BAT OUT OF HELL Will Play 8 Weeks At NY City Center In 2019- Page 5

[Rainah]

Posted: 11/3/18 at 3:32pm

Hamilton's Amber Iman's comment

 

Oh. So that “Bat out of Hell” producer was also behind the JCSuperstar tour that closed days before it was supposed to start, and more closely, that Off-Broadway transfer of “A Night with Janis Joplin” that I was in, where they knew we were closing in the morning, let us rehearse, go to dinner break, come back, get dressed and ready (cuz they were waiting on producers to arrive from California) and THEN tell us that we were closing right then....before our first dress rehearsal....and also asked if we could clean out our dressing rooms right then and not come back the next day.....and offered us shopping bags to carry our stuff in. JESUS TAKE THE WHEEL AND DRIVE FAST!!!!!!

[adamgreer]

Posted: 11/3/18 at 4:23pm

VotePeron said: "...what the hell? Back on at City Center:

https://www.broadway.com/buzz/193914/meat-loaf-musical-bat-out-of-hell-postpones-north-american-tour/

Sure, Jan. 

Updated On: 11/3/18 at 04:23 PM

[Sondheimite]

Posted: 11/3/18 at 4:25pm

This will play City Center when the Spiderman tour launches.

[tourboi]

Posted: 11/3/18 at 10:12pm

Sondheimite said: "And I get that the tour wasn't selling.

But...how many other producers are a three hit record of casting a show, rehearsing a show, (in some cases.. performing the show,)and canceling the show at the last possible second?

Maybe the tour sold next to no tickets.

But how does Cohl keep getting into the same situations and then deploying the same tricks?

He holds some fault if not the lion's share.

"

His/Their first mistake was not ensuring it went into subscriptions. In several (maybe many) of the cities I know that it was an "add on" show, not part of the subscription which would have guaranteed bums in seats. They sold it to presenters as a stand alone probably because the show gets more per-ticket sold than from subscriber tickets. 

Problem is... there weren't any single ticket buyers wanting to see this. Sales were indeed terrible pretty much in every market. 

 

[Miles2Go2]

Posted: 11/3/18 at 10:26pm

I doubt subscribers would have wanted to see this either. Of course, once they bought their season tickets, their only options would have been to see the show, not see the show and let the tickets go to waste, or try to resell their tickets. But for presenters this would pose a more dire problem. People don’t buy season subscriptions if enough of the packaged shows don’t appeal to them.

[tourboi]

Posted: 11/3/18 at 11:23pm

Probably right, Miles2Go2. There just, ultimately, wasn't really a burning desire for this show on the road. 

Makes me wonder if some of the stops weren't actually booked by presenters but were four-wall rented by the producers themselves. Who knows. 

[ClumsyDude15]

Posted: 11/4/18 at 12:01am

The Philly stop was not a part of the Kimmel Center/Broadway Philadelphia season in any form and I was shocked when I saw they announced the stop here at the Forrest. For awhile and I assume it never changed, Philly was the only date not available for purchase. Not sure if they had been trying to get into the season here or not, but I hadn’t heard a word about it being apart of our season.

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 11/4/18 at 1:05am

HogansHero said: "It is no secret and I am pretty sure she is credited somewhere as g.d.e.l.g.i. says. It's a pretty well known thing that she is singing. DeVita is lip-synching on the video. Maybe she had a schedule conflict. She was Sheila in Hair around that time."

Per Wiki, Foley toured in THE MAD SHOW with Meat Loaf and "from time to time" joined him to audition the album for record execs in 1977. That was the same year as her summer variety series with Debbie Allen and Mimi Kennedy (and the TV show I where I first discovered her). HAIR came out two years later, but I don't know when it was filmed.

My first copy of BAT was an audiocassette; it had no credits, except for Meat Loaf and Steinman on the cover. I later bought the vinyl version and could find no musician credits; I would have recognized the several guys from the E Street Band who play on the album, as I knew their names very well. (I first bought a copy of BAT in 1985.)

Wiki says the recording company wanted to leave Steinman's name off the cover because it wanted to emphasize Meat Loaf as a solo artist. (Steinman says his conflicts with the singer date from that issue.) Perhaps for the same reason it omitted the names of Foley, Rundgren, etc.

Thanks for trying to answer my question. Even now the iTunes versions of the album credit no one but Meat Loaf on every track. (I just looked.)

