Miss Saigon helicopter question

Its kind of what you described, its sort of wheeled on in the dark, moved up and down, then rolled back off again in the dark. The lighting is very important to getting it to look decent

now this might very well have been from the tour but I assume its a similar thing

the photos of the original model show the intent, something that comes in from a track at the back and then the boom lifts it up. I would assume thats how it ended up being done as it does not seem that complicated.

Updated On: 10/19/16 at 02:23 PM

I remember reading a book on the creation of the show that said the team's nickname for the mechanism was "Goalpost" because the mechanism that held the chopper model kind of looked like that. It was hollow with no tail and the smoke, sound, and lighting did the rest.

The book also said that originally they planned to blow bits of debris off the stage for realism, but there were concerns about them getting lodged in the instruments. (I'd also have been concerned about them getting lodged in audience members, but the book didn't mention that.)

check this out

https://youtu.be/jVdGqqRP73c

It's amazing you found that Broadwayghost! That answers my question.

By the way, I saw a very effective projection too once at a dinner theatre!

I am so looking forward to seeing this again, back home at the Broadway! April 1st can't come fast enough! The changes don't thrill me though At least with Les Mis there were no lyric changes, but now there will be, including pulling a song and replacing it with another!

Updated On: 10/19/16 at 03:25 PM

Phantom of London said: "If they do the same as the London revival, it will be projections.



"

I thought the revival had used an actual set piece, but I could be mistaken...

In London there were projections of it, and then the screen flew out to reveal the helicopter hovering above the stage. It then lifts/wobbles up and then moves upstage into darkness.

Like the whole production- it's not a patch on the original in any way.



enjoy it Broadway!

Well it certainly doesn't add to it.

I saw a preview in London so who knows, maybe they restated that moment and it's not quite the same now.

In the London revival, there is a sound effect of the helicopter timed with the projection to make it appear as though it flies quickly overhead and then off into the distance (similar to the 2003 tour). The sound then queues the return of the helicopter as a set piece (like the original production). I thought it was effective. To me, this revival had moments that were inferior to the original, but also moments that were better than the original. I enjoyed it much more that I thought I would and my boyfriend, having never seen the show before, was really wowed by it, especially the nightmare sequence.

And that would explain why there was hydraulic fluid leaking one night. Of the 300 plus times I saw it only once did it not work. The swirling lights weren't that bad.

That's a good point but I think it will be a carbon copy of London. It worked before and it will work again.

I'm seeing the Japanese production during the Thanksgiving week. From the photos they posted on twitter, it seems to be a carbon copy of the London revival. I'm particularly interested in how this production offers insight into adapting the staging designed for a rather small theater (Prince Edward) to a more roomy theater like The Imperial Theater in Japan and The Broadway where the next March's revival will be.