Menopause The Musical 2378457 225013832 2008-07-11T13:38:13Z Ruffnerj 6007835 {{Infobox Musical |name= Menopause, The Musical |subtitle=It's not the 'Silent Passage' anymore! |image= |caption= |music= Various |lyrics= Jeanie Linders |book= Jeanie Linders |basis= |productions= [[2001]] [[Orlando, Florida|Orlando]] <!-- Please do not include production-specific (acting, directing, etc.) awards --> |awards= }} '''''Menopause, The Musical''''' debuted [[March 28]], [[2001]] in [[Orlando, Florida]], in a 76-seat theatre that once housed a perfume shop. The original cast members are: Shelly Browne as the Power or Professional Woman, Patti McGuire as the Iowa Housewife, Pammie O'Bannon as the Earth Mother, and Wesley Williams as the Soap Star. The original director is Kathleen Lindsey. The cast of four women shopping for lingerie at a [[Bloomingdale's]] sale sing 25 songs about chocolate cravings, [[hot flashes]], loss of memory, nocturnal sweats, and sexual predicaments. The lyrics parody popular music from the [[baby boomer]] era, with notable numbers "Stayin' Awake" and "Puff, My God I'm Draggin'." Written by '''Jeanie Linders''', the show appealed to menopausal women, a market Linders felt neglected by mainstream fare, who helped the show blow the lid off the "silent passage" by flocking to the show in large numbers, often taking advantage of group sales promotions. The show's ensuing success [[Off-Broadway]] led to a number of productions across the country produced both by Linders' TOC Productions (in such cities as [[Detroit]], [[Chicago]], and [[Los Angeles]]) as well as South Florida theatrical producers [[GFour Productions]] (in [[Boston]], [[Denver]], and [[Las Vegas Strip|Las Vegas]], where it is currently housed at the [[Las Vegas Hilton]]). Within a few years, international productions became commonplace, with shows in Australia, Canada, Israel, Italy, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, the United Kingdom, South Africa, and South Korea. Local references in the show are customized to the location of the performance; for example, the 'Iowa Housewife' became 'Dubbo Housewife' in Australia and 'Waikato housewife' in New Zealand; America's Bloomingdale's became [[Smith & Caugheys]] in New Zealand and [[Marks & Spencer]] in London. The show's official website claims that nine million people have seen the show. A significant percentage of its audience consists of well-coiffed members of the [[Red Hat Society]]. The show is also known for its contributions to the fight against ovarian cancer, for which it staged a national fund raising tour, as well as raising awareness of menopause-related issues, most notably through the creation of the [[Jeanie C. Linders Fund]]. Donations toward the fund are collected at performances of the show through the sale of souvenir "hot flash fans." ==Musical numbers== {{col-begin}} {{col-2}} *Overture - Orchestra *Change, Change, Change - Professional Woman, Earth Mother & Girls *I Heard It Through the Grapevine - Professional Woman & Soap Star *Sign of the Times - Earth Mother & Iowa Housewife *Stayin' Awake/Night Sweatin' - Ensemble *My Husband Sleeps Tonight - Earth Mother & Girls *Hot Flash - Soap Star *Drippin' and Droppin' - Earth Mother *I'm Flashing - Professional Woman *The Great Pretender - Professional Woman, Iowa Housewife & Girls *Sane and Normal Girls/Thank You Doctor - Ensemble *Lookin' for Food - Soap Star, Iowa Housewife & Girls *Please Make Me Over - Soap Star {{col-break}} *Beauty's Only Skin Deep - Ensemble *I'm Flashing (reprise) - Professional Woman *Puff, My God, I'm Draggin' - Earth Mother *The Fat Gram Song - Professional Woman & Girls *My Thighs - Iowa Housewife & Girls *Don't Say Nothing Bad About My Body - Soap Star & Girls *I'm No Babe, Ma - Ensemble *Good Vibrations - Earth Mother & Soap Star *What's Love Got To Do With It? - Professional Woman & Girls *Only You - Iowa Housewife & Girls *New Attitude - Ensemble *This is Your Day - Ensemble *Exit Music - Orchestra {{col-end}} ==Reviews== * Leslie Fischer at [[chicagocritic.com]] recommends you "bring the waterproof mascara because you’ll laugh so hard, you’ll