Assemblywoman Audrey Pheffer as Marge Simpson
Broadway stages were dark — so Queens politicians grabbed the spotlight.
On Saturday, Nov. 17 — the eighth day of the devastating stagehand strike on Broadway — a motley cast of 23 Queens lawmakers soaked up the bright lights, performing a host of hilarious skits and songs to raise money for Queens Theatre in the Park.
The sold-out show, which drew almost 500 people and netted more than $100,000 in proceeds, was Queens Theatre in the Park's eighth Legislative Revue — and the first since 2004.
Normally performed every other year, the 2007 installment — dubbed "The 2007 Legislative Revue Strikes Back" — gave attendees a sneak peek at a $20 million project that will add a semicircular vestibule, cabaret space and a restaurant to the theater by next spring.
As for the performance itself, think of a who's who of Queens politics blended into a spoof-filled spectacle that was part musical, part "Saturday Night Live." Only Will Ferrell could have made it funnier.
City Council Speaker Christine Quinn as "Legally Blonde"
City Council Speaker Christine Quinn (D-Manhattan) donned a blond wig and did a "Legally Blonde" version of herself. Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-Queens, Brooklyn) belted out an amusing adaptation of "If I Only Had a Brain" — but he didn't look much like the Scarecrow in a sleek, pin-striped suit.
State Senator Serphin Maltese as Bart Simpson
And somehow there were roles that were more far-fetched than state Sen. Serphin Maltese (R-Glendale) playing Homer Simpson. Try Councilman Eric Gioia (D-Sunnyside) as Brad Pitt and Assemblyman José Peralta (D-Jackson Heights) as Matt Damon in an improbable "Ocean's 11" takeoff.
The follies also featured an inevitable dose of fumbled lines and a truly memorable moment where state Sen. Toby Stavisky (D-Flushing) and Assemblyman William Scarborough (D-St. Albans) mixed up their cheat sheets — and Stavisky saved the day by poking some impromptu fun at Scarborough's suit.
State Senator Mike Gianaris and City Councilman Eric Gioia
Yet despite the ridiculous costumes and theatrical missteps, no one came out looking worse than Gov. Spitzer. Although not present, the governor was ragged and razzed repeatedly for his aborted proposal to give driver's licenses to illegal immigrants.
Congresswoman Nydia Velasquez
In one merciless swipe, Councilman Leroy Comrie (D-St. Albans), playing a weatherman, said the governor's ill-fated plan came "in like a lion and out like a lamb, a very dead lamb — a lamb that's been hit by a steamroller."
