Curran San Francisco Competing with SHN (sort of)

[broadwaysfguy]

Posted: 1/18/18 at 12:46am

i was able to attend the gathering tonight with carole hayes, the directors of two of the new musicals premiering, a few Go-Gos and assorted theatre industry folk

My biggest takeaway is SHN must be STEAMING not to have gotten Dear Evan Hansen for the first tour stop in San Francisco, and getting great seats for DEH may get some folks to subscribe to the other new works

I am intrigued by Head over Heels, directed by Michael Mayer of Spring Awakening and much of the senior creative team from the Hedwig revival, Michael teased a bit of the plot and it sounds fun and as always with a jukebox comes down to can the songs integrate well and forward the story or not. Time will tell bit i like gogos music. I wish it was original music

The second show up, soft power, is an original musical/play with music by Jeanine Tesori and writing and lyrics by david henry hwang of mbutterfly. its a musical mostly set 100 years in the future when China is running things globally....

the third show, taylor macs holiday sauce should be something based on his recent 24 hour history of music program

Batting cleanup is dear evan hansen. for 25 glorious days in december 2018. Curran hired a group over over 1000 high school students to perform You Will Be Found from the balcony, while all of us watched from the stage...it was very well performed.

So from talking to members of the hayes family this is likely to be their formula several new works each season with an occasional bway tour show that has more dramatic depth(like fun home and DEH). 

I think it will be a difficult business model as most people pay to see proven shows and the Curran has a large capacity (1667). 

Im grateful they are doing it and hope it will be successful and i always welcome the chance to see new shows....

 

 

 

https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/DEAR-EVAN-HANSEN-HEAD-OVER-HEELS-and-More-to-Be-Part-of-Curran-Theaters-Inaugural-Season-20180117

[LMcC95]

Posted: 1/18/18 at 12:55am

Why did Carole Hayes leave SHN?

[haterobics]

Posted: 1/18/18 at 1:15am

I don't see them as competing. When you look at the Orpheum and the Golden Gate, they need a huge show they are such big spaces. When you have Fun Home and DEH, the Curran is really the only theater where I think they can thrive and deliver the intimacy they need.

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 1/18/18 at 1:22am

Has a cast for head over heels been announced? Any rumblings?

[antonijan]

Posted: 1/18/18 at 1:40am

I have a feeling DEH will be sold out...so I immediately subscribed since the show's popularity and Curran's "limited" capacity.

Here's the Curran's fb post:

Get your ticket to Curran's first ever subscription offering. #CURRAN2018 is an entire season of jaw-dropping entertainment and artistry.

Six-time Tony Award-winning Best Musical, Dear Evan Hansen! Plus three new works: Taylor Mac's HOLIDAY SAUCE, David Henry Hwang and Jeanine Tesori's SOFT POWER and the pre-Broadway world premiere of HEAD OVER HEELS, featuring the music of The Go Go's.

Four-show packages start as low as $116. Subscribing is the only way to get guaranteed access to all our amazing 2018 shows and perks, including DEAR EVAN HANSEN which is sure to be the hottest ticket of the year.

Subscribe now. It's time for a change of scene.
#youwillbefound #AsianCreators #wegotthebeat #taylormacsf

[broadwaysfguy]

Posted: 1/18/18 at 1:45am

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.

 

 

[PatrickDC]

Posted: 1/18/18 at 2:30am

If I recall there wasn’t a lot of public chatter about the reasons for her departure. I’ve heard many times Carole nixed tours stopping in SF if she didn’t get them first before San Jose or Sacramento. She never sloppy seconds even if there was demand (which there always would be, there are enough audience members in SF and San Jose for both stops to do well with a popular show. Immediately after she left our tour selections improved exponentially in my opinion. Might have just been coincidence that the quality of tours was greater at the time. It could have just been the vague “creative differences.” 

I do wonder how long they’ll keep the SH in SHNSF. 

[bear88]

Posted: 1/18/18 at 3:03am

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]

Posted: 1/18/18 at 5:58am

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?

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 1/18/18 at 10:13am

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.

[broadwaysfguy]

Posted: 1/18/18 at 11:39am

well i just went to the subscriber section and was shocked by the subsciber pricing 

for orch back to about row n for both center orch and the first four seats of side orch its

DEH 274

Head over heels 160

soft power 160

taylor mac 110

that feels really steep for two tryouts, a side show and a national tour of deh

 

[bear88]

Posted: 1/18/18 at 2:17pm

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

[GeorgeandDot]

Posted: 1/18/18 at 2:19pm

Kind of off topic, but I'm excited to see Soft Power.

[PatrickDC]

Posted: 1/18/18 at 2:52pm

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? 

[broadwaysfguy]

Posted: 1/18/18 at 3:45pm

hi Bear88

as much as would like to support carole and the Curran, im likely not to do the season tix at this aggressive pricing, get cheap tix for the two news shows i care about, and wrangle a single ticket for deh at the last minute or just see it in nyc again....

[UncleCharlie]

Posted: 1/18/18 at 4:18pm

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.

[broadwaysfguy]

Posted: 1/18/18 at 4:39pm

im also skeptical dear evan hansen can carry high ticket prices on the road with unknown cast members or la stunt casting.  it was an incredible, fantastic show with ben and the original cast, but hasnt gotten the wall to wall media coverage hamilton did.  

274 for a broadway tour orchestra seat?????

um, NO

[Patti LuPone FANatic]

Posted: 1/18/18 at 6:31pm

What does SHN stand for?  

[PatrickDC]

Posted: 1/18/18 at 6:43pm

SHN = Shorenstein Hays Nederlander, as in Carole Shorenstein Hays. The tour series long ago was called Best of Broadway, then they dropped that for SHNSF. 

[faceleg]

Posted: 1/18/18 at 7:36pm

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. 

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 1/18/18 at 8:22pm

Quick question... don’t the letters S and H in SHN stand for Shorenstein Hays? If she has split from SHN, why are they still using those initials?

[Wildcard]

Posted: 1/18/18 at 8:42pm

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

[antonijan]

Posted: 1/18/18 at 9:56pm

Taylor Mac is a bay area native...from stockton and is difficult to contain in boxes or even describe accurately but Judy is the ****! Judy is the preferred gender pronoun to challenge the hetero-normative society and the whole concept of the History of Popular Music in 24 decades deconstructs history thru songs of the different decades and it gives the audience a firsthand experience of a the American narrative from the founding of the USA to present thru Dragrace/Hedwig/Gagaish style cabaret (Great costumes, performance and audience interaction). Judy's musical and voice range is the bees knees and we want more more more!

[bear88]

Posted: 1/19/18 at 3:49am

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

[bwayemma]

Posted: 1/19/18 at 6:30am

I'm so happy that DEH is going to the Curran. There's no way it could have been good at the Orpheum or Golden Gate. The Curran is a perfect theatre for it. I predicted last year that either DEH and/or CFA would tour there.