Ladies and Gentleman....Taye Diggs is your next Hedwig- Page 23

[HedwigInch]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 12:23am

"Has anyone other than Neil sold premium seats? Also from what I've seen they aren't even great seats...
 
Maybe if they do away with them it would be better. They are destined to become lottery seats."

Darren definitely has since some of my friends bought them. And they are often in the center orchestra, even very close to the stage as in first, second or third row and so on. So that's great seats in my opinion.

I think Taye did too. I noticed for Taye's opening night the first row center orchestra seats were all premium for a while. Then maybe 3 or so were gone before the day of the show and then somehow during that day the rest were sold, no idea if for the premium price or if they changed them to normal price or what.

Also for Hedwig the highest ticket price in the official numbers always says $248. Hedwig doesn't have regular priced tickets for $248 so that has to be premium seats, right?

Updated On: 8/4/15 at 12:23 AM

[fengshuihellnyc]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 12:26am

I'm seeing Taye Next week.... any reports on if he signs at the stage door? And did they have posters? Were they just words or his sassy shiney pic :)?

[SDV]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 12:29am

Can't speak to the other Hedwigs but John sold premium seats.  I don't think I know a Headhed who bought fewer than 2 during his  run.

This two man race for last place sure is generating a lot of interest.

[ChildofEarth]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 12:35am

"Can't speak to the other Hedwigs but John sold premium seats.  I don't think I know a Headhed who bought fewer than 2 during his  run.
This two man race for last place sure is generating a lot of interest."

I think it's more the fear of the show closing over really caring if Taye sells more than Darren - which I think he will as time passes.

[frogs_fan85]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 12:42am

"I'm seeing Taye Next week.... any reports on if he signs at the stage door? And did they have posters? Were they just words or his sassy shiney pic :)?"

 

He does sign and the poster is the photo of him.

[haterobics]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 12:55am

"Has anyone other than Neil sold premium seats? Also from what I've seen they aren't even great seats...
 
Maybe if they do away with them it would be better. They are destined to become lottery seats."

JCM sold a LOT of premiums. I had premium to his first and last shows.

Also, the premiums never go to waste, they convert to regular priced tickets close to show time. The whole point is to give people an option to not make advance plans and get good seats without notice. I highly doubt these ever end up becoming lottery tickets regularly.

I ended up seeing Darren from the second row aisle as soon as a premium seat changed to regular (and accepted a discount) 90 minutes to showtime one night. 

[SweetLips]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 1:16am

How about everyone stop making comparisons, asking where best to sit, where to buy, who signs and for how long and people who have actually SEEN the bloody show REPORT ON THE ACTUAL TAYE DIGGS[Hedwig] SHOW.

 

I'd never heard of the man before this but love reading reports from people who have seen ANY show.

All this 'what's the view like', ' is the stage high' 'how many toilets' should be in a separate listing as my scroll past finger is getting tired.

Perhaps there should be a section[like dating preferences] where when certain words are said then that message is blocked--tick this spot for annoying words.

[ZeroMustTell]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 9:02am

Taye is miscast, sad to say. I had never seen the show. My companion saw a comparatively smaller production. She's a Diggs fan and even she agreed he is all wrong for the role.

[Wee Thomas2]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 10:00am

Well.  That's pretty definitive.

