Javier Munoz Will Be Alternate in HAMILTON on Broadway- Page 3

[Tag]

Posted: 7/6/15 at 10:17pm

How does it make financial sense to have someone perform one show a week?

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 7/6/15 at 10:21pm

In what way is giving a performer one show a week off about the finances?

[Tag]

Posted: 7/6/15 at 10:24pm

They're paying Munoz to perform one show a week.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 7/6/15 at 10:24pm

It only makes a tad less sense then an alternate performing twice a week.

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 7/6/15 at 10:49pm

This ain't EVITA.

[mattporter17]

Posted: 7/6/15 at 10:56pm

So why can't Lin do 8 shows a week? Is it a strenuous role? 

[HogansHero]

Posted: 7/6/15 at 10:58pm

He works every day. There is no other understudy (just as in Curious Incident). Maybe best to leave concerns over the expenses to people who understand (and pay) them. 

There are several things being said in this thread that would be amusing were they not so sad. First, the idea that Miranda is a slacker or is an ego run amok is just arrant nonsense. Nothing could be further from the truth. Second, did it ever occur to the any of you micromanagers that Miranda is being generous to his understudy? Most understudies (many of whom never go on) would give anything for an opportunity like this. And it is also a sign of enormous respect, that Miranda thinks Munoz has earned this by his performance. Finally, those who are complaining or expressing outrage (most of whom, incidentally, are not affected by this at all) are really just evincing the same perverse sense of entitlement that frequently surfaces here in many contexts. What if Miranda had not performed in the show at all? What if he chose not to transfer with the company to the Broadway production? Anyone who would not have seen the show because of that simply doesn't know what they are missing (and is more engaged in some unfortunate cult of personality than anything remotely related to a love of theatre. As I said before, Miranda's masterpiece is not the performance he gives on stage; his masterpiece is what he wrote, and the absurdity of someone lashing out by saying he will get his due when he is "yesterday's news" is startlingly lame. What exactly is the pathology underlying a comment like that?

And finally finally, rest assured that NO ONE who does not want to see Munoz will have to. Every single ticket to this show can readily be sold, and even at a substantial profit. Just head over to Stubhub and take your spoils. 

Updated On: 7/6/15 at 10:58 PM

[orangeskittles]

Posted: 7/6/15 at 11:05pm

Hamilton is more demanding than Christine Daae and no one questions the necessity of that alternate. And he sings all his notes live.

[mattporter17]

Posted: 7/6/15 at 11:15pm

Okay Hogan, We didn't need the vitriolic response. A simple, kind, explanation would've sufficed. 

Skittles, thank you. I have not seen the show and thus am not familiar with it.

Updated On: 7/6/15 at 11:15 PM

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 7/6/15 at 11:18pm

"Hamilton is more demanding than Christine Daae and no one questions the necessity of that alternate."

Plus ol' whats-her-name was just not up to it.

[HogansHero]

Posted: 7/6/15 at 11:22pm

Matt, you are probably right, but I found a lot of stuff in this thread infuriating. I would expect this from no-nothing tourists, but not from people who, by their presence here, should be theatre-lovers.

[mattporter17]

Posted: 7/6/15 at 11:25pm

Yeah true. I honestly didn't know that there was a need for an alternate. Once I see the show I'm sure that will be made clear. It's impressive enough to have a musical you wrote, composed and stared in. 

[Elfuhbuh]

Posted: 7/6/15 at 11:27pm

Hogan, your response was warranted. I'm actually a little shocked by the responses here, considering how there are so many people who would kill to see this show but can't because of all the advance ticket sales; I'm sure they wouldn't gripe about seeing the understudy.

Updated On: 7/6/15 at 11:27 PM

[HogansHero]

Posted: 7/6/15 at 11:38pm

I think it is very difficult for an outsider to assess the "need" for an alternate. First of all, it is personal and if one senses a strain that could threaten performance level, contrary to the "actors are superheros" contingent on here, good sense dictates that it be accommodated. I can tell you that the demands on Miranda (of his own devise) are pretty substantial: aside from a lot of physical activity, there is also a lot of hard-driven rap that could be a lot to handle 8 times a week. (think of a rap battle, multiply it by 10, and ask yourself how many people can do that without feeling it.) But we don't even know if that's the reason for the alternate-as I said above, it could well be that it is more about Miranda yielding because he thinks Munoz should have the opportunity to go on each week.)

