NOW 19 YEARS ON-Carrie the musical, how did it go so wrong

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 3/17/07 at 11:51am

Can you belive it's almost 19 years since Carrie opened on broadway?

We all know the story, the biggest flop of all time(despite having some amazing moments and good reviews ).

So what exactly do you think was Carries big problem?

Was it hands staging of the show? was the producer clueless, or was it just a bad idea?

Many people have commented on the score being very good in parts and salvageable if it was due to go on again

I would have to agree
In
Open Your Heart
Eve Was Weak
Dont Waste The Moon
Evening Prayers
Unsuspecting Hearts
I remember how those boys could Dance
Do Me A Favour
When Theres No One
Heaven Reprise

were all amazing songs , but for every great one Carrie had a dud

Dream On
Out For Blood
Wotta Night
Carrie
Hurts To Be Strong
etc etc

what do you think?

Updated On: 4/29/07 at 11:51 AM

[ljay889]

Posted: 3/17/07 at 11:52am

Some say the problem was Debbie Allen.

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 3/17/07 at 11:53am

as a dancer myself i have to say that some of Debbie Allens choreography was very good

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 3/17/07 at 12:06pm

Having seen the show back in May 1988 during one of the final previews, I remember thinking to myself how campy and delicious hilarious the show was. In every way, from the costumes, the stylized sets to Debbie Allen's FAME-ish choreography. The Margaret White and Carrie moments were simply theatrical gems in every way, from scenes to songs, but the rest of the show was just a riot. THAT is why it still lingers on in memory -- the mess it was: pure 80's cheese!

The show could have survived for several months just on the word-of-mouth alone (people LOVED how campy it was!), but the producers panicked and to prevent any further damage to their esteems they pulled the plug quickly. Even Betty Buckley has stated that she was surprised they chose to close the show that quickly as it was doing pretty good box office just on the word-of-mouth alone.

[iluvtheatertrash]

Posted: 3/17/07 at 12:14pm

(I hardly think the title song was a dud. It's one of my favorites in the score - granted it's an 11 o'clock number at 8:15, but it's still delicious.)

Posted: 3/17/07 at 12:47pm

Unfortuantely people have pre-conceived notions of what will make a good musical. Remember Titanic? The jokes everytime mention was made of it?And then, when it opened, it won the Tony. Although I would have preferred seeing Barbara Cook as Mrs. White, I found the preview I attended well worth the effort and the audience response was overwhelming.

[Dark_Angel]

Posted: 3/17/07 at 12:55pm

I used to pass by the theater it was playing in and just stare at the marquee and think - - - WTF!

Nowadays they'll turn just about anything into a musical.

[karen24]

Posted: 3/17/07 at 12:55pm

There's a very good, in-depth discussion of "Carrie" in Ken Mandelbaum's book, "Not Since Carrie: Forty Years of Broadway Musical Flops." It's not a new book--1992--so more recent flops aren't included, but if you're curious as to what he thinks contributed to "Carrie's" demise, you should definitely check it out. I believe it is still in print.

[Dark_Angel]

Posted: 3/17/07 at 12:59pm

It is. You can get it through Amazon.

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 3/17/07 at 7:49pm

Yeah that book is great, i have the show on dvd as well as well cd ,it was a great show wrapped in awful staging.

And to the person who wishes they could have seen Barbara cook in the role-believe me YOU DIDN'T MISS ANYTHING-she was dull in the role ,Betty though herself in to the role.

[husk_charmer]

Posted: 3/17/07 at 9:21pm

The show was far from perfect, yes, however a lot of the probolem came from the Producer.

At the time, all he had to his credit was the German (I think...) production of "Cats" and was totally unprepared for something of this magnitude. After seeing the reviews in London he should have pushed opening on Broadway longer, and insisted on MASSIVE changes to the show. However, he didn't. In fact, he used up most of the Broadway advance before opening, bad enough that the cast created "No Cash, No Carrie" buttons because they weren't going to be paid. With little advance, and bad reviews, the show couldn't afford to stay open long enough for word of mouth to do any good.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 3/17/07 at 9:49pm

Several years ago Charlotte d'Amboise spoke extensively about CARRIE on Seth's Chatterbox. I should post that long segment on that unmentionable site. What she had to say was spectacular -- she covered EVERYTHING, even how the producers didn't want the girls to wear stockings underneath their skimpy "In" costumes (especially after they shrunk from an accidental washing). Great stuff.

Hmmm...makes me think -- keep an eye-out. I might just post some CARRIE goodies on that site. Anyone up for some "Out for Blood"?

[husk_charmer]

Posted: 3/17/07 at 9:53pm

And BrodyFosse becomes my new hero.

I'm still holding out for a studio recording...although, by the same token, it might hurt the entity the show has become, to have it officially avialble in any form.

