Broadway Reviews Theatre Review by Howard Miller - May 19, 2026 Celebrity Autobiography. Created by Eugene Pack. Developed and directed by Eugene Pack and Dayle Reyfel. Scenic and costume design by Derek McLane. Lighting design by Ed McCarthy. Sound design by Palmer Hefferan.
And now, just as we turn the corner into a brand new theatre season, what has suddenly popped up but the first Broadway production of a unique entertainment based on the notion that you can find comedy within the ego-driven world of celebrity self-aggrandizement. It's called Celebrity Autobiography, and it opened last night at the Shubert Theatre, featuring a rotating cast of performers whose goal is to elicit laughs by reading aloud from, well, actual celebrity autobiographies. This is a show that has been around for quite a while. It was created in the late 1990s by Eugene Pack (who unabashedly includes himself among the lineup of the rotating cast), started life in Los Angeles, became a Bravo TV special, ran in a number of cities around the U.S. and, for a long time, at Off-Broadway's Triad Theater. And now, at long last, here it is on stage at the Shubert. Take that Forbidden Broadway! I can't, of course, say what it is that makes you laugh. But I can tell you what took me to my happy place at the opening night performance of Celebrity Autobiography. Also what it was that left me with a great respect for finding just the right cast members who are up to the challenge of wringing out laughs by reading aloud from material that was never meant to be read aloud. At the top of the heap for me was Jackie Hoffman, whose dour countenance and stentorian tones were put to great use when juxtaposed to a piece by Oprah Winfrey raving in detail about the virtues of chai tea. That Winfrey's pal Gayle King was on board holding down a guest spot added to the unspoken awkward funniness of the moment, something that Hoffman dealt with by leaping in (as is her wont) and doing her best version of an exaggerated Oprah caricature, deadpan and earnest as a eulogy.
What I grew to understand from these particular performances is that it is not the material that makes the comedy work. After all, none of the celebs being roasted wrote their autobiography with the expectation that it would be made fun of on a Broadway stage. Indeed, if you pay attention to the words being read aloud, you'll see not only egos on parade, but also lots of insecurity that lies beneath the celebrities who are being roasted. This is true whether it relates to Joe Namath's sensitivity about his hair or Carol Channing's rivalry with Barbra Streisand or Justin Bieber's recognition that fame can be a burden or Dolly Parton and Beyoncé's worries about their looks. Fame is a double-edged sword. For that matter, Celebrity Autobiography also puts all of those on stage on the spot as well as in the spotlight. There is nothing inherently funny about the material, so it is up to the cast members to find their path from the written word to the audience. Comic actors like Hoffman and Cantone and Martin and Hiller know from years of practice how to capture just the right combination of seeming-sincerity along with body language and voice to trigger laughter. It's what they do professionally, and they are very good at it. They also are able to manage the difficult challenge of staying on this side of teasing when it comes to their portrayals, to keep us laughing with them and not so much at the celebs themselves. You may find it cool to see some of your other favorite performers on stage, up close and personal behind one of the stand mics that represent the bulk of Derek McLane's set design (there's also a table on which is stacked piles of, presumably, actual celebrity autobiographies). But do understand that not all of them have figured out how to wrest laughter from the material. Reading aloud is an art form unto itself, so it's definitely a mixed bag here. There are likely to be lots of cast regulars, but still, before you buy a ticket, check with the show's website or the ticket booking site to see who is performing on any given day. Then try to match them with your own list of favorites, those whose autobiographies you actually would want to read. Celebrity Autobiography is undoubtedly a piece of fluff, but in the right hands, fluff can be spun into delicious cotton candy.
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