Julie Taymore, "You can do spectacle on Broadway with no book and have a very successful show."

After reading this article, I am really at a loss for words.

With her train of thought, why don't we just put a bunch of Cirque shows on Broadway and screw everything else.

"Taymor acknowledges that the show remains a work in progress, subject to technical breakdowns and in need of narrative improvements. She installed a new finale last week she characterizes as "uplifting, exciting and fulfilling."

"We have to do a show that we're satisfied with," Taymor said. "And at a certain point you are never satisfied with a show. Even if you open, you still want to make changes. There's just a point where you do what you can get done. We can go on and on and on" with changes.

So far, ticket buyers appear to be much more forgiving than the media."


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These jokes and snarky comments just write themselves when you're given such rich source material.

So Bono stuck his hand up her ass and manipulated her like a puppet???

Crazy yes, but also right. Proof? Cats, Phantom, Mamma Mia, Les Miserable, Miss Saigon, Smokey Joe's Café, Hair, Oh! Calcutta, Movin' Out, Noise/Funk, etc.

Yes, some of these had books (or something called a book), but none are widely respected or admired as such.

Every musical has a book. Cats won the Tony for best book, and the musical contains no dialogue.

The book is not just the dialogue- it is also the character and plot structure- the "architect" of the musical.

As Julie herself is credited as a co-bookwriter for Spider-Man, I do wonder if she's telling people that the book is not important, or that it's totally fine that her dialogue and story sucks.

I have just lost all respect for this woman...

Thanks for the cheap shot at those of us who enjoy a good story Julie.

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Can sheer spectacle with a flimsy book and a crappy score succeed on Broadway? Yes.


Does Taymor pointing this out suggest to me that this show is anything but a vain orgy for the moneyed, cynical, and lazy? No.

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"Crazy yes, but also right. Proof? Cats, Phantom, Mamma Mia, Les Miserable, Miss Saigon, Smokey Joe's Café, Hair, Oh! Calcutta, Movin' Out, Noise/Funk, etc."

Outside of Smokey Joe's Cafe & Noise/Funk; these shows actually had a somewhat solid book. Spiderman's "book" still has a several chapters missing with no ending.

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Updated On: 1/24/11 at 02:57 PM

Phantom's book, however flawed, is still a book. It still contains characters, however underdeveloped and poorly written they are. There's a story there, however shallow it may be. It might be a success because of Hal Prince and the designers only (Okay, and Lloyd Webber, despite what I think of his work). I disagree with Taymor's quote very much. You need some sort of, to quote Terrance McNally, "architecture" to make your musical work. You can't just have flying, pyrotechnics and colorful costumes and sets. Sorry Julie.

Well, looking at the history of Broadway, shows like the Ziegfeld Follies were all spectacle and no plot. And those were successful…

it amazes me how we are reading an article and taking her words as written. It is like reading the bible and saying it is 200% truth behind it all. I bet she said it. I bet she even meant it but I bet it was taken out of context. Shows can run for a very long time that are more specticle then anything. I don't think she is claiming that she can do a show with no story and it still be a success, I am sure she is saying... It has happened before where shows have NO PLOT or one that is horrid and still does well.
As for Cirque. I have a very very good friens who is a actor is Zumanity. He was also i O and in KA and he said accidents happen all the time but they do not get publicity like the spider man ones did cause of the media. The difference is that Cirque runs rehearsals for two years or more on ONE show.

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Dear Julie,

You have now got first hand knowledge of how people can turn on you if you begin to believe your own press releases. No girl, you don't poop Tony winning ideas, No girl you aren't "A Genius" whose touch is gold. Welcome to the Humble Cafe, care for a piece of pie?

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Updated On: 1/24/11 at 06:01 PM

"Well, looking at the history of Broadway, shows like the Ziegfeld Follies were all spectacle and no plot. And those were successful…"

Good point, but then what *was* spectacle back then? Glamourous girls in glamourous costumes I would suspect. Beautiful drops maybe? We have that now, but the scenery/special effects chew up the actors, instead of vice versa. For as flawed as a show like Phantom is, for example, at least there is a story which is part of the evening's entertainment. The characters drive the story for me and the chandalier is just added sight candy. It's not a huge plot device , but it does add a little something despite it's speed. (Not to get off topic here...) Spectacle does not push a performance along for me. I want to see more than a dog and pony show.

I groan at the thought of repeating myself, but if I want to see spectacle I'll go to Vegas or Disneyworld. Not Broadway.

In conclusion, I guess the "dumbing down of Broadway" has now finally arrived courtesy of Julie Taymor. From the sounds of the posters who have seen the show, people are paying hideous prices for little substance and a whole lot of flash, though I still suspect they are coming to see... expecting to see...accidents and mayhem.

Read more: https://forum.broadwayworld.com/readmessage.php?thread=1027234&dt=20&boardid=1#ixzz1BzoaHNbf

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