How To Advertise A Show That Didn't Do Well...

[the.hard.part]

How To Advertise A Show That Didn't Do Well...#0

Posted: 3/12/05 at 5:33pm

I have to make announcements and catchy phrases or something to that effect for Merrily We Roll Along...it won barely any awards and wasn't a hit, so any ideas of how to do so?

[InfiniteTheaterFrenzy]

re: How To Advertise A Show That Didn't Do Well...#1

Posted: 3/12/05 at 5:41pm

You could say that it's "heartbreaking", "rarely produced", was "a complex and exciting musical well ahead of it's time", "Sondheim's masterpiece, "contains some of Sondheim's favorite material that he wrote", "has songs that have been recorded by many artists, such as Bernadette Peters", "has had several reincarnations since it's original Broadway productions", that "three productions of the show have been put on CD"... I'll try to think of more... I <3 Merrily SO much.

[title of show] on Broadway. it's time. believe.

[MargoChanning]

re: How To Advertise A Show That Didn't Do Well...#2

Posted: 3/12/05 at 5:44pm

It's a very well regarded show nonetheless and there have been a couple of critically-acclaimed revivals around the country and in the UK since the Broadway production. Search for reviews of those (the Kennedy Center production from two summers ago's Sondheim Festival should still have reviews on line).

"What a story........ everything but the bloodhounds snappin' at her rear end." -- Birdie [http://margochanning.broadwayworld.com/] "The Devil Be Hittin' Me" -- Whitney

[melissa errico fan]

re: How To Advertise A Show That Didn't Do Well...#3

Posted: 3/12/05 at 5:44pm

"This beautiful score features 'Not a Day Goes By,' one of Sondheim's best loved and most frequently recorded songs."

[Broadway Matt]

re: How To Advertise A Show That Didn't Do Well...#4

Posted: 3/12/05 at 6:27pm

as with any kind of marketing, it's important to note who you're trying to sell it to. how can you appeal to the demographic you're targeting, and to what extent can they be safely fed BS?


If the people are going to be familiar with the show's past track record (say, if u were at a musical theatre conservatory) then I'd use something along the lines of "It's Not As Bad As They Say".


If this is a high school or college, just throw in a vague reference to WICKED and they'll think it's somehow related. "POPULAR? Not this plucky little show! Flying with Sondheim, you'll be Defying Melody!"

or my favorite thing to do is throw around the term "critically-attended" enough times that people lose sight of it's lack of meaning.

"The last train out of any station will not be full of nice guys." - Dr. Hunter S. Thompson

"I wash my face, then drink beer, then I weep. Say a prayer and induce insincere self-abuse, till I'm fast asleep"- In Trousers

Updated On: 3/12/05 at 06:27 PM

[IMsooHyprToday]

re: How To Advertise A Show That Didn't Do Well...#5

Posted: 3/12/05 at 8:05pm

lol.

[Parks]

re: How To Advertise A Show That Didn't Do Well...#6

Posted: 3/12/05 at 9:01pm

"We think it's an A-OK show!" (with the hand gesture for "OK".) Works everytime.

"If it walks like a Parks, if it wobbles like a Parks, then it's definitely fat and nobody loves it." --MA

[Corine2]

re: How To Advertise A Show That Didn't Do Well...#7

Posted: 3/12/05 at 10:25pm

Why not call Serino Coyne.

[GypsyRoseLee]

re: How To Advertise A Show That Didn't Do Well...#8

Posted: 3/12/05 at 11:35pm

I saw a TV ad for The Phantom of the Opera that quoted a review that read "pure spectacle!" (as in, pure spectacle, no substance or worth) just use phrases like that and assume that people won't realize what it really means!

"This is what I trained to do, and this is what I love about theater. What I love about being an actress is being able to really look into myself and understand another human being. And out my own self, to shape and form and fashion a real human being--and to present that in such a way that people see something of themselves or their own understanding in that human being." --Phylicia Rashad

[LittleFish8386]

re: How To Advertise A Show That Didn't Do Well...#9

Posted: 3/12/05 at 11:52pm

I just saw an ad for Good Vibrations on Bravo at around 11pm, and they did a very nice job of selling all the good points of the show. You know, the fact that its a young good looking cast, and its music you'll know, and that its an uh...young good looking cast.

[Joshua488]

re: How To Advertise A Show That Didn't Do Well...#10

Posted: 3/13/05 at 12:32am

If it won ANY awards, just advertise it as "award-winning". I don't care if it won a Tony for a category like Best Costuming; I would advertise it as "Tony Award-winning". I take advantage of everything!

[CATSNYrevival]

re: How To Advertise A Show That Didn't Do Well...#11

Posted: 3/13/05 at 12:39am

like this...

[BSoBW2]

re: How To Advertise A Show That Didn't Do Well...#12

Posted: 3/13/05 at 1:31am

Avenue Q has the "Did We Mention We Won a Tony?"

[WISHIHADATONY]

re: How To Advertise A Show That Didn't Do Well...#13

Posted: 3/13/05 at 11:40am

When SUBWAYS ARE FOR SLEEPING opened to bad notices, David Merrick used advertising quite successfully. He found "regular people" with the SAME NAMES as highly respected theater critics and invited them to the show. Merrick then ran ads in the New York Times quoting great things about the show from these "regular people" with the same name as influential critics.

You might simply advertise MERRILY as "The Legendary Sondheim Musical." HOWEVER, as we know, the Sondheim name is NOT box office magic. It is hard to sell a flop musical by a composer who's hits do not tend run long or recoup their investment. Good luck! :)

"Blow out the candles Robert and make a wish. Want something, want SOMETHING."