Laughter on the 23rd Floor at The Garry Marshall Theatre

Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Neil Simon provides a peek behind the scenes of TV's Golden Age in this hit Broadway comedy, based on Simon's time as part of the writing team for Sid Caesar's Your Show of Shows. Set in 1953, the play depicts the distressed writing staff of a weekly variety show as they frantically scramble to top each other with gags while vying for the attention of star madman Max Prince. Max's habit of boozing and popping too many pills is increasing under the pressures of rising McCarthyism, network executives and sponsors who want him to cut back his "too-smart" staff so they can chase after the Leave It to Beaver audience. A skillful mix of nostalgia, laughter and colorful characters, Laughter on the 23rd Floor remains an enduring classic from Simon, as evidenced in this new production from Garry Marshall Theatre.