Let’s talk about “Tammy Faye,” the musical the Complimentary Spouse and I saw last week on Broadway.
Imagine a campy diva with an incomparable voice, outrageous style, a passionate gay following, and an insatiable need to spend.
That’s what we saw on stage.
Also, imagine public embarrassment, emotional fits, inconsolable crying, and tears streaking through waaaaaay too much makeup.
That’s what we didn’t see. But that’s likely how Sir Elton John, who wrote the music, reacted when he found out his show flopped and would end its Broadway run with just 29 performances.1
(Spoiler alert: I enjoyed “Tammy Faye.”)
Once More Unto the Preach
The musical was imported to Broadway from London. British reviewers adored it. American reviewers lambasted it with the intensity of a million suns going supernova simultaneously.
Consider these reviews from the same publication:
A new musical about the life of the televangelist Tammy Faye Bakker, composed by Elton John, makes spectacular entertainment from a righteous subject.
… the show has a heart as big as the title character’s bouffant hairdo …
The New York Times review of the London production, Oct. 22, 2022
“Tammy Faye,” a bland, tonal mishmash of a show … seems afraid to lean into what made the televangelist so distinctive.
New York Times review of the Broadway production, Nov. 14, 2024
Why did the musical get drastically different receptions on opposite sides of the Atlantic? I think it’s because Americans saw Tammy Faye’s many trials and triumphs play out in real time, whereas the rest of the world didn’t.
(Additional thought: Tammy Faye’s story takes place during the rise of politically-motivated, profit-driven, 24-hour Christian fundamentalism — a genuinely painful experience for many Americans, but an abstract idea outside the country.)
The musical covers the who, what, when, and where of Tammy Faye’s life. But it doesn’t explore the why. There’s not much character development. We don’t get a good look at her inner life.
If you’re taking Tammy Faye 101, the musical is a fun yet sympathetic introduction to a fascinating character who lived a bizarre life during interesting times.
But if you’re already familiar with Tammy Faye, the musical doesn’t go deep enough. You want more.
Entertainment Weekly explains this well:
The musical … attempts to serve as a retrospective look at Tammy Faye and her husband Jim Bakker’s … rise and fall from grace, as well as the absorption of Christian ideals within the Republican party during the televangelism boom in America.
However, in trying to weave the two topics so tightly together, it doesn’t truly dig into either, instead creating a surface-level, strangely lifeless look at a larger-than-life figure.
Entertainment Weekly review of the New York production, Nov. 14, 2024
What did the most important critic of all think? I’m referring, of course, to me.
Well, since you asked: I found “Tammy Faye” delightful. That may be because I came to the theater knowing less about Tammy Faye than most Americans, yet more than most British people.
I lived overseas during the early years of the Tammy Faye saga, and didn’t pay much attention after I moved back to the States. It’s like the Marvel Cinematic Universe: If you haven’t seen the origin stories, it’s hard to get into the subsequent films.
“Did that really happen?” I whispered to Britt several times during the musical. Puppets, Ted Turner, blackmail, and more — all true! Mind blown.
What a Messner!
Another issue with “Tammy Faye” is that it wasn’t as memorable as it should have been. Despite its musical pedigree, only one song stood out — “He’s Inside Me,” which, as you’ve guessed, contains one double entendre after another.
This isn’t a show you’ll be gushing about for years, like “Hamilton,” “Les Misérables,” or “Book of Mormon.” It’s musical Fruit Stripe gum. It loses its flavor quickly.
The show’s biggest asset wasn’t Elton John or the lyricist, Jake Shears.2 It was actress Katie Brayben, who gave Tammy Faye the charisma, vulnerability, and authenticity that was missing from the words and music.
Brayben originated the role in London (and won an Olivier award for it), and I wish she had more time to perform on Broadway. And, whoa, can she sing! Check this out:
And Behold, It Was Good (Enough)
Perhaps “Tammy Faye” was doomed on Broadway because there wasn’t enough entertainment value to overcome the complicated relationship audiences would have with the character and plot. Star performances can only get you so far. Earworms and chutzpah can compensate for myriad flaws and weaknesses.3
So, here at the end of Act II of what was originally going to be a short post, I’m asking myself if “Tammy Faye” was the best musical I’ve seen.
Hell no.
But did I enjoy it? Hell yes.4
Maybe the real question is: For all its ups and downs, does “Tammy Faye” have something meaningful to teach us about kindness, society, religion, and makeup?
Yup.
Toward the end of the musical, Tammy Faye encounters Jerry Falwell in limbo. They chat a little. She shows no animosity for the man who orchestrated her downfall, but finally understands her evangelism was rooted in love and joy and his was not.
She asked how he passed away.
He said he died of a bad heart.
“No,” she said, without a trace of snark. “That’s how you lived.”
Footnotes
- Offering deeply discounted tickets for your Broadway show’s opening weekend isn’t a good sign. As we learned in “The Producers,” you can’t make more money with a flop than a hit. ↩︎
- Shears is best known for writing and performing the Daily Dave theme song. He is also known as a singer (frontman for the Scissor Sisters) and Broadway performer (Britt and I saw him play Charlie Price in Kinky Boots). ↩︎
- I … um … have a friend who saw “Starlight Express” multiple times at the Apollo Theatre, treasured the souvenir book, and worn out the 2-disc Original London Production soundtrack. ↩︎
- It wouldn’t be wrong to question my taste, though. I mean, my friend’s taste. Cf. Footnote 3. ↩︎