“Look, darling,” said the press agent for La Cage aux follies back in August, “forget it! You’re talking about the smash-hit musical of the year. You won’t even be able to buy a house seat until October!” But, I persisted (feeling foolish), didn’t they want the show to get written about? “Darling, of course they do,” said the press agent in a tone that perfectly conveyed the message, “Darling, they don’t give a rotten banana who writes about this show. This show was a smash before it ever hit the boards!”

The press agent proved to be right. As the weeks went by, a ticket to La Cage aux follies was not to be had for love or money. Even the mixed reviews seemed to have no effect on ticket sales. After the requisite full-pager in The New York Times, in fact, the producers didn’t even advertise the show for days. They didn’t have to. La Cage was the sort of runaway hit that nothing could stop.

Human nature being what it is, it is hard not to yearn for what one cannot have.

Human nature being what it is, it is hard not to yearn for what one cannot have. Besides, how could anyone notwant to see a big jolly musical based on Jean Poiret’s farce about two aging homosexuals who run a transvestite nightclub in St. Tropez and the chagrin they suffer when their distressingly heterosexual “son” decides to bring