History Theatre / TheFantasticks

* NoFourthWall: It's El Gallo's job as the narrator to [[InteractiveNarrator interact with the audience]]. Everyone else gets in on the action a bit too. It's arguably the best part about the show.

--> [[LargeHam RAAAAAAAAAAAAAPE! RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAPE! The pretty rape! Such a pretty rape...]]

* ItIsPronouncedTroPAY: When Matt's father pronounces the name as "El GALL-O", the man himself says it's pronounced "El GUY-o". In Spanish double l's [ll] make a "ya" sound.

* ItsPronouncedTroPAY: It's pronounced "El GUY-o". In Spanish double l's [ll] make a "ya" sound.

[[caption-width-right:300:Try to remember a time in September...]]

** In the film version, Mortimer is played by Teller of PennAndTeller fame, and true-to-form has no intelligible lines (though he does speak in some of the deleted scenes).

''The Fantasticks'' is an off-Broadway musical, loosely based off ''Les Romanesques'', that first premiered May 3rd, 1960 and is currently the [[LongRunner worlds' longest running musical production]], originally running for 42 years. Its revival, in the Jerry Orbach Theatre (named for the original performer of El Gallo), began on August 23, 2006 and will end its run in June 2017. In the lobby, there is a count of how many shows it has had in New York City -- over 21,500.

* NoBudget:
** About eight actors needed, a piano, and one harp. Gallo describes some of the scenes to us in poetry instead of using props or settings, and their moon is made of cardboard. The cardboard moon became such an iconic feature that it's now a traditional prop for the play. Subverted, though, in that royalties are far more expensive than many comparable musicals due to the relatively high prices of the outfit which happens to license it for production.
** InUniverse, the budget for a first class rape is reduced to near zero - hence the jobs for Henry and Mortimer, as opposed to ''good'' actors.

''The Fantasticks'' is an off-Broadway musical, loosely based off ''Les Romanesques'', that first premiered May 3rd, 1960 and is currently the [[LongRunner worlds' longest running musical production]], originally running for 42 years. As of this writing (January 31st, 2011), it has been revived at the Snapple Theater, also known as the Jerry Orbach Theater, and has been running there since August 23, 2006, now making it about ''50 years old''.

* StarCrossedLovers: Matt and Luisa, or so they think.

* FundamentallyFunnyFruit: "You're... standing... in... my... '''kumquats!'''" "Sorry!"

** About eight actors needed, a piano, and one harp. Gallo describes some of the scenes to us in poetry instead of using props or settings, and their moon is made of cardboard. The cardboard moon became such an iconic feature that it's now a traditional prop for the play.

* ThreeChordsAndTheTruth: In a ''good'' way. The music is simple, the lyrics and ideas are sincere, and it can be performed by a cast on any level of talent, pretty much. (With one possible exception: Luisa's role is very difficult to sing, with lots of coloratura soprano sections.)

http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Fantasticks_2834.jpg

* BerserkButton: Don't mess with Bellamy's plants. Or Huckabee's for that matter.

* BerserkButton: Don't mess with Bellamy's plants.
** Or Huckabee's for that matter.

** The Rape Ballet, [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin natch]]. El Gallo insists on referring to "abduction" as "rape" out of loyalty to poetics.
** As well as the first lines of "It Depends On What You Pay." To quote:

*** "It Depends On What You Pay" counts in its entirety as it is basically just a long list of different types of "rape."
* CloudCuckoolander: Luisa and her father. Must be a family trait.
* CurtainCall: In the film adaptation, the cast comes on for a curtain call after it's over. They're done in order of credit, so the first-credited people (Joel Gray and Barnard Hughes) come on first, even though they don't have the lead parts.
* DarkReprise: What El Gallo sings to Matt before he goes down the road to see the world is reprised when El Gallo is luring Luisa down that same path, only now Matt sings of despair and El Gallo sings of marvels.

** Mortimer. Just... Mortimer.

--> '''El Gallo''': [[TemptingFate Haha! I'm not dead!]]

* FundamentallyFunnyFruit: "You're . . . standing . . . in . . . my . . . '''kumquats!'''" "Sorry!"

* [[HeyItsThatGuy Hey, It's That Guy!]] / [[HeyItsThatVoice Hey, It's That Voice!]]: If you've seen pictures of, heard excerpts of, or are old enough to remember the original 1960 premiere, you might notice El Gallo was played by Jerry Orbach, AKA [[Disney/BeautyAndTheBeast Lumiere]] and [[LawAndOrder Lennie Briscoe]].

* ItsPronouncedTroPAY: It's pronounced "El GUY-o"
** Because it is. In Spanish double l's [ll] make a "ya" sound.

* NoBudget: About eight actors needed, a piano, and one harp. Gallo describes some of the scenes to us in poetry instead of using props or settings, and their moon is made of cardboard. The cardboard moon became such an iconic feature that it's now a traditional prop for the play.
** InUniverse, the budget for a first class [[strike: abduction]] rape is reduced to near zero - hence the jobs for Henry and Mortimer, as opposed to ''good'' actors.

* TheSpeechless: The wall/ The mute. He also serves as sort of the prop master.

* {{"Funny Aneursym" Moment}}: The song "Try to Remember" after 9/11. It was actually sung at many memorial events, including at Ground Zero in December of 2001, just three months after the attacks.

* "FunnyAneursym"Moment: The song "Try to Remember" after 9/11. It was actually sung at many memorial events, including at Ground Zero in December of 2001, just three months after the attacks.

* FunnyAneursym: The song "Try to Remember" after 9/11. It was actually sung at many memorial events, including at Ground Zero in December of 2001, just three months after the attacks.

* AdaptationExpansion: The French play ''Les Romanasques'' (The Romancers) is the source for Act I. Act II is entirely new.