Profile for bear88

PipingHotPiccolo said: "all this emphasis on whether the show was going to survive or not post/during Mandy, completely missed the point.

Patinkin was a big name get. the idea that wanting him to replace Oak was some sort of racism is PEAK progressive insanity- the kinda accusation that undermines all the legit, troubling racial insensitivities that plague the industry. it was just ugly and wrong, smearing good people out of petty hurt feelings. i mean just say it out loud

Okieriete Onaodowan has had a nice career since the Great Comet fiasco. He was a long-running regular on a popular TV series, leaving only because he wanted to do so, returned to Broadway and has another stage gig next year.

I’m sure there are people who wouldn’t want to work with him, but Onaodowan has done fine. 

I always felt that it was unfortunate that Great Comet, one of my favorite musicals, is remembered as much for

I find it difficult to get too worked up about the cost of the final performance. Even now, if I wanted to see Sunset Blvd. during the last few shows, I could find perfectly decent seats for prices that are higher -  but not absurdly higher - than what I paid in early April for a Wednesday matinee when it was at the TKTS booth every day.

It’s one thing when you can never get a reasonable price for a decent seat. That’s discouraging for anyone wh

It’s interesting that the Cabaret revival has settled into a range of lower prices but nearly full houses during the final weeks of the Orville Peck-Eva Noblezada run. My daughter got the last ticket about three hours before showtime for Saturday night’s sold-out performance. She came to see Noblezada and liked her but was very impressed with Peck.

None of this is enough to turn a profit, but a packed house is still a packed house - even if a reasona

merle57 said: "The original Merman production was a hit, made very good money, and sold well to the movies (enabling Sondheim to buy his Turtle Bay house), and the movie made money as well.

The Lansbury revival was a major hit in London, then toured the US making major money before doing a limited engagement on Broadway which sold out. That revival made big money.The Tyne Daly revival made money.

The revivals that have not made money are the Bernadette Peters,Pa

SmokeyLady said: "Can we define hit? Because Tynes made money and was awarded well. "

The OP said the Tyne Daly revival was financially successful. I would argue that the producers’ decision to hire a TV star, instead of a Broadway name, was a major factor. It’s the one time that happened.

Maybe that’s too simplistic an explanation (I’m sure there were other reasons). But 34 years after that production closed, it’s very ea

I will take a stab at this, because while I’m familiar with Gypsy, have heard all the songs before and read Stephen Sondheim’s lyrics in Finishing the Hat, I only saw the musical in person for the first time in April. (I got a lot more interested in stage musicals about a decade ago.)

Inside of Gypsy’s big Broadway musical (large cast, big orchestra) is an art show with an anti-hero star at its center. Rose is often a comp

I am spending too much time thinking about this ending.

A couple of you, Mskuphantm and Jarethan, have made similar though not identical points about the ending. Mskuphantm argues that the conclusion, following the Fellini film, places the blame on Charity for winding up with the same sort of guy who treats her badly - same behavior, same bad outcome. Jarethan, you say Charity may remain hopeful but the audience knows that nothing is going to change. If I have unfairly characterize

It’s interesting to take a look at this thread five years later, as many of you appear to have been correct about the financial prospects of a Gypsy revival.

I remember when this revival was announced, essentially as AUDRA GYPSY, and wondering whether Audra McDonald was enough of a star to drive sales beyond the sorts of people who turn up for prestige revivals of classic musicals. 

Barring a dramatic turnaround, the skeptics have been proven c

ggersten said: "bear88 said: "For those who have seen the show, any recommendations for London Palladium seats for someone who doesn’t want to pay 160 pounds? Is the mezzanine a good spot for this musical? How far back is too far back (or too far to the side)?"

We sat Royal Circle (aka mezzanine) on the left side - I52-53 - there is dynamic pricing and because it was the only day we could go (and did not win the lottery), we paid 114GBP and they we

Thanks for everyone’s replies. I knew the musical is based on Fellini’s Nights of Cabiria, which I haven’t seen (but am now curious about).

Sweet Charity seems like a softened version of the film, but as a musical comedy, it upends expectations. Oscar may not be a prize, but as portrayed in the production I saw, he seems decent enough - and making improvements with Charity’s help. If anything, I thought Oscar - given his reluctance to

A few random thoughts (which may be wrong):

- Audra McDonald was out two performances last week, which only reinforces how completely dependent the Gypsy revival is on her. That was the third-lowest week in its run, and one of those was when they had to cancel a bunch of performances over the holidays due to cast-wide illness. The revival was promoted that way, so it’s no surprise. Gypsy also might be hitting the wall that many prestige

I saw a local production of Sweet Charity on Saturday night and had never seen it before. I knew it didn’t have a happy ending, and I gather there have been many different versions over the decades.

Here’s the one I got: Oscar breaks it off, Charity ends up in the lake, Oscar leaves, Charity gets out of the lake and sings ‘Where Am I Going?’ - not heard until then. That’s basically the ending of the show, aside from a version of &lsq