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Taboo (musical)
Encyclopedia
Taboo is a stage musical
with a book by Mark Davies (extensively rewritten for the Broadway production by Charles Busch
), lyrics by Boy George
, and music by George and Kevan Frost
.
Set in an abandoned London
warehouse
, the partly imagined story of a group of club 'names' set in the location of what was the city's most fashionable nightclub, the now-legendary 'Taboo' (1985-87) of the title, which was the creation of Leigh Bowery
. Boy George is featured as one of the club's regulars, but in reality, George rarely attended. The show also focuses on George's life prior to and after achieving fame.
The show premiered in London's West End
at the newly opened Venue Theatre on January 29, 2002. Comedian
/talk show host Rosie O'Donnell
was so enamoured with it that she decided to finance a Broadway production
. After 16 previews, it opened on November 13, 2003 at the Plymouth Theatre where, hampered by mostly scathing reviews, it closed after 100 performances. The cast, directed by Christopher Renshaw, included Boy George (credited under his real name, George O'Dowd), Euan Morton
, Dianne Pilkington
, Raúl Esparza
, Sarah Uriarte Berry
, and Jeffrey Carlson
. O'Donnell reportedly lost her entire $10 million investment in the project. O'Donnell said in an interview about Leigh Bowery that she will take Taboo back to Broadway in the future.
and his contemporaries, including the performance artist and club promoter Leigh Bowery, the pop singer Marilyn, 'Blitz' nightclub host Steve Strange
(later of the electro-pop group Visage
), and Philip Salon, Punk groupie and Mud Club promoter. Although George was intimate with the central figures, artistic license
around relationships and timeframes was taken for continuity; for example, Bowery never attended the 'Blitz' nightclub as he was living in Australia at the time.
Act II
Encore:
Act II
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
with a book by Mark Davies (extensively rewritten for the Broadway production by Charles Busch
Charles Busch
Charles Louis Busch is an American actor, screenwriter, playwright and female impersonator, known for his appearances on stage in his own camp style plays and in film and television. He wrote The Tale of the Allergist's Wife, which was a success on Broadway.-Early life:Busch was born in 1954 and...
), lyrics by Boy George
Boy George
Boy George is a British singer-songwriter who was part of the English New Romantic movement which emerged in the early 1980s. He helped give androgyny an international stage with the success of Culture Club during the 1980s. His music is often classified as blue-eyed soul, which is influenced by...
, and music by George and Kevan Frost
Kevan Frost
Kevan Frost is a British Tony Award and Drama Desk Award nominated composer, musician, and record producer.He is recgonised for his work with the musical Taboo; composing the musical score for the production alongside Boy George. This earned him and his co-composer a nomination for a Tony Award for...
.
Set in an abandoned London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
warehouse
Warehouse
A warehouse is a commercial building for storage of goods. Warehouses are used by manufacturers, importers, exporters, wholesalers, transport businesses, customs, etc. They are usually large plain buildings in industrial areas of cities and towns. They usually have loading docks to load and unload...
, the partly imagined story of a group of club 'names' set in the location of what was the city's most fashionable nightclub, the now-legendary 'Taboo' (1985-87) of the title, which was the creation of Leigh Bowery
Leigh Bowery
Leigh Bowery was an Australian performance artist, club promoter, actor, pop star, model and fashion designer, based in London. Bowery is considered one of the more influential figures in the 1980s and 1990s London and New York art and fashion circles influencing a generation of artists and...
. Boy George is featured as one of the club's regulars, but in reality, George rarely attended. The show also focuses on George's life prior to and after achieving fame.
The show premiered in London's West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
at the newly opened Venue Theatre on January 29, 2002. Comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
/talk show host Rosie O'Donnell
Rosie O'Donnell
Roseann "Rosie" O'Donnell is an American stand-up comedian, actress, author and television personality. She has also been a magazine editor and continues to be a celebrity blogger, LGBT rights activist, television producer and collaborative partner in the LGBT family vacation company R Family...
was so enamoured with it that she decided to finance a Broadway production
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
. After 16 previews, it opened on November 13, 2003 at the Plymouth Theatre where, hampered by mostly scathing reviews, it closed after 100 performances. The cast, directed by Christopher Renshaw, included Boy George (credited under his real name, George O'Dowd), Euan Morton
Euan Morton
Euan Douglas George Morton is an actor and singer. He is known for his role as Boy George in the musical Taboo, receiving nominations for the Laurence Olivier Award and Tony Award for his performance....
, Dianne Pilkington
Dianne Pilkington
Dianne Lesley Pilkington is an English theatre actress and singer.- Life :Pilkington was born in Wigan. She trained at the Guildford School of Acting, graduating in 1997 with the Principal's Award....