cry. With humor and compassion, writer, producer and lyricist Jeanie Linders has captured the experiences of Everywoman in her 40s and 50s. Remember all those great songs of the 50s, 60s and 70s--full of love and teenaged angst? Linders has rewritten their lyrics to reflect our mature experience, exploring the ways in which our bodies, our emotions and our spirits change with the Change. When you don’t recognize yourself in these hilarious lyrics, you’ll recognize a friend." <ref> {{citation|date=[[May 15]], [[2005]] |title=Menopause the Musical (review) |url=http://www.chicagocritic.com/html/menopause_the_musical.html |first=Leslie |last=Fischer |publisher=chicagocritic.com|accessdate=[[2007-12-14]]}}</ref> * Genessee Kagy of the [[Daily Californian]] wrote that "Menopause's collection of great oldies, clever tongue-in-cheek lyrics and entertaining dance routines prevented me from making any I-Need-Air trips to the restroom despite the fact that I hadn't felt like such a fraud since I turned eighteen-years old. Over 90 percent of the audience were women more than twice my age ... Linders' humorous new lyrics coupled to old favorites provide a good laugh. When the show ended, the entire audience was still clapping their hands to the final number, yelling and letting out whoops of approval." <ref> {{citation|date=[[November 10]], [[2005]] |title=Pleasing Loud, Proud And Middle-Aged Crowds |url=http://www.dailycal.org/sharticle.php?id=20391|first=Genessee |last=Kagy |publisher=Daily Californian|accessdate=[[2007-12-14]]}}</ref> * From the [[Baltimore Times-Herald]]: "'My Guy' becomes 'My Thighs,' 'I’m Sorry' transforms into 'I’m Flashing,' 'The Great Pretender' laments brain collapse, and 'A Sign of the Times' is 'looking in the mirror and seeing my mother.' Get the picture? It’s hilarious, good fun and the perfect destination for a girls’ treat out. (Judging from their guffaws, the handful of guys in the audience were enjoying it, too.)" <ref>{{citation|date=[[July 26]], [[2007]] |title=Theater: A flash of fun at ‘Menopause’ |url=http://www.timesheraldnews.com/2007/07/26/theater-a-flash-of-fun-at-%E2%80%98menopause%E2%80%99/|first=Celeste H. |last=Breitenbach |publisher=Baltimore Times-Herald|accessdate=[[2007-12-14]]}}</ref> ==Notable Performers== * '''[[Megan Cavanaugh]]''', best remembered as Marla Hooch in the [[Penny Marshall]] film ''[[A League of Their Own]]'' has played the role of "Iowa Housewife" at Chicago's [[Apollo Theater]] and overseas in [[Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia]]. * '''[[Paige O'Hara]]''', best known as the voice of Belle in [[Walt Disney]]'s ''[[Beauty and the Beast]]'', is an original member of the Las Vegas cast, playing the role of "Soap Star." * Stand-up comedian '''[[Judy Tenuta]]''' has guest-starred in the Los Angeles and Chicago productions. ==Other performance locations== The original Orlando production has played more or less continuously since the show's origin, most recently at the Plaza Theatre. The Off-Broadway production officially opened at Theatre Four on April 4, 2002, after a month of previews, and closed in the spring of 2006, logging more than 1500 performances.<ref>{{citation|date=[[May 9]], [[2006]] |title=Long-Running Off-Broadway Hit Menopause the Musical to Close May 14 |url=http://www.playbill.com/news/article/99585.html|first=Robert |last=Simonson |publisher=Playbill.com |accessdate=[[2007-12-15]]}}</ref> The show is running worldwide in diverse locations throughout the [[United States]], [[Great Britain]], [[Italy]], [[Australia]], [[New Zealand]], [[Canada]], and [[South Africa]]. ==See also== * [[Menopause]] ==External links== * [http://www.menopausethemusical.com/ Menopause the Musical] official website * [http://www.jclfund.org/main.php The Jeanie C. Linders Fund] * [http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2005/04/10/PKG0CC209P1.DTL HOT FLASHES = HIT MUSICAL] * [http://www.gfourproductions.com/MTM.asp GFour Productions] website * [http://www.southwestorlandobulletin.com/directorytext.asp?id=2327 Jeanie Linders ... a Champion of Women] ==References== {{reflist}} [[Category:2001 musicals]]