Review: FORBIDDEN BROADWAY: GREATEST HITS at Georgia Ensemble Theatre

For more than forty years, Gerard Alessandrini’s FORBIDDEN BROADWAY has gleefully taken the Great White Way to task, lovingly skewering its biggest hits, brightest stars, and most self-serious habits through razor-sharp lyrical parodies and a cabaret-style format built for quick-change virtuosity. In FORBIDDEN BROADWAY: GREATEST HITS, Georgia Ensemble Theatre delivers a brisk, audience-friendly sampler that playfully dismantles Broadway musical theatre culture, built from parodies of familiar titles and evergreen Broadway tropes.

Directed and choreographed by Taryn Janelle, with music direction by LeRell Ross, this production keeps the evening moving with purpose and clarity, a notable accomplishment for a revue built on constant tonal whiplash and lightning-fast character changes. Ms. Janelle’s staging favors clean storytelling within the comedy, which helps the humor land as something more than a string of punchlines. Mr. Ross, meanwhile, shapes the musical life of the show with a firm hand, keeping the vocal demands supported and the pace buoyant. At the keyboard, John Lumapas provides the show’s rhythmic engine; the score is written to feel like it’s always in motion, and the playing here sustains that forward drive while staying responsive to the performers’ timing.

As a “greatest hits” compilation, the revue necessarily spans eras, pulling from FORBIDDEN BROADWAY’s long history, so a few gags, personalities, and references can feel a bit less current than they once did. Even so, the material still lands more often than not, especially when the jokes target timeless Broadway habits rather than a single moment in pop-cultural memory. And when this company commits fully to the specificity of a parody those laughs come easily, even if the reference may be a bit vintage.

The cast is comprised of four performers: Lyndsay Ricketson, Leo Thomasian, Josh Hudson, and Tabitha Cheyenne. This quartet meets the piece’s demands with impressive agility and stamina. Ms. Ricketson is a standout all evening, pairing crisp comic choices with genuinely accomplished singing. In “I Dreamed a Show,” she navigates the notoriously punishing LES MISERABLES parody with enough vocal security that the joke lands even harder; the number works best when the singer can truly deliver, and Ricketson does. Her send-up of Barbra Streisand in “Back to Broadway” is similarly strong: big, specific, and musically grounded, with the impression serving the song rather than overtaking it.

Mr. Thomasian also gives a noteworthy performance, particularly in material that requires “vocal gymnastics” as part of the punchline. His hilarious take on Mandy Patinkin in “Somewhat Overindulgent” is a highlight, fearless, sharply paced, and consistently funny without blurring the text. Mr. Hudson and Ms. Cheyenne also shine across the evening, bringing versatility and clear comedic instincts to a show that asks its performers to turn on a dime. Both contribute their own solo takes on classic numbers including Mr. Hudson’s comic take on CATS and Ms. Cheyenne’s frenetic parody of Liza Minelli in “Liza One Note.”

A smart addition to this production is Anastasia Cutter as “The Proprietor,” whose appearances help stitch the evening together. Their work creates transitions and connective tissue between numbers and these small moments keep the revue feeling intentionally shaped, rather than simply stacked.

Musically, the production is at its strongest when the full cast is onstage together. Group numbers bring a fuller sound and sharper momentum, and they also underline the communal, slightly chaotic joy that makes FORBIDDEN BROADWAY feel like live theatre at its best. That ensemble strength pays off most in the closing moments: “What I Did for Laughs” lands with a more emotional core than you might expect, offering a fitting final note and just enough sincerity to remind us that, for all its teasing, FORBIDDEN BROADWAY ultimately comes from affection for the art form it relentlessly ribs.

Visually, the production complements the revue’s quick-change pace without cluttering the stage. Dani Ramos’ set design establishes the “rehearsal studio” world efficiently, leaving room for the performers and the material to do the heavy lifting. Stephanie Dixon’s costumes support the show’s constant transformations with playful specificity, suggesting iconic looks and personas while staying nimble enough for the evening’s rapid-fire demands. Kailee Wang’s lighting adds definition and shape, helping each new segment feel distinct, while Jade Roman’s sound design keeps vocals and accompaniment clean and present, which is crucial in a lyric-driven revue where every rewritten line matters.

FORBIDDEN BROADWAY: GREATEST HITS is presented by Georgia Ensemble Theatre and runs through March 29th at GET at Act3 Playhouse, 6285 Roswell Road, Sandy Springs, GA 30328. Tickets and performance information are available at get.org, or by calling 770-641-1260; you can also reach the box office at BoxOfficeStaff@get.org.