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Broderick relies on his personal charm to keep the audience guessing whether he is guileless or ruthless, smart or lucky

costume designer Susan Hilferty, lighting designer Howell Binkley and the video design company of Batwin & Robin Productions.

How To Succeed in Business without Really Trying, based on a 1952 book of the same name by advertising executive Shepherd Mead, is an unlikely musical. It is a show that revels in the Peter Principle, nepotism, hypocrisy, greed and ineptitude. It is a show that is always affable but rarely affectionate, a show in which love is an afterthought, a show that prides itself on its virtual lack of heart and sincerity.

"How To Succeed is a scathing attack on everything," says McAnuff. "And the frightening thing about it is how little things have changed. What happens in the show is way too recognizable. In some ways we've advanced not at all."

This new production originated last October at San Diego's La Jolla Playhouse and marked the end of McAnuff's 12-year run as artistic director. He says he chose to go out with this show because of the involvement of Matthew Broderick, who returns to the stage after and absence of more than eight years.

"Doing How To Succeed is almost like doing a great Shakespeare play," says McAnuff, "in the sense that you only do Richard III if you've got Richard. You build a project around an actor: You tend not to go into auditions for that role. The same is true here. I think there are relativeley few people who could make a tremendous Finch, a Finch that's of its time. Matthew is one of those people. He brings the sociopathic charm to the role that you really need."

Anyone who has followed Broderick's career onstage or on screen is aware that he has charm to spare. The big discovery is that he can sing. "The reason I wanted to do this play was for the chance to sing and dance," says Broderick, a Tony Award winner for Brighton Beach Memoirs, who's been taknig voice lessons for the past few years. Although he has never studied dancing, he executes Cilento's spirited choreography with glee and an endearing self-consciousness that springs out of Finch's walk, a walk that grows more upright and self-assured as the play and his career progress. "I meant it to be all of a piece. The dancing is very much a part of the charactet, so I try to move like I think he would move."

Finch also over-enunciates to the point of unctuousness, even condescension, which the simple-minded Wickets bigwigs find ingratiating. And Broderick relies on his personal charm to keep the audience guessing whether he is guileless or ruthless, smart or lucky.

"I want that uncertainty," says Broderick. "If he's too too awful, or too much of a smart-ass, or too in control, then there's no danger. And it would be very unpleasant to watch a smug man trying to take

[[Image of Matthew Broderick]]
Broderick: "The reason I wanted to do this play was for the chance to sing and dance."

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