ROA Drinking...- Page 3

Posted: 2/19/09 at 1:46am

Stamp their hand with each drink buy and limit it at 2. I'm sure there are other solutions, too. There are solutions for just about everything. Of course you can't be rigid in your thinking in order to find them. But something tells me there isn't anything rigid about the folks producing ROA.

[PRFRMR20]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 2:01am

And for all these "ROA Fans"... the open bar policy will likely lead to audience members pre-gaming (or pre-theatring ) before the show.

What about a group of 5 who come piss-ass-drunk and get another 2 drinks at the theatre and are absolutely wasted...

I know people think audience members will be able to rock out and be sensible, but with alcohol in the mix, does that ever really happen?!?!

[nydirector2]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 2:05am

I love how people are thinking that the Brooks Atkinson is going to turn into the Delta House.
Updated On: 2/19/09 at 02:05 AM

[PRFRMR20]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 2:17am

Well, everyone here is saying that it is a Rock Concert...

[Mistress_Spouzic]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 2:29am

Charleston, I have no idea if or why waiter service would have been scratched, but if thats so it may have been due to some of the other concerns addressed by users here like the ability to check IDs. I agree, that an inexperienced tipsy customer would be more distracting than a waitress. I think in theory if the show still intends to keep the bar open during the performance then the show could institute some sort of seating arrangement or seating policy for those who want to purchase drinks. Selling those people the aisle seats or selling seats closer to the front of the theatre or middle of an aisle if they dont want the distraction. This would still not make everyone happy tho, because someone Im sure would say I like to drink and I want that center seat. One of the things fans of the show liked was the all encompassing environment created, drinking being one part of it. Im sure the producers are working to try to make everyone happy.

I dont think anyone will really be able to answer your question successfully until the show has opened and we've seen whatever plan they have in action. They just like everyone else will have no idea how successful their plan will be until its implemented because its never been done before. Perhaps theyll have certain points where they allow the drink seekers to return to their seats, like they would with a late comer. If it were an actual standing room concert, you'd have to give up your spot to go to the bar but Im sure thats not a possbility. If the plan proves distracting, dangerous or gets loads of negative feedback, I am sure the show will strive to fix the problem. They did take steps to correct problems they experienced at NWS.

[snarkywannabedreamer]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 6:55am

I never said the bar was staying open during the show, Charleston. The MAIN POINT to my post was none of us now what the hell they are going to do about this problem but the one thing we know is that the production agrees it is a problem (as do I!! I hate the drunken idiots getting up, talking, etc...) and they are planning to do something to fix it. I'm not a shill I just think this thread is premature and stupid until we know what the REAL problem is at the Brooks!

[SINGASIMPLESONG]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 7:02am

The consumption of alcoholic beverages by those over the age of 21 is legal in this country. I am quite sure the Producers of Rock of Ages and the staff at the Brooks-Atkinson Theater are more than qualified to adhere to state liquor laws without the overwhelming assistance of this forum.

That said, lighten up.

Rock of Ages is a big, fat, fun PARTY. Sometimes people drink at parties and act crazy. This is a show where the audience gets to get up and SING along with an amazing cast and ROCK OUT to the best BAND ever on Broadway! The Audience is part of the show....at the BOURBON ROOM....A ROCK CONCERT! A cocktail waitress passing by will not ruin your good time. I promise.

[PRFRMR20]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 7:24am

^^^ "Well, everyone here is saying that it is a Rock Concert..." ^^^

[Jersey Girl2]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 9:35am

People getting up during the show is distracting.
At New World we were told if we left our seats we would not be reseated. I think they learned as the show went on. The waiters were very visible when it first opened- not so much at the end.

[TheCharleston]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 10:53am

Nice advertisement, SimpleSong.

Does ROA pay you by the letter?

Snarky - my apologies but based on your posts and reactions, that's what it appeared to be implying.

A thought has come to me and I would like to share it with you lovely ROA schillers.

Whether it be a rock show or musical, people will pay in upwards of $99 to see this "party". Many people will go because it's a Broadway musical, because it does feature a talented cast (and wonderful ensemble), and because it does have an interesting jukebox concept.

My bet is that THESE people, myself included, will enjoy a cocktail prior to the show but plan to attend sober. Your stereotypical assumptions are telling me that everyone who goes to see this show are alcoholics and partiers.

This I know is not true. You schillers and supporters and ROA goonies should tread lightly; you may offend some of the decent ROA fans who don't find the need to view it as a "rock concert" but, rather, an actual musical.

