How many times have you seen some of your favorites?- Page 4

[frontrowcentre2]

Posted: 12/12/06 at 11:50am

SNL media proudly proclaims...
Oh boy. I will readily admit to seeing my favorites multiple times. My top three:

Hairspray - 31
Altar Boyz - 29
Spelling Bee - 10

This troubles me with so many plays and musicals running, people tend to go back and see the same shows over and over. Even taking into consideration cast changes, the performances can't change all that much.

Maybe SNL has seen everything and still finds time to see a show 30 times or maybe works doing front-of-house.

There are a few shows I have seen maybe 8-10 times but that was different productions over the years of classics like OKLAHOMA! and SWEENEY TODD. The most I have ever gone back to see the same production is twice.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 12/12/06 at 11:57am

Roxy, the answer to your curiousity is that a lot of people who do this are students, and the rush prices often make it more affordable. It's still certainly not cheap to run with habits like seeing a show twenty or thirty times, but the smaller repeat digits are do-able if it's only costing you $20 or $25 each time. That's not much more than dinner and a movie, really.

DP, while I disagree with you, I can see the "see it once and move on" sentiment, because I think there are a lot of people who feel that seeing something more than once can sort of kill your initial memory of it and burn it out, or that you should try to expand your horizons and see as wide a variety of things as you can rather than seeing the same musical 25 times. For a lot of people, I think it's the idea that you're falling in love with something completely temporary, and that you want to enjoy it while you can. When it's gone, it'll be gone forever. That said, though, I'm gonna hope you were being facetious with your "forget it" part. That just seems ridiculous to me -- see something and then just put it out of your mind? Isn't that backwards, to expect theater to be forgettable? One would think the point is not for you to just enjoy it while you're there and then be able to erase it from your memory, but for it to stay with you.

[sharon1]

Posted: 12/12/06 at 12:18pm

Woman In White-8
Phantom-lost track after-5
Avenue Q-3
Then lots more at 2

[BreakingTheCircle07]

Posted: 12/12/06 at 12:20pm

Avenue Q - 5 times
Rent (when I was in my Rent phase...yeah, it existed) - 4 times

[RentHead2]

Posted: 12/12/06 at 12:30pm

okay it's official: my numbers are shameful compared to everyones on here. The person who saw Wicked 18 times - was that at full price all 18 times??? That would be insane. I know with Wedding Singer I did the rush three times and the other 2 I paid full price, but with Wicked I paid $120 a pop (all three times) for tickets and they weren't even fabulous seats...

[adamized88]

Posted: 12/12/06 at 12:58pm

avenue q - going for the 9th time in january
my absolute fave is beauty and the beast - going for the 9th time later this month!!

aida - 5 times
wicked - 5 times

all my other faves i've seen 2 or 3 times!!

[raulfan]

Posted: 12/12/06 at 1:25pm

RENT: 36-1/2 (I 2nd acted it once)
AIDA: 34
FOREVER PLAID: 14
THE CIVIL WAR: 7

[worrell4077]

Posted: 12/12/06 at 3:00pm

I've seen.....

The Producers: 6 times going on 7 in January(hopefully)

Jersey Boys: 5 times going on 6 for my birthday(hopefully)

Little Shop of Horrors: 5 times

The Boy From Oz: 3 times

All Shook Up: 3 times

Avenue Q: 2 times

SpamAlot: 2 times

Wicked: 2 times

Sweeney Todd: 1 time

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels: 1 time

[avab802]

Posted: 12/12/06 at 5:33pm

I think if I counted I would find that over 50% of the shows I've ever seen I have seen more than once, between tours and Broadway. If I like something a lot, my instinct is to want to do it again. I'm also the type of person who will watch my favorite movies & TV shows over & over, and read my favorite books multiple times. Some people enjoy revisiting their favorites, others can't stand to watch/read something they've seen/read before. Different strokes for different folks.

Also, to luvtheemcee's point, I could count on one hand the number of times I paid more than $20 to see RENT. My 42 times is also over the course of 8 years and includes Broadway and 3 different tours, and there are probably a couple of half shows in there too that I don't count.

On the other hand, I've seen Wicked 9 times (including once in London) because I'm a fool for Idina Menzel, and I don't even want to add up the total amount of money I spent on that show because I think I would be sick.
Updated On: 12/12/06 at 05:33 PM

[rickydrummer]

Posted: 12/12/06 at 7:42pm

Well, overall I agree with Dollypop. If you get so obsessed with one show that you totally neglect all others just to see it repeated times up into the double digits, you're missing out on so many other great shows. I've seen a number of shows multiple times, though, so I understand the urge to go back. Currently, "Spring Awakening" has me pretty addicted, but the CD is helping to appease some of my compulsion to go back over and over again.

As for repeat visits:
Rent: 7 times since 2001 (4 on Broadway, 3 in Philadelphia)
Wicked: 4 times (oh, how silly I was)
Lennon: 3 times
The Light in the Piazza: 3 times
Spring Awakening: 3 times come Friday
Sweeney Todd: 2 times
The Apple Tree: 2 times (because of comps)

[aspiringactress]

Posted: 12/12/06 at 7:46pm

Sometimes I see shows because I'm young and I study everything about it. I know I want to act, but I aslo want to direct and design, and seeing something and gaining familiarity with it is a great way to figure out what works and what doesn't in all three areas.

That being said, my all time high is 11 times seeing Sweeney Todd (revival).

[keen on kean]

Posted: 12/12/06 at 10:00pm

Sweeney Todd - 4 (revival 3, original 1)
Rent -2
POTO - 2
Scarlet Pimpernel - 2
Les Miz - 4 (original 3, revival 1, later this month)
Amadeus - 2

Lots of stuff once.