Here in the California desert (near Palm Springs), the McCallum Theater hosts quite a few touring shows, as does the Fox in Riverside, about an hour away. Unfortunately, they usually play for at most 3 performances each. That seems to eliminate the most technically complex musicals from coming to this area, because it's too much to set up and tear down in the small amount of time allotted. When I saw "Elf," the first performance was late starting because something technical was still going on -- sound checks or last minute stage set-up or who knows what else.
I always assumed that the short runs would eliminate most of the shows with elaborate sets or effects -- setting up a chandelier to crash or a helicopter to land would be very difficult unless the theater would be kept empty for days in advance. Yet, I noticed that the Fox has just added Les Miz to the end of the 2014-15 season. I wonder whether they'll use the new Broadway staging.
Audrey, the Phantom Phanatic, who nonetheless would rather be Jean Valjean, who knew how to make lemonade out of lemons.