Grow out your hair, open those collared shirts, and burn them bras, ladies: we’re going back to the 1970s with Cameron Crowe’s “Almost Famous!” Adapted from the 2000 movie of the same name, this adaptation features book and lyrics by Crowe with music by Tom Kitt. Paul and Jill squeeze into their tour van to ponder: what makes a good movie adaptation? How many headlights are on the highway? And where’s Penny Lane’s all-female folk band called The Band Aids? We got MERCH y’all! Visit Spring to check out our mugs, t-shirts, hoodies and more! Instagram: @monkeysandplaybillspod Email: monkeysandplaybillspod@gmail.com Patreon: patreon.com/monkeysandplaybills Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/monkeysandplaybills

We’re back, baby! Join Paul and Jill for a scholarly study of 2024’s “Lempicka,” starring Eden Espinosa as the titular painter. Not to paint this show with a broad brush, but Paul and Jill found it a bit sketchy. Why were there “Suicide Squad-esque” place subtitles? Can there be two musicals about painters? And can sad men chill for like, a second? We got MERCH y’all! Visit Spring to check out our mugs, t-shirts, hoodies and more! Instagram: @monkeysandplaybillspod Email: monkeysandplaybillspod@gmail.com Patreon: patreon.com/monkeysandplaybills Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/monkeysandplaybills

Everyone's favourite musical theatre nerds are coming to you live and in-person! Join us for a saucy late-night show where we dive in to one of musical theatre’s greatest embarrassments: 2019's Cats, in all its human-fingered/CGI/Jason Derulo glory. We got MERCH y’all! Visit Spring to check out our mugs, t-shirts, hoodies and more! Instagram: @monkeysandplaybillspod Email: monkeysandplaybillspod@gmail.com Patreon: patreon.com/monkeysandplaybills Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/monkeysandplaybills

Hear ye, hear ye! You’re invited to a royal ball - and we hear it’s “Bad.” It’s Bad Cinderella, y’all! Paul, Jill, and returning guest Nelson Bettencourt huddle in the town square, wondering: didn’t this composer do some better stuff first? Is one “bad” for having internalized misogyny? And why don’t we just officially rename this “Carmello Cast” already? We got MERCH y’all! Visit Spring to check out our mugs, t-shirts, hoodies and more! Instagram: @monkeysandplaybillspod Email: monkeysandplaybillspod@gmail.com Patreon: patreon.com/monkeysandplaybills Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/monkeysandplaybills We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts, as well as our producing partners the Crescent Arts Centre, on this season of Monkeys and Playbills.

This week, we’re inviting very special guest Peter Fernandes to a “Wild Party”! Michael John LaChiusa’s “Wild Party”, to be specific. Paul, Jill, and Peter huddle in the corner, whispering furtively: did you hear what Mandy Patinkin did? What ever happened to that bright Australian upstart who played Queenie? And wait, are we sure we’re talking about the right “Wild Party” and not the two other versions that exist? We got MERCH y’all! Visit Spring to check out our mugs, t-shirts, hoodies and more! Instagram: @monkeysandplaybillspod Email: monkeysandplaybillspod@gmail.com Patreon: patreon.com/monkeysandplaybills Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/monkeysandplaybills We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts, as well as our producing partners the Crescent Arts Centre, on this season of Monkeys and Playbills.

From award-winning writer Ben Townsley, Tales of the Great Transfiguration explores an event that swept through the city of Providence, RI, transforming people into anything and everything. An expectant father transformed into a silverback gorilla. A husband erupted into 45 million dollars in cash. A lighthouse turned into a - well, we won't spoil it for you. The Great Transfiguration acts as a wonderfully absurd lens through which we can analyze our relationship with change and transformation, both internally and systemically. "Tales" was directed by Andraea Sartison and features a stellar lineup of Manitoban talent, including sound designer MJ Dandeneau. Stay tuned wherever you get your podcasts!

Paul, Jill, and our live audience of dedicated Playbills are swinging through the streets of New York City with our first-ever live episode! We’re sharpening our Spidey senses for a look at 2011’s “Spider-Man: Turn off the Dark”. Paul, Jill, and our rogues gallery demand answers! Why is there reference to a Greek goddess? Do The Edge’s friends just get to call him “The”? And will SOMEONE get us pictures of Spider-Man?! We got MERCH now y’all! Visit Spring to check out our mugs, t-shirts, hoodies and more! Instagram: @monkeysandplaybillspod Email: monkeysandplaybillspod@gmail.com Patreon: patreon.com/monkeysandplaybills Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/monkeysandplaybills We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts, as well as our producing partners the Crescent Arts Centre, on this season of Monkeys and Playbills.

