References to A Chorus Line in Pop Culture
In the 42 years since opening on Broadway, A Chorus Line has seeped into all form of popular culture. Below is a short list of some places the musical has been referenced.
Fun Home (Graphic Novel; Musical)
Both the graphic novel (2006) and the musical adaptation of the same name (2015) reference ACL. The graphic novel, an autobiography by lesbian cartoonist Alison Bechdel, describes a trip to New York City made by Alison's family while she is young. On the trip, they go see A Chorus Line, and lines from two scenes (Paul's monologue and Greg's section of "Montage Part 4") about being gay are included, to relate to Alison and her father, who is also gay.
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The musical, with a book and lyrics by Lisa Kron and music by Jeanine Tesori, also features this trip to New York City, but instead of showing the family going to see the show, Alison and her brothers can be heard in the background of a scene laughing to "the naughty parts" of the show ("Shit, Richie!" and "tits and ass").
Glee (TV Show)
The FOX TV show Glee (2009-2015) follows a group of students in their high school Glee Club. In season two, episode one, Rachel Berry sings "What I Did For Love" as an apology to the club because Rachel, out of love for the club (but mainly for her spot as the lead), sabotaged one of their best chances to improve as a group. In episode four of that season, the students as told to partner up as sing duets and two of the students, Mike Chang and Tina Cohen-Chang, perform "Sing!" as a playful way of getting through the assignment while dealing with Mike's lack of singing ability. In season four, episode twenty, Rachel and her friends Kurt and Santana are invited to a New York City Ballet event by Kurt's boss. The four of them reminisce about their experiences with ballet and sing "At the Ballet."
The Muppets (TV Show; Movies)
The Muppets have made several references to A Chorus Line throughout the decades of their franchise. The tenth anniversary special of the show Sesame Street (1969-) was almost called "A-B-Chorus Line," a reference to the show made stronger by the content of the special in which the Muppets were auditioning for their roles on the show. Another of the franchises' references to the musical is in Muppets Most Wanted (2014). Kermit is in a gulag in Siberia and directs the prisoners, leading them in a musical number ("I Hope I Get It").
Something Rotten! (Musical)
The Broadway musical Something Rotten! (2015), with music and lyrics by Wayne and Karey Kirkpatrick and a book by John O'Farrell, is set during the Renaissance when Shakespeare was dominating English theater. It follows two brothers, Nick and Nigel Bottom who are trying to compete with his fame. Nick decides that his only chance to beat Shakespeare is to visit a soothsayer to find out what the future of theater is. In a song referencing many popular Broadway musicals, Nick learns about what "A Musical" is. At the end of the song, the cast stands in a line and holds up "head sketches" while the end of "I Hope I Get It" plays, referencing that moment from A Chorus Line when the cast does the same thing.
The Simpsons (TV Show)
The long-running FOX TV series The Simpsons (1989-) has an annual "Treehouse of Horror" episode around Halloween where frightening and impossible things happen to the family. In the fifth installment, season six episode six, "Treehouse of Horror V," the family, who have just been turned inside out by a mysterious fog, sing a parody of the song "One." They, with top hats and canes, sing and dance about being turned inside out while the credits roll to end the episode.