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Broadway Grosses: Week Ending 6/26
Jun 28
2011, 12:30:33 PM
re: comparing Dance of the Vampires -
- did Dance of the Vampires manage to stay in the top 3 even during a disastrous preview period, or, for that matter, to make 1.7 mil in a week? Spider-man, if it's shown anything thus far, it is precisely the sort of staying power (despite scathing reviews during it's preview period) which demonstrates that it may be tapping into something (for some here, I'm sure, for better or worse!) potentially resonating with a broad and potentially long-lasting
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Broadway Grosses: Week Ending 6/26
Jun 28
2011, 11:13:27 AM
I'm not sure how you would define "smash hit" - Wicked had only so-so reviews when it first came out:
http://www.stagegrade.com/productions/359
(a "C+" here vs. C for Spider-man)
My point is that even with poor reviews, Wicker has now been on for 8 years, which for Spider-man would be more than enough to presumably recoup.
As far as positive word of mouth, Spider-man must be getting SOME sort of positive buzz among actual "people" or it wouldn't be bringing in 1.7 million in a week....
My two cents at any rate (and no, I don't work for the production, amazingly enough  )...
- robjohn
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Broadway Grosses: Week Ending 6/26
Jun 28
2011, 02:41:56 AM
re: Spider-man breaking even -
Hey, Wicked did it (and their reviews were also pretty bad ) - just sayin'...
- robjohn
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ridiculous Spider-man pull-quote
Jun 15
2011, 11:58:40 PM
I've actually been a big supporter of Turn Off the Dark and have sincerely been rooting for them (and am looking forward to seeing the revised version after having seen 1.0 twice, etc., notwithstanding the carping that has persisted on this board )...However, I have to say that I'm quite turned off by how cynically they distorted this review from the Chicago Sun-Times (particularly annoying since there were actually plenty of "sincerely" positive reviews or at least potential quotes for them to use without having to resort to this). Is this truly how things are "normally" done? It certainly makes me as a consumer feel manipulated (again, to me unnecessarily):
Here's whats on the Spiderman webpage:
A visual feast! Unquestionably spectacular!
– Chicago Sun-Times
and here's the original actual review (the "pulled quotes" in caps):
"With crushingly weak and puerile writing, an almost total lack of storytelling momentum, a numbingly bland score by Bono and the Edge, but UNQUESTIONABLY SPECTACULAR sets by George Tsypin that only underscore the puniness of the material, “Spider-Man” is like a giant insect hopelessly thrashing its legs, yet unable to spin the crucial web of awe and wonder."
(later):
"But you can’t just eat the scenery, even if Tsypin gives us quite A VISUAL FEAST. "
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thoughts after seeing Spider-man TOTD for the 2nd time
Mar 17
2011, 02:48:25 PM
Staying far away from the sniping , I wanted to add a couple of more observations about what has changed between the version I saw last night and the version from the Fall:
- generally, anytime they could, they tried to quicken the accompanimental musical pace, even when singing what were previously slow, lyrical sorts of melodies overtop (vs. before when they tended to remain ballads in feel, which dragged the show down)...This was particularly noticeable in Peter Parker's climactic "running in spot" scene as he heads to Arachne/Mary Jane towards the end - previously, the piece began extremely slowly with a minimum of rhythmical accompaniment; now it gets into a heavy groove early on and maintains an exciting momentum thru to the end (which received a thunderously positive response last night and I thought was quite effective). As I mentioned before, the ending sequence of the musical also did this to great effect, minimizing the "ethereal/glacial" sorts of tempi and diving into "Rise Above" to round out the musical as Peter Parker flies around the auditorium...
- they definitely cut some non-essential Geek Chorus stuff, and completely cut a scene in Act 2 that previously occurred in which Arachne visits Jameson in human form (which at the time struck me as bizarre and illogical). The focus in Act 2 has overall become much less on Arachne's determination to get Jameson's attention to generate newspaper headlines, and much more on her jealousy of Mary Jane (what does she have that I haven't got, etc., etc.), and therefore her motivation to grab her by the end and hold her essentially hostage...This (whether we all like it or not ) is also now the motivation for that whole "Furious" number, which feels essentially (and albeit campily) like Arachne is essentially saying "I'm more woman than MJ - hell, I've got 8 legs instead of 2" (to paraphrase), which she then "shows off" with the other furies...
