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Gutenberg! The Musical! and [Title of Show]

David Butler and Tim Newell in "Gutenberg! The Musical!" at ALT Theatre (photo by Lukia Costello)

Musicals about creating musicals have become very popular recently, and two are up and running in Buffalo right now. Gutenberg! The Musical! pretends to be a showcase for potential Broadway producers—Bert Gambini of WBFO and I joined David Butler and Tim Newell on the ALT stage to make a cameo appearance last weekend as two such producers and had a lot of fun. Now [TITLE OF SHOW], a musical about two guys trying to write an original musical in just three weeks, enters the scene on the MusicalFare stage.

The resurgence of this 42nd Street/Stage Door meta-theatricality seems to reflect the burgeoning interest of a new generation raised on overproduced high school musicals. From Drowsy Chaperone to the popularity of television’s Glee, the primitive art of theater remains a central part of our culture and a fascinatingly important rite of passage for geeks and overly intelligent misfits everywhere. It is heartening to see.

Written by Bell & Bowen and directed by Randall Kramer, [TITLE OF SHOW] stars Steve Copps, Lisa Ludwig, Michele Marie Roberts, and Marc Sacco, and will run through March 6, at MusicalFare Theatre, 4380 Main Street, Amherst (839-8540).

Also in this week's Theater Week: Anita Bryant Died For Your Sins, I Am a Man, Third