Ridiculous...ly AWESOME showstopper from the 1968 Burt Bacharach/Hal David musical, Promises, Promises based on the 1960 Billy Wilder movie The Apartment. The lyrics make absolutely no sense ("Turkey Lurkey, Loosey Goosey, some for Uncle Joe! YEAH! Some for Cousin Lucy..."), but Michael Bennett's neck-snapping choreography that required chiropractors puts it in the "how do they DO that?!" category. (I tried it myself and my neck was in pain for a week). Donna McKechnie's "trick neck" was analyzed and obsessed over by Seth Rudetsky. The cast of the 2003 movie "Camp" reenacts this number, as have many others on YouTube.
(Fun fact: Kelly Bishop, the snotty grandma on Gilmore Girls, is one of the backup dancers).
Unfortunately, the new version of "Turkey Lurkey Time" in the revival is quite lame. The choreography isn't nearly as good, and the whole tempo is far too slow to be a neck-busting showstopper. Do I still want to see it anyway? You bet your bippy!
(Fear not; eventually I will return to your reguarly scheduled snarking).
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