Welcome to the show (ba ba-da da)! We’re travelling backwards in time with 1981’s Merrily We Roll Along, with music by up-and-coming Broadway nobody Stephen Sondheim. Paul and Jill provide important answers, followed by questions such as: where does one get a sweatshirt showing their narrative significance? Why does Hal Prince loves bleachers so much? And why the heck hasn’t Richard Linklater called? ”Dreamgirls, Nine, and the Greatest Face-Off in Tony Award History” - Vanity Fair, 2015 https://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2015/09/broadway-battle-dreamgirls-nine To get tickets to the live recording of Monkeys and Playbills, or join us for our livestream from away, visit https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/515130076927 We got MERCH now y’all! Visit Spring to check out our mugs, t-shirts, hoodies and more! Instagram: @monkeysandplaybillspodEmail: monkeysandplaybillspod@gmail.comPatreon: patreon.com/monkeysandplaybills Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/monkeysandplaybills We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts, as well as our producing partners the Crescent Arts Centre, on this season of Monkeys and Playbills.

We’re exploring three shows bidding adieu to the Great White Way: Beetlejuice, Phantom of the Opera, and 1776! It’s the ghost with the most, the phantom with the fandom, and… the lesser-known founding fathers musical. Paul, Jill, and Daph ask deep, though-provoking questions such as: is it easy to receive vocal coaching through layers of brick? Should Sherman Edwards sue Lin-Manuel Miranda? And what mid-tier film from the eighties should become a musical next? To get tickets to the live recording of Monkeys and Playbills, or join us for our livestream from away, visit https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/515130076927 We got MERCH now y’all! Visit Spring to check out our mugs, t-shirts, hoodies and more! Instagram: @monkeysandplaybillspodEmail: monkeysandplaybillspod@gmail.comPatreon: patreon.com/monkeysandplaybills Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/monkeysandplaybills We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts, as well as our producing partners the Crescent Arts Centre, on this season of Monkeys and Playbills.

We’re travelling way, way, WAY back in time to the 1930s with Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht’s The Threepenny Opera! This week, we’re joined by Sick + Twisted Theatre’s Debbie Patterson, to talk all things Verfremdungseffekt. Paul, Jill, and Debbie puzzle over such questions as: why does Brecht hate applause? What other sneaky show tunes was the Chairman of the Board tricked into singing? And when will we finally seize the means of production to make Daddy Marx proud? We got MERCH now y’all! Visit Spring to check out our mugs, t-shirts, hoodies and more! Instagram: @monkeysandplaybillspod Email: monkeysandplaybillspod@gmail.com Patreon: patreon.com/monkeysandplaybills Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/monkeysandplaybills We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts, as well as our producing partners the Crescent Arts Centre, on this season of Monkeys and Playbills.

It’s astounding… time is fleeting… madness has taken control of Monkeys and Playbills! We are joined live in the living room by Breton Lalama (@bretonlikethecrackers) to discuss 1975’s “The Rocky Horror Show!” This occult classic has Jill! Paul! Breton! Dr Scott! asking… who was your sexual awakening in the film adaptation? Why didn’t New York like this show? And have you HEARD Tim Curry’s original Broadway accent?! We got MERCH now y’all! Visit Spring to check out our mugs, t-shirts, hoodies and more! Twitter: @monkeyplaybills Instagram: @monkeysandplaybillspod Email: monkeysandplaybillspod@gmail.com Patreon: patreon.com/monkeysandplaybills Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/monkeysandplaybills We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts, as well as our producing partners the Crescent Arts Centre, on this season of Monkeys and Playbills.

It’s 2008. The height of the iPod. Hoodies have that weird flap thing in front. Paul makes Daphne include a bit about how The Dark Knight came out this year and that was great. And also, a little two-hander on Broadway makes a tiny splash: this week, we’re talking about Bartram and Hill’s “The Story of My Life!” Paul and Jill stare at a blank Word document, hopelessly wondering: why is Tom such a dingus? Is there space on Broadway for a teeny-tiny musical? And why does Jill keep bringing up the circus? We got MERCH now y’all! Visit Spring to check out our mugs, t-shirts, hoodies and more! Twitter: @monkeyplaybillsInstagram: @monkeysandplaybillspodEmail: monkeysandplaybillspod@gmail.comPatreon: patreon.com/monkeysandplaybills Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/monkeysandplaybills We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts, as well as our producing partners the Crescent Arts Centre, on this season of Monkeys and Playbills.

Welcome to It Takes Two! On this podcast, we pair five emerging artists with five professional mentors to work together on an informal mentorship process. Over four weeks, pairs will develop and create a performance piece as well as record an interview together to talk about their process.

Who are we now? This week, we’re bending the rules just a bit to talk about a very special under-100 performance: the great Beanie Feldstein-Julie Benko-Lea Michele upset of 2022. It’s time to take a look at Funny Girl! Paul, Jill, and Daph examine the drama with opera glasses to ask: whatever happened to that girl from Spring Awakening? How do we solve a problem like a miscast performer? And does Twitter need to calm down? (Spoiler: the answer is yes.) We got MERCH now y’all! Visit Spring to check out our mugs, t-shirts, hoodies and more! Twitter: @monkeyplaybillsInstagram: @monkeysandplaybillspodEmail: monkeysandplaybillspod@gmail.comPatreon: patreon.com/monkeysandplaybills Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/monkeysandplaybills We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts on this season of Monkeys and Playbills.

