There’s a line in Shucked that says, “There’s a cornfield of difference between simple and stupid. That’s a simple mistake stupid people make.” That’s a pretty good summary of the musical itself.

Shucked on Broadway recently announced that they will be closing in early January 2024, so I thought it was finally time to crank out this review. I know you’ve all been anxiously awaiting this one. I hope you can sleep better now that it’s out.

I was highly skeptical of this show going into it. I watched their Tony Awards performance and was utterly confused. However, my friend Marlena saw Shucked and highly recommended it (hi Mar!), and I really respect her opinion, so I figured I’d give it a shot.

Shucked is a musical about corn. The plot itself is pretty simple – the corn in Cob County stops growing, so one woman of the town, Maizy, goes on a journey to try to find someone to save the town. That’s really all you need to know (though I don’t think you even need to know that – it’s fairly self-explanatory). The show isn’t heavy or difficult to grasp, and it’s very corny, but boy was it a good time.

Shucked is basically a series of one-liners mixed with country music songs. It’s not a long show (maybe a bit over 2 hours long, including an intermission), so it could, in theory, work as a one-act. However, I watched an interview with a member of the creative team, and he mentioned that they chose to keep the intermission in order to give audiences a break from laughing. That should give you an idea of the sheer volume of jokes in this show.

Why Shucked works so well is that it doesn’t take itself too seriously. It knows exactly what kind of show it is, and it fully commits to the silly and campy. And while the plot is simple, it’s not stupid – it functions well, and complements the genuinely lovely country music songs (written by Grammy-award winning country music artists Brandy Clark and Shane McAnally). The cast is stellar, the set is beautiful, and it’s such a fresh burst of energy that I haven’t seen in a while. That being said, tucked in between the jokes and the songs is a lot of heart – it’s a real feel-good piece of theatre.

If you don’t like silly, then Shucked is not the show for you. However, if you’re looking for something that will make you belly-laugh for two hours straight and feel warm and fuzzy inside when you leave, then check out the show that everyone’s stalk-in’ about.

Shucked is playing at the Nederlander Theatre on Broadway until January 14, 2024. You can grab tickets on their official website, though if you’re more price-conscious, you can enter the digital lottery or purchase in-person $40 rush tickets at the theatre the day of the show. You can also check out the TKTS booth in Times Square or at Lincoln Center.

Featured image: Shuckedmusical.com