Interludes

THE HANGOVER REPORT – The timely Trump musical parody FIVE takes its cue from “Six” but fails to scale the same heights

• By drediman
• March 4, 2024
• No Comments

Musical parodies are a tricky beast to get right despite their continued prevalence in commercial theater. A case in point is Five: The Parody Musical — with a score by Billy Reece and book and additional lyrics by Shimmy Braun and Moshiel Newman Daphna — which is currently enjoying an extended run at Theater 555. This latest entry in the genre savvily capitalizes on the massive success of the global hit Six, a pop concert-style musical that gives empowering voice to the unfortunate six wives of Henry VIII. But instead of the famous famously wronged British queens, Five turns to the five primary women in President Trump’s life — Ivana Trump, Ivanka Trump, Marla Maples, Melania Trump and Stormy Daniels.

Unlike most parodies, Five feels awfully close in tone to the show it’s poking fun at. In my mind, this draws more direct comparisons between the two productions (indeed, in many ways, the Lucy Moss / Toby Marlowe musical already has the cadence of a parody). Although Six is undoubtedly the superior musical, Five does have its merits, one of which is its timeliness — especially as we enter into this Presidential Election year. It also wisely turns its gaze beyond Six’s pop milieu, particularly with respect to is parody of Broadway at large (of particular note are comedic spins on Wicked and Chicago). Throw into the mix a bit of drag aesthetic, and you’ve got an undoubtedly crowd-pleasing concoction on hand.

Unfortunately, some of the show’s underlying craft is questionable — which makes one appreciate the considerable achievements of Six, particularly with respect to its kineticism and intelligence. First and foremost, the lyrics are uneven at best, relying on bawdy humor rather than true wit to elicit laughter and amusement (the music by Recce, however, has plenty of catchy hooks to keep audiences’ heads bopping). Then there’s the pedestrian direction and choreography by Jen Wineman, whose work pales in comparison with the underrated non-stop dancing of Six. Performances range from serviceable to inspired. Notable among the cast are Jamie Lyn Beatty, who strikes comic gold as Melania True, as well as operatically-trained “Special Guest” Jasmine Rice Lebeija (no spoilers here!).

SOMEWHAT RECOMMENDED

FIVE: THE PARODY MUSICAL
Off-Broadway, Musical
Theater 555
1 hour, 20 minutes (without an intermission)
Through April 21