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 11/4/18 at 1:08am

g.d.e.l.g.i. said: "...Ellen had her own career stuff going on, yes (3 Girls 3which Gaveston mentioned, the Hairrevival which HogansHero brought up). But the album was already done and dusted (and being shuffled to various labels) by spring 1977 (it would eventually be released that fall), so there wasn't exactly a scheduling conflict. As I understand it, off the back ofBat, Cleveland International offered her a solo deal, and shewasn't all that keen on joining Meat on the road and only being showcased in certain numbers. Karla DeVito (with an 'o', if you please :P ) stepped in, and was a better fit for the stage show by all accounts."

Thanks for the info. Yes, Foley had her solo career plus a TV show, as I mention above. (The gimmick was one comedian (Kennedy), one dancer (Allen), one singer (Foley).
 

Thanks for correcting my spelling of DeVito. I should know better, as my husband knew her casually and my best friend is also a close friend of DeVito and her husband. They live in Hawaii and I haven't met them, but I should still know how to spell her name.

[annang]

Posted: 11/4/18 at 1:32am

Bat actually is a part of my subscription to the National in DC. I’m wondering what they’re going to do now. It was set to be here 3 weeks in a huge theatre that is woefully underused in the first place. 

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

Posted: 11/4/18 at 8:59am

GavestonPS said: "My first copy of BAT was an audiocassette; it had no credits, except for Meat Loaf and Steinman on the cover. I later bought the vinyl version and could find no musician credits; I would have recognized the several guys from the E Street Band who play on the album, as I knew their names very well. (I first bought a copy of BAT in 1985.)

Wiki says the recording company wanted to leave Steinman's name off the cover because it wanted to emphasize Meat Loaf as a solo artist. (Steinman says his conflicts with the singer date from that issue.) Perhaps for the same reason it omitted the names of Foley, Rundgren, etc.

Thanks for trying to answer my question. Even now the iTunes versions of the album credit no one but Meat Loaf on every track. (I just looked.)"

Well, if you're still curious about who was on the album and where, Jim's had the listings on his site for a while.

[Catsbroadwayfan]

Posted: 11/4/18 at 1:25pm

The curtain call video looked like it was super fun, super sad for the cast. Alot of them where barley making it through it, lots of tears

[Star87]

Posted: 11/4/18 at 1:55pm

I was at the performance last night and can say firsthand that the cast was amazing! I would see Andrew Polec in any future production he does. Terrible to pull him from the UK run to lead the American Tour, then cancel a few days before it was to start. It was hard to watch the curtain call at the end, but the cast did a great job and were professional throughout (I wouldn't expect anything less, but it couldn't have been easy for them). The audience was very energic throughout the show. I hope the cast could feel it and knew that there were a lot of us that had seen the announcement and were cheering them on. Can't say enough how much I loved Andrew Polec's performance. I would be very surprised if he doesn't go on to have a very successful career. But what an awful way for this chapter to end.

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 11/4/18 at 2:03pm

I hope Emily finds good out of this closing and gets to play Elphaba full time on the tour when Jackie is finished.

[ggersten]

Posted: 11/4/18 at 3:19pm

Bat Out Of Hell was not in the subscription season at Denver.  It was an add-on.  I almost bought tickets a couple of weeks ago.  I don't recall whether it looked like it was selling well or not.  I don't think I got to the pick a seat screen.  

Posted: 11/4/18 at 9:19pm

Off-Center usually wraps the last week in July - so if this show happens then it probably won't affect EncoresOC

[mag78]

Posted: 11/5/18 at 12:51pm

the curtain call video broadwayworld posted was mine.  i mostly lurk here but figured i'd chime in.

sad to see this show go.  it is, admittedly, quite cheesy, but also a ton of fun.  i first saw it in London and then a few times in Toronto as I have a friend who lives there.

echoing what others have said, Andrew Polec is phenomenal -- the voice on this guy!  he's an incredibly powerful singer and managed to sustain that demanding performance for going on 2 years.  i really hope he has a long theatre career ahead of him, he deserves it!

i feel terribly for the rest of the NA cast... they barely got started with the show.  can't imagine how unsettling it is to suddenly be homeless after you've put your life on hold to start touring... hoping they go on to bigger and better things.

[fashionguru_23]

Posted: 11/5/18 at 2:02pm

Interesting that last week, when the Facebook post came out, there was no mention of the tour on the show's website. Now, it has "US Tour" launching 2019, and a link to sign up for emails on the 8 week run at City Centre...

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

Posted: 11/5/18 at 2:05pm

...so in other words, this tour isn't happening. You just lost a whole slate of bookings, the odds are slim with a side order of none that you'll find receptive presenters two months in advance anywhere.

Alright, let's assume they could somehow pull this off; I dunno how, but let's say they could. With what cast? They certainly didn't ensure the goodwill of the current group by informing them 48 hours before the Toronto closing that they'd have to go home now. Unless they're truly desperate and progress is made in very short order, who's coming back to that environment?

