| The Producers | |
|---|---|
&sq=&lang=&file=File:Playbill.png) Original Broadway Playbill | |
| Music | Mel Brooks |
| Lyrics | Mel Brooks |
| Book | Mel Brooks Thomas Meehan |
| Basis | The Producers by Mel Brooks |
| Productions | 2001 Broadway 2002 US Tour 2003 Second US Tour 2004 West End 2007 UK Tour 2015 UK and Ireland tour International productions |
| Awards | Tony Award for Best Musical Tony Award for Best Book Tony Award for Best Score Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Musical Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Book of a Musical Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Musical |
The Producers is a musical comedy with music and lyrics by Mel Brooks, and a book by Brooks and Thomas Meehan. It is adapted from Brooks's 1967 film of the same name. The story concerns two theatrical producers who scheme to get rich by fraudulently overselling interests in a Broadway musical designed to fail. Complications arise when the show is a surprise hit. The humor of The Producers draws on exaggerated accents, caricatures of Jews, gay people and Nazis, and many show business in-jokes.
After 33 previews, the original Broadway production opened at the St. James Theatre on April 19, 2001, starring Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick, and ran for 2,502 performances, winning a record-breaking 12 Tony Awards. It spawned a successful West End production running for just over two years, national tours in the US and UK, many productions worldwide and a 2005 film version.