Feature: Happy Thanksgiving! Theatre Families Fight Just Like Yours!

Thanksgiving is a time for families to gather together, to share a meal, and to count all of the wonderful blessings that they have received over the past year. That is, of course, unless your family is filled with monsters, ingrates, and malcontents. For those who are not fortunate enough to have a loving family, Thanksgiving can be a time of sibling rivalry, domestic disappointments, and turke-time tantrums.

While for most there is plenty to celebrate at Thanksgiving, we don't want to exclude those that will be choking down venom and despair along with their stuffing and cranberry sauce. So, we have put together a small collection of theatre-related clips that will hopefully remind you that your family isn't the only one with major issues that probably need to be addressed through therapy.

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"Superboy and the Invisible Girl" from NEXT TO NORMAL
by: Matt Tamanini | @BWWMatt

In 2008, Brian Yorkey and Tom Kitt's musical about a mother with bipolar disorder rocked the musical theatre scene. The show was a huge success Off-Broadway and in Washington DC, before coming to Broadway, were it was nominated for 11 Tonys, winning three, including Alice Ripley for Lead Actress in a Musical. The show also went on to win the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, and is now a hit at regional theatres across the country.

In one of the show's most heartbreaking songs, daughter Natalie tells her mother Diana that she feels ignored, especially compared to her older brother Gabe who (SPOILER ALERT!) is actually just a figment of Diana's imagination.

Video: Jennifer Damiano, Alice Ripley, and Aaron Tveit at CBS's Pre-Tony concert:

"Kids!" from BYE, BYE, BIRDIE
by: Jeff Walker | @jeffwalker66

Parents work hard to put food on the table and keep a roof over the family's head, and what thanks to they get? Such a question has been asked time and time again, but no time with more pizzazz than in BYE BYE BIRDIE. Paul Lynde as a harried parent of a rock-star crazy teen stopped the show with "Kids!" on Broadway in 1960 and got to reprise his role for the 1963 movie. Joining him as Dick van Dyke's formidable mother was none other than Maureen Stapleton, adding even more comedic angst to the parental anthem.

Video: Dick Van Dyke, Paul Lynde, Maureen Stapleton and Bryan Russell from the 1963 film version. The song starts at the 2:00 mark:

"This Plum if too Ripe" from THE FANTASTICKS
by: Matt Tamanini | @BWWMatt

The legend goes that in the mid to late 1950s, composer Harvey Schmidt and lyricist Tom Jones were working a lavish musical adaptation of ROMEO AND JULIET, based on Jones' earlier work JOY COMES TO DEADHORSE. Just as they were feverishly rewriting their show about rival families and star-crossed lovers, a new musical called WEST SIDE STORY burst onto the scene, forcing them reevaluate their plans. What survived has gone on to become the longest running musical in history, and defined the Off-Broadway theatre scene for nearly half a century.

Take a look at the bios in any Broadway program, and you will doubtlessly see multiple actors who had one of their first New York jobs in the company of THE FANTASTICKS. In this song, the main characters realize that just because they got everything that they thought that they wanted, it doesn't mean that everyone always lives happily ever after. Sour plums and ruined gardens; sounds like one heck of a Thanksgiving dinner conversation.

Video: The film adaptation was shot in 1995, but wasn't released until 2000. Joey McIntyre, Jean Louisa Kelly, Brad Sullivan, and Joel Grey star:

"I'm Only Thinking of Him" from MAN OF LA MANCHA
by: Matt Tamanini | @BWWMatt

When you are going through the darkest times of your life, family is supposed to be there to support you, and to keep you from running off, romancing a prostitute, and tilting at windmills. That is of course unless you are Don Quijote de la Mancha. In that case, your niece and your housekeeper go to the local priest and try to convince him that you are crazy and in need of being committed.

With family like that, who needs enemies like the Enchanter and the Knight of the Mirrors?

Video: Julie Gregg, Rosalie Crutchley, and Ian Richardson in the much maligned 1972 film adaptation:

"Evil Woman" from XANADU
by: Jeff Walker | @jeffwalker66

What's a girl gonna do when daddy - who happens to be Zeus - overlooks the eldest daughter for the young, beautiful, charming sister? And to add insult to injury, Zeus has decided to grant Xanadu to young Clio? Revenge is the only dish a sister can serve, or so say sibling muses Melpomene and Calliope, who plot against the lovely Clio to trap her into falling in love with a handsome mortal in 1980s era Los Angeles. From the cult movie, and the even more entertaining Broadway musical adaptation, "Evil Woman" is one of the highlights from the ELO infused score of the campy XANADU.

Video: Mary Testa and Jackie Hoffman from the original Broadway production:

"Mama, I'm a Big Girl Now" from HAIRSPRAY
by: Matt Tamanini | @BWWMatt

This song has a trio of mother-daughter disagreements. Tracy wants to audition to be on a TV dance show, but her over-protective mother thinks her heart will get broken, Penny's insanely strict mother is mad that she didn't come home right after school, and Amber's overly competitive stage mother is criticizing her daughter's recent on-air performance.

