The Cradle Will Rock - Brecht’s challenged his friend Marc Blitzstein to to write a work about all types of prostitution. This very Brechtian musical about unionizing workers in Steeltown, USA is infamous for the events surrounding the opening night (The Federal Theatre project eliminated funding and padlocked the building) and the play’s director (Orson Wells).
But it is the plot, characters and operatic form of Blitzstein’s musical that resonate throughout “Urinetown.” In “The Cradle Will Rock” the megalomaniacal capitalist Mr. Mister exploits Steeltown with the help of his cronies in the Liberty Committee. Working woman and revolutionary Ella Hammer sings about the plight of Joe Worker and hero Larry Foreman incites the workers to unite. The American Century Theatre website has an excellent study guide for the plot and characters of “The Cradle Will Rock.”
Hasenpfeffer – In the song “Don’t Be the Bunny” Cladwell sings “Hasenpfeffer’s in the air, As the bunny gets the chair” Hasenpfeffer is a traditional German dish, a rabbit stew seasoned with pepper and wine. 
Lock, Stock and Barrel – The three terms refer to parts of a gun. The lock was the firing mechanism of early firearms, the stock was the wooden handle and the barrel held the bullet. The expression means “the entirety of anything.” In the eighteenth century, the phrase “stock and block” referred to all of one’s possessions. “Lock, stock and barrel” as an expression came into use in the nineteenth century; the first reference in the Oxford English Dictionary is credited to Sir Walter Scott in 1817.
Moses Hogan – Well-known arranger of spirituals and gospel songs for chorus, also a pianist, composer and conductor. He graduated from the
Malthus - At the end of the play, Officer Lockstock declares, "Hail Malthus." Thomas Malthus (1766-1834) was a political economist, one of the first to study poverty. Malthus proposed that human overpopulation would exceed natural resources. Overpopulation was kept in check - by divine intervension- through war, disasters, epidemic disease and famine. Malthus characterized the lower classes as lazy, unintelligent and prone to vice, therefore undeserving of public relief. He also called for universal suffrage and public education, believing that exposure to middle class values would motivate poor individuals. Malthus' writings influenced Charles Darwin.
"The power of population is so superior to the power of the earth to produce subsistence for man, that premature death must in some shape or other visit the human race. The vices of mankind are active and able ministers of depopulation. They are the precursors in the great army of destruction, and often finish the dreadful work themselves. But should they fail in this war of extermination, sickly seasons, epidemics, pestilence, and plague advance in terrific array, and sweep off their thousands and tens of thousands."
McQueen, Steve - Once crowned the “King of Cool,” Steve McQueen was a icon of high-action manliness. McQueen had a troubled childhood and attended a school for wayward boys. He later used his clout as a movie star to acquire supplies such as jeans and razors for boys at the school. McQueen served in the US Marine Corps and used his GI Bill money to train at the Actor’s Studio with Lee Strasberg. Also trained in marital arts, McQueen was a pall-bearer at Bruce Lee’s Funeral. The popular actor was a pilot, a fanatic race car driver and motorcyclist, who often performed his own stunts. Allegedly on Charles Manson’s celebrity death list, he missed the Tate-Polanski party for a romantic liaison. McQueen debuted in “The Blob” and rose to stardom with “The Magnificent Seven” and “The Thomas Crowne Affair” (which featured a 55-second kiss with Faye Dunaway) His signature roles were the titular characters in “Bullilt” and “Papillon.” McQueen died of lung cancer contracted from asbestos exposure, although not before attempting several experimental and illegal cancer treatments in Mexico. He kept his illness a secret until just before he died. This website featuring McQueen movie posters illustrates his marketing appeal as sex star and gritty anti-hero. Neo-Brechtian – Bertolt Brecht, a German playwright and producer, developed a form of performance in post-WW1
Neo-Futurists - A Chicacgo experimental theatre group, part of the shared roots of the creators of Urinetown. "The Neo=Futurists are a collective of wildly productive writer/director/performers who create theatre that is fusion of sport, poetry and living-newspaper, non-illusory, interactive performance that conveys experiences and ideas as directly and honestly as possible; and immediate, un-reprpoducable events at affordable prices. We embrace those un-reached or unmoved by conventional theater. New York International Fringe Festival – Begun in 1996 as a counter-point to the Edinbugh Festival in Scotland, the New York Fringe is a “sixteen day celebration of the best emerging theatre companies and performing artists in the world, held on the historic Lower East Side and East Village of Manhattan, and is a production of The Present Company,” according to FringeNYC.org. The Web site also claims the Fringe is “the largest multi-arts festival in
Nitrates - Old Man Strong claims to be “Crazy with the nitrates half the time” in the song “Privilege to Pee.” He could be referring to environmental damage from the stink years, a urinary tract infection, or decreased oxygen in his blood. Nitraets are water-soluble organic compounds, a combination of nitrogen and oxygen. High levels of nitrates in drinking water may be caused by seepage from waste water, refuse dumps, septic tanks, and animal feedlots. In human blood, nitrates react with hemoglobin to produce methemoglobin, which prevents red blood cells from transporting oxygen. Nitrate toxicity can cause “blue baby” syndrome. Nitrates also occur in human urine as a byproduct of urinary tract infections.
Pay toilets (in
Soupy - In early twentieth century U.S. military slang, soupy refered to the summons to a meal. During the potato famine, Evangelical protestants who required Irish Catholics to convert in exchange for food and clothing were called soupers.
The term soupy may also be a nod to the history of industrial pollution. In London history, “pea-soupers” referred to the heavy blankets of smog caused by the burning of soft-coal (an affordable fuel). Reform laws were initiated in 1952 after a four-day fog killed 4,000 Londoners.
Soupy may also be a reference to the comedian Soupy Sales. Sales was a popular television and nightclub personality in the 1950s, 60s and 70s. Sales was notorious for throwing pies at celebrities on his show. His name was derived from a family nickname “Soup Bone.” The word can also mean “sentimental” or “mawkish” when used as an adjective.
Stevens Point, WI - A High School production of "Urinetown" was canceled and replaced with "The Music Man" because school administrators did not feel the show was age-appropriate for students in the district. Defending her decision at a school board meeting, Superintendent Bette Lang "noted that the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction English Language Arts Performance Standards does not address mastery of irony until the grade 12 level. Former Madison Mayor Paul Soglin defended "Urinetown" on his blog.
