Goin' To "Dracula" Opening Tomorrow... — Page 2

There usually aren't critics at the opening night performance. Just invited guests

Then what are the critics nights for. The shows that I have been in had the critics coming the two or three nights prior to opening and opening was for family and friends.

I like Frank Wildhorn's music. Wasn't too impressed with the song on the website. I really want to see this show but I am fearing that it won't be open when I get to New York in the fall. I think critics are going to have a field day with it. Newsday already has.

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There seems to be a controversey about that. I read an article somewhere where Newsday and anothe paper were putting out early reviews and people behind the shows are not happy about it. Newsday has already reviewed the show and it wasn't pretty!

http://www.newsday.com/entertainment/stage/ny-draculathemusical-theater,0,7142879.story?coll=ny-theater-bigpix

There is talk in another thread about it and some involvement with the Times. Not sure what that is all about.

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Roger Ebert (film critc) was there the night before it opened.

I saw it, really liked it (second half more than first), and told Mr. Wildhorn the same - he was standing in the back. He said, "spread the word" (I'm assuming he was possibly expecting bad critic reviews). Hopefully the audiences that keep coming will do so and the show will be a success!

It's been the practice for a couple of decades that critics attend a designated "critics preview" (designated by the production staff of the show) which is usually two or three days before the opening and they base their review on what they see at that performance. Of course the show is frozen at that point, so they are basing their opinion on the finished product. The days of critics attending opening night and then dashing back to their papers to hastily write a review in an hour or less to get it filed by deadline went out in the early 80's. Frank Rich broke that practice when he came in as chief citic of the Times in 1980 -- he wanted to have the time to write a well-considered and well-thought out critique so he simply paid for a seat to one of the last previews of a show he had to review ("Amadeus" I believe) and filed his review based on that performance. When word got out of what he had done, after a bit of controversy, the "critics' preview" was born for reviewers of all of the major news outlets (critics from smaller publications usually get comps to attend a later performance).

Opening night is really just a party for the show, with invited guests, celebrities and VIPs. The only critics in attendance would be those who for whatever reason felt like seeing the show a second time (remember their reviews are supposd to be filed with their respective publications by the time the opening night curtain goes up).

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