Lincoln Center Archives

What is the criteria for Lincoln Center to record Broadway shows?

I know they pass on the popular 'entertainment' focused works with juke box scores or based on big commercial films.

I believe Pretty Woman had original music The Roy Orbison song was added after the show opened.

Sometimes "assessments" can be wrong.

Updated On: 1/19/24 at 01:32 PM

They have a budget, and it does not cover every Broadway show (let alone some of the Off-B shows they opt to record).

The choice to record a show for the archives is just that –– a choice. So sometimes the decision will seem a little arbitrary, and there can be a level of pitching and wining & dining involved. Was it "necessary" for them to record the short-lived revival Frankie & Johnny with Audra McDonald & Michael Shannon, perhaps at the expense of a short-lived musical or original play? Not necessarily. But is someone going to find value in viewing it at some point? Yes!

Sometimes, if there's significant reluctance, the NYPL will invite the production to make a donation to fund the archival filming.

There are also some directors/actors/writers who do not want their work filmed, and want it to live on only in the memories of those who saw it live.

Updated On: 1/19/24 at 02:51 PM

I work at the Performing Arts Library, with the Theatre on Film and Tape Archive (TOFT). It’s not correct to say the archive “passes” on jukebox musicals, or any other kind of stage show. All sorts of shows are considered for archival tapings (musicals, dramas, avant-garde pieces, puppet shows, etc.) However, as others have suggested, other factors are involved in what does and does not get recorded. First, there are specific criteria: if a stage work was created by a notable playwright, composer, or director; if it’s historically or socially relevant or worthy; if it’s an award winner (whether a Pulitzer, a Tony, a Lortel Award winner, or whatever else), etc., then it will be considered for the archive.

But it’s also worth pointing out that the money is a huge factor. Funding isn’t always available to tape a desired show. Musicals are especially expensive. When TOFT lacks a famous title, it’s not because “they passed on it.” It’s usually because the archive didn’t have the money. And in some instances, producers or creatives don’t want their show taped. Bob Fosse always turned TOFT down because he didn’t feel any one video could capture the essence of a show. That’s why TOFT lacks videos of the shows he created during his lifetime. Another example: the creative team behind Hamilton chose to finance their own video (the one shown on Disney+), which is why TOFT lacks its own, unique videorecording of Hamilton.

One other, fairly minor point: the archive is called the Theatre on Film and Tape Archive. Most people call it “Lincoln Center Video Archive,” or something like that, but Lincoln Center is not part of the name. It’s easier to google when you use the correct term. There’s a good Wikipedia entry under Theatre on Film and Tape Archive.

BETTY22 said: "Do producers cover costs or Lincoln Center?"

Producers occasionally pay for tapings, but most often they don't.

To follow up on what I said earlier about the archive's name: TOFT is part of the New York Public Library system. Technically, our library is called The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts. But that's a mouthful, so those of us who work there usually call it the LPA, or the Performing Arts Library. We are located at Lincoln Center, but not otherwise affiliated with the Lincoln Center organization. Lincoln Center Theater sometimes pays for tapings at the Vivian Beaumont or the Mitzi Newhouse, but beyond that, "Lincoln Center" does not contribute any money towards TOFT tapings at any other theater.

As implied here and based on conversations with those who work on the Lincoln Center campus:

I gather there's a great deal of tiptoeing between Lincoln Center the landlord and its constituent organizations, as well as a general public misunderstanding of how each individual nonprofit operates as part of the larger Lincoln Center campus. (Don't ever let Andre B hear you say "Lincoln Center's production of Camelot" when you actually mean "Lincoln Center Theater's production of Camelot", for example.)

I understand relations are better now during the Henry Timms regime than they were under past LC leadership, but it's still a very delicate balance.

ErmengardeStopSniveling said: "Was it "necessary" for them to record the short-lived revival Frankie & Johnny with Audra McDonald & Michael Shannon, perhaps at the expense of a short-lived musical or original play?"



Yes.

I can add, for those who might be interested, that the memorial gathering for Stephen Sondheim, taped at the Sondheim Theatre in November 2022, is now available to view in the TOFT screening room. This is an officially sanctioned video, created in cooperation with the coordinators of the event. For rather complicated reasons, it was not available to the public until just a couple of weeks ago.