Spam Alot Musical



Today's Ypulse Youth Advisory Board post is from Nina Lepp about the bond she formed with her dad over British comedy troupe Monty Python.

As always, you can communicate directly with any member of the Ypulse Youth Advisory Board by emailing them at youthadvisoryboard at ypulse.com…or just leave a comment below.

The Intergenerational Appeal Of Classic Comedy

I first saw "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" when I was 10 or 11-years-old and my dad decided it was time to introduce me to the humor he grew up on. The movie had me hooked on the British comedy troupe, and I knew that this was my sense of humor, too. From then on that has been a key factor in the close relationship I have with my dad. The first sketch I saw from Flying Circus was Dennis Moore, who steals from the rich to give to the poor, but instead of stealing money stole lupins. The overall randomness drew me in — why would someone want so many lupin? And why would people be slapping each other with fish? Or, my favorite reoccurring reference to llamas (the opening credits of Holy Grail, and the llama song where llamas have beaks for eating honey).

"Monty Python's Flying Circus" first aired a little over 40 years ago, pushing the boundaries of social society and becoming a huge hit all over the world. Following the troupe's final film "The Meaning of Life," the members separated. Aside from Graham Chapman who unfortunately passed away in 1989, all have remained in the entertainment industry: John Cleese continued to appear in films ("A Fish Called Wanda", "Fawlty Towers", and more recently the "Shrek" and "Harry Potter" series), Michael Palin hosted travel documentaries, Terry Jones wrote a few television documentaries on medieval and ancient history, and Terry Gilliam directed films including the upcoming "The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus" starring the late Heath Ledger which comes out on Christmas day. And, as you may have heard,  Eric Idle wrote the popular Python-inspired musical "Spamalot."

When "Spamalot" came to town my parents took my older sister and me to see it and the title did not lie "A new musical lovingly ripped off from the motion picture Monty Python and the Holy Grail." It had the same plot I had known and loved, but had even more with musical numbers like "Python", "You Won't Succeed On Broadway", and "His Name is Lancelot." Over the years I've found most of my classmates have also seen the Holy Grail and I sometimes find an occasional friend who even knows the dead parrot sketch, or the Ministry of Silly Walks. Whenever I "discover" a sketch that I especially love, of course, I go to YouTube and show my family and friends and whoever watches what I post on my Facebook page. For those who don't have the time or patience to watch an entire episode, YouTube has made Monty Python easily and cheaply accessible. The Pythons even created their own channel to show high quality versions of their favorite clips and to prevent their videos from being illegally downloaded.

Unfortunately while this free comedy is good news for recent fans like me, it's not so great for the remaining Pythons. Last week, my dad and I went to go see John Cleese at a local theater in Washington and were entertained, but left disheartened. Cleese was not embarrassed by why he chose to do his tour now and wouldn't let us forget the fact that even as a comedy legend who influenced so many, he still needed the money. He explained his show, "A Final Wave at the World or The Alimony Tour, Year One" was to to pay his ex-wife's alimony of $12 million dollars. It didn't change my view of Monty Python, but more on some unfunny realities.

About Nina

Nina is a sophomore in high school in Washington state who has many interests, such as band (flute and oboe), rowing crew, reading, and spending time with friends. Even though she's not as writing inclined as the other board members, Nina is the youngest of the group and may share an opinion with a younger audience. Nina is very interested in fashion, new technology and teen culture. Having three sisters she knows a lot about how teenage girls interact with each other and especially their parents. Nina's true love is music, and enjoys all forms whether it be Tchaikovsky or Mika.

John O'Hurley returns to the role of King Arthur for the final leg of the national tour of the Tony Award-winning musical Monty Python's Spamalot which, as previously announced, finishes its run at the Orange County Performing Arts Center in Costa Mesa, California, October 6-18. At the time of its closing, the musical's tour will have played 1408 performances in over 101 separate engagements throughout North America, to an audience estimated at nearly 3.6 million people.

The show, which is directed by Mike Nichols and choreographed by Casey Nicholaw, has a book and lyrics by Eric Idle, music by John Du Prez and Eric Idle, sets and costumes by Tim Hatley, lighting design by Hugh Vanstone, and sound design by ACME Sound Partners.

Among the actors who will have played the lead role of King Arthur on tour are Christopher Gurr, Michael Siberry, Gary Beach, Jonathan Hadary, and Richard Chamberlain.

For more information, visit www.montypythonspamalot.com.