In Diana Rigg's book "No Turn Unstoned", she describes "The Critic's Device", in which a critic summarizes the plot of a play, without comment, letting the thing "hang itself." She provides several witty examples, but concludes that it is possible to make some of the best plays (and musicals) in the world sound ridiculous by a deadpan rendering of their plots.
Like:
A bunch of aging showgirls stuck in bad marriages stage a reunion at their crumbling old theatre to reminisce and try to figure out exactly where their miserable lives went wrong.
A slutty untalented actress seduces and marries a fascist pig, winning the hearts of the peasants of Argentina by singing hollowly inspiring songs and throwing her arms up a lot.
A psychopathic stage mother manipulates and uses up everyone around her, including her own children.
A singing Russian Jewish milkman who talks to God incessantly loses his three daughters and gets driven out of his own home.
And so on...
I ask in all honesty/What would life be?/Without a song and a dance, what are we?/So I say "Thank you for the music/For giving it to me."