No matter where you look, there is all sorts of teenage angst on HAIRSPRAY's stage. So, take a page from these girls, and when someone asks you to pass the pumpkin pie, stand up and scream, "Stop telling me what to do-oo!"

Video: I normally try to avoid using bootlegs, but since this song was cut from the film, it's tough to find the clip from a quality, professional production. So, why not just stick to the original. Original Broadway cast Marissa Jaret Winokur, Kerry Butler, Harvey Fierstein, Jackie Hoffman, Laura Bell Bundy, and Linda Hart argue in the song, which ends with a whistle tone appearance from Shoshana Bean. The song starts at about the 3:45 mark:

"One More Angel in Heaven" from JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT
by: Jeff Walker | @jeffwalker66

The golden Technicolor boy of the Old Testament, Joseph, was the envy of his regiment of brothers. They were jealous that he was the favorite of their father, Jacob. They were livid that he received a coat of many colors from dad as a gift. What happened then? Well, that is what propels the Bible story of Joseph, and the hero of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice's popular musical, into a song-filled series of adventures that take him to Egypt and back again. To get back at Joseph, the brothers sold him to a traveling caravan headed to Egypt. When they come home, the story they give to the grieving Jacob is not exactly what really happened. And, how fitting that a tall tale is told in the form of a sad, old Western ballad?

Video: The cast of the 1999 film version, starring Donny Osmond:

"My Husband Makes Movies" from NINE
by: Matt Tamanini | @BWWMatt

The entirety of Maury Yeston's musical NINE is about the failings of serial philanderer Guido Contini. A renowned Italian film director, despite having the love of his saintly wife Luisa, Guido continues to make a mess of their lives with affairs and dalliances. I had wanted to share a video of the magnificent Mary Stuart Masterson finally declaring her independence from her husband in "Be On Your Own" from the Tony-winning 2003 revival, but embedding is disabled on the lone video, so watch it here.

Instead, we will go with Marion Cotillard as Luisa in the disappointing 2009 film adaptation, attempting to rationalize why her husband is the neurotic, complicated, charismatic man that she still loves despite herself.

Video: Marion Cotillard in the 2009 film version of NINE:

Brick and Big Daddy in CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF
by: Jeff Walker | @jeffwalker66

Tennessee Williams did not shy away from epic conflicts within families. He raised eyebrows with the dysfunctional tragedy of STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE, and mined his own family's trials in THE GLASS MENAGARIE. In his other hit play, CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF, Williams pitted yet another family against each other and sparks flew. Faded football star (with secret homosexual leanings) Brick and his father, Big Daddy, clash over many issues, including the death of Brick's high school "friend." Of course, some of the bite was toned down in the film adaptation, but Paul Newman and Burl Ives still clash magnificently.

Video: Paul Newman and Burl Ives in the 1958 film version:

Barb, Ivy, and Violet in AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY
by: Matt Tamanini | @BWWMatt

As Jeff indicated above, the American theatre is littered with dysfunctional families. They are the source of some of our country's best dramas by Williams, O'Neill, Shepard, and of course, Tracy Letts. A Tony winner for his on-stage work in 2013's WHO'S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF? (by Edward Albee, another American playwright who knows how to write family drama), Letts won a Tony and Pulitzer in 2008 for his searing look at an Oklahoma family whose secrets have secrets.

From suicide to alcoholism to infidelity to drug use to incest, there is hardly a taboo that Letts missed. While the content is enough to make just about anyone's skin crawl, the show is nothing short of mesmerizing. In the star-studded film adaptation, there are a number of profanity-filled tirades including the one below, between sisters Barbara and Ivy and their mother Violet.

Parental discretion is advised! Julia Roberts has a potty-mouth!

Video: Julia Roberts, Meryl Streep, and Julianne Nicholson in the 2013 film adaptation of Tracy Letts' masterpiece:

We certainly hope that your Thanksgiving is better than that of these theatre families. Are there any feuding families, you would like to add to the list? How about Nessa and Elphaba? Or Archibald and Neville Craven? Let us know in the comments below or on Twitter at @jeffwalker66 and @BWWMatt.

Jeff and Matt will be back next month with a new showtune special feature. In the meantime, if you enjoyed this list, check out the January feature on the Most Hummable Sondheim Songs, February's Valentine's Day list of Broadway's best Anti-Love Songs, March's Ides themed collection of Shakespeare Inspired Showtunes, odes to April showers and young love, Jeff's collection of Songs of Lust to celebrate May, Matt's Birthday showtune party, July's Bastille Day-inspired Parisian celebration, August's Dog Days of Summer animal-themed celebration, September's collection of Back-to-School showtunes, or last month's nine innings of sports showtunes.

Jeff and Matt also write about TV, movies, and theatre in Washington D.C. (Jeff) and Orlando, Florida (Matt).