[Actorman88]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 10:07am

My wife and I saw Taye Diggs last Saturday. I would consider myself a Hed-Head for sure and have made every effort to see as many Hedwigs as possible, be it in person or boot-leg.  I was lucky enough to see NPH, JCM, and Taye live (I'm from South Dakota) and I have to say that every performance was drastically different. John is in his own realm as Hedwig and to compare any subsequent performer to his interpretation would be a disservice to them.  That being said, Taye has been my third favorite Hedwig (after JCM and M. Cerveris).  He brings a new quality to the role that is understated and pained. His Hedwig has seen a lot of torment and combats it with brilliant humor.  Many on this board have talked about his lack of preparation. I felt that much of Taye's repetition was a specific acting choice for the role. He is this beautiful soul that finally got an opportunity to share her story with a large crowd. She is taking the time to really feel the memory of what she is discussing and ensuring that she tells the story right for her audience. Taye's shining moment comes when Yitzhak throws open the stage door after Angry Inch and you see the physical mental break Hedwig has when being pushed to discuss Tommy.  From that moment on, I was enraptured by what she had to say and how deeply it had affected her. Taye's Hedwig is one of the most pained and broken that I have seen. This made Midnight Radio that much better when she finally accepts herself for who she is. Taye also made the marvelous choice to not only accept Hedwig for who she is, but takes specific time and moments with each member of the Angry Inch to show her recognition of accepting them for who they are. It was a truly beautiful moment in theatre that I will never forget.

[AppleSunday]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 1:50pm

"Taye also made the marvelous choice to not only accept Hedwig for who she is, but takes specific time and moments with each member of the Angry Inch to show her recognition of accepting them for who they are. It was a truly beautiful moment in theatre that I will never forget."

I can't speek to the other Hedwigs because its been a bit since I've watched their bootlegs, but Darren is still fresh in my mind and he definitely took time with each band member during Midnight Radio. Bowing, drumming, caressing, going back to back and then sharing the mic.

I'm glad it seems like Taye is improving! If the line repetition is a choice, I hope he directly speaks it soon to clarify. 

[haterobics]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 2:03pm

""Taye also made the marvelous choice to not only accept Hedwig for who she is, but takes specific time and moments with each member of the Angry Inch to show her recognition of accepting them for who they are. It was a truly beautiful moment in theatre that I will never forget."
I can't speek to the other Hedwigs because its been a bit since I've watched their bootlegs, but Darren is still fresh in my mind and he definitely took time with each band member during Midnight Radio. Bowing, drumming, caressing, going back to back and then sharing the mic."

They've all done that bit.

[Hamilton22]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 2:12pm

Darren is also fresh in my mind. I saw him in his 2nd to last week of performances and I was surprised at how great he was. I wasn't expecting much but he sure proved me wrong. His performance was electric and deeply profound. Probably has the best voice out of all the Hedwigs I have seen.

I'll be seeing Taye tonight. Extremely excited. 

 

 

Updated On: 8/4/15 at 02:12 PM

[haterobics]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 2:19pm

"How about everyone stop making comparisons, asking where best to sit, where to buy, who signs and for how long and people who have actually SEEN the bloody show REPORT ON THE ACTUAL TAYE DIGGS[Hedwig] SHOW."

What site do you think you're on?!

The fact that we're all discussing the same show is pretty remarkable for BWW.

[SweetLips]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 2:54pm

OK---Next report?

[Jane2]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 4:07pm

I agree with haterobics. What do you think the Jane Street crowd did 24/7? We talked about the show and mainly compared the Hedwigs. To death!

Updated On: 8/4/15 at 04:07 PM

[Sami7]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 4:36pm

"OK---Next report?"

Where does it say this thread is only for first-hand reports of the show? If that's the criteria, there aren't going to be very many posts; people curious about stage door, talking about sales, or comparing his performance to previous Hedwigs all seems to be pretty on topic to me. 

[ChildofEarth]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 4:47pm

This would be a pretty boring website if it was just reports about the show IMO. Especially this turns around when many of us are saying the same things.

I've been lurking for years and since joining less than a month ago, I've been able to ask questions and acquire knowledge that changes the way I look at shows.

 

[SweetLips]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 5:10pm

Sure-but this thread is primarily to say who is the next Hedwig and that might/should/could lead to peoples' report on his performance..

Discussions of comparisons are a natural reaction when you have seen others playing the role and promotes healthy debate.

Perhaps I'm overly sensitive[and jealous] to all those who question seating/sightlines/rush etc as I know I will never get to see these shows, so these questions are of no interest to me.

 

 

It is NOT all about YOU SweetLips--get over yourself !!

