Broadway Breakdown – "AMERICAN PSYCHO" (w/ Jeff Malone & Richie Grasso)

Podcast Date: October 10, 2024
Host: Matt Koplik
Guests: Jeff Malone & Richie Grasso (Hosts, Half Hour Podcast)

Episode Overview

In this "Grab Bag" installment of Broadway Breakdown, host Matt Koplik welcomes guests Richie Grasso and Jeff Malone to dissect the notorious Broadway musical adaptation of American Psycho. With Koplik’s trademark blunt humor and critical insight, the trio dive into the history and development of the show, their personal reactions, key scenes and songs, and the broader context of adapting film and literature for Broadway. Throughout, they explore why American Psycho failed to connect with a mainstream audience despite its cult following, ponder the legacy of the property, and debate what truly makes a successful stage adaptation.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Ever-Changing Title Game & Marketing on Broadway

• [02:14–04:00] Matt muses on the current trend of slapping “the musical” on adaptations, noting past adaptations like Carnival (from Lili) and Sugar (from Some Like It Hot) took more creative naming risks.
• Richie notes: “It’s all about marketing and billing and how do tourists recognize a title?”

2. American Psycho – Their Entry Points and Perspectives

• [04:31–05:45] Jeff and Richie recount seeing the Broadway show (April 24, 2016), detailing that Richie hadn’t seen the movie beforehand, intentionally approaching it as stand-alone.
• Matt summarizes his history with the book, movie, and musical: “My tier system for this is movie number one, musical two, book three.”
• He describes the book as “a brilliant idea... 350 pages. It should be 120.”

3. Plot & Structure: “What Really Happened?”

• [11:02–13:46] The team unpacks the show’s plot—Patrick Bateman, a 1989 NYC investment banker with murderous, psychosexual tendencies, loses his grip on reality amid rampant 1980s consumerism and status-obsession.
• Jeff: “He is continually losing his grip on reality... no one is aware of anything that’s going on with him.”

4. The Culture, Satire, and Setting of the 1980s

• [21:11–24:15] The hosts observe that the 1980s—its image obsession, club culture, Les Mis as status symbol—are critical to the satire.
• Matt: “It is ironic, this musical that is ultimately about suffering has become so commercialized and exclusive.”

5. Standout & Problematic Numbers

• [25:08–29:03] Consensus: “You Are What You Wear” is the show’s most successful number.
  • Jeff: “When we heard that song, I turned to him [Richie] and said, that was amazing. And Heléne Yorke in that role was perfect.”
  • Matt: “If all they sent me was ‘You Are What You Wear,’ I’d be like—okay, you clearly have cracked something.”
• They discuss the use of 80s pop songs (“Hip to Be Square,” “Don’t You Want Me Baby?”, “Everybody Wants to Rule the World”) versus original score.
• Discord question: Would American Psycho have worked as a full jukebox musical? The trio mostly say no, praising a hybrid but warning against thematic shallowness.

6. Duncan Sheik’s Score & Challenges of Musicalization

• [34:44–41:48] Richie is underwhelmed by Sheik’s work, comparing it to Spring Awakening: “The bar is set very high...I don’t think we’re getting the same level of musical theater songwriting.”
• Matt likens musical theater writing to baking: “You have to know the basics, you have to know the foundation, and then you can start having fun.”

7. The Musical’s Sterility, Intimacy, and Missed Theatrical Opportunities

• [45:12–49:51] Matt posits the staging is “too sterile… [the city] is kind of disgusting. Everyone has a light sheen of sweat. It’s not as sterile as the stage show presents.”
• Richie and Matt imagine how projections or immersive elements (like those in Network or the recent Sunset Boulevard) could offer intimacy and punch missing from the original Broadway production.

8. The Twist & Interpretive Ending (Paul Allen & “None of This Matters”)

• [55:10–67:39] The group closely analyzes the Paul Allen/Owen plotline, the twist when Bateman finds the apartment cleaned out, and diverging interpretations: Did Bateman really kill? Or is it all in his head?
  • Matt: “Some people think none of it actually ever happened… others think Patrick is not the only American Psycho around.”
  • Jeff: “I’m in the camp that it didn’t happen and it’s his psych that he’s actually doing and committing the murders...but he’s not actually doing it.”

9. Characters: Gene, Evelyn, and the Cast

• [75:21–82:31]
  • Jean (Jen Damiano): “Kind of forgettable,” lacks depth, serves as the anti-Evelyn.
  • Evelyn (Heléne Yorke): Standout comedic performance, cited as “the most on point of, ‘we’re doing a musical of American Psycho.’”
  • Favorite lines, including:
    • “[Evelyn:] I will not have an odd number at my table, Patrick. This isn’t Hoboken.” ([88:26])
    • “[Courtney:] Oh, God, Patrick—college.” ([87:30])

10. Broadway Reception, Grosses, and Cultural Success

• [90:15–99:19]
  • They discuss the show’s flop status: high discounting after opening, lackluster reviews, and a vocal online fanbase not translating to ticket sales.
  • Matt: “People will pay $900 to see [The Music Man]. People weren’t willing to pay more than $70 to see American Psycho... I think a lot of people understood at their core, ‘this may not be successful for me.’”

