Big Broadway Musicals Being Restaged Smaller

Economy = new vision.

Funny how it only seems to work one way. "Less than."

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Not sure I agree... I wonder if people thought spectacle was built into Sweeney Todd, and we know that it had a very successful Doyle pared down version run.

Perhaps, because of the film, the costumes are "a part" of Priscilla, but I could see it being staged on a much smaller scale. Even Spider-man could eliminate a lot of the visual, although without the special effect, it might be a rather dull evening.

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its like when some shows work in a bigger theater than a smaller theater and definitely vice versa.

22 is a huge cast for Goodspeed. Their stage is a fraction of the size of the St. James.

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I like when I am given the old razzle-dazzle.

Razzle-dazzle me.

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I think that each show is a unique situation and certainly adding a whole lot of extra flash and trash to a show for no particular reason is never a good idea. On the other hand, Broadway ticket prices are at an all time high and the trend toward slimmer production budgets has more to do with greed than it does what is best for theatre-goers. If the use of complex staging, which costs bigger money, doesn't happen on Broadway then where will it? Is there enough value in a ticket to a show in New York where the scenery looks like it could go straight on tour with no revisions?

I never saw Miss Saigon but I, like everyone who doesn't live under a rock knows about the helicopter. The Signature Theater, in Arlington, VA is staging a professional production in their small space, sans helicopter. It sounds fantastic, but some people who saw the original may feel cheated.

Les Mis is famous for its sets, but its newest productions have toned everything down. I skipped a recent revival because I wondered how it would look without the revolving stage.

Which brings me to the biggie: Phantom of the Opera. I can see reducing the cast numbers and eliminating the staircase in "Masquerade." I can see eliminating the suspended "angel." I can't however, figure out how the new U.S. tour will manage the title sequence without the moving catwalk. And of course, there's the chandelier. I can see reducing the effect by having the chandelier hanging over the stage and just dropping it, but eliminating the crash entirely, in favor of sparks? Isn't that like going to the Louvre and missing the Mona Lisa?

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I expect if you ask 100 people how much staging/scenery affects their reaction to a show, you'll get just as many varying responses. Some people concentrate on the performances, some the book. Some concentrate on the orchestrations, others the costumes etc. Some concentrate on all aspects.

I'm a visual person. The stagecraft, lighting, effects etc all play a VERY important part (along with, of course, the acting/music/staging) in my enjoyment of a show. My tastes tend to ascew towards dimensional ever-changing scenery, the more elaborate the better! (Provided it's not masking flaws in the show itself.) Some of my favorite shows have been heavy on visuals, and some of my least favorite shows have been those with static - or no set. Again, I'm a visual person.

That having been said... it's very difficult for me to make a transition from having seen a large production of a show to a scaled back or much smaller production. I always feel as though I (and the audience) am being cheated when compared to what has been seen before.

Most often, those that have not seen the elaborate productions prior, still find a great sense of enjoyment. But I do think that I'd fall into the majority of average theatre-goers that miss things when they are scaled back or removed from a show seen prior. It's only natural to make comparisons to larger versions if you've seen them.

Sadly, there's currently a trend among Broadway productions to simplify even what we see on Bway, no doubt because the Producers aim to be able to tour the shows as quickly, simply and cheaply as posible. Shows are noticibly smaller scale on Bway these days (IMO), using less traps and less complicated machinery as they once did.

Most notably LED/LCD panels are being used more and more frequently - much to my chagrin. There's an art form being compromised, and ultimately I think it makes shows look cheap no matter if I've seen them before or not. The future of set design is, as silly as this sounds, of concern to me.

Here's an example. I saw the big, overblown Sunset Boulevard in the '90s. In that show I was treated to visuals including a floating mansion, a 3-section folding staircase, 2 apartment sets, 2 office sets, a limo driving across stage, the Paramount Gates, the exterior of a sound stage, the interior of a sound stage, a drug store interior & more, more more! It was HUMONGOUS - and a site to behold. Now many say that the set completely engulfed the show. However I loved every single bit of it. If I could re-wind time to see one show again - that would be the one (out of the 200+ I've seen in my life.) I have avoided seeing any other productions of Sunset, quite frankly, because nothing can top that in my book. I was spoiled by the sheer spectacle.

Am I narrowminded for not embracing a smaller, intimate production? Perhaps.
Am I wrong for feeling that way? No.

A theatrical experience is different for everyone, and always based on each viewers personal subjectivity. Everyone takes something different from every production - small or big.

I just immensely enjoy leaving the theatre wondering things like "How the heck did that Mansion levitate into the air so quietly?" I'm afraid, if the trend continues, I many find myself not being quite as enchanted as I was. And that's a shame for all those future theatre-goers that should be as amazed and inspired as I have been lucky enough to be.

Updated On: 8/18/13 at 10:50 PM

I am in agreement with both goodoneinlou2 and winston89...

Having years ago, started the thread on set design, I am an avid lover of great design. Of course, I need for the book and score and performances to also be strong, but watching a stage transform itself can be sheer magic to me.

It saddens me when I read a critic - who loved the original larger version - review a new production and rave about it by trashing the earlier production with adjectives like "over bloated" (referring to the original bigger production) "more intimate" (referring to the new slimmer production), etc.

I love the theater; most aspects of it. I want there always to be room for big, small and medium sized shows.

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I feel like any show can be downsized with the right creative minds
working on it.

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