[theaterkid1015]

Posted: 3/17/07 at 10:04pm

I would love a studio recording, but I'm so happy that I got my copy of an original audio today. I seriously jumped around I was so happy.

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 3/18/07 at 9:54am

The thing what a lot of people believe for some reason is that the Stratford reviews were really bad and they weren't.

I have all the reviews from stratford and 6 of the 11 reviews were positive and a lot of the negative were pissed of because the RSC was using subsidized fund's to mount a broadway musical.

I met Linzi about 7 years ago in a pub in London when we were both doing shows and we spoke about the show a lot and how much she enjoyed it but how shocked she was that changes were not made to the show before it went to broadway.

I don,t think the producer can be blamed for changes not being made that would be down to the director.However i do think Fredrich Kurtz was far to inexperienced to produce this show(his delay of opening night on Broadway therefore missing the tony cut off dates show that )

What is heartbreaking is that if anyone has heard the act 1 Workshop CD from 1984 the show was on the right track with realistic scenes set at school(tommy's poem was a song) ,Open your heart was led in by a choir on the radio singing it, and the scenes at Carrie's home were more realistic.

The act 1 finale also just had Carrie pin Margaret to the wall with the furniture in the room and causes the doors and windows to slam shut other than the bizare hands on fire on Broadway.

There is a great show in there waiting to get out

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 3/18/07 at 10:00am

It shouldn't have been directed by Terry Hands, the reknowned Shakespearian director who was completely wrong for the piece, turning from an unpretentious, campy musical comedy to a pretentious, dramatic disaster.

From what I've seen and heard, there is a good show somewhere in there, but, with what they had originally, it was a mixed bag.

Someone like Jack O'Brien could do it great justice today.

[folkyboy]

Posted: 3/18/07 at 10:18am

yeah, the togas needed to go

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 3/18/07 at 10:25am

I agree about terry hands though he had directed a musical before called Poppy.

The costumes were just odd,togas,red and Pink Body Stockings ,Margaret's low cut night dress(Hmmm) they were just plain strange.

I do think some af Allens choreography was good(i thought the dance to In was great,very campy)

[purpleprince101]

Posted: 3/18/07 at 12:42pm

i saw the first act when i was little because of a guy my dad worked with son was in it. I was afraid so i left with my mom

[eb412]

Posted: 3/18/07 at 2:05pm

its really interesting to hear people talk about carrie. i first heard about it on this site and then discovered some clips. its so fascinating why some shows don't "make it" and others do. obviously carrie is flawed (all shows are) and from what i've seen is that its probably in the staging/choreography and the show just being inappropriate or over the top in the wrong places...but ofcourse i have not seen the full show and am no authority. i also think the show does not really have a good enough hero. do you really want carrie to succeed? do you want the kids to be ok? and what about that mom?? i think maybe it leaves people with a bad taste in their mouth and nothing really to take from it except dont be mean to the weird kid lol. i know it worked as a movie but it was a horror movie...people saw it for a scare. in a musical i feel people need something to learn or take a way when an ending is so unsatisfying or troubling. i know there are musicals out there that work with characters you dont root for but i think thats why mack and mabel failed as well so i think its something to think about.

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 3/18/07 at 2:12pm

I have to disagree with the comment about the show not having a hero(or a character to root for)You are rooting for Carrie all the way through, you really want her to be accepted even though you know the sad outcome.

When i watch the show on dvd i still wanna scream at the TV"dont go to that prom" (poor love)

The story DOES translate well to stage , the characters and the set ups are what you come to expect in an opera or a musical(just with a bit of telekinesis's thrown in for good measure )

The show has a great build up to the final showdown as well(it's just a shame the staging of the destruction was so poorly staged)

[SeanMartin]

Posted: 3/18/07 at 6:50pm

If I were to guess, I'd hazard that the original director tried to stage everything as it would have looked through Carrie's eyes. That would explain the slutty costumes for the girls in the gym, as well as the near medicinal look of the set. But that's just a guess, because it seems something they dabbled but never followed through on.

I've often thought there's a good show under all that 80s dreck. I just dont think anyone will ever be able to extract it from that horrible rep.

[sing_dance_love]

Posted: 3/18/07 at 10:03pm

After reading all this i found some video of the show, cause well i needed to see it. Wow. "In" is just... wow. I kind of love it though. It just has no place being in "Carrie: the musical". But anyway, i can't completely make out all the words, does anyone know the lyrics to "In", or somewhere I can find them?

[desiree armfeldt]

Posted: 3/18/07 at 11:29pm

I think there is such an incredible show waiting to come out too. I cant surmise a reason why the show flopped other than the fiscal problems aforementioned. It was good musical theater...and you do root for Carrie and feel sorry for her at the end because she was, in essences, forced to do it.

[Forester]

Posted: 3/19/07 at 7:43am

Anybody know how Stephen King felt about this show?