Allegiance to Close- Page 3

[SmokeyLady]

Posted: 2/8/16 at 10:04pm

It left me cold and bored.

[mpkie]

Posted: 2/8/16 at 10:54pm

Pootie2 said: "Is this really an option? (What other musicals or straight plays have been revived in the other format?) I hope they close with a decent uptick, at least. Neither of the last two Sunday shows are close to being sold out."

I have no idea but one can dream right!? Perhaps instead of 'revived' I think I meant 'adapted'. Like Therese Raquin was adapted and produced as a Broadway musical, and then they put on a version that's a straight play at the Roundabout recently. Or Spring Awakening was written as a play and was adapted into a musical.

[broadwayboy223]

Posted: 2/9/16 at 1:40am

Does anyone have a Allegiance tote bag that they would be willing to sell? They were sold out and obviously not going to re order. 

[RippedMan]

Posted: 2/9/16 at 2:09am

I saw this via the lottery last week, and I was left a little cold. Sure, I cried, but only because the situation was so terrible. The book was fine, if a little melodramatic. The music, besides the second song - something "storm" related - was mostly forgettable and generic. The direction, though, was the worst. It was just awful. Mixed with the design, and I normally like this designer, was just awful. But, I think, my main annoyance goes to the director. I don't get how he still gets works. He doesn't understand how ti direct a simple scene with 3 people. He think direction is "design" but it's also about the actors and the overall concept. 

I can totally see why this closing. It's not epic enough, and, sadly, not poignant enough. 

[suttonfoster]

Posted: 2/9/16 at 10:48am

Does anyone know if they are still doing the lottery for this? I'm trying to enter and I keey getting a "page is not found" when I click on the link. 

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 2/9/16 at 10:59am

They're not.

https://twitter.com/allegiancebway/status/696800637749719040

[thedrybandit]

Posted: 2/9/16 at 12:25pm

LizzieCurry said: "They're not. https://twitter.com/allegiancebway/status/696800637749719040"

I found out this morning that rush and lottery are both over. No more of either for the rest of the show's run.
Unfortunately I found that out this morning while I was in the rush line. Thankfully, all but two other people left and I was able to get two of the four $45 seats they had available in the Balcony.
Also, via a cast connection, Lincoln Center is filming tonight's performance.

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 2/9/16 at 12:31pm

That's insane. They didn't even put a sign on the door?

 

I'm glad their social media team has been replying to people about this, but it's puzzling that they wouldn't even alter the splash page for the now-defunct lotto to reflect its defunctitude.

[best12bars]

Posted: 2/9/16 at 12:38pm

Once again, After Eight takes a thread about a show's closing and pulls focus to his own disdain for other shows and how much he hates them.

 

Well played.

Updated On: 2/9/16 at 12:38 PM

[thedrybandit]

Posted: 2/9/16 at 12:44pm

LizzieCurry said: "That's insane. They didn't even put a sign on the door? I'm glad their social media team has been replying to people about this, but it's puzzling that they wouldn't even alter the splash page for the now-defunct lotto to reflect its defunctitude."

Nope, no sign on the door. Someone came out at about 9:40 to tell the line. It took digging through their twitter replies to find that they've been mentioning it anywhere online. All indications otherwise are that they are still doing rush and lottery.

Hopefully they get a sign up soon or make a real announcement to deter people from waiting for them. One guy in line this morning had been there since 6:30am. He left pretty pissed off, I think.

[broadwayboy223]

Posted: 2/9/16 at 2:24pm

I hope they are filming it for PBS! I agree with whoever said that the music is attractive. It doesn't have much depth though. I'm not saying this was the best show I've ever seen but at least when I went you couldn't deny the energy in the room and on the stage. 

[ebontoyan]

Posted: 2/9/16 at 4:06pm

Agree, hope this show gets filmed! I have seen better done shows but this show truly touched my heart! 

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 2/9/16 at 4:41pm

It is being filmed, for the Lincoln Center archives. Do you really think they're going to figure out something else in addition to this, with a week left?

[suttonfoster]

Posted: 2/9/16 at 7:25pm

I'm actually having trouble now even getting tickets on the website. Not in terms of it being sold out but there's been an error all day saying the website is "broken". Anyone else having this problem?

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 2/9/16 at 7:28pm

"Broken"? That's not generally a technical term. Do you have a screencap?

[Pootie2]

Posted: 2/13/16 at 11:34am

Best of luck to the cast during their closing weekend.

 

While the criticism against its artistic merits definitely hurt, I still believe it's the subject matter first and foremost that was the hardest sell. A friend of mine just recently traveled internationally to Broadway and saw rather typically "safe" tourist shows: Phantom, Chicago, Aladdin, Kinky Boots, Something Rotten. Would universally positive reviews have helped? Probably not in my friend's case since she had no interest in the local history and wanted pure entertainment, "otherwise this wouldn't be a vacation" (fair enough). I was curious if the social media presence would help, but it definitely didn't in any meaningful way; ultimately, that's not surprising given that Takei's celebrity presence is centered around Star Trek while his curated feeds are random humor, none of which translate gracefully to an interest in the Japanese-American internment. Oh well.