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 7/6/15 at 11:47pm

I couldn't do it.  Even when I was at the top of my game as MC Ice Bucket.

[brdway411]

Posted: 7/7/15 at 12:09am

I agree with Hogan. Cut the man some slack. Nothing was done that was underhanded. No ones name is over the title. and It's the show, not the man that are supposed to be celebrated. I saw it at The Public with LMM and it was early in the run. It sounded like he was struggling vocally then (it could have just been his voice or a cold. It was winter). I am really looking forward to seeing the alternate. 

[ZannaDo]

Posted: 7/7/15 at 12:24am

It's also worth noting that Lin has a young child at home and it's not unreasonable for him to want to...um, see his kid at some point considering he's basically been working nonstop since he was born. He's a person, not a machine, he's the most qualified person to assess both the show's needs and his and this is the decision that was reached. I'm sure it was not made lightly. To say he's "appearing whenever he wants to" is so insane to me. He's missing one scheduled performance a week. Many roles on Broadway have alternates and many do not publish the schedule (Alex Sharp in Curious Incident? The Matildas? Christine Daee?), it's a courtesy that Hamilton decided to do so at all. Also, isn't it preferable for Miranda to know his limitations as a performer and make use of an alternate instead of overextending himself or burning himself/his voice out and having to miss a lot of shows unscheduled? Honestly, the entitlement on this board is insane.

Updated On: 7/7/15 at 12:24 AM

[SDV]

Posted: 7/7/15 at 12:51am

Is it technically possible for Javier to be nominated for a Tony, or is it only the person who was in the role on opening night who qualifies ?

[Kimbo]

Posted: 7/7/15 at 12:51am

I too am finding much of what I read in this thread infuriating, but for different reasons.

Far as I can tell, not everyone is suggesting that Miranda doesn't have the right to a day off.  Not everyone is suggesting that Munoz is a less-than-capable substitute (having seen him, I can attest to how excellent he is).  Not everyone is suggesting that the producers don't have the right to make this decision, whether in March when tickets went onsale, or a month or two from now.

Where everyone is mistaken, though, is in thinking that the producers really don't have a moral obligation to garner goodwill and do the right thing by, at the bare minimum, offering direct refunds at this point to those who have a ticket for a Munoz peformance and who choose that option.  (After all, as has been suggested here, they will surely not have trouble reselling them at face value, at the bare minimum.)

As I've stated above, I paid to see the show off-Broadway (at already inflated off-Broadway prices, late in the run), and found out the day before that we would not be seeing Miranda.  Fair enough.  We went.  We love.  We thought Munoz was terrific.  But then we bought tickets to see it again this fall specifically to see Miranda.  Obviously an illness would always have been a possibility, and we might have been stuck seeing the understudy again, but this isn't that.  And personally, I WOULD suggest that if this didn't seem a little bit underhanded - or choose your own word, sneaky, suspicious, shady, etc. - then they wouldn't have a problem offering up such refunds.  We're out of the country this week, but when we return you can bet we'll be calling Ticketmaster and, having seen the show once already with the understudy, insisting on it.  That isn't 'entitlement' - that's just decency, fairness, and common sense.

Honestly, the truth is, if the producers don't do as they should and direct Ticketmaster to offer those refunds or exchanges, then -  just as people who can't see Broadway shows live often find an, ahem, alternate way to view them - there's a way for resourceful people to get that refund AND stick it to the producers at the same time by making sure the seats aren't paid for and can't be resold.  I took advantage of it once about 30 or 40 years ago, and hoped I'd never have to again, as I must admit it's a bit underhanded and should be altogether unnecessary.  That said, if the producers and Ticketmaster don't do the right thing, then we'll have no problem lying just a little bit to make sure that the right thing in fact gets done.  And I guarantee that we won't be alone.

Hopefully the producers will see the light and change their approach on this matter before we have to stoop to that level.

