I Didn't Even Know That There WAS A Jerry Springer Opera
From Reuters/Yahoo:
The BBC has defended its decision to air "Jerry Springer-The Opera" uncut, despite outrage over a libretto peppered with more than 3,000 swear words....
[T]he BBC...[insisted] the stage musical was a serious work of art that had been lauded by critics and laden with theater awards.
The musical, written by British composer Richard Thomas and comedian Stewart Lee, is based on Springer's brash American talk show whose lurid topics ranged from "Honey I'm a Call Girl" to "Bring on the Bisexuals."
Springer loved the show, attending its London premiere and quipping: "I wish I had thought of it."
The stage hit, starring David Soul of "Starsky and Hutch" fame, was filmed by the British Broadcasting Corporation.
"It is a serious work. People who can't get to London to see it at the theater can now see it in their own home. It will transmit well after the 9 o'clock watershed and carry appropriate warnings," a BBC spokeswoman said....
In the show, viewers can watch a diaper fetishist confess all to his true love, catch a tap dance routine by the Ku Klux Klan and see Jesus and the Devil launch into a swearing tirade against each other....
Viewers' lobby group Mediawatch said: "License fee-payers do not expect the BBC to be pushing back boundaries of taste and decency in this way."
But Roly Keating, controller of the BBC2 channel airing the stage version, said: "I judged that it would be impossible to censor or adapt the language without undermining the piece....
Here's the program description from BBC2:
Jerry Springer - The Opera
Sat 8 Jan, 10:00 pm - 12:00 am 120mins
The multi award-winning hit musical in which trailer trash meets high culture makes its TV debut, filmed live at the Cambridge Theatre, London.
Jerry Springer - The Opera transferred from the National Theatre to the West End in November 2003, where it is now in its second year. Along the way, it has been named Best Musical a number of times, including by the Olivier Awards, the Critics Circle Awards, the Evening Standard Awards and the What's On Stage Awards.
Jerry Springer, America's favourite talk show host, suffers the worst day of his career when faced with transsexuals, nappy wearers and a troupe of tap-dancing Ku Klux Klansmen. This boundary-breaking show will appeal to all - except the faint-hearted!
Jerry Springer ...... David Soul
Principals ...... Guy Porritt, David Bedella, Ben Lake, Carrie Ellis, Claire Platt, Ryan Molloy, Leon Craig, Annabelle Williams, Alison Jiear, Christopher Key.
Ensemble ...... Edward Baruwa, Phillip Sutton, Dale Branston, Andrew Playfoot, Jeremy Secomb, Trevor Jary, David O'Dell, Jason Griffiths, Phong Truong, Leroy Charlery, Johan Pearson, Nicole Joy-Fraser, Aoife Nally, Kirsty Malpass, Kiara Jay, Verity Quade, Elin Wyn Lewis, Stephanie Tavernier, Elen Mon Wayne, Ruby King, John Coates, Adriano Agostino, Scott Monello, Richard Alliston, Gayle Telfer Stevens, Tania Mathurin, Jennie Dale, Nicola Rutherford.
With very strong and aggressive language from the start and throughout, and with religious imagery in the second act which some viewers may find offensive.
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