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| Katharine McPhee in "A Thousand and One Nights," a Bollywood number from Smash's "Publicity." |
THAT Scene is a new recurring feature that takes a closer look at a single scene that exemplifies a particular show, theme or moment in time. The scene might be good or bad, but it will always be memorable and worth talking about.
Smash is an incredibly frustrating series. It contains certain moments that are absolutely sublime and transporting in the way that only musical theater can be, but those moments are surrounded by absurdly over-the-top drama and conflicts that, rather than feeling like a natural outgrowth of the storytelling, seem as if they were dropped into the action to create false conflict. And while some of the characters - notably Tom, Derek and Eileen - are fascinating creations, they tend to get overshadowed by the soapier elements.
"A Thousand and One Nights" (also known as "the Bollywood number") encapsulates Smash's wildly uneven tone and and lazy storytelling perfectly. The number starts out as a bizarre exercise in WTF-ness, escalates into a wildly entertaining piece of musical theater, and completely falls apart after a moment of sober analysis. Plus, it's derailed in the middle by the appearance of Julia, Frank and the hilariously inept actor who plays their equally inept son.
I'm not going to lie; I really, really enjoyed this number the first time or five I watched it. And I continue to enjoy the hell out of it now, despite the many, many problematic elements at play. The tune is catchy enough that I've been singing it in the shower for two days, the choreography is incredibly fun (as a dancer, I'm a huge sucker for good choreography), and the costumes are shiny and brightly colored. "A Thousand and One Nights" is no "The Higher You Get, The Farther The Fall" or "Let's Be Bad," but it is a solid piece of theatricality, which is something I greatly appreciate.
