SALTY SPRINGFIELD: AN IMMERSIVE SIMPSONS CABARET & GAMES NIGHT
Where: Victoria Event Centre, 1415 Broad St.
When: Thursday, May 30, 8:30 p.m. (doors at 7:30)
Tickets: $35-$50 from
How does the organizer of Salty Springfield — an event based on The Simpsons featuring drag, burlesque, and cabaret among the nearly dozen elements — properly describe the musical theatre melange she has created?
In myriad ways, it would appear.
“It’s a costume contest, theme party and silent auction, with games and a ton of amazing artists,” Sarah Murphy, artistic director of Salty Broad Productions, said of the immersive event. “It’s organized chaos but quite polished and professional.”
Eddi Licious, Chaz Avery, Lil Jam Jam, Jackbox Jayne, and Dani Jackson are among the sprawling cast of on-stage participants, who will be in character throughout the night, offering slightly skewed versions of the Simpson family (Homer, Bart, Maggie, Marge, and Lisa) and characters Ned Flanders and Mr. Burns. “We have elements that will allow us to break the fourth wall constantly,” Murphy said. Patrons, who are encouraged to dress as their favourite characters, will have an opportunity to join the on-stage revelry at the Victoria Event Centre on Thursday, she added.
“That is what we’re talking about when we say immersive.”
Murphy said she has been dreaming of an event of this kind for more than 15 years, dating back to when she lived in Newfoundland. Though it has been a long time coming, she expects the event — which is nearing sell-out status — to deliver on its promise. Her company Salty Broad Productions, which she founded in 2018, provided her with a long-waited vehicle in which to produce the variety show based on the longest-running American sitcom in television history.
Murphy (who is playing Marge Simpson on this night) expects there will be others in the audience who remain equally-devoted to the beloved series. “The Simpsons was such a huge part of my growing up,” Murphy said. “My cultural references, there were so many times where I would say, ‘The Simpsons taught me that!’ “
She even suggests the spark to her career in musical theatre and cabaret can be traced back to the role The Simpsons played in her professional ambition. The “burlesque adjacent” Murphy said her initial introduction to the world of burlesque came via The Simpsons episode Bart After Dark, where the titular character is sent to work in a burlesque house. “There are such incredible songs [in the show]. But I’ve never seen anybody try and do a fully staged version of any of these numbers — and they are good. It was kind of a no-brainer.”
The Simpsons has given fans a number of memorable musical moments, several of which will produced by Murphy’s talented cast, including the songs See My Vest (widely considered the best song from the series), The Monorail Song (written by talk show host Conan O’Brien), and We Put the Spring in Springfield, which won an Emmy Award in 1997.
“The real challenge has been to kill my darlings, as it were, and determine what could be left out from the night. I wasn’t able to fit in every single reference, every single song, every single scene. It’s a really ambitious show given the costume elements, the staging, and the fact these are really beloved characters, and we really want to do them justice.”
