Betty Buckley out yesterday.- Page 3

[SweetLips22]

Posted: 11/10/18 at 1:51pm

And???

[Stage Door Sally]

Posted: 11/10/18 at 2:12pm

Some people think since they haven't heard of someone, no one has. On a thread about The Band's Visit someone said no on had ever heard of Tony Shalhoub (or thoughts to that effect). Shalhoub's TV show Monk where he played the "Defective Detective" was one of the most popular shows of its genre, and was water cooler talk the next day after it aired. So, trust me, people have heard of him. As for Andrea Martin, her stint as Aunt Voula in My Big Fat Greek Wedding made her instantly popular and her face is quite recognizable to many people.

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 11/10/18 at 2:14pm

I honestly don’t think a name can help a tour really. Tours play subscription houses, so people are already going to see the show with a name or not. You can put Bette or Jessica in there and the show will sell the same.

[ArtMan]

Posted: 11/10/18 at 2:24pm

SweetLips22 said: "And???"

LOL, Sweet Lips.  I thought the same thing.  Adam Greer is right.  Andrea Martin wouldn't sell more tickets, than Betty.  As Jorge says, tours play subscription houses.  People are going for the show.  A name is just icing on the cake.

[ArtMan]

Posted: 11/10/18 at 2:24pm

double

 

Updated On: 11/10/18 at 02:24 PM

[Bette's Turban]

Posted: 11/10/18 at 2:26pm

Call_me_jorge said: "I honestly don’t think a name can help a tour really. Tours play subscription houses, so people are already going to see the show with a name or not. You can put Bette or Jessica in there and the show will sell the same."

Honey,  If Bette was doing the tour this thing would be sold out everywhere.  Subscription or no subscription. 

[ArtMan]

Posted: 11/10/18 at 2:30pm

But do big names really tour anymore?  Back in the day, they did.  I can't think of a A list movie and or tv star who has been in a tour in years.  If they did, they certainly aren't in the tours that come to Jacksonville.

Updated On: 11/10/18 at 02:30 PM

[Bette's Turban]

Posted: 11/10/18 at 2:32pm

ArtMan said: "But dobig names really tour anymore? Back in the day, they did. I can't think of a A list movie and or tv star who has been in a tour in years."

No they don't.  But that is different than saying that if there was a big name attached it wouldn't sell.  

[Stage Door Sally]

Posted: 11/10/18 at 2:37pm

ArtMan said: "SweetLips22 said: "And???"

LOL, Sweet Lips. I thought the same thing. Adam Greer is right. Andrea Martin wouldn't sell more tickets, than Betty. As Jorge says, tours play subscription houses. People are going for the show. A name is just icing on the cake."

I think if it had someone in the lead who screams "funny" it would sell extremely well. Subscription isn't enough.

 

[DAME]

Posted: 11/10/18 at 2:59pm

If it had a better name it would sell better.  Those of us who watch The View know that even Joy Behar was offered the tour before Buckley.  The wish list was long. 

[BwayLB]

Posted: 11/10/18 at 3:12pm

I also recall Christine Embersole rumored

[ArtMan]

Posted: 11/10/18 at 3:19pm

Is the entire tour really selling bad?  The show is coming to Orlando in December and it has sold really well.  I may have driven down to see it, but I have a cruise on my agenda at the same time.  Of course, if  someone like Bette or another A list star was in the tour, it would be a sellout.  But  Andrea Martin and Joy Behar are not  A list stars.  I wouldn't have driven downtown (where our venue is) to see Joy Behar.

[adamgreer]

Posted: 11/10/18 at 4:09pm

Stage Door Sally said: "Some people think since they haven't heard of someone, no one has. On a thread about The Band's Visit someone said no on had ever heard of Tony Shalhoub (or thoughtsto that effect). Shalhoub's TV show Monk where he played the "Defective Detective" was one of the most popular shows of its genre, and was water cooler talk the next day after itaired. So, trust me, people have heard of him. As for Andrea Martin, her stint as Aunt Voula in My Big Fat Greek Wedding made her instantly popular and her face is quite recognizable to many people."

