How was final FINIANS performance?

[MusicSnob1]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 1:31am

I'm so sad I missed it. It was beautiful both times I witnessed this charming production. Not sure I could handle a closing night, seriously.

I acknowledge its "dated" feel but that's what made it so damn wonderful. Best of luck to all involved. I hope, one day, FINIANS will have more success as a revival.

So for those who attended, how was it??? Please share your final thoughts. I'd love to hear. Thank you. xoxo

[perfectlymarvelous]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 1:37am

It was really incredible...the cast was clearly trying to have as much fun as they could. There was lots of crying onstage at the end when the rainbow appeared. The audience was really receptive and wonderful. No curtain call speeches or anything, but it was a great performance all-around.

It's 1:30 am so I may have more detailed thoughts later but it was really lovely and I was happy I was able to be there.

[frontrowcentre2]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 1:44am

I am so glad I saw this when I was in New York in November. I found it an absolute delight, and the audience the night I saw it was relishing every minute. It FELT like a hit.

With these shows closing and eying the success of limited runs of star-driven plays (STEADY RAIN, HAMLET) perhaps future revivals should be offered initially as limited engagements with the possibility of extensions if needed, or as a launch for tours. It seems that people only buy tickets if there is a deadline.

[jsg03jd]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 7:09am

Pretty much pitch perfect. Great energy and vibe from both the cast and the audience, and I was moved most after Terri White's number - she almost broke character as the tears welled up in her eyes. The audience was on its feet even before the start of curtain calls.

I'm so glad I discovered this show and its score at City Center, and that I got to see this Broadway mounting take its (way too premature, IMHO) final bow.

[boombaboy]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 10:26am

The final performance of "Finian's Rainbow," was, as stated above, perfect. Really bittersweet; the entire company was giving it their all and there were many tears by the time curtain came down, especially at the bows. This show deserved a longer run, it was such a delight, and a whole lot of talented people participated in the production; my hat is off to them. IMHO, the advertising never clicked, and with a better campaign this show could have run for a couple of years and launched a national tour. I am grateful to have seen it quite a few times, and will treasure the cast album and my memories of this wonderful show.

[MusicSnob1]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 10:56am

I think most people just don't appreciate a charmingly old-fashioned 'feel good' musical. They're too into themselves or too jaded or *whatever*.

I am so happy to hear that it went well! Sounds like an amazing experience. Wish I could have been there. I'll miss you, FINIAN!

xoxo

[Eris0303]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 11:38am

I think most people just don't appreciate a charmingly old-fashioned 'feel good' musical. They're too into themselves or too jaded or *whatever*.

Well, the people who DID see it enjoyed it. Both times I saw the show the love from the audience was almost palpable. People were singing the songs as they were leaving the show. So I don't think it was a question of people not enjoying the show. It was more about people not knowing enough about the show to give it a chance. It's a proven fact that tourists prefer known entities such as a "name" performer or a well known show. Theatre enthusiasts are familiar with Finian's but outside of that not so much. Yes, it has a film by an award winning director but I wonder if that film does more damage than good. I don't consider the film to be a classic by any stretch and I think part of the issue was the fact that it was made by a non-musical director and in a time when movie musicals seemed to be dying out (196. Had it been made ten years earlier and with a director who understood the importance of capturing the magic of the original production it may have been a "classic". A film that even people who don't follow musicals might know.

I can't comment too much on the advertising campaign living in NJ but I can say that I never once saw a poster at any of the stations along the Northeast Corridor on NJ Transit. So maybe their teams just wasn't doing enough to get their name out there. And maybe they did open at bad time.

There are so many factors at work here. I can't say for sure what the exact reason but it wasn't because people weren't enjoying it.

[Smaxie]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 11:47am

Before the finger pointing starts and people start calling for the ad agency, press office or producers heads on a stake... there are times when a show just has factors playing against it to keep it from becoming a hit. There are shows that are nice, lovely evenings that don't have enough to take on the imprimatur of being a smash hit, must see. Finian got the reviews and I saw plenty of press and advertising for it. My take is that without a star and with the show itself being a gentle fable with a lovely lilting score, it would never be able to compete against the sledgehammer musicals that become hits today.

[givesmevoice]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 12:14pm

I'm inclined to agree with Smaxie, that there just wasn't a recognizable name to advertise. In a season with people like Hugh Jackman, Daniel Craig, Jude Law, Sienna Miller, John Stamos, Gina Gershon and Catherine Zeta-Jones starring in shows, it's very difficult to get by not having a big name star.

I'm also under the impression that advertising doesn't just happen in one go, right? It took a little while for the show to release a commercial (which I only saw once or twice before a closing announcement was made), and I wonder if they just hadn't gotten to more expansive advertising.

[Kad]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 12:18pm

I rarely saw more than the occasional taxi ad or the odd poster in the window of a shop. But then again, the show is in an extremely well-placed position in the theatre district. South Pacific didn't have a huge star, but the name of the show itself was the draw. Finian's Rainbow just doesn't have the draw. Everyone in America knows at least 'Some Enchanted Evening', but I doubt anyone under a certain age knows any of the hits Finian's produced in its day.

Some shows can get by without a huge name. Finian's is, I guess, not one of them anymore. It's a shame, it was a very charming production.

[givesmevoice]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 12:25pm

South Pacific has the brand recognition and started off with a subscription base.

