So not everyone has a sense of humor about our former president — or a parody of his nether regions.
Since it began previews on Inauguration Day, there have been six people who have stormed out of Will Ferrell’s one-man Broadway show You’re Welcome America. A Final Night with George W. Bush, the New York Times reports, in which the comedian capitalizes on his SNL lampooning of the 43rd president.
The reason? Apparently, a projection of a supersized penis used as a backdrop on stage is offending some of the audiences.
“It’s an anonymous but age-appropriate public domain Internet penis,” writer/director Adam McKay told the NY Times. “We went on the Web and got a penis.”
“It’s not the president’s penis, as far as I know, and Will is 41, so we weren’t going to use his,” McKay added. “What I do know is that the photo gets one of the great shrieks of delight from the audience, and it’s also the one moment that is followed by people walking out.”
McKay said the idea of using the image of a non-erect penis originated one day in rehearsals, riffing on the comment Bush said about being “a free man” before he entered the White House. Meaning, now that he is out, Bush can do what he wants, including showing his penis to the world.
“He is a frat boy, a big party guy, and you could imagine him doing this,” McKay added, describing Mr. Bush, who is 63. “Though I want to make clear I’m not blaming the president for our very bad taste.”
The show, which has been selling out at the Cort Theater, is scheduled to run through March 15, and will be presented live on HBO next month.
