Posted: 10/21/15 at 12:01pm
Just to clarify-when I say "augmented" I mean hiring a local musician to come in and read the score and play a horn (or banjo, or violin). I don't mean a symphonia, or Rehearse-score situation.
Posted: 10/21/15 at 12:29pm
I toured with NETworks many years ago, and like a previous poster said, the only time we were augmented with local musicians were our stops in the bigger cities (I remember Nashville and Boston, maybe there were a handful of others), because AFM had a strong enough presence in those cities to block our use of the Sinfonium (we were one of the first tours to use it on the road), and guarantee enough musicians to supplement our touring band (I think we had six, plus the conductor who was also on keys).
Posted: 10/21/15 at 12:55pm
I really want to catch this. It seems Evansville would be my best bet. I really don't want to wait 7 months though!
Posted: 10/21/15 at 2:14pm
Just bought tickets for the Thousand Oaks, CA stop. I hope it's good!
Posted: 10/21/15 at 4:21pm
Two musicians on keyboard. Not even a solo woodwind or string player to breathe just a little life atop it.
Posted: 10/21/15 at 4:54pm
I just secured my tickets for December 2nd in Charlotte. I'm looking forward to this, though I'm disappointed by the two piece orchestra. Hoping that since Charlotte is a 4-day run (one of the longer runs for this tour) we'll get augmentation.
Posted: 10/21/15 at 6:34pm
If true, a two-musician orchestra is very disappointing. This score is so sweeping and vast, I can't imagine two synthesizers doing it justice. I've been waiting for this tour because I want to introduce my friends to this musical and they missed the production at the Kennedy Center. I'd otherwise rather wait for one of D.C.'s excellent regional companies to mount a production than have their first exposure to this show be an underwhelming experience
I look forward to hearing about this production from those of you who are seeing it in the coming months!
Updated On: 10/21/15 at 06:34 PM
Posted: 11/7/15 at 3:21pm
I just bought tickets to see this tonight at Proctors in Schenectady. I am very very disappointed to see that it will only have 2 synthesizers. If I had known that before I never would have bought tickets.
Posted: 11/7/15 at 3:31pm
Please let us know how the show is! I'm looking forward to hearing about the cast and the scenic/costume design.
Posted: 11/7/15 at 7:38pm
I'd also love to hear your thoughts on the show, LarryMartell.
They posted some pictures of the set here. It's very bare bones.
Posted: 11/7/15 at 10:44pm
I saw this in Las Vegas on Friday. It was here for a full one week run. I would have to say it was the equivalent of an average college production. The leads were pretty good, but the production overall is very mediocre. The set is basically a big wall in the back with projections, and there are some stairs that they move around from time to time to represent the various sets. The old ladies with blue hair in the audience seem impressed, but I could not wait for it to end. I would have left at intermission if I had not gone with my parents, who seemed to enjoy it.
The most disappointing part was the orchestra. There was actually an insert in the program saying that they will not be using local musicians for this production. It was entirely synthesized, and sounded like background music for pornography.
I was pretty disappointed overall, and am surprised at the mediocre season overall so far at The Smith Center in Las Vegas; Dirty Dancing a few months ago, and now this. Kinky Boots kicked off their tour last season, and now we have this crap. Ugh...I will definitely think twice before renewing my season tickets next year.
Posted: 11/7/15 at 10:58pm
Wow, I'm sorry to hear that this is a disappointing production. Those pictures of the set looked so minimal and uninviting.
Posted: 11/8/15 at 12:16am
So it's not at all the production that was on Broadway? When I heard them rehearsing it sounded like they were rehearsing to tracks? Seems odd.
Posted: 11/8/15 at 1:26am
stargazer2 said: "I saw this in Las Vegas on Friday. It was here for a full one week run. I would have to say it was the equivalent of an average college production. The leads were pretty good, but the production overall is very mediocre. The set is basically a big wall in the back with projections, and there are some stairs that they move around from time to time to represent the various sets. The old ladies with blue hair in the audience seem impressed, but I could not wait for it to end. I would have left at intermission if I had not gone with my parents, who seemed to enjoy it.
The most disappointing part was the orchestra. There was actually an insert in the program saying that they will not be using local musicians for this production. It was entirely synthesized, and sounded like background music for pornography.
I was pretty disappointed overall, and am surprised at the mediocre season overall so far at The Smith Center in Las Vegas; Dirty Dancing a few months ago, and now this. Kinky Boots kicked off their tour last season, and now we have this crap. Ugh...I will definitely think twice before renewing my season tickets next year. "
Honestly, let the Smith Center know of your disappointment. I'm guessing the tickets were in the same price range as what they charged for Kinky Boots? Let them know you are not happy paying the "Broadway" price for a non-union tour with a fully synthesized band.
Posted: 11/8/15 at 8:04am
RippedMan said: "So it's not at all the production that was on Broadway? When I heard them rehearsing it sounded like they were rehearsing to tracks? Seems odd."
The only thing that appears to be the same is director/choreographer Marcia Milgrom Dodge.
Posted: 11/8/15 at 10:07am
In the commercial that plays on the website, the music in the background is very obviously the original Broadway cast recording, not at all indicative, I'm sure, of the sound of this production.
