Artist:
The Producers
Genre: Theater
Background: The opening scene of THE
PRODUCERS takes place in an alley outside the Shubert
Theater in New York as Max Bialystock, a down-on-his-luck
producer, bewails the failure of his latest Broadway play,
a musical version of "Hamlet" entitled "Funny
Boy." Max is devastated this latest in a string of
failures, but he refuses to quit. Angrily, he reminds
those who will listen that he was once "The King
of Broadway" and will be again!
A few days later, Max hires an accountant, Leo Bloom,
to balance his books. When the nerdy accountant casually
mentions that a producer could actually make more money
with a flop than with a hit, Max is all ears. Leo goes
on to explain, "You could raise a million dollars,
put on a hundred-thousand dollar failure, and keep the
rest for yourself." Recognizing the genius of Leo's
innocent statement, Max immediately urges the accountant
to join him in this profitable--although highly illegal--scheme.
Eventually, Leo agrees, and the two men go into business
as "Bialystock & Bloom, Theatrical Producers."
Max and Leo then set out to find the worst play ever written,
a script so bad that it is guaranteed to close in one
night. They soon zero in on "Springtime for Hitler,
A Gay Romp with Adolf and Eva at Berchtesgaden,"
a play written by nutty neo-Nazi named Franz Liebkind.
Franz is delighted that Max and Leo want to produce his
play, and after leading them in a rousing rendition of
Hitler's favorite tune, "Der Guten Tag Hop-Clop,"
Franz gladly signs the contract they have offered him.
Next, the producers set out to find a director as bad
as the script, finally settling on Roger de Bris, commonly
considered Broadway's worst director. After some prodding,
Roger agrees to direct "Springtime for Hitler,"
and Max and Leo return triumphantly to the office where
they begin the process of raising the capital of the project
(two million dollars!) by seducing little old ladies.