- there were other moments also which to me helped heighten the dramatic flow. Previously, MJ was talking casually about canned peaches when she suddenly disappeared (ostensibly by Arachne); now Peter Parker has just told her "I'm Spider-man!" when she suddenly is grabbed...
Overall, I was left with the impression that they most definitely did many tweaks, some big, some small, with the overall net effect of definite, engaging improvement. It worked to me, it was entertaining, and feels finished. It's not perfect, but the audience left entertained and (judging from some conversations I overheard), perplexed by all the negative press. But to each their own ...
- Robjohn
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thoughts after seeing Spider-man TOTD for the 2nd time
Mar 17
2011, 03:33:02 AM
Just saw Spider-man TOTD for the 2nd time (the first time I saw it was the 3rd day of previews last Fall) and (I have to admit) really loved it this time (so let the sniping begin )…
The first time I saw it, I generally found the first act to tell an enjoyable, coherent, Spider-man "origins" story, but found the 2nd Act (as have apparently many) confusing plot-wise, with too many plodding-paced ballads and directorial indulgences…
While I can't give you a point-by-point comparison of what exactly changed, the bottom line for me is that the show is now definitely a coherent, enjoyable, and entertaining whole from beginning to end. The first Act seemed smoother (and the show as a whole had no technical mishaps), with at most some tweaks here and there to keep things generally moving. The second Act has been given a rousing finale, including the addition of a new Arachne web as the backdrop for the final battle scene (into which Spiderman scampers effectively up and down as he tried to break through initially to get to Mary Jane), an effective battle between Spidey and Arachne, a visually striking image of Arachne ascending to the heavens and "becoming" a "star pattern", and an exciting final whirl around the hall of Reeve Carney as Spider-man, plus an overtly-pandering (but nonetheless enjoyable) curtain call sequence in which he performs the famous upside-down kiss maneuver borrowed shamelessly from the first Spiderman film. There was also some additional exposition inserted before Deeply Furious (yes, it's still there, but it's campiness somehow felt more consistent with the comic-book campiness already seen elsewhere, including the whole inflatable wrestling match thing earlier, which to me is all just part of Julie's sometimes bizarre creative world), in which Arachne at least explains what is going on as far as everything being an illusion, her intent to capture Mary Jane, her being upset with Peter Parker not donning the Spidey suit again, etc., etc. The Geek Chorus also seemed less annoying by far, and (if I recall), the scene in which Arache sort of takes over their reality (thus confusing us even more about who the Geek Chorus is exactly supposed to be, etc., etc.), with the Chorus ultimately "banished" for the rest of the musical, etc., etc., I believe no longer occurs - they seem to come in throughout when actually serving a useful observational purpose, and otherwise stay out of the way. Frankly, the audience gave them - as well as the rest of the cast - a fantastically rousing ovation by the end, and throughout seemed to accept them and be entertained by their lines and not annoyed the least.
I can't really completely explain why the musical as a whole for me just "worked" (unlike last time, where it felt rough around the edges). Certainly, there are still book issues - there is little chemistry between the two leads, and Arachne's motivation for freeing Spidey at the end still feels confusing. But taken as a whole (and, as I'm sure many feel - "for better or for worse"), there's no denying that the show in it's current form is Julie's vision - the approach she set out to take from the beginning (including the whole mythological angle that I was resistant to the first time; the use of multiple vs. merely 1 villain; the desire to tell more than the origin story and to try and encapsulate material from multiple movies, etc., etc.), and, of course, the stunning visual set design and imaginative overall lighting and imagery. Frankly, I can SEE now why she really felt it was "done", and find myself actually feeling sorry for her (as an artist myself) - like the final product or not, there's no denying that this is what she intended to make, and I can't fathom how someone who put so much creativity into a project and actually made it "work" now in many ways can watch as it's slowly picked apart, first by critics, and now by the new members of the creative team. I, for one, am glad to have caught it in it's current form (which, incidentally, would have been the day after the most recent "opening night" )…I feel for Julie, I commend her for what she's achieved (notwithstanding the sniping here), and I'll cross my fingers that the "improvements" they make will not upset what has already been done. Though I'm sure many here will say that any changes can only help (blah blah blah ), my thoughts are that it's actually hard to take something so specifically tied to an overall creative approach and try to change something here; something there; without the basic integrity starting to get lost - but I wish them well, and hats off to the entire cast for enduring this all with such whole-hearted effort….
