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The Bomb-itty of Errors

Full-Length Play, Comedy  /  4any gender (adult)

The Bomb-itty of Errors is an award-winning add-rap-tation – a hip-hop theatre retelling of Shakespeare's The Comedy of Errors. The 90-minute show is part play and part rap concert, refreshingly current while retaining the integrity of the original.

The Bomb-itty of Errors

  • Cast Size
    Cast Size
    4any gender (adult)
  • Duration
    Duration
    90 minutes
  • SubGenre
    Subgenre
    Adaptation (Shakespeare)
  • Audience
    Target Audience
    Appropriate for All Audiences, Adult, Pre-Teen (Age 11-13), Teen (Age 14-18)
Accolades
Accolades
  • Nominee: 2000 Drama Desk Award for Best Lyrics
    Nominee: 2000 Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding New Off-Broadway Play
    Winner! 2001 Jefferson Award (Chicago) for Best Production
    Winner! Grand Jury Prize at the HBO US Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen

Details

Summary
The Bomb-itty of Errors is a high-paced, energetic, musical "add-rap-tation" of Willy Shakespeare's The Comedy of Errors. Elizabethan times get pumped up with live hip-hop flavor in this hilarious, award-winning show. First performed off-Broadway in New York, nominated for Drama Desk Award, Outer Critic's Circle Award, and winner of the Jefferson Award and Best Show at the HBO Comedy Festival, The Bomb-itty has played in Chicago, Philadelphia, London and Amsterdam, and continues to find new fans, audiences and productions around the globe. Usually performing with a live DJ onstage, actors sing, rap and rhyme fun, catchy and laugh-out-loud songs. The show can be performed with anywhere from 4 to 20 actors, depending on how you want to cast it. Bring the most exciting show to an audience near you! You will be swept up in the electric fun of Bomb-itty!
History
The Bomb-itty of Errors opened off-Broadway at the Bleecker Street Theatre on December 12, 1999. Directed by Andy Goldberg, the production featured Jordan Allen-Dutton, Jason Catalano, Gregory J. Qaiyum and Erik Weiner.

ACTOR 1 – Dromio of Syracuse, Desi, Dr. Pinch, Backup singer, Hendel-berg Double #4
ACTOR 2 – Antipholus of Ephesus, Adriana, Bobby, Backup singer, Receive Cat, Hendelberg Double #2
ACTOR 3 – Antipholus of Syracuse, Hendelberg, Abbess, Luciana Double
ACTOR 4 – Dromio of Ephesus, Luciana, Cop, C-Fake, Felicio, Shake-speare

Though the original off-Broadway produoction employed 4 actors, there are parts for up to 20 performers.

Parts for up to 20 performers

  • Time Period Contemporary, Present Day, 16th Century/Elizabethan
  • Features Contemporary Costumes/Street Clothes, Period Costumes
  • Additional Features Audience Participation/Interactive, No Intermission, Play with Music
  • Duration 90 minutes
  • Cautions
    • No Special Cautions

Media

“A rap version of Shakespeare's Comedy of Errors that pulses with wit, savvy and a sublime sense of its own ridiculousness.” – The Telegraph

“This energetic twist on Shakespeare's The Comedy of Errors is a thrill, GRADE: A!” – Entertainment Weekly

“This fantastic show is one of the most entertaining, slick and inventive you'll see on the Fringe this year—and it has some clever insights to shed on the Bard's classic farce too... Does what so many productions fail to do—it makes Shakespeare funny. Not just chuckling, yes-I-see-this-part-is-meant-to-be-comical funny, but laugh out loud, hollering and cheering funny... The language is as clever, sharp and twisty as Shakespeare's.” – Edinburgh Evening News

“Nothing short of brilliant. Clever writing, rhythmic flow, witty musical allusions and intelligent humor... the show is thoroughly entertaining.” – MTV

“A rap version of Shakespeare's Comedy of Errors that pulses with wit, savvy and a sublime sense of its own ridiculousness... You'll be enchanted.” – The Telegraph

Bomb-itty is witty, lewd and altogether new. Think 'The Beastie Boys from Syracuse.'” – The New Yorker

“A stroke of genius... the language fizzes with new life, it's irreverent and yet in tune with Shakespeare's original, it's clever and witty and fast.” – The Times

Bomb-itty of Errors gives the bard's slapstick farce a Generation-Y rejuvenation... scores very high on sexy-party index... You're carried along by the energetic tumble of words.” – The Wall Street Journal

ON BREAKING CHARACTER

The Journey of Bomb-itty 
by Erik Weiner
February 1, 2017

Videos

  • The Bomb-itty of Errors: Prologue youtube thumbnail

    The Bomb-itty of Errors: Prologue

Music

  • Musical Style Pop/Rock, Operetta
  • Vocal DemandsModerate
  • Chorus Size No Chorus

Licensing & Materials

  • Minimum Fee: £55 per performance plus VAT when applicable.
  • Optional Music/Media Fee: £18 per performance

Scripts

Available Formats:

Add-Ons

Take a look below at how you can enhance your show!

Authors

Jordan Allen-Dutton

Jordan Allen-Dutton, three time Emmy-nominated writer/producer, graduated from Tisch at NYU in '99 (recipient of the Artist Scholar Award.) While at NYU he created The Bomb-itty of Errors, a hip-hop add-rap-tation of Shakespeare's Comedy of Errors, which became a smash Off-B ...
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Author

Jason Catalano

Gregory J. Qaiyum

GQ co-created, co-directed, and starred in the original productions of Othello: The Remix, Funk It Up About Nothin'. G also co-wrote and starred in the Off Broadway smash hit The Bomb-itty of Errors. Along with his brother and the other Bomb-itty guys, G wrote and starred in ...
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Jeffrey Qaiyum

JQ made his Off Broadway debut when he laid down the beats as DJ/Composer for the smash Shakespearean 'add-RAP-tation', The Bomb-itty of Errors. Along with his brother, GQ, he co-created, co-directed, composed and starred in the original productions of Othello: The Remix and ...
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Erik Weiner

Erik Weiner is a three-time Emmy nominated and Peabody Award winning writer, as well as a Screen Actors Guild Award winning actor. He was born and raised in San Francisco and graduated from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts. Mr. Weiner co-created and starred in The Bomb-itty of ...
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