''Bad Boy Johnny and the Prophets of Doom'' is a rock

stage musical Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movement ...

first performed in Australia in 1989. It is a

satire Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of shaming ...

on religion and

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...

History

1989_-_Melbourne_bad_boy_johnnie.jpg, 1989 Bad Boy Johnny and the Prophets of Doom Written in 1986 by

Daniel Abineri Daniel Abineri (born 8 August 1958) is an English songwriter, actor, director, narrator and playwright known for writing the book, music and lyrics for the controversial rock musical ''Bad Boy Johnny and the Prophets of Doom''. The 1994 London p ...

it premiered in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

in 1989 and featured

Russell Crowe Russell Ira Crowe (born 7 April 1964) is an actor. He was born in New Zealand, spent ten years of his childhood in Australia, and moved there permanently at age twenty one. He came to international attention for his role as Roman General Maxi ...

in the title role. ''Bad Boy Johnny'' enjoyed a six-month run in

and

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, won two International Pater Awards for best

libretto A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...

and score, and spawned a cast album on

WEA The Wea were a Miami-Illinois-speaking Native American tribe originally located in western Indiana. Historically, they were described as either being closely related to the Miami Tribe or a sub-tribe of Miami. Today, the descendants of the ...

and a top ten single "Enemy The Sun". The late Australian pop singer Troy Newman who took over the title role, is heard on the official cast album and single in place of Russell Crowe. In April 1993 a showcase performance of the musical, directed by Daniel Abineri was performed at Jacksons Lane Community Theatre N6. Performing in the cast were 1980s pop band

Then Jerico Then Jerico are an English rock band. They scored four top 40 hits in the UK during the 1980s. Career The band's early line-up included singer Mark Shaw, bassist Jasper Stainthorpe, drummer Steve Wren, and guitarist Scott Taylor. The band pla ...

singer Mark Shaw in the title role, Daniel Abineri as Father McLean, with

Elizabeth Carling Elizabeth Carling (born 20 October 1967 in Middlesbrough) is an English actress and singer best known for her performances in ''Boon'', '' Goodnight Sweetheart'', '' Barbara'', and '' Casualty''. In 1991 Carling was briefly engaged to Neil Morri ...

from TV's drama series

Boon Boon may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Boon (game), a trick-taking card game * ''Boon'' (novel), a 1915 satirical work by H. G. Wells * ''Boon'' (TV series), a British television series starring Michael Elphick * The Ultimate Boo ...

, Sebastian Abineri as Pope Liberty III, Jody Saron as Desire and Cathy Murphy and Matt Selby in supporting roles. On 26 January 1994, ''Bad Boy Johnny'' was re-mounted as a five-week limited showcase run at The Union Chapel in

Islington Islington () is a district in the north of Greater London, England, and part of the London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the ar ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, again directed by Daniel Abineri and starring

Craig Ferguson Craig Ferguson (born 17 May 1962) is a Scottish-born American comedian, actor, writer, and television host. He is best known for hosting the CBS late-night talk show ''The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson'' (2005–2014), for which he won a ...

br>and
Mark Shaw it also featured Cornel John as Charlie Fortune, Anna Jacysaon as Mary, Eve Barker as Desire,

Stephen Marcus Stephen Marcus (born Stephen Mark Scott; 18 June 1962) is a British actor, best known for his role as Nick the Greek in the film ''Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels''. Career Marcus became an actor in 1984 after three years of training at Ar ...

as Pope Liberty, and Sandra Bee,

Perry Benson Perry Benson (born 9 April 1961) is a British character actor best known for his regular roles in British television sitcoms ''You Rang, M'Lord?'' (1988–1993), ''Oh, Doctor Beeching!'' (1995–1997) and ''Operation Good Guys'' (1997–2000). ...

, Louisa Casano, Mark Frost, Daniel Kyle and Louise Anne Wesley as the ensemble. The 1994 London production made national news when it caused grave offence to the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

and was closed down after just nine performances.

Synopsis

Born on the wrong side of the tracks to a single mother and part-time

prostitute Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-penet ...

called Mary, Johnny steals his first

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

and forms a band, the Prophets Of Doom. He is discovered and managed by his evil parish priest Father MacLean. Booked onto an

X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003 ...

-type show called ''Have Your Say'', Johnny is voted by the public as the person the world would like to see as the new

Pontiff A pontiff (from Latin ''pontifex'') was, in Roman antiquity, a member of the most illustrious of the colleges of priests of the Roman religion, the College of Pontiffs."Pontifex". "Oxford English Dictionary", March 2007 The term "pontiff" was late ...

. However, the current incumbent, the obese Pope Liberty III, is not going to step down. Enter Johnny's number one fan Desire who, disguised as a nun, tries to seduce Liberty, leading him to die of a massive heart attack. So Johnny is ordained as the people's Pope. However, he learns that MacLean

rape Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ag ...

d his mother in the

confessional A confessional is a box, cabinet, booth, or stall in which the priest in some Christian churches sits to hear the confessions of penitents. It is the usual venue for the sacrament in the Roman Catholic Church and the Lutheran Churches, but sim ...

box when she was just sixteen and that he is in fact Johnny's father. Things get even worse for Johnny when it then transpires that Maclean murdered Mary in order to get his hands on Johnny. Johnny swears revenge, so MacLean plans to have his client assassinated live on his TV show, ''The Vatican Tonite''.

