Broadway Grosses: Week Ending 8/19/18- Page 3

[Lot666]

Posted: 8/21/18 at 10:54am

Summer tickets now on sale through August 2019

[ntrackbar]

Posted: 8/21/18 at 11:00am

GiantsInTheSky2 said: "I can confirm that many of my friends and some coworkers only know/care of The Band’s Visit because of Tony Shalhoub. They are not theater people but really wanted to see him in it."

Same with my friends/family. It surprised me, but anecdotally, I can confirm the same experience. 

[haterobics]

Posted: 8/21/18 at 11:55am

Lot666 said: "Summer tickets now on sale through August 2019"

That is just a PR-driven way to say to get a bit of ink saying the show is doing well... to try and make it happen. They could just as easily put tickets on sale through 2022 if they wanted. It doesn't affect when they will stop selling enough tickets that are on sale.

[haterobics]

Posted: 8/21/18 at 11:56am

GiantsInTheSky2 said: "I can confirm that many of my friends and some coworkers only know/care of The Band’s Visit because of Tony Shalhoub. They are not theater people but really wanted to see him in it."

But they did have that opportunity, so the question is... did they take it? If not, it sort of goes back to the point that he is not a box office draw. It has to go beyond recognition to 'get me my purse!'

[JBroadway]

Posted: 8/21/18 at 12:13pm

blaxx said: "Lol, no one knows who that is, love."

 

As others have pointed out, that is an incorrect statement. People do know who he is both from his TV roles, and from the fact that his performance represents one of the show's Tony Awards. Whether or not his name translates to box office sales is indeed a different question (as Haterobics said). But to make the blanket statement of "nobody knows who that is" - even if you meant it hyperbolically - only demonstrates your own ignorance.

I don't understand the tendency of people on this board to make condescending remarks about a certain performer not being known by anybody, when clearly there are other people who talk about them and care about them. You see it all the time in threads devoted to certain actors, where someone will chime in with some variation of "Who?" rather than just Googling the name. It says much more about the poster than it does about the actor IMO. 

 

[Rainah]

Posted: 8/21/18 at 3:50pm

I don't think it's a case of TBV being a good show or bad show - that's entirely subjective, and if anything we could say it's a "good" show because it was a critical hit. 

But I think we can say that it is a fairly niche show in the sense that it is a "delicate, quiet little show" (to quote one poster). It doesn't have the mass appeal of flying witches or bold rebellions, chorus lines or blow the roof off numbers. It's a small, thoughtful show that won't appeal to everyone. Goodness knows it doesn't appeal to me, though I will cheer it on from the sidelines.

I'm not surprised the show's numbers are beginning to lag. It was never going to be a Hamilton-style hit. 

[kelsey1389]

Posted: 8/21/18 at 7:26pm

Can someone please explain to me what's happening with Summer/its extension? The thread on here is half deleted and everyone on twitter is saying that this means the show will be open for another year, which I also don't know about? 

[Miles2Go2]

Posted: 8/21/18 at 7:40pm

I received a flier in the mail today for GTBBT. If KD thinks this will make a difference in box office, he is truly delusional. As far as OOTI, I’m not sure what else he could do to save this show. It is slowly (or not so slowly) drowning and I doubt there’s much that can be done to save it. He woulda been better off sending out a flier for it though.

[quizking101]

Posted: 8/21/18 at 7:50pm

kelsey1389 said: "Can someone please explain to me what's happening with Summer/its extension?The thread on here is half deleted and everyone on twitter is saying that this means the show will be open for another year, which I also don't know about?"

It does not mean that it will necessarily be open another year. SUMMER just released another block of tickets for sale, which for a show that isn't selling out (like SUMMER), means they are probably just putting out feelers to forecast future sales while giving the show a little bit of a PR boost.

The proof is in the grosses, and those have been showing a steady decline over the past few weeks with a low likelihood if it will pick up during the fall and winter outside of holidays. I see it humming toward a January closing.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 8/21/18 at 7:52pm

kelsey1389 said: "Can someone please explain to me what's happening with Summer/its extension?The thread on here is half deleted and everyone on twitter is saying that this means the show will be open for another year, which I also don't know about?"

The show was open ended, so it can't extend - since it never had a close date.   So people are just being snarky over semantics.

Just because tickets are on sale, doesn't guarantee it will be open that long.  If it doesn't turn around soon, it certainly won't be.

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 8/21/18 at 10:05pm

Miles2Go2 said: "
I received a flier in the mail today for GTBBT. If KD thinks this will make a difference in box office, he is truly delusional. As far as OOTI, I’m not sure what else he could do to save this show. It is slowly (or not so slowly) drowning and I doubt there’s much that can be done to save it. He woulda been better off sending out a flier for it though."

