Saturday 1 December 2007

Spamalot arrives

I grew up in the Python era and a fan of their mad silly humour. Like any devotee, I can recite the various Albatross; Are you here for an argument? skits or Every Sperm is Sacred songs around the dinner table at the beat of a tin.

In fact, I vividly recall someone smuggling into music class a cassette tape of "Bloody, bleedin, bloody albatross bleedin flavour" to play whilst Ms Fuller was outside the classroom for 5 minutes. It was a hoot and a bit naughty for a Marist boys school.

So you can see my delight that the stage show based on Monty Python, Spamalot, finally opened in Melbourne last week. After the Melbourne run, it will probably move to Sydney in February.

Spamalot takes it's name from the 1975 film Monty Python and the Holy Grail, from a line in which goes: ‘we eat ham, and jam and Spam a lot'. Python humour had a fixation with spam references. The Holy Grail, was a highly irreverent parody of the Arthurian Legend, and the stage show also makes fun of theatre itself and draws on many Python-type humour. Monty Python casts a considerable shadow over modern comedy, ith the term 'pythonesque' becoming a byword in surreal, if not nonsensical humour.


The much lauded Mike Nichols directed Spamlot which has been awarded a Tony Award for Best Musical. It has had a three year run in Broadway and the Westend in London. The show holds the Guinness World Record for “World’s Largest Coconut Orchestra” which was set in 2006 when 1,789 fans gathered in New York to commemorate the show's first anniversary on Broadway. The original cast included the amazing Tim Curry as King Arthur and David Hyde Pierce of Fraser TV fame, as Sir Robin. Queenslander Bille Brown will play King Arthur in Melbourne.

Until we get a theatre and entertainment centre, you'll have to travel south to enjoy this level of performance.

Python Eric Idle wrote the musical's book and lyrics. Here's a snap from the US version, which features Hyde Pierce and Curry:


2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Heheh, looks great. I, too, was a Python fan. Never could understand the Cheech and Chong humour.

Anonymous said...

Just an extra bit of information. Local Cairns Girl, Rosie Tiplady, is a part of this cast. She has been performing in dance musicals and such, since graduating from Cairns High back in 2000, I think.
She grew up here starring in school musicals and actively involved in everything to do with performance, while in Cairns. She has obviously since gone on to bigger and better things, so, if you get to see the show, ... give a big CAIRNS applause to Rosie. She was pictured in last weeks Australian.
Go Rosie!!!!