Original song list

Taken from the 1990 CD recording. * Let us Pray performed by Father MacLean * Another Day performed by Mary * Bad Boy Johnny performed by Johnny and the Prophets of Doom * What U Want performed by Charlie Fortune and the Prophets of Doom * Have Your Say performed by Johnny and the Prophets of Doom * Maybe He's The One performed by the Cardinals * Enemy The Sun performed by Johnny * Kissing God performed by Desire * Make me Divine performed by Mary and Father MacLean * Bye Bye Johnny performed by Father Maclean * I Believe performed by Johnny

Song List (2010 UK Tour)

* Intro performed by Johnny * Let Us Pray performed by Father MacLean * Another Day performed by Mary * Sweet Virgin Mary performed by Johnny * Kissing God (once) performed by Desire * Bad Boy Johnny performed by Johnny and the Prophets of Doom * What U Want performed by Johnny * Have Your Say performed by Charlie Fortune * Nobody Told Me performed by Pope Liberty * Have Your Say (reprise) performed by Charlie Fortune and the Prophets of Doom Interval * Maybe He's The One performed by the Cardinals * Johnny Is The King performed by Father MacLean * Enemy The Sun performed by Johnny * Kissing God (twice) performed by Desire * Make Me Divine performed by Mary and Father MacLean * Bye Bye Johnny performed by Father MacLean * The Power & the Glory performed by Johnny * Let Us Pay performed by Father MacLean * I Believe performed by Johnny

Productions

1989 Australian Cast *

as Johnny * Troy Newman as Johnny *

as Father MacLean *

Wendy Stapleton Wendy Anne-Marie Stapleton (born 8 July 1954) is an Australian pop/rock singer-songwriter, musical theatre performer and television actress and presenter Stapleton has performed as a backing singer, session musician and a solo artist; she fronte ...

as Mary *

Gary Olsen Gary Olsen (born Gary Kenneth Grant; 3 November 1957 – 12 September 2000) was an English actor. He played Ben in the BBC television sitcom ''2point4 Children''. Biography Olsen was born in London and lived with an aunt and uncle after b ...

as Pope Liberty III *

Steve Bastoni Steve Bastoni (born 4 March 1966) is an Award winning, Italian-born Australian actor. He became a household name in Australia for his role as Constable Yannis 'Angel' Angelopoulos in ''Police Rescue'' and as Steve Parker in '' Neighbours''. ...

as Charlie Fortune *

Nadine Garner Nadine Lynette Garner (born 14 December 1970 in Knoxfield, Melbourne) is an Australian actress who started her career as a teen performer. Biography Garner first came to public attention in 1985, as Tamara Henderson in the Australian TV series ...

as Desire *

Brian Mannix Brian Mannix (born 7 October 1961 in Melbourne) is an Australian rock music singer and actor. He is best known as the lead singer of 1980s band Uncanny X-Men. Career Early life Mannix won a 'beauty contest' in his childhood after being entered ...

, Wayne Pygram and Michael-John Hurney as The Cardinals 1993 London Showcase Cast * Mark Shaw as Johnny *

as Father MacLean *

as Mary *Matt Selby as Charlie Fortune *Sebastian Abineri as Pope Liberty *Jody Saron as Desire 1994 London cast * Mark Shaw as Johnny *

as Father MacLean *

as Pope Liberty *Cornel John as Charlie Fortune *Anna Jacysaon as Mary *Eve Barker as Desire *Sandra Bee,

, Louisa Casano, Mark Frost, Daniel Kyle and Louise Anne Wesley as Cardinals/Ensemble 2010 UK touring cast Directed by Daniel Abineri *Steve Steinman as Father Maclean *Dawn Spence as Mary *Henry Bird as Bad Boy Johnny *Emily Clark as Desire *Mike Taylor as Pope Liberty * Nick Newbould as Charlie Fortune Band *Jordan Bracewell (guitar) *Ben Grimsley (bass guitar) *Nickky Miller (drums) *Arthur Bird (keys) *Laura Manship (sax) Nuns backing vocals *Jodie Cooper *Chloe Bass *Emily Clark *Shereen Webb

Cast recordings

In 1989 an LP cast recording of the 1989 Australian production was released on

903171155–1. In 1990 a CD cast recording of the 1989 Australian production was released on

003171155–2. Although it is noted that the title of the show differs and is called "Bad Boy Johnny and the Profits of Doom" and not "Prophets"Taken from the CD Extra songs "Sweet Virgin Mary" performed by Johnny in the show and "Nobody Told Me" performed by Pope Liberty did not feature on either the LP or CD.

Singles

Notes

External links

*{{Official website, http://www.badboyjohnny.com
International Herald Tribute referencing play
1989 musicals Rock musicals