Menopause, The Musical debuted March 28, 2001 in Orlando, Florida, in a 76-seat theatre that once housed a perfume shop. The original cast members were Shelly Browne as the Power (later Professional) Woman, Patti McGuire as the Iowa Housewife, Pammie O'Bannon as the Earth Mother and Wesley Williams as the Soap Star. The show was directed by Kathleen Lindsey. The cast of four women shopping for lingerie at a Bloomingdale's sale sing 25 songs about chocolate cravings, hot flashes, loss of memory, nocturnal sweats, and sexual predicaments. The lyrics parody popular music from the baby boomer era, with notable numbers "Stayin' Awake" and "Puff, My God I'm Draggin'." Written by Jeanie Linders , the show appealed to menopausal women, a market Linders felt neglected by mainstream fare, who helped the show blow the lid off the "silent passage" by flocking to the show in large numbers, often taking advantage of group sales promotions. The show's ensuing success Off-Broadway led to a number of productions across the country produced both by Linders' TOC Productions (in such cities as Detroit, Chicago, and Los Angeles) as well as South Florida theatrical producers GFour Productions (in Boston, Denver, and Las Vegas, where it is currently housed at the Las Vegas Hilton). Within a few years, international productions became commonplace, with shows in Australia, Canada, Israel, Italy, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, the United Kingdom, South Africa, and South Korea. Local references in the show are customized to the location of the performance; for example, the 'Iowa Housewife' became 'Dubbo Housewife' in Australia and 'Waikato housewife' in New Zealand; America's Bloomingdale's became Smith & Caugheys in New Zealand and Marks & Spencer in London. The show's official website claims that nine million people have seen the show. A significant percentage of its audience consists of members of the Red Hat Society. The show is also known for its contributions to the fight against ovarian cancer, for which it staged a national fund raising tour, as well as raising awareness of menopause-related issues, most notably through the creation of the Jeanie C. Linders Fund. Donations toward the fund are collected at performances of the show through the sale of souvenir "hot flash fans."

MENOPAUSE - THE MUSICAL TICKETS EVENT DATE AVAILABILITY Menopause - The Musical Tickets 11/27 Nov 27, 2024 Wed, 8:00 PM Menopause - The Musical Tickets 11/28 Nov 28, 2024 Thu, 8:00 PM Menopause - The Musical Tickets 11/29 Nov 29, 2024 Fri, 8:00 PM Menopause - The Musical Tickets 11/30 Nov 30, 2024 Sat, 8:00 PM Menopause - The Musical Tickets 11/30 Nov 30, 2024 Sat, 4:00 PM

Musical numbers

Overture - Orchestra Change, Change, Change - Professional Woman, Earth Mother & Girls I Heard It Through the Grapevine - Professional Woman & Soap Star Sign of the Times - Earth Mother & Iowa Housewife Stayin' Awake/Night Sweatin' - Ensemble My Husband Sleeps Tonight - Earth Mother & Girls Hot Flash - Soap Star Drippin' and Droppin' - Earth Mother I'm Flashing - Professional Woman The Great Pretender - Professional Woman, Iowa Housewife & Girls Sane and Normal Girls/Thank You Doctor - Ensemble Lookin' for Food - Soap Star, Iowa Housewife & Girls Please Make Me Over - Soap Star

Beauty's Only Skin Deep - Ensemble I'm Flashing (reprise) - Professional Woman Puff, My God, I'm Draggin' - Earth Mother The Fat Gram Song - Professional Woman & Girls My Thighs - Iowa Housewife & Girls Don't Say Nothing Bad About My Body - Soap Star & Girls I'm No Babe, Ma - Ensemble Good Vibrations - Earth Mother & Soap Star What's Love Got To Do With It? - Professional Woman & Girls Only You - Iowa Housewife & Girls New Attitude - Ensemble This is Your Day - Ensemble Exit Music - Orchestra

Reviews

• Leslie Fischer at chicagocritic.com recommends you "bring the waterproof mascara because you’ll laugh so hard, you’ll cry. With humor and compassion, writer, producer and lyricist Jeanie Linders has captured the experiences of Everywoman in her 40s and 50s. Remember all those great songs of the 50s, 60s and 70s--full of love and teenaged angst? Linders has rewritten their lyrics to reflect our mature experience, exploring the ways in which our bodies, our emotions and our spirits change with the Change. When you don’t recognize yourself in these hilarious lyrics, you’ll recognize a friend." ^[1]
• Genessee Kagy of the Daily Californian wrote that "Menopause's collection of great oldies, clever tongue-in-cheek lyrics and entertaining dance routines prevented me from making any I-Need-Air trips to the restroom despite the fact that I hadn't felt like such a fraud since I turned eighteen-years old. Over 90 percent of the audience were women more than twice my age ... Linders' humorous new lyrics coupled to old favorites provide a good laugh. When the show ended, the entire audience was still clapping their hands to the final number, yelling and letting out whoops of approval." ^[2]
• From the Baltimore Times-Herald: "'My Guy' becomes 'My Thighs,' 'I’m Sorry' transforms into 'I’m Flashing,' 'The Great Pretender' laments brain collapse, and 'A Sign of the Times' is 'looking in the mirror and seeing my mother.' Get the picture? It’s hilarious, good fun and the perfect destination for a girls’ treat out. (Judging from their guffaws, the handful of guys in the audience were enjoying it, too.)" ^[3]

Notable Performers

• Megan Cavanaugh , best remembered as Marla Hooch in the Penny Marshall film A League of Their Own has played the role of "Iowa Housewife" at Chicago's Apollo Theater and overseas in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
• Paige O'Hara , best known as the voice of Belle in Walt Disney's Beauty and the Beast , is an original member of the Las Vegas cast, playing the role of "Soap Star."
• Stand-up comedian Judy Tenuta has guest-starred in the Los Angeles and Chicago productions.
• 1980s pop star Cheryl Baker is currently (June 2009) starring as "Earth Mother" in a touring version in the UK.

Other performance locations

The original Orlando production has played more or less continuously since the show's origin, most recently at the Plaza Theatre. The Off-Broadway production officially opened at Theatre Four on April 4, 2002, after a month of previews, and closed in the spring of 2006, logging more than 1500 performances. ^[4] The show is running worldwide in diverse locations throughout the United States, Great Britain, Italy, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and South Africa.

See also

• Menopause