‘Musical Misfires’ eBook about 1989-present day flops now available

[jacobsnchz14]

Posted: 8/26/20 at 4:47pm

https://store.bookbaby.com/book/Musical-Misfires

MUSICAL MISFIRES
Three Decades of Broadway Musical Heartbreak
by Mark A. Robinson and Thomas S. Hischak

Genre:PERFORMING ARTS
SubGenre:Theater / Broadway & Musical Revue
Language:English
Pages:395
eBook ISBN:9781098329310

Musical Misfires: Three Decades of Broadway Musical Heartbreak looks at 151 musicals that did not run long enough to be considered hits. Such shows were once called flops but that is no longer an appropriate description. Some of these were superb pieces of musical theatre that, for one reason or another, couldn't find an audience, did not please the critics, couldn't pay the high weekly bills, or just were not right for the time and place in which they opened. Oft-overlooked gems like The Scottsboro Boys, Grey Gardens, Sweet Smell of Success, Xanadu, If/Then, Caroline, or Change, Bright Star, Steel Pier, The Last Ship, and Tuck Everlasting are explored alongside such famous musicals as American Idiot, Victor/Victoria, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Sister Act, All Shook Up, Be More Chill, Shrek the Musical, Seussical, and Young Frankenstein that never reached hit status on Broadway. Juke box musicals, cutting-edge musicals, movie adaptations, teenage musicals, biographical musicals, history musicals, and even horror musicals are among the many genres included in this captivating journey of Broadway shows from 1989 to 2020 in search of success. Illustrated with forty-two photographs (most in color) and filled with backstage stories, reviews from the press, and commentary on why the musicals were not hits, Musical Misfires is indispensable reading for anyone who loves musical theatre, both its triumphs and it heartbreaks.

MARK A. ROBINSON is the author of the two-volume reference series The World of Musicals; Sitcommentary: Television Comedies that Changed America; The Encyclopedia of Television Theme Songs; and The Disney Song Encyclopedia (with Thomas S. Hischak). He is a graduate of the State University of New York in Cortland with a degree in speech/theatre. He has taught high school theatre and writing and regularly directs youth and professional theatre productions. A resident of upstate New York, he has been honored by the New York State Legislature for his work bringing arts education to underprivileged youth in economically depressed areas. A featured writer for several theatre websites, including BroadwayDirect.com, ShowTickets.com, and playbill.com, as well as writing pieces for The Library of Congress, Lincoln Center, Sorbet Magazine, and Broadway Records, he has spent the last fifteen years researching and writing about theatre, film, and television. Robinson is also a travel and tourism writer for a variety of e-commerce platforms. Blog: markrobinsonwrites.com.

Updated On: 8/26/20 at 04:47 PM

[nealb1]

Posted: 8/26/20 at 5:21pm

Looks like a wonderful read.  Just wish it was an actual book.  

[g.d.e.l.g.i.]

Posted: 8/26/20 at 5:38pm

$27.99? For an eBook? F*CK. That.

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 8/26/20 at 6:14pm

You save a lot of time and money when you accept these “gems” were not hits because not enough people bought tickets to them.

[zainmax]

Posted: 8/26/20 at 7:08pm

CATSNYrevival said: "You save a lot of time and money when you accept these “gems” were not hits because not enough people bought tickets to them."

Well put

[carnzee]

Posted: 8/26/20 at 9:20pm

CATSNYrevival said: "You save a lot of time and money when you accept these “gems” were not hits because not enough people bought tickets to them."

Why didn't they buy tickets to them? 

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 8/27/20 at 12:57am

Updated On: 8/27/20 at 12:57 AM

[itsjustmejonhotmailcom]

Posted: 8/29/20 at 9:05pm

g.d.e.l.g.i. said: "$27.99? For an eBook? F*CK. That."

Yeah that seems way too high for an ebook. I don't think I've paid that much even for a newly released NTY best-seller. It's self-published but they need to self-discount if they want anyone to read it.

[VotePeron]

Posted: 8/29/20 at 11:56pm

Add me to the list that would genuinely love to read this but cannot justify the price. I would be willing to pay more than an average ebook, like $17.99, but not $28.

