‘Clinton The Musical’: The Ballad of Horny Bill, Dogged Hillary, and Lovesick Lewinsky

Talk about timing. On the evening of April 9, mere days before Hillary Clinton reportedly is set to announce her candidacy for president of the United States, the over-the-top production Clinton The Musical made its Off-Broadway debut. Playing at New World Stages in Midtown Manhattan, the brisk, 92-minute, one-act musical offers a flamboyant take on the tabloid-ready Clinton-Lewinsky ’90s sex scandal, and boasts a wild cast of characters, from cardboard Al Gore to a deviant, S&M enthusiast Ken Starr. The play, directed by Dan Knechtges and composed by Aussies Paul and Michael Hodge, opens with a spare Oval Office stage. Framed portraits of former presidents posing with images of their mistresses decorate the walls, from Thomas Jefferson with a slavewoman to JFK with a bevy of beauties, including Marilyn Monroe. Then out pops Hillary (played by Tony Award nominee Kerry Butler), sporting her signature blue power suit. “Good afternoon!” she announces. “My name is Hillary Rodham Clinton, and I’d like to tell you about my first presidency.”