Smash started previews at the Imperial Theatre on March 11 and will be opening on April 10, 2025. The composing team for the show, Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, sat down with CBS Sunday Morning to talk about moving the show to Broadway.
“You’re just looking at a white blank page,” they said, discussing the fear of starting a new project. “And it’s just the most frightening thing on earth.”
CBS Sunday Morning also discussed the creation of a show withing a show, which is just what this production is. When talking about the process, director Susan Stroman says, “Everything that is in Smash, I’ve actually lived through.”
To watch the video, see below.
About the show
At the center of Smash is the creation of Bombshell, a fictional Broadway musical about the life of Marilyn Monroe. Tensions soar as two actresses compete for the starring role: Karen Cartwright, a fresh-faced dreamer, and Ivy Lynn, a seasoned Broadway veteran. Meanwhile, the creative team navigates its own struggles, from composer Tom Levitt’s perfectionism to book writer Julia Houston’s personal crises. The result is a musical journey that explores ambition, artistry, and the emotional highs and lows of showbiz.
Based on the Emmy-nominated NBC series that aired from 2012 to 2013, Smash builds on the show’s legacy. Created by Theresa Rebeck and produced by Steven Spielberg, the series became a fan favorite for its inside look at Broadway’s cutthroat world. The show’s original music, composed by Tony and Grammy winners Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman (Hairspray, Some Like It Hot), earned acclaim for songs like “Let Me Be Your Star,” “Don’t Forget Me,” and “The 20th Century Fox Mambo”—all of which are featured in the Broadway production, alongside brand-new numbers. If you loved the TV series, it’s exactly what you want. And if you didn’t… they changed everything.