[AppleSunday]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 6:08pm

Hedwig, more than most shows, lends itself all too naturally to comparison and debate and discussion to just stick to first hand accounts and basic info. Every few months a new major name star steps in with their own take on the character. They have freedom to do almost anything. And because it changes nightly there's always something new to dig into so of course with every first hand account there's something new being presented to the 99% of us who weren't there. 

 

 

Updated On: 8/4/15 at 06:08 PM

[Phillypinto]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 6:13pm

i wanna play hedwig. They should cast me next, and i would have million dollar weeks from all my fans at bww!

[skies]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 7:52pm

I guess my question is whether Taye's box office would support not reducing the sales price on the tickets as much as they have been slashed.

While it's a calculated risk, his first two weeks have been attendance of 92 % and 75 %, which is well within the range of the other Hedwigs.

Also I wonder how many Hedwig goers are "repeat" customers as opposed to people seeing Hedwig for the first time.  After all Taye is the 6th Hedwig since the revival started in March 2014.  Since the last 2 Hedwigs  (JCM and Darren Criss) had declining box office from the person who preceded them, (Michael C. Hall improved upon Andrew Rannel's Box Office)  there could be some Hedwig fatigue as far as the dipping box office, that is a show getting older and no longer a hot ticket.  For example after JCM's last week, the show has had only 2 weeks of 90% attendance, (Darren's last and Taye's opening week) as well as only one 80 plus percentage week.

 

[haterobics]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 8:02pm

Attendance isn't as important as what the people who are attending are paying to go... and the price usually dictates attendance, unless there is crazy demand (which doesn't seem to be the case)

A full house at $25 a head is always worse than a half house at $75 a head, etc.

I think the Hedwig box office is one of the more analytics-driven shows on Broadway, given how effectively they held back tickets in the past for premiums, how they don't release the whole house at once ever. So, I don't think there is much to second guess there, really.

[Phan2]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 10:25pm

Thanks for your review, Actorman88.  I hope you will enjoy Taye's performance, Hamilton22 and fengshuihellnyc. 

 

I'm not sure if people are getting Hedwig-fatigue, but I know that Hedwig, as an older show, is competing with newer shows.   The average ticket price paid, gross dollar amount, and gross % potential are more important than capacity/attendance.    The numbers have been trending downward in average ticket price paid, gross dollar amount, and gross % potential since March 2015, when seven new shows made their appearance on Broadway.    Four more new shows appeared since March 2015.    (Two of the new shows closed Auguest 2 and one will close August 9).  Since Taye is entering the show at a later stage, it seems that his numbers will be impacted by the musical competing with the new shows of 2015. 

Updated On: 8/4/15 at 10:25 PM

[BroadwayConcierge]

Posted: 8/4/15 at 10:32pm

Just got back from tonight's show and I have to report that it was sadly the least captivating (my poor attempt to find a PC way of saying "the worst") performance of the show that I've been to now six times.

Taye is still messing up lines. He plays it off very to those unfamiliar with the show, but as somebody who knows JCM's brilliant book quite well, I cringed multiple times when he mangled some of the script's perfect phrasings. 

To give Taye a little bit of credit, the show got out around 9:50 tonight, about a half hour shorter than the performance I went to very early in his run. He's also settling into the physicality a bit better (by which I mean that tonight, he sweated 1 gallon as opposed to 2 gallons the first time); however, I thought he was going to collapse backwards into the stage when he was emerging from the "Wig in a Box" quick-change.   

For me, something happened in the middle of his Tommy Gnosis monologue, and he just completely lost any sense of a spark he had going throughout his performance. The typically heartrending and profound "Wicked Little Town" reprise just felt like a dude singing a song. I normally never want "Midnight Radio" to end, but tonight, I couldn't wait for Yitzhak to emerge and close the song. 

I think the following moment best encapsulates the show I saw tonight: when the green spotlight hit Taye at the beginning of "Hedwig's Lament," the expression that he made prompted half of the audience laugh out loud.

So disappointed. Will definitely not be returning to the Belasco any time before mid-October.  

Updated On: 8/4/15 at 10:32 PM