It is not my typical MO to question another performer’s talent or ability in any way. However, when a story like this comes my way, it is difficult not to let out a little scream of protest.
http://www.cnn.com/2008/SHOWBIZ/Music/01/14/people.aiken.ap/index.html
For those of you not in the know, Clay Aiken is going to be in Spamalot…on Broadway. It would be nice to imagine this is some sick Python-esque joke upon a hapless theater-going public (why does a theater-going public always have to be hapless?), but more than likely it is an attempt, like so many shows on Broadway these days, to make an extra buck or bolster diminishing returns on a show that has reached its economic pinnacle and needs to be bled for all its worth. That’s why Scary Spice went into Rent (farewell, by the way, we hardly knew you) and why Huey Lewis went into Chicago as did myriad others in myriad shows.
But there’s something different here. Before, take the Huey Lewis or Scary Spice example, the celebrity fit the milieu of the piece. Here, dare I say it, Clay Aiken is at perfect odds with Monty Python’s sensibilities. He fully admits he doesn’t understand the humor or even like it terribly much nor has he ever really enjoyed acting. I think this will, unfortunately, hurt Spamalot more than help it. John O’Hurley in the Las Vegas company sounds like a great fit, for a counter-example.
It’s bad enough that Clay is putting some poor unknown actor out of work, but more than that, it shows how far commercial theater will go to earn a buck, how willing they are to sacrifice every ounce of integrity. It again reaffirms for me that good art rarely mixes with good profit.
You may say, it’s only a comedy, this isn’t Shakespeare (Clay Aiken as Hamlet, anyone?) but it is Monty Python, which has been very important for me in the development of my sense of humor and my intellect, actually. Where else does Spam mix with Philosophers and questions about the nature of organized religion. Sure, Castle Anthrax is purely juvenile, but what about the discussion between Dennis and Arthur about the different governments? That’s going to drive curious young minds straight to the library.
Clay Aiken, however, makes me want to blow my brains out.