What? Knowing that some guy on Facebook thinks Getting the Band Back Together would win the Tony Award for Best Comedy if that category existed isn't going to get you to buy tickets? (For those who haven't seen it, yes, that is the lead quote on the newest mailer)

[Jarethan]

Posted: 8/22/18 at 12:45am

Rainah said: "I don't think it's a case of TBV being a good show or bad show - that's entirely subjective, and if anything we could say it's a "good" show because it was a critical hit.

But I think we can say that it is a fairly niche show in the sense that it is a "delicate, quiet little show" (to quote one poster). It doesn't have the mass appeal of flying witches or bold rebellions, chorus linesor blow the roof off numbers. It's a small, thoughtful show that won't appeal to everyone. Goodness knows it doesn't appeal to me, though I will cheer it on from the sidelines.

I'm not surprised the show's numbers are beginning to lag. It was never going to be a Hamilton-style hit."

Well put.  I saw it with three other people. all of whom liked it a lot.  I respected it more than liked it because I thought it dragged even at 90 - 100 minutes.  That is the extent of people I know who liked / loved it.  I know at least 7 - 8 other people who all had the same reaction, which I translated into: 'we were expecting a traditional musical with a real plot and some splashy numbers, and it was 'slight'.  Since then, I have found myself telling a number of people that it is not a traditional show, that it is almost a 'mood piece'; and that they should see something else if they are expecting any 'splash.'

[RippedMan]

Posted: 8/22/18 at 2:34am

By all means, I think DEH is a very "slight" piece as well. There's no clever staging or anything. It's very basic. The same stage right, stage left set pieces taken on and off... I think The Band's Visit adds more in the visual department. 

[After Eight]

Posted: 8/22/18 at 7:31am

Rainah wrote: "But I think we can say that it is a fairly niche show in the sense that it is a "delicate, quiet little show" (to quote one poster). It doesn't have the mass appeal of flying witches or bold rebellions, chorus lines or blow the roof off numbers. It's a small, thoughtful show that won't appeal to everyone."

 

The Fantasticks was a quiet, little show, and yet had broad appeal and ran for eons --- and that, without the avalanche of raves, hype, and awards we saw in this instance to prompt the guileless and gullible to buy tickets. Nor did it have flying witches, helicopters, chorus lines, or blow the roof off numbers. What it had was a simply a good book and score ---  and fundamentally, that's what really matters. The Band's Visit unfortunately lacks both of those --- big time. And no amount of hype can disguise that.

I just feel sorry for those theatregoers who purchased tickets because of the hype only to take it once again on the chin. 

But it happens over and over and over again, with no end in sight.

Dismal.

[Miles2Go2]

Posted: 8/23/18 at 7:20pm

Following the GTBBT mailer I received earlier this week, I received a mailer for Summer today. The comparisons between the two mailers were interesting including quoting people on social media and, of course, the timing.

[itsjustmejonhotmailcom]

Posted: 8/24/18 at 2:47pm

After Eight said:
The Fantasticks was a quiet, little show, and yet had broad appeal and ran for eons --- and that,without theavalanche of raves, hype, and awardswe saw in this instanceto promptthe guileless and gullible to buy tickets. Nor did it have flying witches, helicopters,chorus lines, or blow the roof off numbers. What it had was a simply a good book and score ---and fundamentally, that'swhatreallymatters.The Band's Visit unfortunately lacks both of those ---big time. And no amount of hype can disguise that.

Fantasticks was off-broadway so you can't really compare it to a Broadway show in terms of length of run or ticket sales. And you may not like the book but the critics, Tony Voters and, judging by their ticket sales a lot of the audiences, do.

 

[After Eight]

Posted: 8/24/18 at 4:58pm

"And you may not like the book but the critics, Tony Voters and, judging by their ticket sales a lot of the audiences, do."

The critics and Tony voters, yes,  --- to our and the theatre's great misfortune. But I wouldn't be so sure about the audiences. Yes, the raves, hype and awards helped spur ticket sales, but once the poor ticket buyers found themselves faced with this dud in the theatre... well, I wouldn't conclude that they liked what they suffered through.

[Synecdoche2]

Posted: 8/24/18 at 5:05pm

Who are these masses of people who hate this show that you speak of? Certainly you don't just mean yourself?

[After Eight]

Posted: 8/24/18 at 5:10pm

^

 

You're right. I certainly do not mean just myself.