Curran San Francisco Competing with SHN (sort of)

Why did Carole Hayes leave SHN?

the director of head over heels made a tease comment about how excited he was about the casting progress and wished he could share more, and said announcements are coming soon,

I guarantee you Nederlander/SHN is STEAMING MAD over losing DEH on the tour to Hayes and the Curran. I think they also were upset not to get Fun Home.

Thats TWO best musicals in the last three years SHN has not been able to deliver to their subscribers, and I know some shn subs that were steamed fun home was not part of their package.

SHN has had a MONOPOLY for broadway tours my entire life. Now there is another company bidding for some top broadway shows san francisco tour run, which drives up the cost and also results in losing shows you otherwise would have had a sure thing on.

I dont know much about the nederlander and hayes fight. Apparently its in court now, and involves Hayes taking the Curran (which she owns) back out of its long term lease to SHN (which also has the golden gate and orpheum tied up) the other problem is the golden gate neighborhood is now several of the worst blocks in the tenderloin, i mean it is disgusting.....and orpheum while well policed is not much better. Curran is clearly in the best walkable neighborhood, with lots of restaurant choices.

i think competition is almost always good and wish both hayes and nederlander success and lots of shows in SF.

The Curran is not really an intimate venue, unless you're close to the stage, but it's 1,667 seats, which is a lot smaller than the 2,200-plus capacity at the Orpheum and the Golden Gate. And it feels a lot smaller too, so it works much better for 'smaller' shows, like Fun Home, Bright Star and Dear Evan Hansen. I am sure Dear Evan Hansen will sell out during its short, December run, and the Curran is definitely a better fit.

I am certainly curious about how Hays got Dear Evan Hansen. She may have had dibs on Fun Home as a producer of the Broadway run, but I'm not aware of any advantage she had for DEH. But perhaps the Dear Evan Hansen touring folks are going for the relatively smaller houses (Ahmanson instead of Pantages in LA, for example) if the price is right. I'm sure SHN season ticket holders will be disappointed, but SHN does get an open-ended run of Hamilton as a lure.

The dubious Great Comet fall rumors turned out to be false, which makes me wonder if that show will ever tour - at least in larger theaters. Of course, Hays isn't a fool. As a Great Comet producer, she knows how much money it lost on Broadway. And if she could grab a sure moneymaker like Dear Evan Hansen instead, that's the obvious choice.

I don't really understand how the Hays business model works either, but for as long as it's around, it is a good thing for Bay Area theatergoers. More competition, more new shows, what's not to like?

Patti LuPone FANatic said: "SHN? I have fond memories of the Curran, as I saw the revival of "A Chorus Line" during its San Francisco run in 2006. What is the name of that theatre that's on Market and located in the Tenderloin area?"

The Orpheum. Right now that and the Golden Gate are the only two actual SHN theatres.

I moved from the Bay Area in 2011, but this whole SHN/Curran development has fascinated me.

That's pretty aggressive pricing, and there's little reason to bother with it unless you really want to guarantee good seats for Dear Evan Hansen. That might work, as Dear Evan Hansen is certainly a draw. It just doesn't interest me, as I've already seen it.

For the other shows, there is no reason not to wait. Even if they're good, the Curran is unlikely to sell out, and rush tickets should be available. I sat in fifth row orchestra seats for Bright Star a few weeks ago and paid $45 per ticket via TodayTix.

Updated On: 1/19/18 at 02:17 PM

Did anyone see Taylor Mac's recent show at the Curran? I admit, I'd never heard of him before they began advertising his multi-day show. Looking at videos and reading about it, his genre is not my thing or style of theater I like to see, but curious to hear from those who are into it and know the actor, is he "all that" or just alot of fancy Lady Gaga-inspired costumes, glitter, and set pieces?

That pricing does seem extremely aggressive. If $160 is subscriber pricing for Soft Power and Head Over Heels, what will individual tickets go for, over $200?

I'm already seeing Soft Power at the Ahmanson in L.A. in June and aside from DEH, the other 2 don't really interest me that much. As Broadwaysfguy said, For $274, I can just see DEH on Broadway on a trip there and if Head Over Heels turns out to be something, I'll just grab a Todaytix rush ticket as bear88 suggested.

What does SHN stand for?

bear88 said: "But perhaps the Dear Evan Hansen touring folks are going for the relatively smaller houses (Ahmanson instead of Pantages in LA, for example) if the price is right. "

Maybe for the most part. But Dallas Summer Musicals has already announced it coming for the 2020 season, and the Music Hall where they present their shows is huge compared to the other touring house, the Winspear Opera House.

I believe Carole still owns a stake in SHN even though she is no longer a board member

I don't want to be too hard on the Curran, which is a lovely theater with a friendly staff. They are offering a range of prices. The daunting prices are for the best seats. But you can get mezzanine tickets for the four-show package for $326, seeing them all on Friday or Saturday nights. (They're cheaper during the week, and the balcony is $136 for all four, again on weekends.)

If I hadn't already seen Dear Evan Hansen, I would try to figure out a way to see it.

I'm just thinking strategically for myself. While Dear Evan Hansen isn't the crossover phenomenon that Hamilton has become (i.e. people want to see it who rarely see theater), it's a major commercial success that is still thriving on Broadway without Ben Platt, and I think it will tour very well. My guess is that even the pricey tickets will get snapped up.

But I feel safe in saying that the new musicals are unlikely to draw sellout crowds, even if they're great, because they're not brand name shows. I think it's terrific that Hays is offering new musicals, but I would rather see more shows than commit a lot of money to unknown quantities. My theater budget only stretches so far, and most places not only offer discounts but promote them. Shoot, the only package deal I have gotten in the Bay Area was at the Berkeley Rep, so I could save a little money on Angels in America tickets this spring while also seeing another play there this month. (The Berkeley Rep shuns TodayTix and other discount offerings, although it does have a nice deal for younger people.)

I honestly wonder about the Curran's business model. It was too easy to get great discount seats for Bright Star, although perhaps having a subscriber base - drawn by Dear Evan Hansen - will tighten things up.

I don't know the backstory of the Hays split with SHN, but she could cause them considerable heartburn going forward by snagging more popular small-cast shows (Come From Away, The Band's Visit, et cetera) that are a better fit for the Curran.

Updated On: 1/19/18 at 03:49 AM