MAMMA MIA, for example, is a fun sing-along show. For the finale there are people dancing in their seats and down the aisle. That's fine. 95% of these people are sober and showed some respect, during the show, by not standing up and walking around.

Regardless of what happens, the ROA team knows they can't survive on ticket sales alone. They will create some ridiculous marketing ploy that will either include an open bar for the entire evening or seat-side service.

That's fine. If they feel they need to get audience members hammered to enjoy this piece of ... art... then that's how it will be. I will say, however, that it's sad this show can't be viewed on its own artistic merit (regardless of what it is based on or about). It's sad that we now have to go see Broadway shows, hammered, with extremely low expectations.

Life will go on and the show will probably close within this year but it's a sign of the direction Broadway is going in.

There's a reason people have the choice to go see an obnoxious rock concert rather than a Broadway show. There should be a difference. But drink away, ROA fans, and enjoy the Broadway spotlight. It will fade out soon enough.

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 11:10am

Charleston,
One thing I noticed in your post is that you note ticket prices when justifying your opinion, which I find MUCH more than valid, and I want to chime that, truth be told, the Broadway production seems to be cheaper in ticket price. The top price between Off and On Broadway is only going up $10, but the bottom price has been slashed nearly in half from around $50 to about $25.


Having seen it Off-Broadway, I found the drink service to be a bit obnoxious.. The waiters tended to be well behaved, but drinks and money had to be passed down rows and the servers had to be flagged down, as in a restaraunt, and then drink orders given.. which of course involves having to speak OVER the show.

I enjoyed the production itself, and most of the cast, loving the production design and Michele Mais, Wesley Taylor and Savannah Wise (on as the lead) particularly. I do think that Kristin Hanggi is a bit of a mess as a director when it comes to a few things.. particularly blocking. I cringe when watching the Bare DVD and she talks about how impressed she was that their LA lighting designer "somehow" knew that you could put "mist into the air so that you can see the beams of light."

The audience, however... let's just say it isn't exactly a theater crowd. I wish they had with the original concept for the show.. much more in line with De la Guarda and Fuerza Bruta or The Donkey Show. They wanted to take an unconventional 'found' space and stage the show in a 'club' environment.

[TheCharleston]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 11:16am

"The waiters tended to be well behaved, but drinks and money had to be passed down rows and the servers had to be flagged down, as in a restaraunt, and then drink orders given.. which of course involves having to speak OVER the show."


Thank you for giving the details of that. That seems absolutely atrocious and terrible.

It's a Broadway musical. It's in a Broadway house. Not a rock concert at an arena.

Think about other fun jukebox rock musicals that have come to Broadway... yes, they're fun and lack artistic merit but people weren't TALKING over the music and actors.

That's so innapropriate.

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 11:22am

Yes..

I was on an aisle seat. I did not see how it was handled in the mezzanine, but in the orchestra section they had one server assigned to each aisle who would take the orders.. the poor girl on my aisle was trying to walk on her knees as much as possible to avoid blocking the stage. However, having to pass drinks and cash hand over fist along the aisles...

They also sold shots before the show and during intermission..

What's worse is that when ordering, like I said, you'll have to speak over the sound system, which is designed like an arena concert (even in the small Off-Broadway house). The speakers were WAY out of scale with the space and I could literally feel my seat shaking.

[TheCharleston]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 11:25am

How sad.

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 11:28am

Just a question for those saying that this is a rock show and it's in the spirit of the show to have a drink. What about Passing Strange? In the spirit of the show should we have taken a hit with Stew during "Must Have Been High?" Would Hair be better if we dropped some acid with the cast during act two?

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 11:30am

To put it mildly.

Unless they stage the show in a space such as the Zipper or other "table" space, I think the idea should really be scrapped. There is just no way to have the drinks served and WATCH, or even see, the show.

Even in many cabaret venues I have been in, you are asked for a list of your orders before the show so that they will know what drinks you want and not have to ask during the show and keep disreputions to a minim. At most you'd have to nod and raise a finger to signal for another..

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 11:40am

If they feel they need to get audience members hammered to enjoy this piece of ... art... then that's how it will be. I will say, however, that it's sad this show can't be viewed on its own artistic merit (regardless of what it is based on or about). It's sad that we now have to go see Broadway shows, hammered, with extremely low expectations.

Except nobody is saying anyone has to see the show that way. Whether or not they offer drinks during the performance, it is not about the amount that producers want people to consume. It hasn't even been determined that any of this is beyond rumors. But it sounds like you might be upset that the producers may not share your expectations for what the show should be and how it should be experienced.