A final word about the music: I'm actually happy (notwithstanding my comments above) that they're bringing in someone to help clarify the sound quality and tighten the orchestrations/arrangements, etc., and I certainly can see how some pure theatre-lovers can be dismissive towards the more poetic, generalized rock-lyric approach taken here (vs. the more traditional role of using the music to tell the action/tell the story more specifically, etc., etc.). All I can say (and this as a composer of theatre/film/t.v. myself), is that it also basically just "worked" - it's obviously U2-styled (what else would you expect?), but there were many lovely musical moments and several memorable tunes (including, as others have also cited, "If the World Should End", "Boy Falls From the Sky", and "Rise Above", but also "Bullying By Numbers" and even "Turn Off the Dark", not to mention that damned-insistent guitar-hook-laden melody that typically accompanied all the flying ) - overall, more than enough to leave me feeling musically satisfied, and not even remotely close to the "disaster" that others have suggested it is. Frankly, if the show opened as-is as of today, I think it would be a big hit (not that a show's commercial success is always a reflection of its "objective" artistic merit). But we'll see what happens from here…
- robjohn
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SPIDER-MAN...the nail in the coffin? Taymor takes script
Mar 13
2011, 04:54:52 AM
She DID work on the damn thing for 10 years (good or bad) - cut her some slack!
robjohn
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Spiderman Preview Thread!
Mar 2
2011, 01:43:42 AM
I really liked it, too - felt like good publicity for the show. Nicely evolving song, understated and well arranged (with some good video shots in the background for extra promo value )...
- robjohn99
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my Spider-man opening night tickets (Mar 15) CANCELLED by Ticketmaster??
Jan 15
2011, 04:57:10 PM
Hey, we're just happy to have gotten seats while my family is still in town! (that was the only possible alternate date/time besides our original opening night tickets, and there were just 3 orchestra seats left )...But I hear you and it should be interesting...
Best -
- robjohn
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my Spider-man opening night tickets (Mar 15) CANCELLED by Ticketmaster??
Jan 14
2011, 08:06:03 PM
True ...Actually, we have an ultimately happy outcome (under the circumstances) - my family just spent a couple of hours on the phone with Amex and Ticketmaster and managed to get the 3 remaining orch. seats for the day-after's 2 pm matinee (!)...thanks to everyone for their input!
Robjohn
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my Spider-man opening night tickets (Mar 15) CANCELLED by Ticketmaster??
Jan 14
2011, 06:52:43 PM
One word: "bummer" ...
- robjohn
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my Spider-man opening night tickets (Mar 15) CANCELLED by Ticketmaster??
Jan 14
2011, 05:40:33 PM
But the performance ISN'T cancelled - just my tickets ..
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my Spider-man opening night tickets (Mar 15) CANCELLED by Ticketmaster??
Jan 14
2011, 05:26:28 PM
I would welcome any advice. My brother happened to purchase tickets a week ago Spider-man for Tues, Mar. 15th, which as of two days ago we just found out has now become OPENING NIGHT (needless to say, we were thrilled). Now he just received an email from Ticketmaster stating: "Attention ticket holder! We just learned that your upcoming event has been canceled:
Spider-Man Turn Off The Dark
Foxwoods Theatre
Tuesday, March 15th at 8PM"
with options for swapping or a refund. Th
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Spiderman Preview Thread!
Jan 6
2011, 11:20:11 PM
So which seats would be better: Orchestra Row K (towards the middle), or Flying Circle Row D (towards the middle?) Thanks for any advice!
- robjohn99
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Spiderman Preview Thread!
Dec 9
2010, 12:29:54 PM
Another quite cogent assessment of the state of the show (both positives and negatives);
http://jkstheatrescene.blogspot.com/2010/12/spider-man-turn-off-dark-5th-preview.html
- robjohn99
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Spiderman Preview Thread!
Dec 7
2010, 04:09:54 PM
I think this posting someone did on the whole Spider-man discussion sums things up (at least for me):
http://jkstheatrescene.blogspot.com/2010/12/schadenfreude-of-spider-man-turn-off.html
- robjohn99
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