“You won’t succeed on Broadway...if you don’t have any Jews”
What does that mean?
Spamalot is rich in Monty Python references, of course, but it is also an homage to the history of Broadway musicals. For the first 50 years of Broadway’s development, the songs of Broadway musicals - often referred to as the “Great American Songbook” - were written almost exclusively by Jewish Americans: Irving Berlin, Jerome Kern, George and Ira Gershwin, Lorenz Hart, Richard Rodgers, Oscar Hammerstein II, Kurt Weill, Sheldon Harnick, Jerry Bock, Leonard Bernstein, Jule Styne - everyone but Cole Porter came from Jewish heritage. Contemporarily, many Jewish Americans continue to impact Broadway: Stephen Sondheim, Stephen Schwartz, Jonathan Larsen, Benj Pasek, and Jason Robert Brown. Because of the incredible contribution of Jewish Americans, past and present, to the Great White Way, the saying goes: “You Won’t Succeed on Broadway if you don’t have any Jews!”
This number also includes references to famous Broadway and movie musicals that feature Jewish characters and storylines such as Fiddler on the Roof, Funny Girl, and Yentl.
To learn more, watch Broadway Musicals: A Jewish Legacy which also opens with this song!
Acknowledgments
Michael Shapero and the JCHS kitchen professionals for snacks and dinners to keep us energized; Crandell Arts for sound and lighting assistance with the show; Ben Friedman-Hibbs for his videography and editing, Hillbarn Theatre & Coastal Repertory Theater for costuming & props support; SFBATCO for their support and equipment; Jack Zimmerman for managing our wonderful parent organization; Jennifer Sturgill for her artistic guidance and support of the program, Mary Ellen Hunt for her design eye and marketing support of the theater program; Joe McDonald who has helped show the theater team the way, the families of our drama students for their encouragement and dedication; and the entire JCHS community for their support and consideration of our production of Spamalot.