It’s the 80s. Hair is big. Suits are shoulder-padded. And Boy George is running around screwing with all your preconceived notions of gender. Join Paul, Jill, and special guest Tatiana Carnevale as we explore 2004’s Taboo! While head-bobbing to techno, our intrepid hosts find themselves wondering: is it a bad idea to play your best friend in a musical? Was the world not yet ready for this amount of gay? And will Paul have perpetual nightmares spawned by Leigh Bowery’s “Birth”? We got MERCH now y’all! Visit Spring to check out our mugs, t-shirts, hoodies and more! Twitter: @monkeyplaybillsInstagram: @monkeysandplaybillspodEmail: monkeysandplaybillspod@gmail.comPatreon: patreon.com/monkeysandplaybills Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/monkeysandplaybills We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts on this season of Monkeys and Playbills.

Call us the Necronomicon, because we’re back with another instalment of Revive or Die! This week, Paul and Jill let Producer Daph talk enough to join them in visiting three forgotten musicals of yesteryear: 70, Girls, 70; Home Sweet Homer; and Rockabye Hamlet. Together, these intrepid practitioners of the dark arts find themselves asking: is anyone more bad-ass than Angela Lansbury? Can Yul Brynner get it? And what musical genre best fits Much Ado About Nothing? We got MERCH now y’all! Visit Spring to check out our mugs, t-shirts, hoodies and more! Twitter: @monkeyplaybills Instagram: @monkeysandplaybillspod Email: monkeysandplaybillspod@gmail.com Patreon: patreon.com/monkeysandplaybills Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/monkeysandplaybills

We’ve got a royal scandal on our hands this week, folks: featuring NYC and Winnipeg’s own Raffie Rosenberg! This princess production was directed by Christopher Ashley with music and lyrics by David Bryan and Joe DiPietro. You know, that guy from Bon Jovi and Memphis. Paul, Jill, and Raffie hold court to ask the important questions, like: should one’s kingdom get funkadelic? Why can’t I marry a Scorpio? And why didn’t we go with “Epic Smackdown for the Crown” over “Thriller in Manila”? We got MERCH now y’all! Visit Spring to check out our mugs, t-shirts, hoodies and more! Twitter: @monkeyplaybills Instagram: @monkeysandplaybillspod Email: monkeysandplaybillspod@gmail.com Patreon: patreon.com/monkeysandplaybills Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/monkeysandplaybills

Paul and Jill don their fedoras and trenchcoats for a look at 1940s - what? Really? Okay, 1991’s Nick & Nora! This salute to the fast-talking dames and lads of mid-century private detecting was directed by Arthur Laurents (welcome back!) with music by Charles Strouse (welcome back Chuck!) Paul and Jill sidle up to the bar and slyly ask the big questions, like: who’s a good boy, Riley? How did so many heavy hitters sign on for this show? And can you fine someone for writing such racist and sexist stereotypes? We got MERCH now y’all! Visit Spring to check out our mugs, t-shirts, hoodies and more! Twitter: @monkeyplaybills Instagram: @monkeysandplaybillspod Email: monkeysandplaybillspod@gmail.com Patreon: patreon.com/monkeysandplaybills Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/monkeysandplaybills

New year, same us! Paul and Jill gather with aching heads and full hearts to discuss ol’ buddy ol’ pal of the podcast Charles Strouse. The clock is ticking and we have only half an hour to take on Annie: the original plucky young orphan with a heart of gold and infectious optimism. Like, maybe too infectious. Calm down, kid, it’s the Depression, we’re allowed to be moody. We got MERCH now y’all! Visit Spring to check out our mugs, t-shirts, hoodies and more! Twitter: @monkeyplaybillsInstagram: @monkeysandplaybillspodEmail: monkeysandplaybillspod@gmail.comPatreon: patreon.com/monkeysandplaybills Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/monkeysandplaybills

Paul, Jill, and special guest Ali Fulmyk are heading down the rabbit hole in this week’s look at 2011’s Wonderland! This Christmas Carroll - no? wrong thing? oh well - was directed by Gregory Boyd with music by recurring composer, Frank Wildhorn. Oh, Frankie, we gotta stop meeting like this. Paul, Jill, and Ali flip upside down to ask the Caterpillar the big questions, like: can authors make a guest appearance in all their adaptations? Can Carlos Santana and Rob Thomas sue? And how are we going to fit this whole cast in Thirsty Jail? We got MERCH now y’all! Visit Spring to check out our mugs, t-shirts, hoodies and more! Twitter: @monkeyplaybills Instagram: @monkeysandplaybillspod Email: monkeysandplaybillspod@gmail.com Patreon: patreon.com/monkeysandplaybills Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/monkeysandplaybills