Is it possible???? 10,000???- Page 2

[AvenueQResident]

Posted: 8/24/07 at 9:22pm

I'd rather go with a selection of shows I want to see and I'd pick whichever one I could get the best seats and prices for.

[scotte75]

Posted: 8/25/07 at 11:44am

I don't think Phantom has anything to do with taste. It has to do with exposure. Phantom was the first show I heard 15 years ago in my small mid-western town of 2,000 people. It got me interested in musical theatre, and is responsible for eventually getting a college degree in theatre and later a masters degree as well. Eventually I was able to see the show and enjoyed myself. I've since had a thriving career in theatre and have seen alot of great theatre and alot of crap theatre. Phantom served as a launching point. I think this is why Phantom is still around, folks in small mid-western towns have heard of it and eventually when they make their way to the big city for a little cacation, this is what they are going to want to see. It is popular because of it's accessibility. And that's ok.

[WickedBoy2]

Posted: 8/25/07 at 11:53am

You can bet any money that Phantom will be still there smirking from under that mask for proberbly longer than 4 and half years. Its the only show of all the long runners- Les Miz, Cats, Miss Saigon etc etc that has never been mentioned as haveing the posslibilty of closeing. Im still surprised by the number of English people i meet here in the UK who surprise me by saying that theyve just seen the show for the first time -its in its 21st year. Im sure thats the same in NY.

[winston89]

Posted: 8/25/07 at 1:39pm

Scottie

It may be true for you but not overall true. Phantom's OLC has been going around for years because it is a well known pop musical just like Les Miserables. But, there are a lot of people who get into musical theatre via a different show don't like phantom for their own reasons.

[Jade]

Posted: 8/25/07 at 2:25pm

"Im still surprised by the number of English people i meet here in the UK who surprise me by saying that theyve just seen the show for the first time -its in its 21st year. Im sure thats the same in NY."

WickedBoy2 - Interesting you say that because I've lived in London my entire life and seen a lot of West End musicals, but I only saw Phantom for the first time last week. It was actually a lot better than I thought it'd be, and the theatre seemed completely full.

I suppose if people are visting London or NY and decide to see a show, Phantom is the show they think of.

[Dirty Rotten Scoundrel]

Posted: 8/25/07 at 5:34pm

I have seen about thirty different shows and have never seen PHANTOM. I don't really have any interest in seeing it. I once went into the city with intention of seeing it, but then decided there was something I would rather see instead. I will see it eventually. But, right now. No thanks.

[BrianIdol]

Posted: 8/25/07 at 5:51pm

I love the phantom..it's responsable for getting me interested in scenic design. And one thing you HAVE to give Phantom credit for: no stunt casting - EVER.

[Brave Sir Robin2]

Posted: 8/25/07 at 6:26pm

^
AMEN!

[Dover]

Posted: 8/26/07 at 3:29am

About a year ago word around the theatre was "at least five years." So that would take it right about to 10,000. And in the last year things have been going fine, so I see no reason that estimate should be shortened.

People have been saying "Oh, Phantom will run forever" for like, well, 20 years. But I don't think there's a soul involved with the show who really expected to be here and not only still be running but keeping pace with all but the hugest of hits. Especially after the lagging sales in the first couple years of this decade, the show made a huge recovery to get where it is, basically starting with the release of the movie, despite the fact that the movie kind of sucked.

I don't try to explain it anymore. There's something supernatural about it. There are only a limited number of people on earth, but every week there are asses in the seats, and the show goes on. Every week that I check the grosses and see numbers like 97%, it blows my mind. I don't question it, because I've gotten so much more out of this run than I deserve, I'm afraid to break the spell. The gods of the theatre (and the foreign tourists) have been insanely good to us.

[jagfkb]

Posted: 8/26/07 at 7:25am

of course, Phantom could close in a year, then open up in a "LIMITED RUN", just so the production can downsize. However, since I've seen this tourist trap 3 times, and I actually enjoy it, I'd be happy to see it reach 10,000 performances. I just hope that a producer whose name sounds like the computer doesn't screw things up.

[WickedBoy2]

Posted: 8/26/07 at 9:40am

Id like to the Vegas production.

[KQuill]

Posted: 8/26/07 at 2:23pm

Right on, melody2.

[Dirty_Rotten_Guy]

Posted: 8/26/07 at 2:30pm

I think PHANTOM can definitely reach 10,000 performances

To think, the show has never even done stunt-casting before. If they ever even had to reach that point where they had to, I'm sure they'd be able to find celebs pretty easily that'd want to do (the question would be if they could do it well...), but thats beside the point.

But yeah, I think PHANTOM will keep running, even if they started having lower attendance/ticket sales, the producers still have loads of money to keep it going.

[jordangirl]

Posted: 8/26/07 at 2:36pm

I really should see it at the Majestic at least once. I've only seen it on tour at TPAC in Nashville.

I was on a trip to NYC when it was first opened. We didn't see it though ~ A Chorus Line, Starlight Express, Les Miserables, and The Fantastiks were our ticketed shows. The group I hung with (we were all high school juniors and seniors on a UN Study Tour and were allowed to play in the afternoon as long as we stayed in groups of at least 4) found the theatre and were looking outside it when three people went in. About 30 seconds later, the girl in the gorup with me and I started freaking out because it had been Michael Crawford, Sarah Brightman and Steve Barton and we missed getting pics or autographs.