, Raúl Esparza
Raúl Esparza
Raúl Eduardo Esparza is an American stage actor, singer, and voice artist noted for his award winning performances in Broadway shows...
, Sarah Uriarte Berry
Sarah Uriarte Berry
Sarah Uriarte Berry is an American actress and singer.A native of California and a graduate of UCLA, Berry made her Broadway debut as Eponine in Les Misérables in 1993. She then went on to star as Belle in Beauty and the Beast in 1995. She replaced former college room-mate Susan Egan and left the...
, and Jeffrey Carlson
Jeffrey Carlson
Jeffrey Carlson is a Broadway, film, television actor and singer, best known for his role as the transgender Zarf/Zoe on the long-running daytime soap opera All My Children....
. O'Donnell reportedly lost her entire $10 million investment in the project. O'Donnell said in an interview about Leigh Bowery that she will take Taboo back to Broadway in the future.
Plot
The show is based partly on the New Romantic scene of the 1980s. At its core is the life and career of colourful popstar Boy George, who rose to global prominence in the early 1980s with his band Culture ClubCulture Club
Culture Club are a British rock band who were part of the 1980s New Romantic movement. The original band consisted of Boy George , Mikey Craig , Roy Hay and Jon Moss...
and his contemporaries, including the performance artist and club promoter Leigh Bowery, the pop singer Marilyn, 'Blitz' nightclub host Steve Strange
Steve Strange
Steve Strange , is a Welsh pop singer, best known as the lead singer and frontman of the 1980s pop group Visage...
(later of the electro-pop group Visage
Visage
Visage are a British New Wave rock band. Formed in 1978, the band became closely linked to the burgeoning New Romantic fashion movement of the early 1980s, and are best known for their 1980 hit "Fade to Grey".-New Wave years :...
), and Philip Salon, Punk groupie and Mud Club promoter. Although George was intimate with the central figures, artistic license
Artistic license
Artistic licence is a colloquial term, sometimes euphemism, used to denote the distortion of fact, alteration of the conventions of grammar or language, or rewording of pre-existing text made by an artist to improve a piece of...
around relationships and timeframes was taken for continuity; for example, Bowery never attended the 'Blitz' nightclub as he was living in Australia at the time.
Characters, Original London Production & UK tour
- Billy - the protagonist, Billy is an aspiring photographer. Frustrated with suburban life in Bromley, he runs to London ('Safe in the city') to make his fortune. There he meets Philip Sallon, who introduces him to Kim and George. He soon falls in love with Kim, and attaches himself to George's rising star. Not based on any one real life person. Played by Luke EvansLuke Evans (actor)Luke Evans is a Welsh theatre and film actor. He is known to theatregoers for his stage roles in Rent, Miss Saigon Small Change and Piaf, and to filmgoers for his roles in The Three Musketeers, Clash of the Titans, and Tamara Drewe.-Early life:Luke Evans was born and raised in Aberbargoed, a small...
in the original London production. - Kim - an aspiring punk fashion designer and George's squat-mate. Kim is fiery but insecure, rarely emerging from behind her makeup. She ran away from home at 15, and her mother was too drunk to come looking for her. Not based on any one real life person. Played by Dianne PilkingtonDianne PilkingtonDianne Lesley Pilkington is an English theatre actress and singer.- Life :Pilkington was born in Wigan. She trained at the Guildford School of Acting, graduating in 1997 with the Principal's Award....
in the Original London Cast - GeorgeBoy GeorgeBoy George is a British singer-songwriter who was part of the English New Romantic movement which emerged in the early 1980s. He helped give androgyny an international stage with the success of Culture Club during the 1980s. His music is often classified as blue-eyed soul, which is influenced by...
- Artist, poet, singer/songwriter George O'Dowd is shown before and during his initial success, as a supporting role. He takes an immediate shine to Billy. Thrives on attention and shocking others, never appears dressed conventionally. Originally played by Euan MortonEuan MortonEuan Douglas George Morton is an actor and singer. He is known for his role as Boy George in the musical Taboo, receiving nominations for the Laurence Olivier Award and Tony Award for his performance....
, who Boy George said was 'more Boy George than I am'. - Leigh BoweryLeigh BoweryLeigh Bowery was an Australian performance artist, club promoter, actor, pop star, model and fashion designer, based in London. Bowery is considered one of the more influential figures in the 1980s and 1990s London and New York art and fashion circles influencing a generation of artists and...
- flamboyant Australian designer and performance artist. He delights in antagonising Kim, and is constantly surrounded by a gaggle of admirers/slaves. Absorbs Billy into his flock. - Philip Sallon - the second person Billy meets in London, who takes him to Kim and George's squat. Opens the show. Character based on a real person.
