Hamilton: More Seats idea... Brilliant or Dumb?- Page 2

[pupscotch]

Posted: 3/18/16 at 2:25pm

aaaaaa15 said: "QueenAlice said: "I will be curious to see how this unfolds eventually in the West End;  not sure If the show will have huge appeal in the UK for obvious reasons."

 

Plenty of people from the UK (including myself) have seen the show and loved it. Our most popular, long-running show is about the French Revolution. Most Americans aren't well-versed on Alexander Hamilton's life either. It will do well here, just like BoM did, despite us not having the same Mormon culture.

 

"

I think the sentiment is just that the name of the musical is Hamilton: An American Musical, which has an entire character and several songs mocking the British King. It is based around rap and hip hop music, which is a huge part of American culture, but it also just might be weird to have British actors with British accents playing distinctly American characters.

[Cupid Boy2]

Posted: 3/18/16 at 2:32pm

A second company would be a great way of sticking it to the scalpers. Their tickets would surely lose a good deal of their value if another production were to be mounted in New York.

[aaaaaa15]

Posted: 3/18/16 at 2:42pm

pupscotch said: "I think the sentiment is just that the name of the musical is Hamilton: An American Musical, which has an entire character and several songs mocking the British King. It is based around rap and hip hop music, which is a huge part of American culture, but it also just might be weird to have British actors with British accents playing distinctly American characters."

I get that but I'm sure they could just not include the 'an American musical' part on the British marketing. And honestly it's not like King George III is some beloved person from British history, most people can't differentiate between the different Kings of the same name. A lot of people don't even like the current Queen. For the most part, Brits aren't as patriotic as Americans.

Rap/hip-hop is also huge in the UK. We may not have rappers that are as famous as Kanye/Jay-Z but if you look at our Top 40 charts it wont take you long to find rap.

I don't think the accents will be much of an issue, especially considering the show is pretty much sung/rapped-through.

Updated On: 3/18/16 at 02:42 PM

[QueenAlice]

Posted: 3/18/16 at 2:43pm

Yes pupscotch elaborated on my reasons for wondering about the production's long term appeal in the UK. I do feel there is a home grown patriotic spirit and sense of country pride that is part of the undercurrent of what has made this into a phenom in the states. Unlike Les Miserables or Book of Mormon, Hamilton is very much a history lesson- a rather complicated one at that. I'm just not sure audiences here in the UK would really be invested in that. For example, I was delighted that they brought back "In the Heights" after its fringe run a few years ago, but it is not doing well at the box office in London. I think it's just too specifically American for broad tastes here.

 

I think doing a limited season of Hamilton with members of the original cast might do very well, but I can't imagine this running for years in London. I actually don't see Hamilton having huge international appeal at all, but of course could be proven wrong.

 

 

Updated On: 3/18/16 at 02:43 PM

[aaaaaa15]

Posted: 3/18/16 at 2:47pm

QueenAlice said: "Yes pupscotch elaborated on my reasons for wondering about the productions long term appeal in the UK. I do feel there is a home grown patriotic spirit and sense of country pride that is part of the undercurrent of what has made this into a phenom in the states. Unlike Les Miserables or Book of Mormon, Hamilton is very much an history lesson- a rather complicated one at that. im just not sure audiences here would really be invested in that. I was delighted that they brought back "In the Heights" after its fringe run a few years ago, but it is not doing well at the box office in London. I think it's just too specifically American for broad tastes here.

 I think doing a limited season with members of the original cast might do very well but I can't imagine this running for years in London. I actually don't see Hamilton having huge international appeal at all, but of course could be proven wrong."

In the Heights is a completely different thing though. It's not like that did even half as well as Hamilton is doing in New York. It has a rather average book and songs that are great, but nowhere near on the same level of the songs of Hamilton. Also much of the success of In the Heights in NYC was due to the large hispanic communities that live there, we don't have as much of that in London.

We'll have to agree to disagree. I would be very shocked if Hamilton didn't run for years in London. Of course, I think the NYC production will be the most successful of all but that's usually the case with any American musical.