Life will go on and the show will probably close within this year but it's a sign of the direction Broadway is going in.

I bet the ROA team is thrilled to know they are so highly influential to the history of American theatre. So anything new that is tried completely changes the course of Broadway? Mmmm...not really. Some things work. Some don't. Remember the environmental seating of Dude and the renaming of sections as locales in the show's plot? Yeah, that didn't really catch on either. The reality is, this is probably more the topic of discussion on this board than any likely scenario being seriously considered.

There's a reason people have the choice to go see an obnoxious rock concert rather than a Broadway show. There should be a difference.

There's also a reason people see one Broadway show rather than another. I don't think all Broadway shows are the same, nor should they be. Some of them are comedies. Some are tragedies. Some are like operas. Some are plays. Some don't fit neatly into a categorized box. And some of them actually are rock concerts. And all of them are theatre.

Oh, and some rock concerts are not obnoxious at all. People were better behaved at a Scissor Sisters concert than when I saw Legally Blonde.

I don't think selling drinks during the show is a good idea, either, mostly because it will be distracting and it is really unnecessary (and probably cost them more money than it's worth), but I wouldn't be so pretentious to think that BROADWAY is somehow too lofty to even entertain the notion. Broadway has never been too good to be bad. Ever. The very same theatres used to house Burlesque, Vaudeville, and *gasp* Cinemas. Behaving as if any theatre is somehow above the idea is pretentious snobbery that actually displays a certain lack of knowledge in theatre history.

[Eris0303]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 12:12pm

It's been awhile since I was at NWS but aren't their floors uncarpeted? I would think cleaning a spill off a uncarpeted floor is a whole lot different and less expensive than cleaning one off a carpet. I'm not so concerned about people overindulging and misbehaving (though that would greatly annoy me) but rather damage to the theatre and the disruption of having to pass drinks and money along the rows.

I'm concerned that they'll, eventually, have to rip out the carpeting and seats because they're stained beyond saving.

[Jersey Girl2]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 12:50pm

I believe that's where the sippy cups come in.
Recently I was at a show and as long as the drink had a lid you could bring it in to the theater.

[Eris0303]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 12:52pm

If they're anything like the cups sold at Hairspray then I'm still worried lol

[SINGASIMPLESONG]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 4:37pm

Stereotypical Assumptions? Carpet Stains? Sippy Cups? This is all too much. A great show...that ROCKS eight times a week...is gonna sell booze to patrons of age...served by hot waiters and waitresses wearing the ROA merchandise, which will be available for purchase in the lobby...that's it. nothing more. I think it's a fantastic idea and know there's quite a few ROCKERS out there that think so too. Nobody wants to be disruptive. Just deal.

Charleton, you my friend, need a drink. Mister Matt knows what he's talking about. Paid by the letter. That's funny.

[Jane2]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 4:55pm

You guys can argue back and forth til the cows come home, but I think I'm one of only a few people who witnessed exactly what goes on in ROA on close to a nightly basis.

A mountain is being made out of a molehill.

1. The waiters were as innocuous as was humanly possible, stationing themselves in the recesses of the house inside an emergency exit. When they saw a patron signaling them, they'd run out, CROUCHING, and take their orders. When they returned with the drinks, they were also crouching, and if the patron was not on or near an aisle, other patrons passed the drink down. There were no complaints about having to do that. There were no people having to stand or leave their seats at all, because of the drink serving plan.

2. Any complaints about rowdy patrons due to alcohol were few enough so that the producers kept the plan in practice. They aren't a stupid group of producers, and if they thought the drink practice was keeping people from seeing the show, they would have stopped it.


eta: quite frankly, the whining and complaining here by some is making me say just don't go to the damn show already-save yourself any added stress.

Updated On: 2/19/09 at 04:55 PM

[TheCharleston]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 5:11pm

If that's the case, ordering should be written down ... not yelled at down the whole damn aisle.

Completely rude, disruptive, and obnoxious.

[Mistress_Spouzic]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 5:38pm

this conversation is so silly. we're all making assumptions based on what we did or didnt see happening at NWS, which may or may not be how they do things in the Broadway house. As I said before, no one knows how things will go until its tried. And when its tried Im sure things will be changed as necessary to try to make the most people happy.

Placing drink orders before the show and having them delivered to you during the show, like they do at Seths Chatterbox, sounds like a good suggestion.

[newsieboy23]

Posted: 2/19/09 at 5:54pm

Mary Poppins' bar stay open the entire show, and audience members can purchase alcohal in "sippy cups" and bring them back to their seats...