[brdway411]

Posted: 7/7/15 at 12:57am

No one's name is over the title. They don't have to do anything except sit on the huge pile of cash they collected.  Sell your tickets on Stub hub and pick another night. 

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 7/7/15 at 12:58am

"Is it technically possible for Javier to be nominated for a Tony, or is it only the person who was in the role on opening night who qualifies ?"

I don't think he'd qualify. Aaron Walpole and Nathaniel Hackmann weren't eligible, but Ramin Karimloo was. He also did 7 shows a week.

[adam.peterson44]

Posted: 7/7/15 at 1:16am

It sounds like it would be pretty easy to find buyers, including some who have offered right here on this message thread, and potentially additional ones on stubhub.  Having said that, if you plan to ask Ticketmaster for a refund, you could explain your reasons politely, and after they tell you that there are no refunds or exchanges allowed, you could ask them if they could ask the producers for permission to exchange your tickets anyway.  Then they might go to the producers and ask permission, and if given permission, get back to you in a few days with a response to your request. 

I once accidentally booked a ticket through ticketmaster for the performance one week after i was going to be in town (because the calendar changed its formatting on my screen when i changed the window size and i accidentally hit the wrong link without noticing until right after i purchased the ticket).  When i called to ask nicely for help with the problem, they said that there are no refunds allowed, and that they would have to ask the producers for permission and wait several days for an answer (with a tone that suggested that that was the end of it).  When i said 'okay, let's do that', the person on the phone sounded surprised, but a few days the later, the producers had given permission for me to exchange the ticket for the date i had originally intended to purchase for (and they would have an extra week to sell my original one again, so i don't think they came out any worse off for it).  

Sorry for the rambling, but the point is that even if the policy says that *ticketmaster* can't refund the tickets it doesn't mean that the producers can't or are unwilling to consider it.  It's worth asking if you can't find someone to take the ticket off your hands (though it sounds like the people offering on here are eager to see it so maybe that would be an easier route?).

[HogansHero]

Posted: 7/7/15 at 1:19am

Kimbo,

First of all, let's wait and see what the producers do. (Expecting Ticketmaster to magically do this automatically is not reasonable.) My strong guess is that anyone who wants a refund (or an exchange on a space available basis) will get it. I think this is a tempest in a teapot. 

Secondly, anyone who wants to sell their tickets can easily do so at a profit on Stubhub (or elsewhere). Or, for anyone not wanting to profit, box offices routinely resell tickets in this fashion, and I'm sure you appreciate that there will be no problem unloading these tickets when the show is basically a sold out through pretty deep into 2016. There is a buyer on this site alone for every kvetcher's tickets. Buyers are salivating. 

Finally, I have no idea what you are alluding to in your penultimate paragraph, but it sounds a lot worse than what people are (prematurely, at a minimum) accusing the producer of. 

One more thing. As just about everyone knows, Ticketmaster, unlike Telecharge, is not very tapped into the theatres for whom they sell tickets. While Telecharge (aka the Shuberts) can just pick up the phone and call the box office, the poor schlub at Ticketmaster, who has probably never even been to New York, has no clue how to do that. They can, as suggested in the next post, send a message, but these are usually matters that are handled by the box office treasurer, at the instruction of the GM at the instruction of the producer. This all happend today (or yesterday at this moment); chill a little before declaring World War III on one of the best producers in town. 

Updated On: 7/7/15 at 01:19 AM

[Auggie27]

Posted: 7/7/15 at 10:53am

Gee, this thread has made me feel special as all get-out because I've got me some end of week matinee tickets.  New theater graffiti: "Sundays at Hamilton, where the elite meet!"  

[Kad]

Posted: 7/7/15 at 11:19am

The overwhelming majority of ticket buyers are seeing Hamilton because of Hamilton, not because of Miranda's performance. Very little in its substantial buzz is actually about his take on the role. He's not above the title, he's not being marketed as the reason to see it, his performance was not the main target of critical praise. The show is the star here, and rightfully so, despite terrific performances across the board. 

If your satisfaction with seeing the show hinges on collecting the "original cast," then perhaps you should reconsider why you want to see the show at all. 

If this histrionic nonsense is indicative of the sort of backlash that can be expected toward the show, this season is going to irksome.