Correct Show - Wrong Theatre

[Phantom of London]

Posted: 7/14/14 at 5:26pm

They say some shows work only in an intimate theate, where some shows will only work in those big cavernous theatres.

As the thread suggest, what shows have been presented in the wrong house?

[ajh]

Posted: 7/14/14 at 6:52pm

A STEADY RAIN back in '09! I understand that with Jackman and Craig on board the producers wanted to make as much $ as possible so went for a barn like the Schoenfeld but it made for a very disconnected experience unless you were really close. We had top price (but not premium) seats in the 4th row Mezzanine and it felt like it was happening miles away. It's a really small play. I got dreadful bored. Am pleased to see that this season The River is playing in at more suitable size house.

[fashionguru_23]

Posted: 7/14/14 at 9:30pm

Ajh,

Funny you say the 4th row Mezzanine at the Schoenfeld made you feel like the action was far away. I sat in the last row of the orchestra for the revival of "A Chorus Line" and I didn't feel like I was far from the action.

Updated On: 7/14/14 at 09:30 PM

[jnb9872]

Posted: 7/14/14 at 9:57pm

I'm sorry, but the Schoenfeld is not a barn. It's one of the smaller theatres on Broadway (13th out of 40 by capacity, according to a quick Wikipedia check) and when I've sat in the mezzanine I've thought it a great location. Admittedly, for some reason, not as great as other similarly-sized mezzanines like the Music Box or Broadhurst, but still a perfectly fine view.

Surely HOLLER IF YA HEAR ME is the current victim of this.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 7/14/14 at 10:00pm

A STEADY RAIN didn't suffer from being in the wrong theater. It suffered from being an AWFUL BORING play.

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 7/14/14 at 10:01pm

I thought Priscilla was a bit out of place at the Palace.

[Julie Yard]

Posted: 7/14/14 at 10:02pm

Pippin needs a bigger stage. I enjoyed, but it should have had a bigger stage.

[15minutecall]

Posted: 7/14/14 at 10:08pm

JoanF, why does Pippin need a bigger stage than the one at the Music Box? I loved the relative intimacy and did not feel the staged was cramped. Is the stage that much smaller than at other theaters, even though the house is smaller than many?

[Julie Yard]

Posted: 7/14/14 at 10:17pm

I just thought it needed more room. Or if there had been more room, what would we have seen? The stage was tall, maybe not wide enough.

Hats off for the staging that was there, I just wondered/wished for a bigger stage.

[fashionguru_23]

Posted: 7/14/14 at 10:38pm

I remember reading on these boards about Legally Blonde being too small for the Palace, and then once it toured, the creative team and producers realized that it should have played a smaller theatre, and maybe it could have stayed on longer.

[BroadwayNYC2]

Posted: 7/14/14 at 11:02pm

I remember when I saw the pre-Broadway tryout of Legally Blonde and was astounded at how (unnecessarily) big the show was. From what I understand, the London production was scaled down a bit. It probably would have run longer with more appropriate sets at a theatre like the Rodgers.

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 7/14/14 at 11:02pm

Legally Blonde for sure, I think it would have run far longer if it would have been in a smaller house as attendance was often higher than many shows playing at the same time but not enough for the Palace. The West End production showed smaller equalled better.

Good Vibrations was also in the wrong venue.....a theatre

[FishermanBob]

Posted: 7/15/14 at 1:10am

Hard to say whether it would have made a difference in how long it lasted but ANN, the Holland Taylor 1 woman show really would have been better suited to a more intimate house than the Vivian Beaumont.

[ajh]

Posted: 7/15/14 at 1:50am

Ok I think I was being hyperbolic referring to the Schoenfeld as a "barn", it just felt that way when trying to concentrate from a certain distance on a tiny play that would have benefited from being performed somewhere no bigger than the Golden or the Booth. I don't doubt that front Mezz there would be fine for a larger scale show (I certainly hope so as that's where my seat is for IOAP) I tend to agree with Jordan,, it WAS boring.....
I must say though I think the Music Box is perfect for the current Pippin. I was very excited at the way it felt so overwhelming and all-encompassing which it maybe wouldn't have done in a larger theatre.

[JBroadway]

Posted: 7/15/14 at 2:02am

I think a big example is The Story of My Life. I love this show so much, but the fact is that it really didn't belong in any Broadway house at all. Even though the Booth is comparatively an intimate theatre, the show really belonged Off-Broadway in a much more intimate house.

I suppose that brings up a whole different discussion though: whether shows work better off-broadway or on Broadway. But venue size is a key part of that.

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 7/15/14 at 12:56pm

As previously mentioned, Legally Blonde. I saw both the London and Broadway productions and it was interesting to see what a huge impact the size of the space made on the show.

1776 (revival)
Candide (revival)
The Pirate Queen (though the size of the space couldn't help the material)

[millie_dillmount]

Posted: 7/15/14 at 2:14pm

I saw a tour of the Drowsy Chaperone in Boston at the Opera House. Anyone in Boston knows that the Opera House is quite large, so it seemed like the wrong venue for the show. The Colonial or Shubert would have been more appropriate.

[wyo2ny]

Posted: 7/16/14 at 2:06pm

I've been thinking the same thing about the transfer of The Maids that will be in town next month. Given the number of partial view seats, I wonder if that should have gone into a different space.

[DottieD'Luscia]

Posted: 7/16/14 at 4:58pm

I saw the Pirates of Penzance at the Uris (now Gershwin). The show was way too small for that theatre.

[15minutecall]

Posted: 7/16/14 at 7:09pm

The Gershwin and Minskoff are the most inhospitable theaters in town, but Pirates had successful runs in both, as well as it the large Delacorte. It was never created for an intimate space.

I think the Marquis was the wrong space for the Follies revival and Drowsy, both of which seem intended for that old legit house feel. But it didn't seem to hurt the latter, though I would have enjoyed it more at the Music Box.