The real bards behind this silly, spangled mash-up of the Renaissance and Broadway are another team of brothers: Grammy-winning Nashville songwriter Wayne Kirkpatrick and “Chicken Run” screenwriter Karey Kirkpatrick, who wrote the music and lyrics, with libretto duty being done by Karey and British humorist John O’Farrell. Naturally, they try to steal from Shakespeare - who’s a bit of a literary kleptomaniac himself (a conceit earlier fielded by Robert Brustein in "The English Channel"). Yes, that’s right, Shakespeare’s a dramaturgical rock star in “Something Rotten!,” which is set amid the thatch-roofed, half-timbered town of 1595 London and centers on two playwriting brothers who, between the Bard and the bear-baiting, just can’t get a break. Adam Pascal in "Something Rotten!" (Courtesy Joan Marcus/Broadway in Boston) On the road, that role is cockily assayed by original “Rent” star Adam Pascal (the biggest name in the touring production), rocking tight leather breeches and a spike-collared Hamlet shirt that opens to reveal a buff, bare chest. This prize went to Christian Borle, who played William Shakespeare as Mick Jagger with quill and codpiece in the Broadway staging. The show, which is beyond exuberant, was nominated for nine Tony Awards in 2015, winning for Featured Actor in a Musical.
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The rollicking "Something Rotten!" debuted on Broadway in 2015 and now launches its national tour at the Boston Opera House (through Jan.
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Shakespeare meets a Hasty Pudding show in "Something Rotten!" And what’s bubbling in the pudding pot is every musical ever written whipped up with plagiarism gone ridiculously, extravagantly wrong. (Courtesy Joan Marcus/Broadway in Boston) This article is more than 4 years old. The touring cast of "Something Rotten!" comes to Boston this month.