Gilligan creator Sherwood Schwartz, one which she believes will appeal to fans both young and old who are already vaguely familiar with its concept and theme song—the two most defining factors in attracting a modern Broadway audience.
Preemptively addressing the criticisms of those who might find the idea of a Gilligan's Island Broadway show slightly undignified, Fraser has assured that the show will not be "intentionally campy," but rather "funny in a broad way," such as the hilarious pun she just made. More importantly, it will be "stunt cast with movie stars" plus "maybe an American Idol contestant to play Gilligan, to open up the show" and really expose it (and most modern Broadway) as the hollow, cynically recursive exercise in brand recognition that it is. To that end, Deadline says, "They've added another character: an alien." This will ensure that younger audiences will be able to pay attention it, as well as that the Gilligan's Island Broadway show will not be stifled by any form of stuffy integrity, even of the sort that applies to Gilligan's Island.
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