Intermission OR not!- Page 3

[Wicked63]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 12:03pm

thanks colleen

[Weez]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 12:14pm

Let's pretend Wicked63 said "break" instead of "interval" or "intermission". So to recap jordangirl's post with this pretence in mind, we get:

Original post: "Personaly i think shows should not have a break."

Then on page 2: "Im not saying shows shouldnt have breaks. I fully understand the need for breaks and ive sat thru so many shows of 3h.30m or 4hr running times and boy am i thankful."

Are we all on the same page now, or should I draw it in crayon?

[ljay889]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 12:16pm

I love intermission. Because without it composers/book writers wouldn't get to write exciting cliff hanging Act 1 finales. And I love Act 1 Finales.

[Kringas]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 12:39pm

I don't think shows should have act one finales. I'm not saying they shouldn't have act one finales.

[ljay889]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 12:50pm

They're too amazing though. Sondheim has the best ones. It's my favorite moment of a musical.

[Kringas]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 12:52pm

A Chorus Line's is my favorite.

[ljay889]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 12:55pm

Egh. I'd go with Drowsy Chaperone's...

[Weez]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 12:57pm

But how can you beat the sheer majesty of Spelling Bee's? :O

[chinkie azn jai]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 1:13pm

The intermission doesn't just give the audience a break during a long show, but the actors and crew as well. The set (generally) gets changed and is preped for the second act; the actors can reapply makeup, change into a more elaborate costume (ie. Elphaba's act 2 dress), and get focused for the next half of the show. So an intermission is not just for the convenience of the audience.

[Coolness_]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 2:14pm

Sometimes I think people really need an intermission but sometimes I think it really breaks the mood. For something like Legally Blonde or Mamma Mia! some people might want an intermission especially for something like Legally Blonde since its very like bubble gum, pink, Barbie's Dream house. For something like Dracula I think it can really break the mood. But if something is as long as Les Miz people need a break.

[wickedrentq]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 2:40pm

I agree that it can depend on the show.

For example, shows that undergo a huge time switch between acts 1 and 2, like Sunday in the Park or Grey Gardens. Can you imagine going right from Sunday into...It's Hot in here...or even anything?? Sometimes I agree that those act 1 finales are so...spectactular that the audience needs some time. Or Into the Woods, where the two acts are designed to be incredibly different. And a lot of shows use the intermission to allow some time to pass, perhaps not centuries, but...Wicked goes from Elphaba deciding to defy the wizard to after she has been doing it for months, Les Miz sings about the coming day before the coming day...comes. (yeah, I'm sure I could use better words). Or...could you imaginhe going straight from the end of the Rumble, with the two dead bodies lying on the stage, straight into I Feel Pretty?? That's crazy...(though I suppose you could argue there just wouldn't be a place for I Feel Pretty in that case).

But on the other hand, I can see where sometimes it just stops the action and takes you out of the story. Something like Guys and Dolls, I could see that show going straight from one act to the other, or even Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, as it resumes the exact moment that act 1 leaves off on. At least in these cases, the argument is strictly based on audience, not story, I think.

[HeyMrMusic]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 2:59pm

As an actor and a musician, I can't imagine a full two-act show without an intermission. I mean, can you imagine performing Rose in Gypsy or playing in the pit of a sung-through musical without a break?

What kind of annoys me is when three-act plays are divided right in the middle, taking an intermission in the middle of Act Two. Somehow, that doesn't feel right to me. What should be done if possible is to either have two intermissions or take the intermission between Act One and Two or between Two and Three, so as not to split up the acts.

~Steven

[jimmycurry01]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 5:13pm

"No intermision =means people should prepare themselves to sit through a theatrical experience that they and others have paid a hell of a lot of money to see."

We'll see if you are whistling that same tune when you get older and your bladder doesn't quite work the way it does now and your joints get stiff. Intermissions are very nessecary for longer shows.

[Kringas]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 5:16pm

The intermission in 1776 is amazing!

[Dancin Thru Life]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 5:23pm

If theaters took out every other row and made the seats remotely comfortable for most normal sized people, there would be less of a need to get up and stretch your legs.

How long should I be expected to sit with my knees crunched up to my chin and elbows touching together becasue the folks on either side of me really needed 1 1/2 seats?!?!?!

No potty or snack breaks needed for me, but I sure as hell can't ever get comfortable in any NYC theater to sit for more than 30-45 minutes.

[orangeskittles]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 5:25pm

There are practical reasons for intermissions. The musicians union requires the orchestra have a break after a certain amount of time; that's why Paul's Monologue in ACL is placed where it is.


Name me any writer who writes with the audience's desires in mind.

If writers didn't want their works to have intermission, they'd write a one-act.

There's a line in Red Light Winter where the character (a writer) is talking about how playwrights are forced to write intermissions into shows so their producers can sell candy and t-shirts. The line came right after the intermission.

[chinkie azn jai]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 7:05pm

"If theaters took out every other row and made the seats remotely comfortable for most normal sized people, there would be less of a need to get up and stretch your legs."

Yes, that would be nice, but could you imagine how much ticket prices would rise because of that just to keep the show running?

[Lavieboheme3090]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 7:19pm

Will someone please think of the actors?

[Lavieboheme3090]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 7:19pm

Will someone please think of the actors?

[artscallion]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 7:32pm

"...could you imagine how much ticket prices would rise because of that just to keep the show running?"


To $451.50?

[singingshowgirl]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 9:47pm

i love that drowsy doesn't have an intermission....and i love everything that the man in the chair says about intermissions and why they are bad haha

but i think it is good to have an intermission just to have a couple of minutes to talk to your friend next to you about the show and to just chill haha

[yankees1253]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 9:48pm

i love intermission because yeah they give you time to stretch,go to the bathroom, and if you have little kids its a good time for snacks. Its a time to talk to your family and friends in one way or another.
i also love finales because it makes you want more.

[yankees1253]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 9:50pm

i agree to the actors need a breather and they will like to go to the bathroom also. If they want they can have water. Its a time for the bigger roles and everyone to rest their voices for 15 mins, and to gather themselves.

[little_sally]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 10:00pm

I personally hate intermissions, just because I usually want shows to keep going and never stop. But I agree, they are necessary. If not for practical purposes, for dramatic or structual purposes. I could never imagine "Defying Gravity" going straight into "Thank Goodness" or...could you imagine "Will You" going into "The Revolutionary Costume..."? Not to metion, I usually love act one finales!

However, I also agree some shows just don't need intermissions. I didn't see the need for one at "The Lieutenant of Inishmore" (I believe it was originally written without an intermission) or even something like "Spring Awakening". Some shows would flow better without an intermission, and some need it.

[ljay889]

Posted: 6/26/07 at 10:13pm

My thing is so many great songs and even shows wouldn't have been written if intermissions didn't exist.