Posted: 11/8/15 at 10:47am
<i>Thinking of seeing it but do not feel good about supporting this trend of non equity touring shows.</i>
The "trend" that's been around for decades?
Some non-equity tours are wonderful. Some equity tours are terrible. Just like any other theatre production. The argument is really only about AEA control, and on that point, I'm happy to see non-equity actors get the opportunity for this work.
Posted: 11/8/15 at 10:57am
All equity actors were once non-equity and often just as talented. The problem isn't the actors. It's everything else. Two synthesizers?!? For Ragtime? I'd rather hear a beautiful two piano arrangement than two synthesizers trying to sound like a full orchestra.
Posted: 11/8/15 at 11:12am
Mister Matt said: "Thinking of seeing it but do not feel good about supporting this trend of non equity touring shows.
The "trend" that's been around for decades?
Some non-equity tours are wonderful. Some equity tours are terrible. Just like any other theatre production. The argument is really only about AEA control, and on that point, I'm happy to see non-equity actors get the opportunity for this work.
What I think I meant when I wrote that comment was a criticism of shows that are pretending to be equity. And charging equity prices. I was intending to stand up for the workers (actors) who I thought were getting a raw deal. An attempt to make profits by paying actors less.
I absolutely have no problem with non equity actors or productions. I support local theatre which is only partially equity. Anyway. I hope I haven't dug myself in deeper. I have already been roundly chastised here for the comment.
Still deciding whether to see this one when it comes here next week.
Posted: 11/8/15 at 11:13am
What irks me most are the ticket prices (which vary wildly from one venue to another, but mostly seem too high for a production with two synthesizers, two staircases, and a projector).
The pictures indicate that the scenic and costume designers have a lot of creativity and a beautiful aesthetic eye, but were given almost no money to execute their ideas. The picture of Sarah with the baby under a projected tree is haunting and striking, and the Henry Ford scene looks like they made the most of very limited resources.
I don't actually mind non-Equity performers too much. Non-Equity tours have been around for decades, as has been mentioned, and many of the regional companies I frequent in D.C. and Philly hire non-union performers, and their non-union status is usually no indication of their talent level. But Ragtime is just a poor choice for which to skimp on all other aspects of the production, especially the orchestra. I could forgive an intelligently-devised shoestring production if only they had a decent band playing this beautiful score.
Posted: 11/9/15 at 12:42pm
Let me first say that this is one of my all time favorite musicals. I saw the original Broadway production 3 times. I did not see the 2009 revival, as I was living in Santa Fe, New Mexico at the time, so I don't know about that production at all. Re the Ragtime production I saw on Saturday: Yes, the sets were minimal, and the music thin but the cast was great and we really enjoyed it. My only quibble with the cast was Kate Turner as Mother. She seemed a bit uncomfortable and didn't always stay with the music, sometimes getting ahead or behind, and sometimes talking instead of singing. But she pulled it all together for Back to Before. The rest of the case was excellent, especially Matthew Curiano as Tatah, playing for his hometown crowd. I did notice some cuts in the Evelyn Nesbit trial scene, the Night That Goldman Spoke at Union Square scene, after Sarah was killed, and at the Morgan Library. These cuts I think detracted from the flow of the show.
Re equity vs non-equity, I think this is room for both, and in my experience the cost has been very different - e.g. Ragtime was $55, where as the equity Book Of Mormon was $125 - and I enjoyed Ragtime much more.
Best overheard comment of the night, from a woman sitting behind me at intermission: "This is almost as good as Fiddler!"
Posted: 11/9/15 at 1:32pm
I don't mind minimalist productions. What little scenery there is combined with the lighting and projections looks pretty in the videos and pictures. The platform with the two moving staircases is actually strikingly similar in design to a regional production that I performed in. I just can't get past the score being performed with only two synthesizers.
Posted: 11/10/15 at 2:57am
And as for pricing, producers don't set the prices, presenters locally do.
And there's a LOT more than just actor salaries that figure into their budgeting. The venue costs, local crew for load in/out, marketing, and advertising costs are the same as Equity shows. So presenter costs don't really fluctuate much in the grand scheme.
That said, MANY markets do price less for non eq shows. The last non eq tour I did usually had a top price in the ball park of 65-70.00. Equity shows in those markets had a top price of 85-125.00.
Posted: 11/15/15 at 5:17pm
What I think I meant when I wrote that comment was a criticism of shows that are pretending to be equity. And charging equity prices. I was intending to stand up for the workers (actors) who I thought were getting a raw deal. An attempt to make profits by paying actors less.
Okay. I'm just saying it's not a trend. I've been seeing these tours since the early 90s and I'm sure they've been around longer. The non-equity tours in Chicago are priced significantly cheaper than the equity tours. My friends who worked on non-equity tours did not feel they got a raw deal. They felt they got far more opportunity and exposure than they would have gotten had they joined equity in their home towns, a choice that often leads to fewer roles and less frequent productions.
Posted: 11/15/15 at 6:03pm
In regards to the cuts--weren't there some cuts made (I'm thinking maybe the library scene) to the original production when it went on tour? Or am I imagining that (I only saw the Vancouver production which was a sit down production that came from LA and after went to Chicago.)
