Be More Chill Orchestrations Drama

[MadonnaMusical]

Posted: 2/19/19 at 1:29am

I came here from the other message board to see what y'all were saying about this, but it doesn't look like there's much chatter here. Apparently the Local 802 president, Adam Krauthamer, has cited an old rule which bars orchestrators from playing in the pits of shows they have orchestrated and so Charlie Rosen was fired just hours before the first preview of Be More Chill.

"No Orchestrator of a given production may serve as Orchestra Contractor, Supervisor Copyist, Copyist or Instrumentalist on that production."

LINK TO ORIGINAL POST ON CHARLIE ROSEN'S INSTA

This rule is usually not enforced, especially when Alex Lacamoire is at the helm. Thoughts?

[\_(•_•)_/]

Posted: 2/19/19 at 1:58am

Doesn’t this just employ more musicians?

Charlie is already getting a check for orchestrations, just creates another job for someone making their dream happen.

[itsjustmejonhotmailcom]

Posted: 2/19/19 at 2:18am

MadonnaMusical said: "I came here from the other message board to see what y'all were saying about this, but it doesn't look like there's much chatter here. Apparently the Local 802 president, Adam Krauthamer, has cited an old rule which bars orchestrators from playing in the pits of shows they have orchestrated and so Charlie Rosen was fired just hours before the first preview of Be More Chill. 

 "No Orchestrator of a given production may serve as Orchestra Contractor, Supervisor Copyist, Copyist or Instrumentalist on that production." 

LINK TO ORIGINAL POST ON CHARLIE ROSEN'S INSTA

This rule is usually not enforced, especially when Alex Lacamoire is at the helm. Thoughts?"

Alex played keyboard on Hamilton. Orchestrators are allowed to conduct (and conductors are allowed to play keys) but they aren't allowed to play other instruments. It sounds like the way the news was delivered was abrupt and unprofessional, but ultimately he was breaking a rule he (and the GM and the Producer) should have known about.

[BroadwayRox3588]

Posted: 2/19/19 at 2:34am

Over/under for how many Be More Chill threads there'll be by the end of the week?

[Fan123]

Posted: 2/19/19 at 4:38am

I just hope the person who replaces him won't get harassed online, or in real life, by the weirder fans because of this.

[theaterlyfe19]

Posted: 2/19/19 at 5:23am

Fan123 said: "I just hope the person who replaces him won't get harassed online, or in real life, by the weirder fans because of this."

Knowing this show and the fans I’m not sure that won’t happen, but we’ll see....

[SomethingPeculiar]

Posted: 2/19/19 at 10:52am

Someone who knows more about the music side of the biz than I do posted this on another discussion forum. Edited excerpt:

1)   802 would have known about this long before the first preview. If the union is going to change accepted protocol, there's a way to address that earlier in the process, in a private manner. Springing a huge change on the band right before curtain time is unprofessional.

2)   The rule was created with the intention of checks-and-balances. "one job, one person," and the orchestrator shouldn't be orchestrating for their own talents. However, the makeup of the music dept. has changed significantly since the rule was created. There used to be a MD/conductor, an orchestrator, and maybe a dance arranger. Now, there are often a lot more leadership titles on the music staff. (BMC's is actually relatively small, compared to other shows)

3)   802 has never been consistent in enforcing the rule. One notable MD could think of 10+ cases where it wasn't enforced. However, on one show, he was forced to give up an Orchestration credit because of the rule.

4)   Will there be retroactive punishment for other orchestrators who have double-dipped? {I'm deleting names that were named, but we can all think of a few...several of whom won Tonys!}

5)   In December, there was a big turnover in the elected leadership of 802 after a contentious campaign over the future of the union. Adam Krauthamer (a Frozen horn player and Mr. Betsy Wolfe) won by 67%, and this was largely seen as a positive change. It was also seen as a boon for Broadway, since 802 reps ALL pro musicians in NYC, not just theatre.

Updated On: 2/19/19 at 10:52 AM

[Kad]

Posted: 2/19/19 at 11:36am

With a rule that is so inconsistently enforced, generally acknowledged to be outdated, and with many extremely notable cases of being broken- names like Steven Oremus, Alex Lacamoire, or Dave Malloy come to mind- it is very strange that they would crack down in such a harsh way on Charlie Rosen.  

[darquegk]

Posted: 2/19/19 at 11:59am

Between Pittsburgh and Off-Broadway, my original musicals have ALWAYS had orchestrators music directing or playing in the pit. Small musicals in particular are going to be hurt by this, just as much as big Broadway shows.

[itsjustmejonhotmailcom]

Posted: 2/19/19 at 4:17pm

Kad said: "With a rule that is so inconsistently enforced, generally acknowledged to be outdated, and with many extremely notable cases of being broken- names like Steven Oremus, Alex Lacamoire, or Dave Malloy come to mind- it is very strange that they would crack down in such a harsh way on Charlie Rosen."

I bet there were side agreements in those cases - not just broken rules and the union ignoring that. Not excusing how this was handled by 802 - that was very crappy. I think this points to a first time producer and first time GM (on Bway at least) not catching something they should have. You can't just break the rules and expect no consequences, even if others have. There's always a risk of them being enforced.

[Alex Kulak2]

Posted: 3/9/19 at 7:28pm

I just realized: Michael Chorney co-orchestrated the music for Hadestown and played guitar in the band. Does this rule also cover Off-Broadway shows?

[musicals1989]

Posted: 3/9/19 at 11:44pm

Alex Kulak2 said: "I just realized: Michael Chorney co-orchestrated the music for Hadestown and played guitar in the band. Does this rule also cover Off-Broadway shows?"

No. The Broadway CBA is different than Off-Broadway.