Broadway Legend Joined: 8/1/14
Thanks for the links.
"FYI Idina did not sign autographs or go out the stage door."
Not surprisingly, she's getting a fair bit of hate for that.
goldenboy, good riddance to every single thing you've ever enjoyed; you don't deserve a beam of light in your life.
Well aren't you just a ray of sunshine, Goldenboy?
He and A8 are two if a kind. Goldenboy also takes every opportunity to tell everyone how much he hated Fun Home.
But, on Tumblr, there were photos of blond Idina at the stage door. It wasn't today?
Fun Home and If Then... two of the worst musicals EVER written.
Thanks for another opporunity Drama Mama.
The nerve of her not subjecting herself to one final gathering of the zoo outside her stage door. Good for her. Maybe she was experiencing the end of what was the last year of her life in If/Then and she was feeling very emotional.She might also had feared for her safety. Wise move on her part for many reasons.
I don't get the hate for her not stagedoring... it was her last show. She looked stunning walking out, and really didn't need to fight the mob before her party. I also imagine she was pretty exhausted.
I think the cast really made this show something special. The storyline was different and didn't appeal to everyone, but there's no denying the energy that was always on stage. I will miss this show.
Agreed on the stage door. It was a mob scene filled with people who hadn't even been in the theatre.
The hate for not signing is absurd. I'm sure the place was mobbed. She's only one woman people.
Broadwaydreaming - I was talkng with a friend about how special the cast was too. Had it stayed open past Idina's contract i think it would have slowly weakened as the other great principals like Anthony Rapp, LaChanze, Jenn Colella, James Snyder ... Left one by one. I think they really made the show.
If I wait at the stage door it's because I want to be able to thank a performer ... There's something about faceless playbills just being passed through a mob that is incredibly off-putting. They might as well just get a signature stamped on by a a machine.
I had 4 friends come to the lotto, who all did not want to see the show again, and teamed up with some other single people and we all lost. I waited around hoping to be able to purchase a ticket from someone who had an extra. Luckily for me, someone who had won and purchased a lotto ticket did not have someone to use it and sold it to me for $35 so thank you to the kind stranger who did that. It was an unforgettable afternoon.
Broadway Legend Joined: 8/1/14
"But, on Tumblr, there were photos of blond Idina at the stage door. It wasn't today?"
That was Saturday night, most likely, which also had a huge mob. By reports, it took everyone a very long time to sign everything.
"Had it stayed open past Idina's contract i think it would have slowly weakened as the other great principals like Anthony Rapp, LaChanze, Jenn Colella, James Snyder ... Left one by one. I think they really made the show."
Besides the great casting and chemistry, I think Menzel and Rapp (and Greif) had some influence over the cohesion given their RENT roots. At least I think I remember one of them talking about it in an interview somewhere.
Glad you got to see it again, Just_John.
Broadway Legend Joined: 1/30/15
After all the weeks they weren't selling well it's great that the cast and creatives got to feel all the love in that room.
"She might also had feared for her safety. Wise move on her part for many reasons."
Agreed.
Why did they switch conductors this afternoon? Did they do this for every show?
Skip2 - When did you see a switch in conductors? I'm pretty sure I saw musical director Carmel Dean conducting the whole show. She actually got a huge cheer when she got into place for the show which was awesome.
Several fans - myself included - waited at the exit nearest the Marriott, which is where she exited - not the stage door. There were only about 30 or so people waiting there, and about 200 at the stage door.
Idina's little emotional crack at "my new life starts right..." and then holding the final note a full 20 seconds was goosebump-inducing.
I held it together til that moment.
It didn't go off the rails as other recent shows have - almost like they all committed to one final perfect, super high energy performance. What an amazing, amazing show to experience.
^100% agree. Yesterday's Always Starting Over was probably the greatest single moment I've ever witnessed in a theater-- ever. The audible response/gasp from the audience when she cracked on that line was incredibly moving. I'll never ever forget it.
And because individuals like this deserve to be called out, I have to shame this idiot...
No Stage Door
In truth, the show has been on tdf almost the entire run. No idea why it lasted this long.There were times when almost every show for a 2 week period was on tdf.
Broadway Legend Joined: 8/1/14
"And because individuals like this deserve to be called out, I have to shame this idiot..."
I saw a bunch of them complaining on Twitter and posting directly to her Facebook, which is hideous. Stuff like that leave me feeling that stage dooring itself is a hideous activity, ugh. Seeing her live in the last show wasn't enough? Does having the visage reflected against one's retinas while outdoors suddenly add value to one's existence? Not everyone is like that, of course, but I just don't get it, this overarching sense of "I traveled from X and waited Y in Z weather so I deserve to meet this celebrity face to face" entitlement.
^ Here's an idea why it lasted a full year...
Out of it's 53 week run, there were 18 weeks where it dipped below 50% of it's gross potential.
Yeah those are the people that drive me mad.
And yes ... that performance of Always Starting Over was truly breathtaking. And I agree that moment at the end was so poignant and memorable. Idina's voice broke, she tilted her head to acknowledge the moment and there was just an outpouring of emotion from the audience as she moved through it and onto that 20 second long final note. So memorable indeed.
I admit, I've been to numerous stage doors-- and the people I've encountered are mostly respectful, but when Idina is involved, all bets are off.
I consider myself a pretty huge fan of hers, but her fan girls are beyond disrespectful to her. Not to mention absolutely delusional. Some will absolutely be committed at some point in their lives.
The stage dooring craze reminds me of Bobby soxers and Frank Sinatra. The people today are like the Bobby soxers on speed. Some would have an arm cut off to meet someone. I feel sorry for those whose whole life revolves around stalking Broadway performers.
These performers gave you what you paid for. The admission price does not entitle you to intrude into their private life.
Broadway Legend Joined: 8/1/14
I suppose the "celebrity culture" has tainted Broadway stage door expectations, which is unfortunate. What I find odd about the "fanzels" who are mostly around the age to properly appreciate Wicked but not IF/THEN is that Wicked is very much not a star vehicle and can stand on its own very well; so why get attached to Menzel that way, when the majority of these fans weren't even old enough to see the original casts on Broadway? They couldn't have all been gotten just from the OBCR, could they?
Though I don't know if other celebrity-cast stars on Broadway experience the same thing by the stage door.
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