Posted: 2/21/16 at 11:38pm
This afternoon I took the grandkids to "Fantasia Live", where the Disney film was accompanied by a live orchestra without mic. What a blessing for the ears!
Posted: 2/22/16 at 5:28am
"thank you for responding to After Eight. I just can't any more."
You recently responded to a comment I made about Milk and Honey Can't you even get your facts straight? But please, in the future, by all means, don't respond to me. Or better yet, don't read what I write!
Anyhow, to get back to the discussion at hand, I never liked ACL (lousy score), and thought Chicago was far superior. But the former was a media darling.... and as we know, they sure know how to push their darlings --- do they ever!
Sound familiar? Plus ça change...
Posted: 2/23/16 at 1:25pm
My answers based on a half-century of theater-going (started when I was 5).
1. Besides the well discussed behavior of the current audiences, what is the biggest difference between the past and the present theater audience?
Bad behavior in countless ways is by far the biggest change. Beyond that? The Disney-ification of Times Square and Broadway has brought a wider range of people to the theater.
2. Did shows usually offer discounts like they do now? What about lottery/rush? If not, when was that implemented?
TKTS was been around since 1973. I'm not sure about rush or lottery. We did a lot of standing room tickets when I was a kid, so they were gotten on the cheap somehow.
3. With the exception of huge hits with huge prices, do you think theater is more or less accessible now?
It's less accessible because most shows have high ticket prices.
4. Has there ever been something as crazy as the Hamilton fervor? If not, what is the closest example and how did people react?
I can't remember anything like this. Maybe Rent?
5. Has the change from majority original works from iconic writers and composers to jukebox and screen to stage tarnished the prestige of Broadway?
I don't think so. There's still plenty of fresh material.
6. Do the stars of yesterday outshine the ones of today?
No. Today's stars are just as good and maybe better because there is a larger pool of talent on which to draw.
7. Dismissing shows like "The Hamilton" and BOM, when adjusted for inflation are prices significantly higher (excluding premium seats)
I think they are but I don't have data on this.
8. What are the moments/shows that had a big impact on you?
In no particular order and the years in which I saw them: Hamilton (2016), Fun Home (2015 and 2016), 1776 (~1970) , Raisin in the Sun (~1974), Jesus Christ Superstar (1972)
9. If you could go back in time and bring back any show you've seen, what would it be?
None. There were some good shows, but I want to move on and see what's new.
Updated On: 2/23/16 at 01:25 PM
Posted: 2/23/16 at 1:37pm
I have a few follow ups for you- if it's too intrusive lmk.
A- What were the average price for tickets by the decade (if that's too detailed to remember, maybe by events pre enlistment, during your working years et al)
I don't know. You can probably google this data. Since my parents regularly brought our family of five to the theater, it couldn't have been in the range it is now.
B- Has there always been long running shows like today or is that a newer phenomenon after A Chorus Line opened? Before ACL, what was considered a long running show?
Wikipedia has good data on this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_the_longest-running_Broadway_shows
C- You mention the general complaints about current theater goers but did the "classier" attendees of yore not ever have similar traits (minus devices). There's always that stereotype of the woman with the big hat and huge fur.
Well, smoking used to be allowed in the theater, but it wasn't considered a nuisance because smoking inside was acceptable back then. Other than that, the audiences of today far outpace their ancestors in acting badly in all sorts of ways (talking, eating, getting drunk, coming in late, taking pictures and video, using cell phones)
D- do you ever see a time (non health related) that you will give up theater and be content with PBS? Is the thrill still there? Has there been any recent shows that have moved you and reinforced your love?
The thrill is not gone. And to the second question: Hamilton, Fun Home, and Something Rotten are three recent shows that remind me how good Broadway theater can be.
"
Updated On: 2/23/16 at 01:37 PM
Posted: 2/23/16 at 1:50pm
Just recalling that "The Producers" created a major storm on this site when it first opened.
Posted: 2/23/16 at 2:08pm
Dollypop said: "This afternoon I took the grandkids to "Fantasia Live", where the Disney film was accompanied by a live orchestra without mic. What a blessing for the ears!
"
That sounds fabulous, wish I had heard of it. In New York?
Posted: 2/23/16 at 2:33pm
It was at the Tilles Center out here on Long Island and consisted of segments from both the original "Fantasia" as well as "Fantasia 2000". No amplification was used and I heard ever single not. So did the kids. They loved it.
Posted: 2/23/16 at 2:45pm
Looks like we're getting it at Lincoln Center in May!
/sorryfor OT thread jack
Posted: 2/23/16 at 3:09pm
I don't know if it's really a thread-jacking because we're discussing one of my pet peeves in modern theater--overly amplified shows. This "Fantasia" program doesn't use mics.
Posted: 2/23/16 at 6:28pm
After Eight said: ""thank you for responding to After Eight. I just can't any more."
You recently responded to a comment I made about Milk and Honey Can't you even get your facts straight? But please, in the future, by all means, don't respond to me. Or better yet, don't read what I write!...
"
A8, I was referring to a specific kind of post in which you make the idiotic claim that everything written before 1968 was superior to everything written afterward. It's tiresome, it's nonsense and nobody is buying it. But I hate to see even the most obvious blather go unanswered, so I was grateful that somebody cowboyed up.
This isn't to say you don't have something to contribute on occasion, and those posts I happily read and sometimes I respond to them.
Posted: 2/27/16 at 7:02pm
Roxy, I know what you mean. I grew up in and worked in the theater and have been an avid theatergoer for years. I have watched the theater and these boards change over the years. The experience of theater is now more about the tech and keeping it moving. The days of a thoughtful audience watching 'Iceman' or going for several nights of 'Nickleby' are over. Salaries for movie names are outrageous and do not reflect the chops of the actor. Audiences bring food and talk on cell phones as if they were watching something in their living room. Still, there is nothing like live theater to get the juices flowing (both as an actor and as an audience member). I do miss the days when new playwrights and pieces were mounted and investors put their money into new shows because they supported the arts. It's all about the numbers now and revivals, remakes of movies or Disney projects. Sigh.
Posted: 2/27/16 at 7:54pm
Phantom, Rent, Lion King and Wicked had Hamilton's impact, as did Book of Mormon. There are many other shows in the past, that had similar hysteria. It has gotten more intense in recent years with Social Media and word of mouth.
Posted: 2/27/16 at 9:44pm
^ Exactly. I agree with SNAFU.
Whenever someone says "there has never such a buzz or hysteria about a show," they are wrong. You can go back to the beginning of the 1900s and beyond. Fame is fleeting. When you're on top, you are "the" only ticket in town, the "best" the "most" the "greatest" ... until the next one comes along. And it always does.
Posted: 2/28/16 at 7:17am
Wonderful thread you created and it was very enjoyable reading the responses.