- Josie James - Billy's mother, who later becomes Kim's best friend and business partner. Not based on any one real life person. Supposedly a part written specially for the performer Lyn PaulLyn PaulLyn Paul is an English pop singer and actress. She came to fame as a member of the international chart-topping pop group The New Seekers in the early 1970s...
to play. - Marilyn - another of the Blitz KidsBlitz KidsThe Blitz Kids were a group of young people who frequented the Blitz nightclub in Covent Garden, London in the very early 1980s, and are credited with launching the New Romantic cultural movement...
, Marilyn is first George's rival, then best friend. - Janey - a reporter for the Sun newspaper, who has a connection to George.
- Steve StrangeSteve StrangeSteve Strange , is a Welsh pop singer, best known as the lead singer and frontman of the 1980s pop group Visage...
- doorman at the 'Blitz' club, and singer with the group Visage who achieved success with 'Fade to Grey'. Good-natured rival of George. - Derek - Billy's father. Violent, drunk and homophobic, he beats up Philip for verbally teasing him. Not based on any one real life person.
- Petal - scary cross-dressing drug pusher. Not a convincing woman, just a violent man in a miniskirt. In previews Petal killed Billy near the end of the show. Based on a very real person.
- Big Sue - Leigh's main assistant and confidante. Character based on Sue Tilley.
- Gary/Guru Dazzle - the bouncer at the 'Blitz' club, who becomes a KrishnaKrishnaKrishna is a central figure of Hinduism and is traditionally attributed the authorship of the Bhagavad Gita. He is the supreme Being and considered in some monotheistic traditions as an Avatar of Vishnu...
devotee.
Songs - Original London Production & UK tour
Act I- Ode to Attention Seekers (Philip Sallon and ensemble)
- Safe in the City (Billy)
- Freak (Philip Sallon)
- Stranger in This World (George)
- Genocide Peroxide (Marilyn)
- I'll Have You All (Leigh Bowery)
- Love Is a Question Mark (Billy and Kim)
- Shelter (Petal)
- Pretty Lies (Kim and George)
- Guttersnipe (George and Marilyn)
- Talk
- Stranger in This World (reprise)
Act II
- Everything Taboo (Leigh Bowery and ensemble)
- Independent Woman (Josie, Kim and Philip Sallon)
- I See Through You (Billy)
- Petrified (Philip Sallon)
- Ich Bin Kunst (Leigh Bowery)
- Out of Fashion (Steve Strange, Marilyn, Billy, Philip Sallon)
- Il Adore (Big Sue)
- Pie in the Sky (George, Billy)
- Bow Down Mister (George and ensemble)
Encore:
- Karma Chameleon (ensemble)
Songs - Broadway version
Act I- Freak/Ode to Attention Seekers
- Stranger in This World
- Safe in the City
- Dress to Kill
- Genocide Peroxide
- I'll Have You All
- Sexual Confusion
- Pretty Lies
- Guttersnipe
- Love Is a Question Mark
- Do You Really Want to Hurt Me?
- Church of the Poison Mind/Karma Chameleon
Act II
- Everything Taboo
- Talk Amongst Yourselves
- The Fame Game
- I See Through You
- Ich Bin Kunst
- Petrified
- Out of Fashion
- Il Adore
- Come on in From the Outside
Awards and nominations
- Tony AwardTony AwardThe Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
for Best Original Score (nominee) - Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical (Morton, nominee)
- Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical (Esparza, nominee)
- Tony Award for Best Costume Design (nominee)
- Theatre World AwardTheatre World AwardThe Theatre World Award, first awarded for the 1945-46 season, is an American honor presented annually to actors and actresses in recognition of an outstanding New York City stage debut performance, either on Broadway or off-Broadway.-History:...
(Morton, winner) - Drama Desk AwardDrama Desk AwardThe Drama Desk Awards, which are given annually in a number of categories, are the only major New York theater honors for which productions on Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway compete against each other in the same category...
for Outstanding Actor in a Musical (Morton, nominee) - Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical (Esparza, winner; Carlson, nominee)
- Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lyrics (nominee)
- Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music (nominee)
- 2003 Olivier Award for Best Supporting Performance in a Musical (Paul Baker (actor)Paul Baker (actor)Paul Baker is a Olivier Award winning British musical theatre star. He is remarked as one of the stage's most versatile performers based from his performances. He is best remembered for his roles in Taboo , for which he won his Olivier Award, and the 2000 West End Mega-flop Napoleon in the title...
, winner)
External links
- Official Site
- Internet Broadway Database listing
- Review by Lyn Gardner, The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, May 23, 2002. - Raul Esparza - Downstage Center interview at American Theatre Wing.orgAmerican Theatre WingThe American Theatre Wing is a New York City-based organization "dedicated to supporting excellence and education in theatre," according to its mission statement...
, April 2005