Minimalist theater... argh.

http://www.theatermania.com/content/news.cfm/story/6201

This is a compelling article about minimalist theater marketers who pull out the old "if you aren't shallow, you'll be able to imagine sets" line. Now I'm excited to see a production of Ragtime now matter how it's done, but for $60 to $100, I'd strongly prefer sets. The same goes for Chicago.

*edited from "shallow" to "aren't shallow"*

Updated On: 6/21/05 at 03:09 PM

But if a show cannot be done without its elaborate physical production, perhaps it is not written well enough.

The true test of the worth of any play or musical is on a bare stage.

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i'm the biggest minimalist theatre fan out there.

I really think the price of theatre tickets needs to be drastically lowered.

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As the Producers (and many other shows) have proved, people will pay absurd amounts for top notch tickets. Why should the scalpers profit? I see nothing wrong with premium seats charging premium prices. We all see "Wicked" tickets being offered on Ebay for hundreds of dollars. Obviously there is a market for them.

I've always hated scalpers and those who purchase from them, but now, the producers of these shows are being scalpers as well. Now they charge $40-50 more for the exact same seats to the exact same show they sold for $80-90 the previous year. They're gouging the public and then wonder why fewer people are going to the theatre each year.

As for the minimalist thing, it depends on the show. Some shows are beautifully written AND need sets while others don't. And then there are shows that are visually stunning enough to make up for the lack in writing. This is not necessarily a bad thing, either. And then there are the shows in which the set layers a concept into the piece that was not provided into the text, such as the revival of An Inspector Calls. It's a fantastic play, but the set and lighting only enhanced what was already a brilliant piece. Personally, I didn't care for the inconsistent staging of the Broadway production of Ragtime and I doubt I would like this minimalist approach either. But then, I'm rather iffy on the book as well. Beautiful score, but everything else was rathy uneven and shaky.

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That dad nab Thorton Wilder started it with "Our Town". Of all the nerve!!

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And the playwrights worked within those limitations. Nowadays, lots of shows would have a very hard time working without scenery.

God, I am SO TIRED of those damn minimalist productions of Our Town!