The musical at Buffalo Grove High School in the north suburbs of Chicago is worth a closer look.
Not many schools put Avenue Q on stage, and it would be unthinkable, I believe, for a teacher to bring the unabridged Broadway version to a high school stage: There’s too much profanity, sexual content, and other R-rated material.
But the musical won the Tony Awards for Best Musical, Best Score, and Best Book in 2004, the same year Wicked was nominated for Tony’s “Triple Crown,” and as a work of art and literature, this American musical merits consideration.
The school edition makes several changes from the version that played on Broadway. Here are just a few:
- Profanity has been removed, including two songs: “My Girlfriend, Who Lives in Canada” and “You Can Be As Loud as the Hell You Want (When You’re Making Love)” have both been removed from the first act.
- An obsession with sex and pornography has generally been replaced by an obsession with social media: The song “The Internet Is for Porn” in the first act has been replaced by a song entitled “My Social Life is Online.”
- The names of two characters, which were sexually charged in the Broadway version, have been watered down: “Mrs. Thistletwat” and “Lucy the Slut” have become “Mrs. Butz” and just plain “Lucy” in the school edition.
- Dialog and song lyrics have been “cleaned up,” according to Music Theatre International, which helped to develop the school edition. Along those lines, some scenes emphasize drinking less than they did in the original.
Promotional information from MTI
The laugh-out-loud musical tells the timeless story of a recent college grad named Princeton, who moves into a shabby New York apartment all the way out on Avenue Q. He soon discovers that although the residents seem nice, it’s clear that this is not your ordinary neighborhood. Together, Princeton and his new-found friends struggle to find jobs, dates, and their ever-elusive purpose in life.
Filled with gut-busting humor and a delightfully catchy score, not to mention puppets, Avenue Q School Edition is a truly unique show that has quickly become a favorite for audiences everywhere.
A little cleaner but still the same basic idea
The original Avenue Q, with its profanity, sexual content, and heavy drinking, is a difficult choice for high school drama departments. In a 2006 review, The Times of London said the musical was “how Friends might be if it had Fozzie Bear and Miss Piggy arguing about their one-night stand, but with more angst, expletives, and full-on puppet sex.”
On the other hand, since MTI worked with the musical’s creators to develop the school edition, the adaptation, the company says, “maintains the dramatic (and comedic) intention and integrity of the piece” while making it “more appropriate for high school audiences and performers.”
Music and lyrics by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx, book by Jeff Whitty. Based on an original concept by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx. In performance at Buffalo Grove High School in Buffalo Grove, Ill., Thursday through Saturday, April 16–18. Rated PG-13 for the puppets and 20-somethings who seek a purpose in big-city life.