Even Jesus gets action: Raunchy theater from Chicago and beyond

While it’s nearly impossible these days to turn on the TV without hearing a boatload of expletives bleeped out (or not), the same titillation usually can’t be found on stages—until this month. April sees the opening of two erotic musicals at smaller venues, storefront BoHo Theatre’s Hello Again and Greenhouse Theater Center’s Cougars! The Musical. It would seem that the salacious tides have turned for self-respecting adults who just want to see some raunchy theater that isn’t a burlesque show for a change. In that spirit, The A.V. Club takes a look at how these new productions stack up against adult musicals past.

Cougars! The Musical

Kate, Bette, and Lana are three senior citizens on the prowl. While dealing with ex-husbands, murderous con men, and a bartender named Meat, the grannies sing about twisting their “dried-up raisin” nipples and giving Thai blowjobs, proving that you’re never too old for a good lay.

How raunchy is it?

The show begins with the cougars straddling their male costars in different Kama Sutra positions while singing about how much they love sucking dick and having anal sex. It’s all pretty lowest-common-denominator stuff, but the ladies enticing the younger men with their G-spots (“the G is for grandma”) is worth a laugh. Listen to some audio clips here. 

Now playing at Greenhouse Theater Center, 2257 N. Lincoln Ave., Saturday nights at 10:30 p.m. through May 22.

Hello Again

Chronicling the erotic encounters of 10 characters, Hello Again spans the entire 20th century, with each of the 10 scenes involving a different sexual act in a specific decade. A turn-of-the-century whore, a husband that toys with homoeroticism aboard the Titanic, and an '80s actress who bribes a writer with her vagina are just a few of the depraved.

How raunchy is it?

Almost every scene contains pretty graphic depictions of sex, but the nurse and writer both really get down in the mud. The '60s nurse ties up an unsuspecting patient before stripping down and mounting him, singing about the power of sex as she writhes on top, while the writer picks up a young boy in a nightclub and takes him home for some gentle anal on a futon. It’s actually kind of touching.

Now playing at BoHo Theatre, 7016 N. Glenwood Ave., Thursday through Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. through May 1.

Me And My Dick

Devised by University of Michigan students, the musical about personified disembodied genitalia that communicate with their owners is the only student musical to land on the Billboard Top Cast Albums chart. And it’s all on YouTube.

How raunchy is it?

Me And My Dick is a story about a boy and his best friend, which would sound pretty tame if his best friend wasn't a talking penis. Audiences are taken to the Land Of The Dicks and witness the flight of the pussies as one boy struggles to get it up during his first sexual experience. Truly inspirational.

Reefer Madness

The musical parody of the 1936 propaganda film tells the tale of Jimmy, a white-bread Midwestwern boy who falls into a life of sexual depravity and murder after taking a hit of marijuana. Following a short-lived run off-Broadway, the musical was turned into a Showtime movie starring Alan Cumming, Ana Gasteyer, and Kristin Bell in 2005.

How raunchy is it?

Smoking weed leads to bondage, rape jokes, and orgies galore. Reefer Madness is so dirty, even Jesus gets action.

The Wild Party (Lippa)

Based on Joseph March's 1929 poem about raucous vaudeville actors Queenie and Burrs, Andrew Lippa's musical starring Taye Diggs and Idina Menzel debuted off-Broadway in 2000.

How raunchy is it?

The lyrics play it safe sometimes, but the party becomes a cocaine-fueled orgy with a song about the joys of orgasming together, and Queenie’s party guests include prostitute Kate, lesbian madam Madeleine True, and the incestuous D’Armano brothers. Plus, a chorus of Sodomites!