STARLIGHT EXPRESS

[Unmasked05]

Posted: 10/24/04 at 8:40am

Do you think this show could ever live on Broadway again?

[Sant]

Posted: 10/24/04 at 8:50am

Honestly, no. Of course it is possible, but considering it didn't have THAT successful original run on Broadway in the 80s.

I could imagine it coming to New York though, but not on Broadway. A.Lloyd Webber originally wanted the show to open not on Broadway but in a warehouse or something, a little bit more unconventional venue for a musical, which might have suited this particular show better than the Gershwin.

[Stexer1974]

Posted: 10/24/04 at 9:43am

Why has it lasted so long in Bochum Germany (15 yrs and still counting), and in London (17 yrs) yet it didnt last on Broadway and then in Vegas but for a few years each respectively?

Just as a an after thought the new UK Tour of it is suppose to open in a few days.

[Sant]

Posted: 10/24/04 at 11:11am

Could one reason be that SE's opening date was so close to LES MIS's which became an instant hit? Same thing happened to CHICAGO when it opened in 1975, it was totally overshadowed by A CHORUS LINE.

And, the previous big-scale A.Lloyd Webber show to open on Broadway was CATS, so maybe many critics thought he was not able to create a 'serious' musical, which his next Broadway-bound show, THE PHANTOM..., was.

[sean martin]

Posted: 10/24/04 at 11:29am

I saw it in London, and the most annoying thing was the physical produciton. Sure, it was thrilling to see these actors rollerskating all over the auditorium, but everything was so tightly controlled that if the slightest thing went wrong (and it did), the show came to a complete halt while they fixed whatever bridge didnt come into position in time.

It's a wonderful idea for a show, but it needs a huge rework in revisitng the concept.

[bronxboundexpress]

Posted: 10/24/04 at 12:38pm

I think it has as godd a chance as any show to come back to Broadway. I did run for a few years here and even if that's not enough, the show is very popular and well known. 87-88 was a tough time with two of the Mackintosh Mega shows coming out in a year's time.

Posted: 10/24/04 at 12:47pm

I think the show could be revived. I always thought it would be neat to stage it on ice. That would be pretty cool.

[bronxboundexpress]

Posted: 10/24/04 at 12:49pm

BoxOfficeJon, are you aware that it was actually produced on ince in the late 90s?

Posted: 10/24/04 at 12:55pm

No I did not know that. I wish I had seen it. I bet it would have been cool.

[bronxboundexpress]

Posted: 10/24/04 at 12:56pm

Yeah, it toured the US. I can't remember how many cities but I saw it in St. Louis. It was not great!

Posted: 10/24/04 at 12:59pm

That sucks. I hear the new version that is touring is actually pretty good.

[bronxboundexpress]

Posted: 10/24/04 at 1:03pm

Well, yo know any tour of the show I dont think is good at all. I still think that STARLIGHT along with CATS are two shows that are boring as one-dimentional touring shows and should only be done if they can go full out in a resident production cause the theatrics is what its all about.

[CarolynW]

Posted: 10/24/04 at 1:17pm

I enjoyed the recent US tour. But putting ramps into theatres was the big problem with the original US tour. The show lastest 4 years in Las Vegas. It closed because the LV Hilton wanted to put in a Star Trek experience, at the time that did nto do as well as they thought.

Anyway, the show is going to start touring the UK next month.

I doubt it could go to Broadway in its new style as it has a 3D screen that they use with some ramps on stage.

That is why the revival did not go to Broadway in the US and on tour.

Yours,

Carolyn

[grownupgroupie]

Posted: 10/24/04 at 1:27pm

I hope not. I'm sorry, but I think it's the ultimate in ALW 80s cheese. Yes, it needs to stay at the Ice Capades.

[CarolynW]

Posted: 10/24/04 at 1:36pm

The Starlight on ICE show lasted about 3 months. I think it failed because people were not familiar with the show and they skated to recorded music. The costumes were nice and I hear the skaters were good, but it just did not have other things needed to carry on.

It was produced by a production company that does shows here in Las Vegas too. I think had it had more advertising it might have worked better. I understand that ALW was not that impressed with the show.

Yours,

Carolyn

[adamized88]

Posted: 10/24/04 at 1:46pm

from what i've heard, what made starlight express magical in london was the stage that was built for the stage - the races would go on all around you so it was like you were in the middle of the show

when it came to the us, very few changes were made to the gershwin

i think if they brought it back with some way to create the same magic that exists in london it would be awesome - i myself am dying to see it

[CarolynW]

Posted: 10/24/04 at 1:54pm

The Las Vegas version from the 1990s had a stage made just for the show and it had tracks that went into the audience. It was great here. The theatre was small so you were up-close and personal with the cast:) It was a shortened version, but I think it worked.

Right now with "Phantom" coming to Las Vegas (and a theatre made specially for the production) and costing the producers a prety penny with a real lake, I don't see "STarlight" coming back to the US as a permanent production.

Yours,

Carolyn

[MyNameInLights]

Posted: 10/24/04 at 2:45pm

I love this show so much!

[bronxboundexpress]

Posted: 10/24/04 at 3:02pm

VEgas was still scaled down from London. They did not have the bridge and the set was overall smaller and not as tall.

[Sant]

Posted: 10/24/04 at 3:56pm

I can't imagine which theatre house they could use to provide Broadway audience the same kind of experience they gave in London. I saw the London production and as soon as you entered the auditorium you were in the middle of the set. One actually had to cross the race track to get to the seats in orchestra (and if the seat was in the front Orc centre, one had to cross 2 tracks!!) And one more section of the race track was attached to the front edge of the Mezz.

To get all the tracks into the theatre they had to pull out some 1100 seats of Apollo Victoria Theatre, which still left some 1300 seats for the audiences.

When the show was reworked in 1992/3 they added some new material in it (like the duet "Next time you fall in love" (the melody was recycled from CATS where it had been "The Ballad of Billy McGraw")) and cut some songs and characters (like Belle the sleeping car)

It was good entertainment but sort of leave-your-brain-home kind of show.

[adamized88]

Posted: 10/24/04 at 4:15pm

and they cut "only he!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

[Stexer1974]

Posted: 10/24/04 at 5:40pm

I actually had the privilege to hear "Only He" (my favorite) in the recent US Tour before it was yet again cut and "Next Time" was re-added.

[QueenMuppet]

Posted: 10/24/04 at 5:42pm

I really enjoyed Starlight Express in the 90s in London. It would need some serious re-writing if it was to re-open anywhere. The music and lyrics were already very dated in the late 90s.

I remember seeing an interview with ALW in 2001 when he talked about re-writing Starligh Express once again. He explained he contacted Ben Elton who wasn't interested in SE, so they decided to do The Beautiful Game together instead. Not too sure if ALW gave up on re-writing SE yet.

QM

[Stexer1974]

Posted: 10/24/04 at 5:46pm

It was rewrote by ALW for the recent US and current UK Tours. "A Lotta Locomotion" is now "A Whole Lotta Locomotion" with a Brittany Spears/Pop sound to it. "The Rap" was also revamped to have a more up to date sound. Also the "Rockie" characters that do the rap are now called Hip Hoppers instead.

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 10/24/04 at 6:22pm

Andrew Lloyd Webber did not write the new lyrics that was David Yazbek.