Thanks love, but I know who Andrea Martin is. 

[Dollypop]

Posted: 11/11/18 at 12:19am

DAME said: "Mister Matt said: "I would have to guess the theater was no more than 60% - 70% full. I hope the tour can sustain itself financially.

That's not uncommon in Chicago where the bigger tour productions book 4-5 weeks, but the first 2are the subscription performances. It's the same with tryouts unless they have HUGE names involved (The Producers, Spamalot, The Addams Family) or an obvious juggernaut hit show (Lion King, Wicked, Billy Elliot, Hamilton)."

Sales don’t appear to be that great in LA either."

 

Is it set that Betty is doing the LA performances? There had been buzz that Bette would be doing the show there ---with the Broadway principals.

 

[scribbler23]

Posted: 11/11/18 at 12:50am

Betty Buckley was in tonight (10/10), but had no energy, sounded frail, didn't seem able to really do the choreography, either (she swayed a lot, and moved her arms).  I posted my disappointment with the production, and her casting, in the tour thread, but I'm not surprised I was able to get a good seat day-of-show, and that the theater wasn't exactly full, nor was the audience tapping their toes and humming the songs as they left.  

Updated On: 11/11/18 at 12:50 AM

[BalconyClub]

Posted: 11/11/18 at 1:04am

After missing 4 performances, Betty Buckley returned to the Oriental stage on Thursday, Nov 8.

I admit that I love seeing a great show over and over. The Saturday, Nov 10 matinee was my 7th visit to the Chicago stand. Betty Buckley was outstanding today! There was more playful attachment with the ensemble, stronger clarity with the high notes, and more tears during Before The Parade Passes By. Her voice was stronger today than during the first 2 weeks in Chicago.

The company manager visited guests in orchestra Row F 101-103 today at intermission. I overheard that the company is staying at a Hilton during their Miami week. The manager said the Hilton is one block from the Miami theatre.

For the past few performances, the cast has been collecting donations for BCEFA. Signed posters are being sold for $60. One can also buy signed Playbills, red aprons, doggie handkerchiefs, and Christmas ornaments.

[MrsSallyAdams]

Posted: 11/11/18 at 1:04am

Saw Buckley tonight and enjoyed her work. She's less the comic engine than the soft heart of the show. She sits back and watches maternally as the eager young ensemble takes the stage. "Parade" felt shaky but she was in fine spirit for "So Long Dearie" and in expert control of the "money" speech.

When I saw Peters this summer she threw herself into the schtik and physical comedy. Her hat shop scene was terrific but the dinner scene felt mechanical.

Buckley tries a few bits but let's other moments pass. Her strength is, surprisingly, her chemistry with Stalden's Horace. This is the first "ripple, ripple, ripple" I've seen performed with sex appeal. Garber stayed out of Peter's way but Stalden gradually falls for Buckley.

Having re-read the Wilder play I think the one who suffers most in the adaptation is Irene. After her introduction she sort of fades away, letting the other three youths carry the comedy in act two. Wilder's Irene had some strong moments in the restaurant scene but Stewart's book doesn't have time for that. Her verse of "Moment" has to tie up her arc.

[Miles2Go2]

Posted: 11/11/18 at 1:06am

That’s unfortunate. A friend told me she struggles with a chronic health condition (i can’t recall which one). I wonder if her recent cold has aggravated it. If she isn’t currently able to give a superb performance, I’m sure she’s very disappointed. For many seeing the show, this will be their first introduction to both the show and to her. It would be sad if they walked away thinking badly of the show and of her based on something that is likely beyond her control.

[DAME]

Posted: 11/11/18 at 11:52am

Dollypop said: "DAME said: "Mister Matt said: "I would have to guess the theater was no more than 60% - 70% full. I hope the tour can sustain itself financially.

That's not uncommon in Chicago where the bigger tour productions book 4-5 weeks, but the first 2are the subscription performances. It's the same with tryouts unless they have HUGE names involved (The Producers, Spamalot, The Addams Family) or an obvious juggernaut hit show (Lion King, Wicked, Billy Elliot, Hamilton)."