11. Adapting for the Stage – The Larger Conversation

• [103:10–110:15]
  • Why adapt American Psycho as a musical? They speculate monetary motivation, cult popularity, and the general film-to-stage trend, but agree it’s a fundamentally odd fit.
  • Matt: “This is a property that just doesn’t sing.”
  • Matt and Richie bash lazy adaptations (Back to the Future), while admiring attempts that transform the source, e.g. Legally Blonde.
  • Use of musical theater as an art form (“like baking – you need to know the basics”) and the difference between NY and London audiences for these adaptations.

12. “Shows Everybody Loves, But We Don’t…”

• [116:48–120:22]
  • Richie: Hadestown, Kimberly Akimbo (“I liked it…but didn’t get the obsession”)
  • Jeff: Wicked
  • Matt: Threepenny Opera

13. The Price of Broadway, Audience Habits, and Changing Tastes

• [137:04–150:45]
  • Discussion on ticket pricing, seeing shows multiple times, and the nature of theater comfort shows (Wicked, etc.) vs. expanding audience tastes.
  • Jeff: “If someone only sees one show a year… are they picking American Psycho?”

14. Final Thoughts – Why the Cult Status, and Where Next?

• [154:38–158:28]
  • Discussion of potential immersive revivals, the challenges of staging (“not being done a lot”), and the probable fate as a niche, cult musical rather than a repertory staple.
  • Jeff: “Most of the music in general in this score is not memorable at all.”
  • Standout/lasting merits are limited: “Hardest bodies ever seen on stage,” “You Are What You Wear,” and “Oh, God, Patrick—college.”

Notable Quotes and Memorable Moments

• On the show’s confusion and sterility:
  • Matt ([32:08]): “The original production was very confused of whether they were trying to comment on musical theater or just do their own thing.”
• On why the show ultimately doesn’t work:
  • Matt ([42:17]): “I just don’t think this is a property that sings.”
  • Richie ([34:44]): “I like Duncan Sheik. I didn’t think this was his best work.”
• On the end of Act 1 (blood splatter):
  • Richie ([14:28]): “That act one ending, when that plastic screen comes down and the blood splatters towards the audience—I thought that was revolutionary.”
• On box office realities:
  • Matt ([92:07]): “Once the show opened, the reviews came out... their attendance dropped immensely. I went to a Saturday matinee... and that theater was like 60% full.”
• On Bateman and Jean:
  • Matt ([78:57]): “There’s no reason for her to be in love with Patrick…she’s never been interesting, she’s never supposed to have been interesting.”
• On Broadway fan patterns:
  • Jeff ([147:43]): “It helps to create an actual opinion on something rather than you just comparing it to one show.”
• Favorite comedic bit: Matt on Corey’s best line ([87:30]):
  • “He used to let frat guys tie him up and gang bang him at parties. [Courtney:] ‘Oh, God, Patrick—college.’”

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:28–02:14 – Opening/Introductions
• 04:31–05:45 – Seeing the show on Broadway (personal stories)
• 11:02–13:46 – Plot summary and discussion
• 14:28–15:19 – Blood splatter and Act 1 finale
• 25:08–29:03 – Song breakdown (“You Are What You Wear”), jukebox vs. original score
• 34:44–41:48 – Duncan Sheik’s involvement and critique
• 55:10–67:39 – The twist, ending, and interpretive possibilities
• 75:21–82:31 – Deep dive: Jean, Evelyn, and principal character analysis
• 90:15–99:19 – Broadway economics, box office, and audience reception
• 116:48–120:22 – Shows “everyone loves but we don’t”
• 154:38–158:28 – Cult status, future revivals, and the show’s legacy
• 159:00–161:39 – Plugs, final thoughts, and outro

Episode Tone & Style

Faithful to Koplik’s style, the episode is a sharp, irreverent, and insight-dense conversation. The dialogue is peppered with expletives and theatrical in-jokes, balancing fact, opinion, and personal anecdote—delivered with rapid back-and-forth energy. They frequently reference other Broadway productions, industry quirks, and the business realities of modern theatre.

Final Thoughts

The panel agrees: American Psycho is a fascinating Broadway artifact—bold in some choices, lacking in depth or chemistry in others. It stands as an example of a not-insignificant trend: gorgeous to look at, occasionally witty or chilling, but—“I was bored for a lot of American Psycho” (Matt, [42:08]). Its legacy may be as a minor cult favorite and a case study in why not every film or novel, no matter how artful or “cool,” thrives on the musical stage.

Closing

• The episode closes with shoutouts to the guests’ own podcast, Richie's play, and the traditional call for five-star reviews and donations, before letting Patti LuPone—Matt’s choice—sing them out.

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