 

About the website, I didn't realize until a few days ago that there was an annoying popup preventing the user from going directly to Telecharge. This popup tries very hard to get your name and contact information for "future marketing" purposes, while the required field is the ticket number drop-down, which apparently does not transfer to the Telecharge window later anyway. In Firefox with my ad-blocker enabled, filling the drop-down and hitting next eventually went to a calendar view popup, but this still isn't Telecharge. Clicking a show date from this popup then finally opened a Telecharge browser tab/window, so that worked. The official website script may not work in certain browsers with certain ad-blockers, or it may have indeed been down, but Telecharge should work fine.

[Bettyboy72]

Posted: 2/13/16 at 8:33pm

Any topic  can draw crowds if the score, performances are compelling and word of mouth grows. Next To Normal is a perfect example-a pulsating score and riveting performances that kept people coming well past it recouping. 

I enjoyed Allegiance, but the score was not elevated enough to propel it to the next level, nor was the direction and book. It was a good show, but that isn't enough to keep people coming in. 

[Pootie2]

Posted: 2/13/16 at 8:42pm

Bettyboy72 said: "Any topic  can draw crowds if the score, performances are compelling and word of mouth grows. Next To Normal is a perfect example-a pulsating score and riveting performances that kept people coming well past it recouping. 

 

I enjoyed Allegiance, but the score was not elevated enough to propel it to the next level, nor was the direction and book. It was a good show, but that isn't enough to keep people coming in. "

 

I'm not sure about that. I wouldn't classify Next to Normal as anywhere near the same type of politically charged and potentially "un-patriotic" controversial subject matter as Allegiance. After all, there are Trump supporters who want the same thing. I suppose the unanswered question will always be, if Allegiance had a solid, critically acclaimed artistic backing, would it have done better, especially in our current political climate against Muslims and immigration in general? What if this musical had come before 9/11? Oh well.

[ebontoyan]

Posted: 2/13/16 at 9:27pm

I thank George Takei and the Allegiance team for bringing this story on stage!  Some people will have the what if it had 'solid critically acclaimed etc etc' but I don't fault George for sticking it out with the 'less acclaimed' Jay Kuo/Lorenze Thione who he met while watching 'In the Heights' and the seeds of Allegiance took root!  My wish for this show is a life beyond Broadway, it is still a story that needs to be told #Gaman

[mpkie]

Posted: 2/13/16 at 9:28pm

As someone who loved the show for its content/subject and not its artistic content, I've rarely recommended it to anyone. I've only ever recommended it to other Asian Americans (females, specifically) and one person who told me they were into history and enjoyed historical shows. And Asian Americans are an extreme minority in the theater-going world.

 

I never routinely saw anyone on this board recommend it to anyone asking what they should see next. Ponying up top dollar for luxury item like a Broadway show that on its whole is just merely decent is a hard sell, especially for people who go to see 3 shows or less a year. And that's most people I know.

 

I would agree that the content makes it an even harder selling point, even though I think this should be its strongest selling point. It's similar to why some folks purposely avoid seeing Les Miserables because they don't want to watch a musical that makes them sad. Also, the general populace doesn't connect with Asian American history. And it's a skeleton in the closet for recent American history. It's like a double, triple whammy.

 

I'm just really happy that it got to play on Broadway and people got to see it and learn more, myself included. And that there are plans for a tour in the works. Also Lea Salonga and George Takei. So freakin' cool.

[broadwayboy223]

Posted: 2/13/16 at 10:23pm

It's a theatrical experience I will never forget. The night I went the cast had mentioned that they were putting the sets and costumes in storage so that seemed like a good sign for a tour. 

[delongpre]

Posted: 2/13/16 at 10:31pm

I have not been so moved by a show in a long time. I don't understand why the subject matter should affect one's enjoyment of this show anymore than it should for The King and I or Finding Neverland. It's not a history lesson but rather a story about PEOPLE.

I only saw it this week and wished I had seen it earlier. I would go again. The acting was superb, and I was moved to tears numerous times.

Bravo to all involved. You put on an incredible show with heart and meaning.

[Pootie2]

Posted: 2/13/16 at 10:56pm

ebontoyan said: "I thank George Takei and the Allegiance team for bringing this story on stage!  Some people will have the what if it had 'solid critically acclaimed etc etc' but I don't fault George for sticking it out with the 'less acclaimed' Jay Kuo/Lorenze Thione who he met while watching 'In the Heights' and the seeds of Allegiance took root!  My wish for this show is a life beyond Broadway, it is still a story that needs to be told #Gaman"

 

Don't get me wrong, I appreciate that this made it to Broadway at all. Kudos to the producers but more importantly, to Jordan Roth for taking it.

 

I think the tour was already announced?

Updated On: 2/18/16 at 10:56 PM

[ebontoyan]

Posted: 2/14/16 at 3:36am

Tours can be announced...and then nothing. When the tour schedule is announced and the first tour show played out somewhere then I will believe it!

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 2/14/16 at 8:02am

Wish the cast luck going forward. The show was quite good even though the score was not terrifically memorable. It is a shame the closing day crowd will be he'd down due to the bitter cold