Next Live Show

[broadwayboy2018]

Posted: 2/5/19 at 10:55pm

After NBC announced that it was canceling Hair Live!, I started wondering what show they were working on for this Christmas. Bob Greenblatt said this in an interview: "We tend to take them one year at a time. They're enormous undertakings. And there aren't a lot of shows you can get the rights to. We have an idea for a live musical for Christmas, but I can't talk about that yet." We also know that they're focusing on musicals that have wider appeal. So any guesses?

[BwayLB]

Posted: 2/5/19 at 11:00pm

How about White Christmas? Love the stage version more than the movie

[phan24]

Posted: 2/6/19 at 12:27am

An idea that may not be too far from reality:
Legally Blonde Live! with Dove Cameron

[zainmax]

Posted: 2/6/19 at 1:24am

phan24 said: "An idea that may not be too far from reality:
Legally Blonde Live! with Dove Cameron"

I like it. But, doesn't MTV has a piece of it... and that's Viacom/CBS?

[zainmax]

Posted: 2/6/19 at 1:25am

Actually, didn't Platt make the original film?

[broadwayboy2018]

Posted: 2/6/19 at 11:30pm

Yes! I got to see a regional production of White Christmas a few years ago and it was spectacular. I'd be SO down for that.

[broadwayboy2018]

Posted: 2/6/19 at 11:34pm

First off, Dove would KILL Elle (in a good way), and I think that Legally Blonde Live! would be a lot of fun. I do think that there may be an issue with MTV and the Broadway tape, etc., but I think that they could work it out. Legally is embarking on a new national tour soon, so maybe not until the tour ends but yes, I'm all for it. (Also, I don't think it would work as a Christmas show just because of the sexual innuendos, etc. but maybe a January or summer slot!)

[BwayLB]

Posted: 2/7/19 at 9:17am

broadwayboy2018 said: "Yes! I got to see a regional production of White Christmas a few years ago and it was spectacular. I'd be SO down for that."

What a coincidence I saw a regional production too over a year ago.

[BwayGeek2]

Posted: 2/7/19 at 9:55am

That would actually be a great choice! White Christmas could work so well.

[JudyDenmark]

Posted: 2/7/19 at 10:43am

I said this in a different thread, but I think Little Shop would be a great choice. The music is really accessible to a non-Broadway crowd, it's family friendly enough, and they could get some great talent.

...I wouldn't argue with Jake Gyllenhaal reprising his City Center role. He killed it.

[quizking101]

Posted: 2/7/19 at 10:47am

I’m in agreement. Little Shop of Horrors airing on Halloween would be an EVENT

[rg7759]

Posted: 6/16/19 at 6:05pm

alright. looks like its gonna be a little dry on theatre news for a second so i wouldn't mind an announcement about the presumed holiday live musical, or if not that then whatever the next one will be. thanks. and maybe unrelated but kenny leon's shakespeare is done june 23 so. u know.

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 6/16/19 at 6:09pm

White Christmas is a great idea.

[SomethingPeculiar]

Posted: 6/16/19 at 6:25pm

rg7759 said: "presumed holiday live musical, or if not that then whatever the next one will be."

I would not presume that there will be a holiday live musical. After the change in leadership at NBC, and after the awful ratings for RENT and other titles, they said they want to focus on bigger, four-quadrant family entertainments. Which I think translates to big title + big star (equivalent to Carrie Underwood in Sound of Music).

[Danster]

Posted: 6/16/19 at 6:45pm

Patrick Wilson as Bob Wallace in White Christmas. That could bring them the ratings they
Are looking for. Fiddler on the Roof could also be a draw.

[ggersten]

Posted: 6/16/19 at 7:02pm

It and he didn't get great message board reviews in London, but Kelsey Grammer in Man of La Mancha?  "Frasier sings?"

I'd love to see Norbert Leo Butz as Nicely Nicely, Zach Levi as Sky, Laura Benanti as Sarah, but I'm not sure Guys and Dolls is still in the broader American psyche. 

I think we are too close to December 2019 for Oliver to be thought out and prepared. But 2020?

[SomethingPeculiar]

Posted: 6/16/19 at 8:01pm

Patrick Wilson doesn't mean a thing for ratings. Neither does the above-mentioned Guys & Dolls group, or Kelsey Grammer, or Gyllenhaal in Little Shop, or Dove Cameron.

