The in-show Broadway musical Bombshell on NBC’s Smash has great potential. Here are five things the showrunners need to do to get it on Broadway in the real world!
Although nothing is confirmed, there have been hopes and inklings about Bombshell, Smash‘s original musical all about the life and lies of the iconic Marilyn Monroe, being transferred onto the real world Broadway stage from the get-go (see this Los Angeles Times interview with NBC Entertainment Chairman Bob Greenblatt). For now, all we can do is speculate the ways by which the show could make it on the Great White Way!
1. Cast the right Marilyn
Smash has seen the best and the worst of Marilyn Monroe wannabes. From impostors during initial auditions, to the Broadway savvy Ivy (Megan Hilty), then to the often deplorable Rececca Duvall (Uma Thurman), and finally to newbie Karen Cartwright (Katherine McPhee), not everyone had quite what it took to fill the white dress. The right Marilyn casting could potentially fill seats, meaning the creators would have to find a happy medium between a cash-cow celebrity, like Rebecca, and unknown name, like Karen.
2. Get the best director
Derek (Jack Davenport) does a great job as Smash‘s Bombshell director, but unfortunately, he doesn’t exist in the real world. The creative team would work off of the dream of the director, who would hopefully take his or her dream of Bombshell to the umpteenth level. We’re talking a “having hallucinations of real-life people as Marilyn” kind of interest.
3. Earn the funds
Anyone who watches Smash knows that one of the biggest issues of getting any Broadway show off its feet is the money. However, in order to get investors convinced that the show is a going to be a hit, all of the other aspects of a show have to be in order. Eileen (Angelica Huston) knows a lot about doing anything to get the money her Broadway show needs!
4. Write the dialogue
Although a lot of the existing material for Bombshell is already near stage-worthy, there’s no doubt that writing the dialogue to flow with the boisterous musical numbers will be quite the task. It’d be interesting to see if the dialogue in numbers like “Let’s Be Bad” would remain in the hypothetical final cut.
5. Extend the songs
Plot points aside, one thing the first season of Smash did well was sing a pretty tune. However, they aren’t quite yet up to Broadway standards. “Smash!” clocks in at only 1:57, which is much shorter than a typical Broadway song.
What do you think the Smash creators need to do to fulfill our every Broadway fantasy? And if someone from the show was to play the real world Bombshell‘s Marilyn, who would you pick? Or would one of your favorite stars fit in better than McPhee, Hilty, or Thurman? Chime in on the comments below!
Special season 1 DVD giveaway!
Tune in to Hypable on Monday to see how you can win a DVD copy of season 1!
Smash returns to NBC on Feb. 5 at 9 p.m. EST for a two-hour premiere, and will continue to air at a 10 p.m. EST slot.
Photo credit: Playbillvault.com
Video credit: NBC