Saturday Night on Broadway!: A Hilarious History of SNL and The Great White Way

By: Oct. 08, 2016
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"What good deed must I have done in a previous life to merit a Cecily Strong impression in this one? #grateful #Bahahahaha" tweeted Lin-Manuel Miranda after last week's Saturday Night Live sketch featuring a spot-on impression of the composer.

There is a belief among those in the public eye that you can't say you've truly "made it" until Saturday Night Live has spoofed you. As evidenced by the show's long and well-documented history of pop-cultural and political satire, it is evident that no one is safe from SNL's finely tuned eye for current events and cultural happenings.

As performed by the most talented comedic minds of the past four decades, the show has taken every election, entertainment phenomenon, trend, and social movement of the past 40+ years to task. In fusing absurdity with reality, SNL routinely holds a well-polished mirror up to society, providing us with the opportunity to reflect and to find humor in the stranger-than-fiction truths of modern reality.

As part of that great tradition, Broadway has been no stranger to Saturday Night Live's comedic lens. In the decades since the show's premiere, Lorne Michaels and his ever- changing gang of Not Ready for Primetime Players have devoted a fair amount of screen time to lovingly mocking all facets of life in show biz.

After many years of SNL coming to Broadway for comedy fodder, however, this week Broadway will come to SNL. Just one week after getting his own Saturday Night Live likeness, Lin-Manuel Miranda is gearing up to host this week's episode. But before Lin takes his shot on television's most famous comedy stage, Broadway World has rounded up some highlights of the show's long history of spoofing the Great White Way.

From screwy, old timey producers to Kristen Wiig's daffy take on Liza Minnelli, from Black Annie to Eddie Murphy's gunpoint audition for (the real) Joe Papp, BWW has rounded up the best moments in SNL's long history of poking fun at the business of show.



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