It's definitely a shame, because I loved this production. Finian's Rainbow has always been one of my favorite scores, but now I would honestly rate it as one of my favorite shows.

[WestVillage]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 12:33pm

"Well, the people who DID see it enjoyed it."

That's a generality. I DID see it and was bored to tears, and I know I am not the only one who was less than impressed. Great score ... without a doubt. But the production itself was dreadfully dull, and zero chemistry between the two leads.

[Smaxie]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 12:36pm

Regarding South Pacific and Finian's Rainbow... South Pacific definitely opened and became a "must-see" hit. It's all I remember people talking about in spring of 2008. It also has an absolutely exemplary production, whereas Finian is not exactly the best looking show I've seen. South Pacific also benefited from the "star is born" press afforded to Paulo Szot. (He was not exactly an unknown in the opera world, but Broadway was discovering him for the first time). South Pacific was a bigger hit in its day than Finian. And while both the movies of South Pacific and Finian are terrible, South Pacific's was a hit and is generally less terrible than Finian, made about 20 years too late.

So despite the virtues of Finian as a show, South Pacific is a hit, I feel, because it's a truly first-rate revival of a better and more marketable title.

[RoslynReynolds]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 12:43pm

Ragtime was the pompous ass at a party who
doesn't realize what a buffoon he is.

Finian's was the dull, well-meaning guy
who charmed women over 50; the younger
ones knew he was a lousy lay.

[Eris0303]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 12:45pm

I'm not over 50 nor is my cousin who loved the show.

[D2]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 12:47pm

So then you are RAGTIME, Roslyn? I knew it.

[RoslynReynolds]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 12:48pm

Sometimes menopause hits earlier than 50....

[RoslynReynolds]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 1:29pm

Nah, Ragtime is a man; with a spare tire.

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 1:36pm

They're too into themselves or too jaded or *whatever*.

I'm majorly blown away by the depth of that insight.

[CockeyedOptimist2]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 1:46pm

I was there yesterday and it was one of the most enjoyable theatrical experiences I have ever had. I went in knowing "How Are Things in Glocca Mora?" and "Old Devil Moon" and not much of the story. I was immediately charmed by the music and the sweet, simple story. I loved the closing night atmosphere, and I'll admit that I was tearing up along with the actors at the end of the show. The whole performance was utterly charming and I feel blessed to have been able to see it!

[matineeidol2013]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 1:52pm

ill ask on this board too...does anybody have one of the picture programs that theyre willing to sell to me? i have things i can trade as well pm me if youre interested!

[Dagobert]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 3:18pm

the only people I know what saw it agree with WestVillage--
SNOOZEFEST-flat, no chemistry....borinig. and these are people who see just about everything on Broadway and quite a bit else, so they are not just tourists looking for a mega-musical.

[frontrowcentre2]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 6:03pm

I wonder if perhaps you were expecting a different show? How familiar were you (and your friends) with the material before seeing the show?

I went in having knowing the script and score inside out. Taken as a production of the show as written I found the material
exceptionally well presented. The book was sensibly trimmed to remove much of the repetitiveness that pervades many of the shows of that era, bringing the running time down to a the 110 minutes. The performances just elevated the material.

Now, the friend who went with me doesn't generally enjoy older musical comedies and knew nothing about this show. He absolutely loved it: the social satire, the clever lyrics, the tuneful score, and especially the cast.

This is why I like reading the BWW forums, to get a divergence of opinion. What I don't like are the sock puppets who waste time and space with stupid comments. Which brings me to....

"RoslynReynolds" - This thread is about FINIAN'S RAINBOW, not RAGTIME. I have told you privately, and now I am telling you publicly.

GET LOST!

We don't need your idiotic comments about shows you haven't even seen. Go back to ATC where your brand of "humor" is appreciated.

[miss pennywise]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 9:02pm

I enjoyed both shows. I'm sorry they both closed.

[jsg03jd]

Posted: 1/18/10 at 10:37pm

Stunt or "big name" casting doesn't necessarily always work on Broadway, as evidenced by the abysmal revival of BYE BYE, BIRDIE. Perhaps with plays, yes, but with musicals? I'd say it's a bigger risk to put in non-Broadway folk on musicals in NYC. For instance, SWEET CHARITY didn't fare well with Christina Applegate a few seasons ago, and even big names couldn't salvage the disaster that was YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN. I've yet to see A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC but that was going to be a box office hit as soon as the names Catherine Zeta-Jones and Angela Lansbury were attached to the project. Whether it succeeds on the merits, I don't know.

Generally speaking, I feel that today's theatregoers just don't appreciate older works especially if their initial experiences with musical theatre were through the likes of LES MIZ, MISS SAIGON, PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, WICKED, LION KING (and all those Disney shows), LEGALLY BLONDE and a whole host of other spectacles from the last two decades. FINIAN'S doesn't fit that mold, and I think a lot of younger people found the show inaccessible. Perhaps it's a generational gap: I saw the City Center version twice and the St. James production twice. And all those times, the median age of the audience was of "a certain age" by my estimation, and based on what I overheard leaving the theatre, the "kids" were blase about the show while older audience members were thrilled. I'm not a "kid" nor am I middle aged (yet), but I love the old shows, and I just fell in love with Burton Lane's score immediately.

I dunno. Maybe FINIAN'S simply doesn't fit today's tastes of most modern theatregoers who prefer either more bombastic fare or shows grounded in realism like next to normal. Just my guess...