BROWARD COUNTY, Fla. – A musical about corn may sound a little funny, but that’s exactly the point — and it’s what’s making Shucked a hit at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts.
Originally a Broadway success, Shucked is now bringing its quirky humor and heartfelt story to South Florida.
Local 10’s Jenise Fernandez spoke with cast member Miki Abraham, who plays Lulu in the production.
“Shucked takes place in fictional Cobb County,” Abraham said. “Our livelihood is corn, and then one day our corn dies and we have to figure out what we’re gonna do, how we’re gonna save it.”
The plot centers around Maisie, the show’s heroine, who heads to the big city in search of a solution.
“Along the way we discover that we have more capacity for change and love than we think we do,” Abraham said. “I always say it’s a show about corn, but it’s not really about corn, but it’s kind of about corn.”
With “183 laughs in the show,” Shucked leans into its comedic side, drawing comparisons to irreverent musicals like The Book of Mormon.
“You play Lulu. Tell me about Lulu because she’s a whole lot,” Fernandez asked.
“Lulu is Maisie’s cousin and she runs the whiskey distillery in town,” said Abraham. “She has the big 11 o’clock number Independently Owned, which is, you know, Alex Newell won the Tony Award for that two years ago.”
“She’s the rock of the community, you know, she knows everything about everyone,” Abraham continued. “She’s the first one to kind of start asking questions about this person that Maisie brings back to kind of fix our corn.”
A Kentucky native, Abraham said they draw inspiration from women in her life to bring Lulu to life. “I get to pull from all the matriarchs in my life to just kind of have this strong woman that just, you know, it’s a lot of sass and a lot of heart.”
Shucked is family-friendly, with humor that spans generations, but the cast is mindful of how some jokes land.
“Some of these jokes, you know, they get a little raunchy and so sometimes depending on where we are we’re like, oh, we hope you like this joke,” Abraham said. “Sometimes people do and sometimes people don’t, but we’re gonna keep going.”
The musical is now playing at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts.
Ticket information is available at browardcenter.org.