Listening to Cast Recording before seeing show

[BluCat500]

Posted: 3/24/05 at 10:47pm

Hi, I was just wondering what everyone thought about listening to a cast recording before seeing the show. I'm always afraid it will ruin my enjoyment of it. What do the masses think?

[ashley0139]

Posted: 3/24/05 at 10:51pm

I ALWAYS listen to the Cast Recording before seeing the show (unless, of course, it isn't out yet). I find it much more enjoyable because 1)Sometimes songs that you don't know can get boring 2)It's exciting to see a song you know performed onstage 3)I find it is easier to remember the show when I know the songs because when I listen to it I see it in my head. That doesn't seem to describe my feelings about it right but I can't really think how to best describe it. Hope that helps.

[melissa errico fan]

Posted: 3/24/05 at 10:52pm

I don't like to. Plus, I see most shows in previews, before a cast album is even recorded.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 3/24/05 at 10:53pm

I don't do it a lot. I like to be surprised, but I also can't get into the music to shows as much if I haven't seen them.

[Thenardier]

Posted: 3/24/05 at 10:54pm

I liek to listen first...usually!

- Although, I usually see the show differently...

Updated On: 3/24/05 at 10:54 PM

[MissMonika]

Posted: 3/24/05 at 10:54pm

I listen to Cast Recordings before going to see the show, too, because sometimes I cannot understand what the actors are singing and then I get lost and then I don't get it. Hehehe. I'm slow like that. Like for Rent, I listened to it so many times before I actually saw it because I knew I wouldn't have been able to follow the story completely.

[filmgirl325]

Posted: 3/24/05 at 11:00pm

I would normally say no, so that there is an element of suprise to it...but I did it for the first time with Avenue Q, about two weeks before I saw it...and listening to it first just heightened my anticipation for seeing how the songs would take life onstage. It really didn't ruin anything for me.

[filmgirl325]

Posted: 3/24/05 at 11:01pm

I would normally say no, so that there is an element of suprise to it...but I did it for the first time with Avenue Q, about two weeks before I saw it...and listening to it first just heightened my anticipation for seeing how the songs would take life onstage. It really didn't ruin anything for me.

[apdarcey]

Posted: 3/24/05 at 11:01pm

i generally always do unless i'm lucky enough to see the show before a recording has been made.

[rent1988]

Posted: 3/24/05 at 11:03pm

for me, the only way i can experience a show is by listening to it usually
but i do agree, listening to the recording helps me remember it more. but then at times if i havent seen a show i get bored with the recording, until i DO see it and then i listen to the recording over and over.

[GypsyRoseLee]

Posted: 3/24/05 at 11:14pm

I generally prefer for it to be a "virgin" experience for me.

[commasplice]

Posted: 3/24/05 at 11:19pm

Generally, I listen to it first, because I rely on tours and regional productions to see shows, so by the time it gets around here, I've already listened to it fifty thousand times. I saw Spamalot without knowing any of the music (besides the film), though, and didn't feel like I was missing anything. I could go either way, I think, and would go in with a blank slate more often if I could, but circumstances generally don't let me.

[KelRel]

Posted: 3/24/05 at 11:19pm

It depends, I saw Miss Saigon and Rent before I got the cast recordings, but I am listeing to Wicked now and won't get to see it until May in Chicago. I was excited before, but now that I have an idea of what to expect I cna't wait to see it played out on stage.

[Sporkie]

Posted: 3/24/05 at 11:24pm

I generally prefer to listen to cast recordings...otherwise Itend to not be able to understan. When I do see something I've never heard before, I often buy/order the recording immediately after so I can reconsider the show in light of the subtelities of the song. But sometimes it can be confusing-like in LSoH, the first time I heard somewhere that's green,
I know Seymour's the greatest

But I'm dating a semi-sadist

So I've got a black eye

And my arm's in a cast.

Still, that Seymour's a cutie

Well, if not, he's got inner beauty

And I dream of a place

Where we could be together at last,
I thought Seymour was the sadist, which made the first half-hour of the show confusing when I saw it, and reduced the experience.

