ATOTC Today - WOW- Page 2

[denise2]

Posted: 10/27/08 at 4:21pm

I really enjoyed A Tale of Two Cities. It was entertaining and I loved the music (my opinion). James Barbour, and yes, the rest of the cast are very good.
I am going for a second time because I really want to bring friends to see how they like it. I think they will.

[winston89]

Posted: 10/27/08 at 10:31pm

ray-andallthatjazz86, the numbers aren't THAT bad. You make it sound like it is doing so bad that it needs to close tomorrow. They are doing ok. I do think that they will get a bump from the tourist rush. Tourists do love seeing big flashy Broadway musicals when they are visiting the city during the holidays and Tale does fit that category.

You forget that there are other ways to get tickets to this show other then paying full price. Discount codes, TKTS, student rush. When I went I saw that the orchestra was jam packed. I was sitting in the last row of it and I got a good view. five min to showtime when almost everyone was in their seats I ran up to use the bathroom and took a peak at the Mezz and that was close to full as well. Keep in mind that this was during Colombus Day Weekend so there were people there who might not have normally been able to go. I am talking about people like me who are college students who are home for the weekend.

[Poppy]

Posted: 10/28/08 at 12:56am

I understand they do very well at matinees but not so good at the evening shows. The Sunday I was there, the audience was made up mainly by middle school young people and older patrons. It was a full house and everyone seemed to enjoy the production. I guess the oldsters don't feel comfortable coming out at night and the young adults aren't interested in that type of show. 'Tis a pity. I will be going back.

[winston89]

Posted: 10/28/08 at 1:05am

Having gone to many wednesday matinees during my senior year of high school (school got out early enough on wednesdays for me to go) I have witnessed that they are full of senior citizens who don't feel comfortable being out in times square at night.

[Upbeatlovin']

Posted: 10/28/08 at 8:27am

Even before Tale first opened it was facing an uphill battle, with many people already whipping out their knives ready to go in for the kill. How is it that people can claim to know if a show is good or bad before ANYONE has gotten a chance to see it? But just like the unfair positive buzz surrounding shows that had not yet even started previews (The Billy Elliot Craze for example), Tale had the unfortunate, not to mention unmeritted, displeasure of having to deal with the majority of the broadway world rooting for them to fail. With two fairly young first time producers, a self taught female writing the book and lyrics, along with broadways seeming distaste for outsiders trying to make their way in, Tale was, in my opinion, judged, jurried, and executed before the show even opened its doors. However, despite every dreadful comment posted, despite every obsene review written, they have still managed to create a truely moving show that has gotten an overwhelming response from audiences of all ages. Its incredible the range of emotions the audiences go through while engulfed in the story, laughing one minute while crying the next. I have seen the impact Tale has left on the majority of the audiences and I have heard with my own ears the screams of excitement over the talent of the cast and the brilliance each character brings to such a classic love story of epic proportions. In a perfect world where life was fair A Tale of Two Cities would be a hit show no question. But since we do not live in such a world it is now up to the people to keep this show alive. Word of mouth has kept this show going but if we can step up and get lots of people out there to see that show, then maybe someone can finally show ben brantley whos boss (and also that he's an idiot).
Updated On: 10/28/08 at 08:27 AM

[winston89]

Posted: 10/28/08 at 11:11am

Upbeatlovin', as much as I agree with you watch out. First off you WILL be called a shill for your post on two cities because you joined today and that was what your first post was on. Not saying I will be calling you a shill but you will be called that by someone.

Second of all. You picked a bad example of a show that had a positive buzz without anyone seeing it. Billy Elliot came to Broadway from London where it got rave reviews and got a positive buzz. The positive buzz for that show was coming off the many good things said about it during it's London run.

I honestly do think that there were people who hated the show before they got the chance to see it. I think that there are people who went in who convinced themselves that they would have a bad time and lo and behold they did.

[TheActr97J]

Posted: 10/28/08 at 11:25am

You forget that there are other ways to get tickets to this show other then paying full price. Discount codes, TKTS, student rush. When I went I saw that the orchestra was jam packed.

You clearly don't get it. It doesn't matter how "jam packed" the theater looks, what matters is, are people paying full price for tickets. Look at the average ticket price--$64. That means the majority of people are getting their tickets through discount codes, TKTS, and rush. For a show to survive, especially a show this big, it needs to sell full price tickets. [title of show] looked jam packed when I saw it, but it's grosses obviously showed that it wasn't because people were paying full price to get in. Your "logic" just proved ray's point.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 10/28/08 at 1:09pm

Exactly. A show this size will have a hard time surviving on discount tickets. Plus, the show might appear to be "packed" yet it's only playing at 50% capacity which is rather low. So again, on an avg. night the house is half empty, or they are papering the show to no end.
And the bad buzz attached to the show mainly comes from that ridiculously awful concept recording they released.

[denise2]

Posted: 10/28/08 at 3:57pm

Upbeatlovin'
Very well said. I agree.
Updated On: 10/28/08 at 03:57 PM

[denise2]

Posted: 10/28/08 at 3:57pm

Upbeatlovin'
Very well said. I agree.

[Upbeatlovin']

Posted: 10/28/08 at 5:57pm

Winston, your right Billy Elliot was a bad example i was just trying to make a point that so many people prejudge a show before even seeing it and i dont think its right or fair. And you know people will always think what they want to think but i am truely just a huge fan who is tired off all the hateful comments people say about the show. I have been reading these boards for months now without ever posting on them and with all the negative comments I have read over and over again I guess i finally just had to state my peace about the whole situation.

[winston89]

Posted: 10/28/08 at 7:36pm

TheActr97J, how is that me not getting it. It would be me not getting it if I didn't understand that there were other ways to get tickets other then getting them at full price.

[TheActr97J]

Posted: 10/28/08 at 8:32pm

The fact is that the numbers are pretty bad for a show of this size. My point is that people buying tickets from TKTS and with discount codes isn't going to keep this show open.

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 10/28/08 at 8:37pm

It will not be the first good show killed by the critics. Unfortunately, it won't be the last either.

[winston89]

Posted: 10/28/08 at 8:37pm

The numbers are on par with this time of year. A couple of weeks ago Poppins was playing to the same capacity that Tale is now and someone was asking if it was going to close because of that fact. I know that Broadway can't really survive on the international tourist market during the holiday season this time around. But, there are still tons and tons of tourists who come from other parts of the country to NYC. I think that once tourist season comes into play then the numbers will go up. I feel it is more the time of year it is then the quality of the show itself. I am saying this because the people who have gone have loved it.

[philly03]

Posted: 10/28/08 at 8:46pm

Unfortunately Winston, one can only hope that the numbers will go up during the tourist/holiday season...but I wouldn't count on it too much. "A TALE OF TWO CITIES" is a "popular" book and that's not always a good thing. Most people in America didn't know what Les Miserables was until the musical, as opposed to this novel, which nearly everyone knows and has an opinion on (either good or bad, and I'm finding a lot of the latter). Or it could be the opposite: lots of curiousity as to how anyone could turn this into a musical?! Either way, I'm sure the producers are banking on a big holiday rush, and it will be needed!

[Testing1232]

Posted: 10/28/08 at 11:29pm

Just got back from the show - FINALLY got stagedoor pics, and Catherine Missal made our night. Sweetest child that I have ever met !!

Lazar was out. Michael Halling was on, and was very good- Excellent voice, and he puts a different spin on the role.

Natalie Toro was handing out little postcards/ads for her upcoming CD release in November, and "Out of Sight, Out of Mind" will be on it. Yay !!!