In just a few days, Clay Aiken is about to be transformed into a brave and gallant knight of song and dance, as he endeavors to join the cast of the Broadway musical 'Monty Python's Spamalot.' Far be it to surmise that this most famous second banana of the 'American Idol' franchise possibly may have been miscast, but not only did he admit to not really getting the revered British comedy troupe's humor, he was laboring under a strange notion of exactly who or what this Python is. "I thought Monty Python was a person until three months ago," Aiken told Newsweek. And upon first exposure to the Python brand of absurdist comedy, the singer was initially none too impressed. "The first time I saw it I thought it was the stupidest thing I'd ever seen in my entire life," he added.

Though some may sneeringly dismiss the Broadway stage as a place for wusses and wimps, Aiken said he has been asked to get physical in unaccustomed ways to prepare for his role as the chickenhearted chevalier Sir Robin. "It hurts so bad," he said. "I don't know if it's I'm not coordinated or using muscles I never had to use before," he admitted, confiding that as a result he "couldn't even get off the toilet the other day."

We're guessing this production must be quite different from the movie version.