Broadway Legend Joined: 2/24/11
Sutton Ross said: "Where are all the out of state/foreign Britney fans?
Oh, they're at MJ because it's not garbage."
Well, Michael Jackson himself was garbage...so there's that..
Broadway Legend Joined: 4/22/04
''I had assumed that any show opening in the summer was doing so to grab the summer tourist market.''
I agree 100% with Dusoleilcanwhistle: ''Here Lies Love'' was always going to be a tough sell on Broadway. I love the show to bits, but why would it ever attract tourists? I'm sure many of them have never heard the title. Ditto, for many regular Broadway theatergoers. It's not based on a hit movie with a recognizable brand. It's got no big-name STARS. It's not a jukebox musical with hit tunes. A disco immersive musical about the rise and fall of the Marcos regime is about an UN-commercial as you can get.
I wish ''Here Lies Love'' opened in a smaller theater, in the spring, closer to Tony time. But what do I know? Still, I find it thrillingly theatrical and love its fun, infectious tunes. It oughta be on Broadway with that amazing cast, and they deserve the biggest spotlight (and disco ball) they can get.
Featured Actor Joined: 8/27/22
Sutton Ross said: "If it was a bio musical it'd likely be doing world's better.
She didn't want that and would anybody actually want to see all that sexism/control/obsession with her virginity/abuse from her family on stage?"
Yes I would. Overcome trauma would be a powerful narrative, like Tina. However, I respect her decision to stay private
Featured Actor Joined: 12/7/21
I found it really odd they didn't take Circle in the Square or buy out Studio 54. Both are much smaller and lend themselves to the nightclub staging.
Owen22 said: "Sutton Ross said: "Where are all the out of state/foreign Britney fans?
Oh, they're at MJ because it's not garbage."
Well, Michael Jackson himself was garbage...so there's that.."
And also one of the most iconic and beloved artists of the 20th century, with many of the biggest selling albums and singles of all time, possessing popularity that never actually fades, and now being represented by a Broadway show that is now a bonafide hit whether you like it or not. So there's that.
I don’t think people realize that they shrunk the Broadway by a lot so it’s not some giant barn. They probably needed the space to make the design work and they prob got some decent rent since no one was begging for that barn of a theater.
B212323 said: "I found it really odd they didn't take Circle in the Square or buy out Studio 54. Both are much smaller and lend themselves to the nightclub staging."
OK BUT STUDIO 54 WOULD’VE BEEN ABSOLUTELY GLORIOUS AND ALSO THEY WOULD’VE HAD A CHANCE TO GUT THAT HORRIBLE MEZZANINE
Again, they most likely wanted the big stage and house to build their nightclub inside of it. They’re smart people I’m sure they went through all their options and using a barn that wasn’t going to be booked for the foreseeable future makes sense. Hope it’s a giant hit!
“I found it really odd they didn't take Circle in the Square or buy out Studio 54”
and turning a profit would have been impossible.
RippedMan said: "I don’t think people realize that they shrunk the Broadway by a lot so it’s not some giant barn. They probably needed the space to make the design work and they prob got some decent rent since no one was begging for that barn of a theater."
Yes!
I struggle to see how CITS would have worked because of stage height. Could they lower the stage to have room for the dance floor? IDK the mechanics of that theatre.
Studio 54 would have been cool in theory, but it's too small. They lost over 40% of their seats. Replicate that in Studio 54 and you're getting pretty close to less than 500 seats. It would also probably have been near-impossible for them to ever hit their running costs.
I also don't know how the mezz overhang and dimensions compare to the Broadway, but they probably couldn't even do their reno in every theatre. I can think of a few where the mezz overhang is just too close to the stage to be able to fit in the dance floor!
Per my HLL source:
They liked the way the show played at Seattle Rep and wanted that to be the way it would be done going forward, instead of 100% dance floor.
It was all about the SIZE of the mezzanine. So they needed someplace like the Broadway or Imperial or Palace with a giant mezz + no Balc for this to be financially feasible.
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