‘Duck’ musical could pave way for more Broadway tests

A musical based on “Duck Dynasty” wouldn’t have been my first choice for a new show from Broadway producers either. But the fact that it’s launching here is actually pretty cool.

Let’s table the whole “Are they insane, or could this possibly be good?” debate until “The Duck Commander Musical” opens at the Rio. Today, let’s just focus on Las Vegas test-piloting a new work with a legitimate pedigree and credible money behind it (maybe you’ve heard of former Sony Music head Tommy Mottola), and one that might even go to Broadway.

Not that it ever has to leave the Rio. “Among the various possibilities (for its future), we would like nothing more than to have reason to stay in Las Vegas as long as they’d have us,” producer Michael David says.

But David also compares the Rio run to La Jolla, Calif., where his Dodger Theatricals broke in “Jersey Boys” and “The Who’s Tommy” before their Broadway debuts.

“We were looking for the place to find out what we had,” David says. “An intimate space sort of out of the way, in a cosmopolitan area, that might attract friendly audiences from everywhere.”

Because “Jersey Boys” has been on the Strip since 2008, “we went almost immediately to a familiar place,” he says. “A place that’s been very good to us. It seemed perfect to see what we’ve got and basically see what people think about it.”

Feel free to infer that the “Duck” show might get shot right out of the sky in New York.

It’s a reasonable fear that Broadway’s gay-friendly core audience would shun “Duck Commander,” either for lack of interest or “Duck Dynasty” patriarch Phil Robertson’s homophobic comments.

Here, the backlash seems to be more about perceived condescension. One that could be phrased as, “They still think we’re rubes who go see Wayne Newton and ‘Nudes on Ice’ even though we have Joel Robuchon and Guy Savoy.”

But you chip-shoulders should remind me of what higher-brow shows you’ve supported lately in the tourist corridor. Jeff Dunham and Britney Spears did not exactly expand the hard-fought frontiers claimed by Penn &Teller, Blue Man Group and Cirque du Soleil shows not featuring Criss Angel.

The testing-ground concept is sound, too. Head over to the MGM Grand, where for years the CBS Television City research center has recruited tourists to rate TV pilots.

Yes, it was more prestigious when Teller gave us his version of “The Tempest” at The Smith Center for the Performing Arts last year. But most of us who saw that were locals. If the “Duck” awakens other Broadway producers to the idea of limited, pre-Broadway test runs, maybe the more adventurous stuff will follow.

There’s still that planned musical version of “The Love Boat” looking for a home.

Contact reporter Mike Weatherford at mweatherford@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0288.