THE SPAMALOT DIARIES

A Monty Python member offers a glimpse into the making of a very silly musical.

Spamalot, based on the 1975 comedy Monty Python and the Holy Grail, debuted on Broadway in 2005. This book is the diary Idle kept throughout rehearsals and production, “the story of a most unlikely theatrical hit, from the first read-through in New York to the first previews in Chicago until finally, a Broadway opening.” The author began the script in 2001, when he realized the source material was perfect for a musical. “It already had three great songs, there are no horses onstage, and the quest for the Holy Grail is Wagnerian in scope,” he writes. “Not the Ring cycle exactly, more the Rinse cycle.” Idle covers everything: lining up the cast and crew, including longtime friend Mike Nichols as director; arguing over the script and songs; figuring out technical details, such as “how we are going to make the Killer Rabbit fly around the stage”; and the staging of the show, including “Opening Knight” on Broadway. He includes lyrics from deleted songs, emails, and copious anecdotes, such as the time “two huge New York cops” recognized him in front of the theater and wished him good luck with the show. Idle is also candid about health issues, from a tendon injury to food poisoning in Chicago to his teenager daughter’s “severe bipolar episode” before the Broadway opening, for which he blames himself: “I have been absent these many months, fathering a musical. What a terrible price to pay for success.” The author offers plenty of comedy to delight fans. Despite some clunkers, the text includes many hilarious bits, as when he begins an email to Nichols with, “Hello, mein Führer. Is that too formal?”

An amusing behind-the-scenes look at a unique Broadway smash.