Theater insiders are playing the “Smash” guessing game, linking real people to the show’s characters, played by Brian d’Arcy James, Jaime Cepero, Anjelica Huston, Jack Davenport, Katharine McPhee, Megan Hilty, Debra Messing, Christian Borle and Raza Jaffrey. (Mark Seliger/NBC)
The new NBC show “Smash,” about the making of a Broadway hit, is filled with intrigue, back-stabbing, sexual innuendo and tons of raw ambition. And that’s just the back story.
The series offers an insider’s glimpse into the world of musical theater — in this case, an extravaganza about Marilyn Monroe. Two stars compete for the part, the director tries to bed them both, a producer hawks a Degas to raise money, and the songwriting duo stress over writing their lyrics.
Real-life theater folk have cameos in each episode: The Post’s theater columnist, Michael Riedel, plays himself in Episode 9; teenage phenom Nick Jonas appears in Episode 4 as a teenage phenom; and Jordan Roth, who runs the Jujamcyn Theaters, is eating lunch at Bond 45 in Episode 2.
“In general, ‘Smash’ is really accurate,” says veteran producer Emanuel Azenberg, who plays himself in Episode 3. “Those are the dynamics that take place between the directors and the producers: the back-stabbing, the narcissism and the self-involvement, all that goes on. There are endless soap opera stories going on backstage in the theater. And the end result is a terrific performance.”
So much in the show is realistic, that the fictional characters must be based on real life, too, insiders say.
The Post interviewed critics, historians, producers and others to find out who they think inspired whom in this show within a show.
“It’s fun for me to hear all this,” says Theresa Rebeck, the show’s creator, who says everyone is fictional.
“I made these people up!” she insists. “I may steal moments or obsessions; I steal pieces of psychology, but I make people up. They come to life inside the thing I’m writing. If people think the characters are real people, it’s because my actors are so good, they imbue the characters with reality.”
scohen@nypost.com
Debra Messing, a k a Julia Houston
Julia Houston is a lyricist writing the book for “Marilyn.” She has an awful lot in common with Theresa Rebeck, the writer of “Smash.” While Rebeck is a successful playwright (her play “Seminar” is currently on Broadway) and TV writer (“Law & Order: Criminal Intent”), Julia is an accomplished Broadway book writer with a string of hits behind her.
The two have similar sartorial styles — chunky jewelry, scarves, glasses — and they both live in Brooklyn with their families. In “Smash,” Julia is trying to adopt a little girl from China; in real life, Rebeck has an adopted Chinese daughter.
Julia works with composer Tom Levitt (played by Christian Borle), and the two are meant to be longtime collaborators.
Broadway insiders say the pair are inspired by a young Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty, who wrote “Ragtime” and “Seussical.”
Jack Davenport, a k a Derek Wills
Derek Wills is a brilliant British director and choreographer with an eye for the ladies. “The sexually aggressive director who is both brilliant and predatory is a standard trope,” says Time Out New York theater critic Adam Feldman, citing Bob Fosse as an example of a director and choreographer (but not a Brit) who famously bedded his leading ladies. Sources also say Wills is probably inspired by a crew of in-demand British directors, such as David Leveaux, the handsome Tony-winning British director behind “Fiddler on the Roof” and “Nine”; Sam Mendes (“Cabaret”); and Trevor Nunn (“Cats”).
“The British director thing may be drawn from a Sam Mendes type; someone who came to New York and freaks everyone out because he’s so smart,” says Rachel Shukert, who writes a recap of “Smash” for New York magazine’s Vulture blog. But theater history nerds are quick to point out that there has never been a straight male British director and choreographer. “I’ve never heard of that combination,” says one.
Katharine McPhee, a k a Karen Cartwright
Karen Cartwright is the quintessential fresh-faced Midwestern girl who comes to New York with a big voice and bigger dreams. She is plucked from obscurity (waitressing) to try out for the lead in “Marilyn.” She doesn’t get cast in the role, but gets a part in the chorus. Teasers following Episode 4, however, hint that she may be pulled from the ensemble to replace Ivy as the blond bombshell. “There’s plenty of precedent for an understudy to take over the lead before opening night,” says Entertainment Weekly’s theater critic, Thom Geier. “Just look at Sutton Foster, who was bumped up to the star of ‘Thoroughly Modern Millie’ during that show’s pre-Broadway run at the La Jolla Playhouse.” She went on to win the Tony for that role. “Sutton Foster was a musical theater prodigy who came to New York and was a star,” says Shukert. “That narrative of the overnight star versus the person who has clawed their way up is classic.”
Megan Hilty, a k a Ivy Lynn
Ivy Lynn is the hard-working and calculating Broadway girl who has been hoofing her way through every show in town for years, just waiting for her big break. She is friends with Tom, the composer, who had her in mind when he wrote the songs; and she sleeps with the director without hesitation, then wonders if that’s why she got the part.
“Professionally, Ivy is based on someone like Kristin Chenoweth, before she made it big,” says one theater expert. “She’s someone who has been in the business from an early age and who really understands it and the politics involved.”
There are women just like her up and down the Great White Way, says Shukert. “There are a lot actresses of Ivy’s stature, that at any moment they could break, and everyone in the business knows who they are.”
AnJelica Huston, a k a Eileen Rand
Eileen Rand is the tough producer who is in the middle of a nasty divorce from her producer husband Jerry (played by playwright Michael Cristofer). She is producing “Marilyn” on her own, and everywhere she turns, her male counterparts seem wary of working with a woman. The character is likely an amalgam of Fran Weissler and Margo Lion, insiders say. Weissler and her husband Barry are the producers behind “Chicago,” one of the most successful musicals in history. Although the Weisslers are still married, many believe the duo are source material for Rebeck.
“Fran is a shrewd judge of character, just like Eileen,” says one Broadway source. “Like all great producers, she understands people and how to manipulate them to get what she needs.”
In Episode 4, Eileen sells a Degas sketch (to Nick Jonas) in order to raise money for “Marilyn.” That’s a story ripped from real life: “Hairspray” producer Margo Lion recounts the time she put up a Matisse sculpture as collateral to Rocco Landesman, former owner of the Jujamcyn theater chain, in order to raise money for her Broadway show, “Jelly’s Last Jam,” about Jelly Roll Morton. “I was young and crazy,” says Lion, who also mortgaged her apartment for that show. “I was betting the house, literally.” She made a good bet — the show was a success. And she got back her Matisse.