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 8/30/20 at 6:46am

I just purchased and downloaded this to my Kindle. I can't wait to read this. Based on a quick glance at the table of contents, this 600+ page covers A LOT of flops. All the flops I were hoping would one day be included in a new book about musical flops are going to be covered. I will be sure to post my thoughts here on the actual content of the book once I am finished.

[MichelleCraig]

Posted: 8/31/20 at 1:56pm

For those wanting a "taste" of this book before paying $28 for it, there's a hefty chunk of text available for reading on the Amazon site. This includes a table of contents so you're able to see which shows are covered...

[ScottyDoesn'tKnow2]

Posted: 8/31/20 at 2:12pm

I can't wait to read this. Some of the musicals covered are some of the best Broadway has ever produced. A show like Caroline, or Change was not only a flop in terms of commercial success, but the New York critics didn't seem to get it at all. I'm glad it has had healthy life in regional productions and has had two productions in London. Many of the issues it deals with are things that are happening now, including the toppling of an old Confederate statute in Lake Charles, LA (the "South's Defender" that was recently toppled by Hurricane Laura after the city voted to NOT remove it in an era where Confederate statutes are coming down all over the place. Further, it had a real nuanced discussion about the civil rights movement with those most affected were taking more charge and rejecting advice from allies who thought they knew better while at the same time underpaying their black maid to the point she can't even afford rent when she decides to buy good meat twice in one week. A lot of people at the time couldn't relate and thought some of the things were exaggerations, but they really weren't.

[GlenCoco]

Posted: 8/31/20 at 7:05pm

Wasn't there a similar book like this that released?

[jacobsnchz14]

Posted: 8/31/20 at 7:56pm

“Not Since Carrie” is what comes to mind. This basically picks up where that left off.

[missthemountains]

Posted: 9/1/20 at 4:19pm

Peter Filichia released his book, Broadway Musicals: The Biggest Hit and the Biggest Flop of the Season, 1959 to 2009 back in 2010 which...is insane to believe was 10 years ago, but we've needed an update!

[uncageg]

Posted: 9/1/20 at 5:31pm

I just finished reading the sample on Kindle. I will probably skip this one. It covers a lot of shows but not a lot of new info or insight. A lot of things I already knew.

[zainmax]

Posted: 9/1/20 at 6:09pm

https://www.forbes.com/sites/marchershberg/2020/05/31/new-book-explores-broadway-flops/

This book? Robinson’s book looks better.

Updated On: 9/1/20 at 06:09 PM

[itsjustmejonhotmailcom]

Posted: 9/1/20 at 8:15pm

zainmax said: "https://www.forbes.com/sites/marchershberg/2020/05/31/new-book-explores-broadway-flops/

This book? Robinson’s book looks better."

"the common denominator among the disasters was that “people weren’t buying tickets,” Wow give this guy a Pulitzer for his investigative work. I'm being sarcastic it may be a very interesting read. And priced at a much more reasonable $14.55 so I may actually take a chance on it.

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 9/2/20 at 8:58am

I read the first few chapters of this on my Kindle as well as scrolled ahead to a few more chapters later in the book about shows I was interested in. Ultimately, I decided to return this and get my $30 back. This book covers a lot of of ground in terms of the sheer number of shows covered. However, there is not a great deal of new information or insight. You get a plot summary, some pull quotes, and a brief explanation on why the show failed, and that’s about it for the most part. I think for people less familiar with the shows who want to know more, this might be great, but if you’re already an informed Broadway lover, you’re not going to find much new here, sadly.

[jacobsnchz14]

Posted: 10/20/20 at 6:35pm

If anyone is interested, the eBook is almost $10 off on the Amazon Kindle store!

https://www.amazon.com/Musical-Misfires-Decades-Broadway-Heartbreak-ebook/dp/B08GQ7KLF5/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3T6ZCXXEDKDZU&dchild=1&keywords=musical%20misfires%20three%20decades%20of%20broadway%20musical%20heartbreak&qid=1603232971&s=digital-text&sprefix=musical%20misfires%20%2Caps%2C179&sr=1-1&fbclid=IwAR2R78bUdf1ditYL57yb7xzw_tRuWarn3vddoirSad4oHt38xV5MWEVlmw8 Updated On: 10/20/20 at 06:35 PM