Updated On: 3/18/16 at 02:47 PM

[QueenAlice]

Posted: 3/18/16 at 3:13pm

You may be right and time will tell--- I'm just trying to imagine a reverse situation- if we had a huge surprise hit musical about - oh, I don't know, Guy Fawkes in the West End--- I could see it being a prestige export to the states- a la Wolf Hall, I just can't imagine Americans lining up for years to see it because I can't imagine them being that interested in history that isn't meaningful or perhaps even of any interest to them.

 

But imaybe the theatricality and high caliber writing of Hamilton can trump that and indeed make it a smash hit everywhere it plays in the world. Who knows?

[aaaaaa15]

Posted: 3/18/16 at 3:27pm

Yep, just a case of wait and see. Although from what I can tell it's not the history of the show that's drawing Americans to it either, it's the quality of the score and the word-of-mouth reviews.

Another aspect to consider is that the American revolution was their revolution against Britain, so it is very much our history as well.

Updated On: 3/18/16 at 03:27 PM

[vdirects]

Posted: 3/18/16 at 3:54pm

The founding of America has a Brittish connection so that may be the saving grace.

 

I think a Hip Hop musical about history will also be an appeal.


Though there is a lot of Americana in Hamilton. THere are lots of references to New York, the federalist papers, constitution, etc. etc. that may be lost or isolating to Brittish audiences.

This is tricky, I am curious to see how it does.

[QueenAlice]

Posted: 3/18/16 at 3:59pm

Even the multi-ethnic nature of the cast seems to be a direct commentary on American cultural history. I do think the show is very American. But I suppose so was HAIR and that actually ran longer in the West End than it did on Broadway! 

[miminy]

Posted: 3/18/16 at 4:03pm

How about King's Theatre in Brooklyn. It's so beautiful -
excellent sightlines - 3000 seats. That would be a great
opportunity for the renovation investment and the
neighborhood. Maybe a tour can make a long stop there.
According to King George it is his show, after  all.

[MarkBearSF]

Posted: 3/18/16 at 4:34pm

QueenAlice said: "Even the multi-ethnic nature of the cast seems to be a direct commentary on American cultural history.

"
It will be interesting to see the ethnic make-up of the London cast. I recall an interview in which LMM expressed excitement about casting the London production to reflect the immigrant population in England. (I think it was somewhat hypothetical, because I don't think that London has been officially announced yet)

Updated On: 3/18/16 at 04:34 PM

[QueenAlice]

Posted: 3/18/16 at 4:51pm

I think why Hamilton also really hits an emotional core is the sort of fighting spirit of its characters (particularly as cast multicultural) coupled with the "young, scrappy and hungry - just like my country and I'm not throwing away my shot" theme--- that's how a lot of young people in the states, especially those who are minorities still feel. I think that is in part a universal theme, but not sure how well the other components-- the American ideals of patriotism and freedom and the complicated U.S. history lesson will cross over.

Updated On: 3/18/16 at 04:51 PM

[Brave Sir Robin2]

Posted: 3/18/16 at 5:49pm

I think the Chicago production and national tour will help, as will the eventual West End production. I'm surprised they didn't plan a Los Angeles/San Francisco sit down (like "Wicked" in addition to the tour. There were rumors of it reopening an old theatre on Broadway in downtown Los Angeles, which is undergoing a revitalization of sorts. (Parking's a pain, but the area's changed a lot in the last few years.) I think the Orpheum and Los Angeles Theatres were contenders, but instead they're doing four months at the Pantages in fall 2017.

[QueenAlice]

Posted: 3/18/16 at 5:55pm

I saw CARRIE at the Los Angeles Theatre this fall and it was fabulous. The theatre is gorgeous but I think would need a multimillion dollar renovation before it could house a traditional Broadway style show. With CARRIE, they removed all the seats and built a theatre within the theatre. That area downtown is still a little sketchy too. I think it needs about four more years of gentrification but it would be great to see all those old theatres eventually restored!

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 3/18/16 at 9:31pm

Cupid Boy2 said: "A second company would be a great way of sticking it to the scalpers. Their tickets would surely lose a good deal of their value if another production were to be mounted in New York."

 

I'm sure part of the reason this will never happen is because the box office would lose their minds trying to direct people to the right Hamilton theatre. The curtain would have to be held for 20 minutes every night.