[crazy smiles]

Posted: 3/24/05 at 11:30pm

My only Broadway fix is from cast recordings, but depending on the show it can make the experience seem a lil eh. Like when I saw Avenue Q I had listened to the cd for a long time, it was almost a year till I actually saw the production, so when I saw it the jokes weren't as funny and I knew what was coming. There were a few surprises, but still I had to fake laugh cause I was in the front row.
The best effect would be to not listen to a cast recording, unless that's your only alternative like mio.

[Benzy92]

Posted: 3/24/05 at 11:33pm

I really like to listen to the music before seeing a show so I get the feeling of the show.. the one time this was a mistake was for Avenue Q.. all the jokes were on the cd and it def. took some of the pleasure away..

I didnt have the cd for Spelling Bee because it isnt out and now I am dying to get it.. the "virgin" experience on that was great though!

[Dreamcatcher]

Posted: 3/24/05 at 11:41pm

I usually have to listen first before seeing the show because where I live is usually no where near the show. If I had a choice I'd prefer to see the show before listening to the recording but most of the time, those CDs are all I can get.

[Starburst]

Posted: 3/24/05 at 11:52pm

I used to try and go into shows a virgin.

Until I tried it with Les Miserables.

Now there was a waste of $60 bucks. No idea what was going on, the only exposure being the movie with Liam Neeson. I was totally lost story wise, and the only songs I can remember...no, I don't even really remember them, but that I really enjoyed were "Lovely Ladies", "Master of the House" (which was the one I had heard before), "Castle on a Cloud" (again, heard it) and "One Day More." The pretty spectacle ones!

I now try to at least read a synopsis before I see the show.

[StephanietheStar]

Posted: 3/24/05 at 11:55pm

Well...i saw Rent, Wicked, LW, Ave Q, and DRS in Ny...I knew the Rent cd only a little...Wicked and Q i knew a lot...and of course LW and DRS not at all

I actually loved Rent, LW, and DRS the most..and it could just be because they are better shows but I think it's because I didn't know what to expect. So from now on I'm gonna try not to! but it won't happen!

[wickedrentq]

Posted: 3/24/05 at 11:57pm

With the exception of shows where I saw the movie first(Sound of Music and King and I) I have NEVER listened to a cast recording before seeing a show. For me personally, it's not the same listening to a CD of a show I haven't seen, plus I want to be surprised. Sometimes, too much plot is given away, sometimes too many jokes are given away. I understand that sometimes plot is hard to follow but I'm actually much better at that, and I always just check a full summary online in case I feel I missed something. Even with shows like Les Miz--it significantly helped that the plot was provided in the playbill to help me through it. With the exception of a couple of songs, I just don't like the experience that way.

[Dreamcatcher]

Posted: 3/24/05 at 11:58pm

I wish I could go see more shows without knowing what to expect because I think I'd probably enjoy that feeling of suspension more. I love the recordings but then if/when you go see the show you already know exactly whats coming. I wish I could go into shows like RENT or LSoH a "virgin" but in the end I'm glad
I have the recordings as opposed to nothing at all.

[Elphaba]

Posted: 3/25/05 at 12:17am

Always!!!!!

unless their is no album yet. By knowing the songs I can pay more attention to what is happening on stage rather than listening......oh I listen, but I miss less.
And....often, if I don't like the music....I won't go. Plus I like to know the story before I go.

[Dreamcatcher]

Posted: 3/25/05 at 12:21am

When I find a new show that I can't see because of its location etc but I want to know more about, I'll go through this 1-2 month research process of sorts where I get the recording and try to find as many online scripts,clips, soundbites etc that I can find so by the end its pretty much like I've seen the show. It's pretty sad, yes but until I can afford airfare to New York it's all I've got. :-P

[ticenewyorkcity]

Posted: 3/25/05 at 12:23am

regreted buying hairspray until i actually saw it

[Justice]

Posted: 3/25/05 at 1:53am

I used to buy the recording, get to know the music, then see the show. But, at times, this brought disappointment, as I expected different stagings in certain shows.
When I moved to NYC, I saw shows that I knew from the recordings.
Then, I saw Rent. It was then, I realized that I prefer not knowing the show, because I don't know what to expect. I feel that the recordings give the plot away, and I would rather be surprised, as I enjoy that element.
There are exceptions. I will get shows that have already been on B'way, and are not running anymore. But, if it's new and running, and I haven't seen it, I will not get it. I wouldn't even listen to Wicked until after I saw the show.