Sales don’t appear to be that great in LA either."



Is it set that Betty is doing the LA performances? There had been buzz that Bette would be doing the show there ---with the Broadway principals.

"

It does not appear to be happening.  It was rumored and they did keep Betty's name out of the advertisement at first.   But now her name is in the ads. 

[scribbler23]

Posted: 11/11/18 at 12:28pm

Bette's Turban said: "Mister Matt said: "It doesn't help that this is a TERRIBLE time to bring a show into Chicago. The weather is traditionally awful (everybody gets sick during the annual Halloween cold snap) and the run ends before the tourists come in for the holidays. The nearby Christkindlmarket, which brings LOADS of people daily into the Loop doesn't open until the final two days of performances."

It also doesn't help that there is no Bette or the likes of her and it is a very old show ."

That last line says it all.  When we left the theater last night I noticed many younger members of the audience were audibly mocking the show.  If you've never seen Dolly! before, it's a creaky old mess of a show, really; the book just doesn't make sense.  I had to explain to my husband what was going on in the Harmonia Gardens scenes and the courtroom scene, because if you've not seen it before, especially the way the end of the dance scene in Harmonia gardens is staged in this version, those scenes just make no sense at all.  He had no idea what on earth Dolly was doing there, what Ernestina was doing, or why the police showed up.  This show didn't really put those parts over, I agree.  

But mostly, in a theater scene like Chicago, where you have great theater companies like Steppenwolf and the Goodman and the Red Orchid, plus Hamilton still packing them in two years running, this show, without a STAR! DIVA!, isn't going to excite audiences.  And Betty Buckley isn't that kind of diva, at least not in this show; she can't overcome the material, she never transcends it.  She's just too--quiet.  She comes off as older than Horace, as well, which is an odd visual.  I've not heard any buzz about it, other than the surprising rave review from the Tribune.  And I'd also agree with those who say the Oriental Theater is too big for this production; that might have contributed to the disappointing, creaky feel of this production, the night I saw it (11/10).  It's not a huge cast, but it's a huge stage and house.  And the way they built out the stage left a great hole in the middle - the pit was in front of the build out - that, frankly, made me worry throughout the show.  I was afraid someone was going to fall into it (although I'm sure that wasn't really a possibility; they must have put some cover over it, but still, it worried me from my seat).   

 

 

Updated On: 11/11/18 at 12:28 PM

[MarkBearSF]

Posted: 11/11/18 at 12:35pm

Call_me_jorge said: "I honestly don’t think a name can help a tour really. Tours play subscription houses, so people are already going to see the show with a name or not. You can put Bette or Jessica in there and the show will sell the same."

While you're somewhat correct, and perhaps the majority of seats are sold to subscribers, there still are LOTS of remaining seats to be sold, which are sensitive to stars, reviews, and word of mouth.

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 11/12/18 at 10:15am

ArtMan, I can't say if the tour itself is "selling bad," but my friend bought our tickets on TodayTix this past Friday night two weeks before the show and we were in the third row center. I had a great time.

[BalconyClub]

Posted: 11/12/18 at 7:30pm

Ticket sales are sluggish for the evening performances Tuesday through Thursday, November 13-15.

The top 8 balcony rows are blocked on Ticketmaster for the next 3 nights.

[DAME]

Posted: 11/13/18 at 12:45pm

BalconyClub said: "Ticket sales are sluggish for the evening performances Tuesday through Thursday, November 13-15.

The top 8 balcony rows are blocked on Ticketmaster for the next 3 nights.

"

I think the time of the year has something to do with it.  Everyone and their mother has been winning the Dear Evan Hansen lottery in LA this evening.

[ArtMan]

Posted: 11/13/18 at 4:13pm

I must have been incorrect on how well the tickets were selling in Orlando.  I received an email today offering the chance for $45 lottery tickets.  This venue only offers lottery tickets if the performances have not sold well.