SIMONIZED -- The Wit & Wisdom of John Simon — Page 2

Margo, all I remember thinking is, which way to the exit?

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Matt raises an excellent point. I've been collecting cast albums for most of my life, and I gotta tell you: if I buy one today, it's really gotta sell me. I've listened to JANE EYRE once, WICKED maybe twice (with a lot of fast forwarding). I have yet to get all the way through RENT or the revival of NINE. The shows today just seem mechanically put together to get the best possible tourist bang for the buck -- it seems (and this is just my opinion, guys) we're not seeing any Gershwins or Porters or Hammersteins these days, just a lot of serious flash to keep an otherwise weak production (like TMM, for example) afloat.

But you could arguably say that about almost any performance art form: we make "blockbuster films!" that last as long as it takes for the merchandise to move at Wal-Mart. Sure, there are moments of real achievement, like the LOTR trilogy, but how often does something like that actually happen?

This isn't suggesting Broadway is dead. It's just another stop on the tourist train now, that's all. I used to think of B'way as *the* place for technical and artistic achievement, but for the past four or five seasons, I've been hardpressed to really think of something worth remembering... well, except for the guy who played the villian in URBAN COWBOY, but that's another story for another time, methinks. :)

Again, just my o.o2. YMMV.

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Speed, dear....
I was being ironical.

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ahh thanks rath, i was having trouble singling out the various pieces of the greed machine at work. let's say it's the "greed of the people at every level of the production and administrative side" Not every component is totally guilty i'm sure, but enough so the chain effect is visible. i say we start with those greedy b*stards at ticketmaster and just start administering spankings.

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Well, now that we've successsfully derailed the thread, I'll ask: Is it greed or desperation? Look at how much it costs to produce a musical these days -- if anything, now you have to have a sure-fire hit that'll pay for itself within the first six months. If you want to stay working in this field (and who doesnt), does it simply mean that the market has changed the rules?

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right. so should it be assumed that the lack of artistic quality is the result of the admin desperately trying to stay afloat in the volatile market? or is the decline in quality what initially caused them to shift the focus toward the more expensive aspects, just to have something to sell? as with so many things that can't be easily figured out, it's the damn chicken and egg.

i do think that it isn't out of lack of original material being created. there are plenty of scores and books being written that could possibly be huge if given the right workshop time and resources. so it would appear to be the producers' unwillingness to take risks with new ideas and talents. at the same time, every one of them wants to discover the next groundbreaking show or breakout star. but how to do that without taking a chance? easy! just build an expensive set and turn up the sound system! besides, all that workshop time and tryout period would cost a bunch more money. why bother, right? why dump money on the actual show, when you can throw it into the stuff that the 20-minute attention span public will be able to process and enjoy. why spend the cash honing the next intelligent masterwork when so much of the public won't be able to sit thru it without special effects and nudity?

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i don't know, my head hurts and this is depressing me. i need to get into a better mood before I see "Night, Mother" in an hour, or that play's gonna ruin my week.

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But the stuff they see as "mainstream" or "unrisky" isn't exactly selling all the time, either. Thoroughly Modern Millie, for example, never recouped its investment, while the far weirder Urinetown did. I still say that people will go see quality things. Not all quality things, admittedly. But the "unwashed masses" aren't totally tasteless all the time.

Like I said, what ever happened to trusting the audience to some extent?

I dunno. I look at what new musicals have recouped recently, and I see The Producers- big old-fashioned musical comedy with some irony and Mel Brooks style added in; Urinetown and Avenue Q- two small, quirky shows from other NY venues; The Boy From Oz- a star vehicle, plain and simple; Mamma Mia- a jukebox musical with an extremely heavy dose of audience-winking...anyway, there isn't a definite pattern there, unless you count the fact that all of them but BFO had varying doses of irony woven in.

Right, Sean. If we're going to break everything down, remember that there are also marketing costs, including a press agency, general managers, show and office staff, and office space rent. All extremely large expenses in themselves.

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I assume it would be printed on a piece of confetti with room to spare.

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Agreed but all it is, & ever will be , is one person's opinion. Just because one or more people who never did what they are criticizing say someone is good or not does not make it so

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