Some days, Geekologists, I really, really love my job.
It's not often that I get to bring you something this wonderful, but here I am, with a true-blue Mario Bros. musical wrapped up in a pretty bow and an embed code. This is the natural and beautiful union of my two biggest interests: old-school platform games and musical theater. Listen first, my friends, then read.
That's AJ Shively as Luis (a.k.a. Luigi) singing "Player Number Two," a song from Super Claudio Bros. by Drew Fornarola and Marshall Pailet. Pretty awesome, right? In developing their non-licensed tribute to a generation's favorite Goomba-stomper, Fornarola and Pailer have found a compelling, emotional journey in between all the hops and bops. Sure, they've had to fiddle with the details in order to stay legally safe: The musical stars the heroic Claudio and his brother Luis, two blue-collar Joes who battle an evil platypus (not a turtle) named Bruiser to rescue Princess Tangerine, heir to the throne of the Eggplant Kingdom. Despite the name swaps, however, the heart of the series clearly shines through. Here's one standout moment recorded by Joystiq's reviewer, Justin McElroy:
In one notable example, Claudio is horrified to find a smug eggplant in a sack at the end of the first dungeon, even though Luis cautions him that it's never the princess in the first dungeon. After singing a song to that effect, the eggplant (understandably) expects a tip after being stuck pointlessly in a sack for three hours. It's funny in context, but uproarious if you've done your own share of rescuing non-princess toadstools.
Super Claudio Bros. is a no-brainer for video game fanatics, but others are finding a lot to like about the colorful adaptation. The show took home Best Musical honors at D.C.'s Fringe Festival and has earned a positive review from The Washington Post.
The weekend of July 30th kicks off a five-show run at The Warehouse Theater in Washington. If you're lucky enough to live around the nation's capital, for the sake of gamers everywhere, go check out Claudio. If you can't make it, never fear: Five songs are available at the show's website. Either way, I expect you guys to buzz the heck out of this thing. Put your social network skills to work and make sure video game characters are welcome on the musical stage!
