As far as comedy goes, the most rewarding wedding is the one that goes off the rails. And so Broadway’s new musical “It Shoulda Been You” piles on the mishaps — only the show itself ends up quite the blunder.
At least it sports a terrific ensemble, led by Tyne Daly and Harriet Harris as warring mothers. These talented, hard-working actors are a joy to watch, and almost make up for the drecky writing.
Almost.
The action takes place on a happy day for Rebecca (Sierra Boggess) and Brian (a bland David Burtka, a k a Neil Patrick Harris’ husband): They’re getting married in a fancy hotel, and there might even be a panini station.
Too bad the kids’ mothers, Judy Steinberg (Daly) and Georgette Howard (Harris), can’t stand each other. All the characters are drawn in broad strokes, but those two are the worst — Judy’s an abrasive Jewish loudmouth; Georgette’s a stuck-up, anti-Semitic lush.
Still, it’s amazing what nimble comediennes like Daly and Harris can wring out of the lamest jokes. Book writer/lyricist Brian Hargrove owes a big favor to David Hyde Pierce, his director — and husband — for signing up those two magicians.
The biggest twist in a show overly full of them is that the lead character isn’t any of those four, but Rebecca’s older sister, Jenny (Lisa Howard). Poor Jenny’s curse isn’t that she’s single and zaftig — it’s that her mother won’t let her forget it.
“You have such a pretty face,” Judy tells her, “if you’d listened to me all these years, skipped a few meals, it’d be you getting married today.” Thanks, Mom!
Busily circling the core group are a demented uncle, hapless help and overly close friends. All are played by people hitting way above the material they’re given, like Edward Hibbert as a cheerily efficient wedding planner, Josh Grisetti as Rebecca’s childhood pal, and Montego Glover (“Memphis”) and “Amazing Race” winner Nick Spangler as, respectively, the bridesmaid and best man.
The last two lucked out with the funny “Love You Till the Day.” The song boasts a clever twist — “I’ll love you till the day YOU die” — and their slapstick-y performance suggests what might have happened had the entire show been that zany.
But there’s little anyone can do with Barbara Anselmi’s disposable melodies, lyrics that rhyme “sarong” and “so wrong,” “verklempt” and “dreamt,” or a hugely improbable plot twist that makes “Tony n’ Tina’s Wedding” look like a docu-drama.
At that show, at least, the audience gets cake.