City Center's 24-25 Season: Ragtime, Urinetown, LaChiusa's Wild Party, Love Life- Page 16

[darquegk]

Posted: 2/6/25 at 1:46pm

I have always suspected that Urinetown is a bigger and more deliberate homage to The Simpsons than Mr. Burns: A Post-Electric Play ever was. The writing for it, the tropes used, the rhythms of the dialogue, even certain characters are pulled almost piecemeal from classic Season 2-9 Simpsons. I'm not accusing plagiarism or anything, as it's clearly being done with a big of a wink, but the parallels are difficult to ignore: among others, Cladwell and McQueen are pretty blatantly Mr. Burns and Smithers, just like Lockstock's stilted and patronizing narration to Little Sally is a Troy McClure and Jimmy homage as much as a real reference to midcentury educational films.

The pastiche is just dead-on: Urinetown, when it's done well, feels like a top 10 Simpsons episode. That's both a blessing and a curse, because instead of feeling fresh and new, it feels like pastiche, a deliberate throwback to a cult favorite comedy from thirty years ago. 

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 2/6/25 at 2:35pm

FWIW, it's a NY Times Critic's Pick. Not a rave, but very positive.

Updated On: 2/6/25 at 02:35 PM

[MezzA101]

Posted: 2/6/25 at 2:43pm

WiCkEDrOcKS said: "FWIW, it's a NY Times Critic's Pick. Not a rave, but very positive."

‘Urinetown’ Review: More Than Toilet Humor

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/06/theater/urinetown-review-encores.html?unlocked_article_code=1.u04.R-JM.NNu1AKVBx8ri

 

 

 

[Kad]

Posted: 2/6/25 at 2:45pm

WiCkEDrOcKS said: "FWIW, it's a NY Times Critic's Pick. Not a rave, but very positive."

Kind of a weird review overall, particularly for a critic’s pick.