Or, let's say they make the smart choice, wait for the City Center run to build buzz in order to launch a tour off a successful sit-down production. Here's why those odds don't look good: they booked eight weeks at City Center smack in the middle of theatrical "dead air" time. No one sees shows in the summer, everyone in NY is out of town and everyone out of town who comes to NY is sticking to the tried and true ticket. The only hope such an engagement might have is fans of the original with tourist money, and that will dry up mighty quick. If it runs on that kind of steam, it will be lucky to last eight weeks.

Bottom line? Stick a fork in this Bat meat. I'm pretty sure hellfire roasted it to a crisp.

[mattyp4]

Posted: 11/5/18 at 3:43pm

That's a shame. I was actually looking forward to this show. Haha! It definitely would have been contending for "guilty pleasure" status but I do love me some over-the-top Jim Steinman songs (I still regret passing on Dance of the Vampires, since that thread just came up this past week) and always had a soft sport for the Bat Out of Hell albums. I'm sure the show would have been a hot mess but probably would have been fun for a lot of folk. I passed on it in London and regretted it once the cast album came out. I was hoping the US tour would remedy that. Bummer. (I did think it was odd that it was playing City Center but whatever-- I would have gotten tickets.)

[mailhandler777]

Posted: 11/5/18 at 4:11pm

Emily Schultheis posted this on the Bat Out Of Hell tour pages on Facebook and Instagram.

TO CLEAR UP ANY CONFUSION:
“everyone involved” does not include the 50+ people who were shipped back to new york jobless and homeless with no warning. we have been fired and have had our contracts terminated. Just to clear up any confusing or misleading statements being made."

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 11/5/18 at 11:47pm

I do feel bad for the cast and crew but that’s show business. Sometimes these things happen. And with this producer they seem to happen frequently.

[Loopin’theloop]

Posted: 11/12/18 at 3:39am

CATSNYrevival said: "I do feel bad for the cast and crew but that’s show business. Sometimes these things happen. And with this producer they seem to happen frequently."

Yes it does indeed happen and sometimes even with the absolute best of intentions, producers simply cannot make a struggling show last. That is certainly part of show business, as you say but in this instance the big issue is that the producers know nothing about the business.

The big money producers are oil executives and they are the ones with the most say. That’s partly why the show is so insane, they had no clue how to put the thing together and not enough clout to deal with Jim Steinman’s demands on what could or could not be cut/changed etc.

That’s by the by - the issue at hand is that a huge amount of people have been put out of work in a situation that was entirely avoidable. The show has not made back its investment and touring the States was their hope of making up some cash but they didn’t have the money to tour the show in the first place. Not in terms of what was in the actual show budget, the oil guys just kept bailing it out, now that’s fine if you at least intend on paying off the shows staff if it goes south but they decided they simply to cut their losses, so that their already deeply lined pockets don’t suffer too much more of loss.

The fact that the show was living day by day like this and that there was no contingency for if it should close is what makes this so sour. I feel very sorry for all the hard working people involved.

 

[HogansHero]

Posted: 11/12/18 at 8:00am

Loopin’theloop said: "The big money producers are oil executives and they are the ones with the most say."

Nonsense. The show has four named producers, all very prominent people in music circles and with little to show for themselves in the theatre except Cohl whose trail is paved with fiasco. Where the money comes from is irrelevant. Likewise, re "not enough clout to deal with Jim Steinman’s demands," suffice it to say that that is not the issue.

[Loopin’theloop]

Posted: 11/12/18 at 4:50pm

HogansHero said: "Loopin’theloop said: "The big money producers are oil executives and they are the ones with the most say."

Nonsense. The show has four named producers, all very prominent people in music circles and with little to show for themselves in the theatre except Cohl whose trail is paved with fiasco. Where the money comes from is irrelevant. Likewise, re "not enough clout to deal with Jim Steinman’s demands," suffice it to say that that is not the issue."

Its not nonsense in the least. The Oil Execs are the people pulling the strings. They have the power in this situation and they are that the ones that pulled the show.

Regarding the other comment, I didn’t imply the show isn’t touring because of the producers inability to deal with Steinman. But his erratic behaviour has certainly been problematic throughout the process and the producers didn’t have the clout to handle him - in fairness to them, few would. Steinman calls the shots at this point in his career. But we are talking about a man who wears disguises during video conference calls and refuses to have any of his dialogue cut. The show and original album were both originally based around a Peter Pan concept that he’s never gotten over not fully having realised.