 

Let's zero in on the 3 that have done well:

- Sound of Music had a massive pop star in the most beloved musical of all time. 18 million viewers, awful reviews

- Grease is a huge title with a few familiar (not bankable) names, but it sold primarily on the title. 12.2 mil viewers, positive reviews. 

- The Wiz is a familiar title that had a starry ensemble of actors. 11.4 million viewers, mixed-to-negative but "best NBC musical yet" reviews.

So you need a huge star who's going to draw from their fanbase, and you need a massive title that appeals to audiences ranging from 16 to 65. The problem: Bankable stars don't want to do it because it's a 5-week time commitment and there's a good chance that it'll get bad reviews. Low ratings scare away networks and stars/agents. And there are only a handful of major musicals that have the appeal of SOM or Grease. Newer titles are being optioned for feature films, which ties up the rights for TV.

I don't have a suggestion for what would work, but the show/star combinations are extremely limited. Some of the networks have talked about creating their own jukebox musicals, which might have more appeal than your standard Broadway fare.

[BroadwayAndSports]

Posted: 6/17/19 at 1:57pm

The best shows to do would be:

-Little Shop of Horrors in October (maybe Gyllenhaal would do it? If not, there are many good choices)

-The Music Man (either Seth MacFarlane or Stephen Colbert would be great)

-Guys and Dolls (so many great casting options)

-Singin in the Rain (Derek Hough almost did it on Broadway, he could do it)

-The Producers (Lane and Broderick probably too old, but they could cameo)

 

[Danster]

Posted: 6/17/19 at 5:04pm

Honestly I do believe that Patrick Wilson in White Christmas has potential, plus the show would need another three stars. Music Man can also be good but that being said they need a title which is similar to the sound of music which is family friendly and possibly a well loved classic 

They toyed with contemporary titles like Hairspray The Wiz, A Christmas Story but all failed to  deliver the ratings TSOM did

[HouGuy77002]

Posted: 6/17/19 at 6:45pm

Probably needs to be a show that has wide appeal, is family friendly (G or PG rating), with popular songs (see Peter Pan for why this matters), and lots of opportunity for star casting...AND...which already have movies so that the rights might be more likely available (unless remakes are in the works like Guys and Dolls):

Les Miserables, Phantom of the Opera, Evita, Chicago, Mamma Mia, Little Shop, Oklahoma, The King and I, My Fair Lady, The Music Man, White Christmas, Cabaret (probably too raunchy for tv), Fiddler on the Roof, Annie, Hello Dolly, 42nd Street

Any others?

[nativenewyorker2]

Posted: 6/17/19 at 6:48pm

How about the musical version of A Christmas Carol?

[Fosse76]

Posted: 6/17/19 at 8:38pm

I believe many of you are quite delusional to think that anyone under the age of 70 would want o see any caliber performer in White Christmas. It is not a title of mass appeal, particularly for the much sought after 18-49 year old demographic. 

The only way these shows will get the desired ratings is with performers with mass appeal and a bankable show title. No one wants to see Oliver! or Guys and Dolls. There may be some appeal for something like Little Shop of Horrors with a majorly famous cast, but no one is screaming to see any of the trunk musicals being bandied about here. I say scrap the Wicked movie and do it live, get some major stars and I can see massive ratings.

Hairspray "failed" because while it is a contemporary musical, it isn't a massively famous title, and it didn't have the star names it needed. The Wiz had the star quality cast it needed, but it's demographic was a primarily black audience. While everyone  love A Christmas Story (the movie), I don't think many people were asking for a muisical version of it, and even if they were, it also didn't have the star popularity needed.

I think part of the problem with these live musicals is that they suffer from pacing. They can't go to quick cuts from scene to scene, and many musicals/plays more easily get away with these issues because much more is happening to grab the audience's attention uring these moments, whereas these live shows have nothing (no set or lighting effects, lack of underscoring, no audience energy feeding the actors or the at-home viewers, etc.).

 

[Dollypop]

Posted: 6/17/19 at 8:52pm

I think it's time to bid farewell to these "live" shows. Just thinking of RENT and PETER PAN makes me cri ge.

[David10086]

Posted: 6/17/19 at 9:30pm

I think HELLO DOLLY (with Queen Latifah, or Meagan Mullaley ?) could be a hit, as it seems to have an audience of all ages on its successful Broadway run. Not sure if it's possible with it's current tour.

[Littleshopofcarrie]

Posted: 6/18/19 at 11:27am

Sister Act the musical starring Lizzo