The universe proved it has a wicked sense of humor by having the opening night of Paper Mill Playhouse’s The Producers occur on the very day The New York Times released a piece which revealed GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump had used a tax law loophole that allowed him to spend two decades free of paying any income tax. The Machiavellian devices utilized by the candidate to place himself above morality, are no surprise to anyone who’s alive. What struck as revelatory watching the production of the musical, was how much Mel Brooks got right in predicting the circus-like 2016 election.

The musical was based on Brooks’ eponymous 1968 film, and deals with how down on his luck theatrical producer Max Bialystock (Michael Kostroff), comes up with the ultimate plan to ensure his economic prosperity: he will produce the worst show ever seen on Broadway, which will leave him bankrupt, but allow him to keep all the money he received from backers. He recruits frustrated accountant Leopold Bloom (David Josefsberg) to be his partner in crime, and hilarity ensues as the two settle on making a musical about the rise of the Third Reich called Springtime for Hitler.

Despite the merriment contained in the show, this revival of The Producers (which technically is absolutely flawless), was more akin to watching Cabaret, because it was extremely aware of how much of what we were seeing onstage was a reflection of the political climate. The show captures America’s fascination with seeing just how far they can push bigotry and racism for the purpose of entertainment. When at one point in the show, the dancers form an enormous swastika reflected on a floating mirror, it was impossible to decide whether to laugh at the inappropriate extravaganza, or to shriek in fear that upon leaving the theater the world would in fact resemble the terrible springtime depicted in the show within the show.