Champlin, Evan Featured in Reading of 'Monica, the Musical'

Playbill ^ | 10/22/03 | Robert Simonson

[presidio9]

It was probably inevitable.

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The world's most famous intern, Monica Lewinsky, has become the subject of a musical, aptly titled Monica, the Musical. The show, with book and lyrics by Daniel J. Blau and Tracie Potochnik and music by Adam Blau, will get a concert reading on Oct. 26 and 27 in Manhattan. Casey Hushion will direct. The reading is for industry people only.

Featured in the cast are Donna Lynne Champlin (news), who played a young Carol Burnett (news) in the recent Broadway play Hollywood Arms, and Rob Evan, who essayed the title roles in Broadway's Jekyll & Hyde, and Shoshana Bean from Hairspray, as well as Scott Allgauer, Christine DiGiallonardo, Mary Faber, David Josefsberg, Kevin Kern, Rashad Naylor, Josh Walden and Haneefah Wood.

The show asks the tongue-in-cheek questions: "Exactly how did something this enormous and this ridiculous happen? To our president? And why did we care so much?" Among the characters are those figures who briefly became internationally famous during the year-long scandal, which saw President Clinton (news - web sites) investigated, vilified and impeached over his dalliance with the White House intern Lewinsky. These include Lewinsky's confidante and eventual betrayer, Linda Tripp; the fiercely anti-Clinton independent counsel Ken Starr, Clinton crony Vernon Jordan; and the president's secretary Betty Currie. Of course, Hillary is also a character.

DiGiallonardo has the choice role of Monica, playing opposite Kern as Bill Clinton (news - web sites). Champlin will play Janet Reno (news - web sites), Bean will be Hillary Clinton (news - web sites) and Evan is entertainer Tom Jones (news). Finally, Naylor is Jordan and Allgauer is Starr.

Monica! The Musical received its first reading at the Manhattan Theatre Club on May 7.

[presidio9]

[Semper Paratus]

Why write a new play? Just have the dialogue in the "Vagina Chronicles" sung.

[Cicero]

Two things are predictable:

1. The musical will be humorously pro-clinton.

2. It will nevertheless damage clinton and the Democrats to have this ludicrous affair brought up yet again.

It would be nice if people could see clinton portrayed as he really was: a sinister rapist, murderer, and traitor to his country. Failing that, it's better that they should see him as a silly buffoon than as a political hero.

[epluribus_2]

Bet you won't see Paula - The Play, or maybe Juanita Dearest. Popular society views the monica think as a Clinton victory. And completely ignores the most obvious crimes of this creep.

[Hegemony Cricket]

and yet a third predictable thing - people all over will be humming the tunes...