Has a Broadway musical ever been the subject of a national controversy before?

[carnzee]

After this week's Hamilton controversy, I am trying to remember another time when a Broadway musical (or even a play) was thrust into the national conversation in a comparable way. Any thoughts? 

[Tag]

Maybe Miss Saigon casting?  But probably not as 'national'.  But social media wasn't a thing, so nothing would have been that big of a story, like it can be now.

[showchoirguy]

The Cradle Will Rock?

[dramamama611]

The Scottsboro Boys 

[LizzieCurry]

Jesus Christ Superstar?

[Theater_Nerd]

Hair

[adamgreer]

The original production of Hair?

[AmericanVicomte]

The only one I can think of right now is Jesus Christ Superstar.

[Sunny11]

The jerry springer musical ? I remember when it was televised in the U.K. and they had to have several warning labels through the broadcast that it might offend christians. 

[carnzee]

What was the controversy with Superstar? I'm assuming it was considered profane?

[Michael Bennett]

I would say OUR AMERICAN COUSIN at Ford's Theatre in 1865

[Auggie27]

A closer parallel would be the invitation to "1776" to perform at the Nixon White House. He and his minions wanted edits to remove any whiff of anti-war sentiment, notably "Momma, Look Sharp," which at the time had extraordinary resonance, with the draft pulling young men from their lives and inserting them into an unpopular war (the exact circumstances were obviously unrelated; it was the loss of soldiers on a front that resonated, and the song stands out in the show as a stand-alone commentary of a haunting sort).  Peter Stone and Edwards refused to let a word be altered.  And it was performed as written.  I'm not sure if "Cool, Cool Considerate Men" was also on the table; it was later removed from the film at Jack Warner's request, and may have been part of Nixonian concern. But "Momma" had that Vietnam era vibe.  We had no social media (I was in high school), but it was a big deal.

[Valentina3]

Can people add what the actual controversy was? I couldn't find articles for most of these above. 

[carnzee]

Well Valentina, as far as Hair goes I assume they are referring to the nude scene. I believe it was banned in Boston. 

[QueenAlice]

Hair was initially banned almost everywhere it played because of widespread bans of nudity on stage. And that wasn't just in the states but in the UK and probably other international places as well.  For that reason alone the tours of that show made front page news everywhere it went.

[GhostXmasPast]

carnzee said: "After this week's Hamilton controversy, I am trying to remember another time when a Broadway musical (or even a play) was thrust into the national conversation in a comparable way. Any thoughts? 

 

"

I will toss out Oh! Calcutta

http://www.storypick.com/oh-calcutta/

supposedly the nudity was so shocking that it forced the ghost of Belasco right out of his theater

 

[MichelleCraig]

Definitely HAIR and OH, CALCUTTA from back in the day... I also remember a Christmas long ago where the grownups were very disturbed by some of the language in FOLLIES. My cousin was playing the cast album and many had seen the show in previews that year at the Colonial in Boston...I even saw it with my father, who hadn't seen a Broadway show since seeing a production of OKLAHOMA! with Celeste Holme when he was in the Navy...

[Jordan Catalano]

Also there was that international backlash against WICKED, when Idina stole the Tony award from its rightful owner, Tonya Pinkins.

[Call_me_jorge]

When kinky boots appeared on the Macy's thanksgiving day parade

[noradesmond]

QueenAlice said: "Hair was initially banned almost everywhere it played because of widespread bans of nudity on stage. And that wasn't just in the states but in the UK and probably other international places as well.  For that reason alone the tours of that show made front page news everywhere it went"

The producers played that up too. When I saw the national tour, they had a 'Cop' come out at intermission and announce everyone was under arrest for lewd and lascivious behavior. The bit went on for a few seconds, giving directions to pull out IDs, etc. Then the 'Cop' said "oink oink" and walked off the stage. I wasn't sure until then if it was real or not, but I was young and naive. 

 

[Mister Matt]

For that reason alone the tours of that show made front page news everywhere it went.

The first national tour was the first musical my parents saw together.  They saw it in DC (I *think* it was the Kennedy Center the year it opened, but I'm not 100% positive) and they always spoke of the unusual opening with the cast entering the theatre from the back of the house by walking over the arms and backs of the seats in the audience, the chilling finale and dancing on stage with the cast during Let the Sun Shine In.  I still have their souvenir brochure and LP of the cast recording (which I heard endlessly as a child along with Fiddler on the Roof, The Sound of Music and My Fair Lady).  It was a special moment for me when I saw the revival and danced on stage with the cast just as my parents did 

[Ranger Tom]

The nudity (in most productions, it was about 20-30 seconds worth) was the most sensationalized part of the Hair controversy.  But, more than that, the themes of draft dodging, drug use, songs with titles like "Colored Spade" and "Sodomy," and it's religious references - or basically the whole tone of the musical - sparked a lot of controversy and discussion.  For the time, it was the anti-musical. Godspell caused national controversy in and out of churches by depicting Jesus and his followers as clowns.  And, while not national, the uproar in San Francisco when its original production of Godspell included an African-American Jesus was interesting to watch

[songanddanceman2]

Jerry Springer was the last one here in the U.K. It was picketed outside the Cambridge Theatre where it played, even the televised version had 1000s of complaints and a lot of picketers outside the BBC in London and Manchester 

 

http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01492/blasphem-christ_1492383c.jpg

[Wilmingtom]

The first national tour of South Pacific had to cut "You've Got To Be Carefully Taught" when it played in the South.

[PalJoey]

 

The answer is obviously NO. The only times a Broadway musical has been nation ally relevant was as entertainment or inspiration, as was Camelot after the assassination of JFK, or titillating, as were Oh, Calcutta and Hair.

But never controversy!