Jerry Springer - the Opera June 2, 2007

Bailiwick Repertory concludes it's Bailiwick@25 Celebration by presenting the American Premiere of the sensational, award-winning musical 'Jerry Springer - The Opera.' The only work in British History to win Best Musical in all of their major awards - Olivier Awards, Critic's Choice, Evening Standard, and What's On Stage - along with many other awards, 'Jerry Springer - The Opera' is a fascinating mix of the highest form of art and the lowest form of culture - opera and daytime television. In turns hilarious and heartbreaking, the work presents a series of unusual characters who each are desperate for "their Jerry Springer moment." With music by Richard Thomas, and book and lyrics by Stewart Lee and Richard Thomas, 'Jerry Springer - The Opera' begins in very familiar territory for those of us very aware of Jerry's presence in the NBC Tower downtown. In Act 1, Jerry's guests include a man with a fiance, a lover, and another lover with a secret. In Act 2, we find Jerry hosting in a very different place as he is forced to experience the worst day of his life, and his guests take the level of debate to operatic heights.