NBC Releases Trailers for "Smash"

NBC has released trailers for the new musical television series "Smash."

To view NBC's homepage for "Smash," which includes several clips and interviews with the cast, visit http://www.nbc.com/smash/.

About the show: There's nothing more exciting than the opening night of a hit Broadway musical, except maybe what happens getting there. While Wicked and The Lion King pack audiences in on the Great White Way, Julia and Tom, a successful songwriting team played by Debra Messing and Christian Borle, begin work on a new musical based on the life of Marilyn Monroe. When a tenacious producer (Anjelica Houston) jumps aboard, so begins the difficult task of casting the silver screen icon.

Ivy Lynn, a tough Broadway veteran, seems like the obvious choice. But enter Karen Cartwright (Katharine McPhee), a young girl from Iowa with a dream of making it on Broadway who walks in and blows everyone away. So who will get the part and begin a journey that will change their lives? It's an age-old story, but a star just might be born once again.

While everyone is consumed with putting the show together, real life has a tendency of getting in the way. Julia and her husband are in the middle of a complicated adoption; the producer's husband begins divorce proceedings which could threaten the finances of the show; and the brilliant but womanizing director could derail everything if he puts the young star in a compromising position. This will be a rollercoaster ride that culminates on opening night when the audience gets to determine whether or not the show is a smash!

In the era of The Voice and Glee, executive producers Steven Spielberg and Craig Zadan & Neil Meron (producers of Chicago and Hairspray), and songwriters Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman (Hairspray), bring you the blood, sweat, and tears of the making of a Broadway musical.

A TV Show about a Broadway Show about Marilyn Monroe?

Smash: Starring Debra Messing?

An interesting concept, but I'm willing to give it a shot.

From www.insideblip.com:

It seems that NBC has caught the musical bug.

Actress Debra Messing is reported to be close to a deal with the network to star in a pilot about the world of musical theater.

Titled “Smash,” the one hour series revolves around a diverse set of characters brought together to create a Marilyn Monroe-themed musical production. Messing would play the production's good-hearted lyricist, Julia, who is reluctant about the subject matter.

Opposite Julia at the series' heart will be Tom, the show's gay musical composer. So far, there is no word on who will be cast as Tom.

Messing remains best known for her Emmy-winning work as Grace Adler on NBC's hit comedy, "Will and Grace," which ran from 1998 to 2006. She also headlined USA Network's "The Starter Wife" in 2008.

The project comes from an idea by Steven Spielberg, who will share executive producing duties with some of DreamWorks Television’s execs, writer Theresa Rebeck, and "Hairspray" producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron.

Original songs will be contributed by Grammy- and Tony-award winning songwriters Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman.

With some obvious similarities to Fox's musical phenom, "Glee," many fans are wondering if NBC is just trying to copy a successful formula. Questions have also been raised about the sustainability of the series' premise.

However, NBC chief Bob Greenblatt remains passionate about the project, which he spearheaded at Showtime. Yet, despite its pay-cable beginnings, the current incarnation of “Smash” is said to be a network-friendly, broad-based series suitable for NBC's fall schedule.