SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
#1SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
Posted: 11/24/11 at 5:36amSunday marks the one year anniversary of the first preview of SPIDER-MAN: TURN OFF THE DARK. Despite all of the dire warnings of imminent failure, it seems to be holding it's own (at least for the time being). Any predictions on how many more seasons it may last? If I were a betting man, I think it has the potential to do a three to five year run.
dramamama611
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/4/07
#2SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
Posted: 11/24/11 at 7:37am
People count anniversaries based on OPENING dates. (And let's not forget it went on hiatus for a few weeks as well.)
However, even if it does run 3 to 5 years (and it probably will hit at least the 3 year mark) all sources suggest it will still NOT have broken even and therefore will still be a flop.
#2SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
Posted: 11/25/11 at 2:42am^I still think they won't close it without filming it and attempting to recoup in movie theaters first.
LegallyBroadway2
Broadway Star Joined: 8/19/10
#3SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
Posted: 11/25/11 at 1:54pm
To be perfectly honest, it's one year later and people still have a stick up their ass about this show. It's just a show. And it's made it though, against the people (most of whom live on this site) who for some reason were personally hurtony the $75 million price and preview length. (although, to see a $75 million dollar show for $150 while you can see a $10 million show for the same price is really fantastic)
Can't for once we smile at their accomplishment instead of strongly wiping criticism, pure sh*t talk, and a personal grudge against Spider-Man? We all know about the costs. We all know it hasn't been open on broadway for a year. We know that! But it opened it's doors to the public for the first time a year ago. And to that I am astounded- for this production to take a hurt piece and radically reimagine it all in a year is an example of heroic theatre. To reject the ignorant cries to shut down and abandon, and to spend the money on something those people were so passionate about is something I will never forget, and something that has taught me so much about theatre. Spider-Man, no matter what people think of the content, is a noble production. So congratulations cast and crew on a brilliant creation. I hope the all are proud of their work, and the smiles they put on faces every performance for the past year.
No matter how long Spider-Man runs, it will until closing night, transform a broadway theatre into the biggest adventure seen on stage.
Updated On: 11/25/11 at 01:54 PM
#4SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
Posted: 11/25/11 at 2:23pm
"No matter how long Spider-Man runs, it will until closing night."
Milk straight outta my nose, straight onta my keyboard.
Loves it.
#5SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
Posted: 11/25/11 at 2:43pm
I agree, LegallyBroadway. I saw the show this past summer. While it was nowhere near perfect, I still absolutely loved it and thought it was of the most thrilling and beautiful shows I have seen.
LegallyBroadway2
Broadway Star Joined: 8/19/10
#6SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
Posted: 11/25/11 at 2:51pmMister Growl, there is a comma not a period after that statement. Actually you should have wrote ..." because the quote continues, but regardless, it's darling that you had a good laugh :) Updated On: 11/25/11 at 02:51 PM
#7SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
Posted: 11/25/11 at 3:25pm
Actually you should have wrote ..."
Some even might say "actually you should have WRITTEN..." .
Ah the irony.
LegallyBroadway2
Broadway Star Joined: 8/19/10
#8SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
Posted: 11/25/11 at 3:43pm^^hahaha burn. Thanks. . I should have written written when I wrote wrote.
rorschach37
Broadway Star Joined: 4/3/10
indytallguy
Broadway Star Joined: 7/13/08
#10SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
Posted: 11/25/11 at 6:49pm
However, even if it does run 3 to 5 years (and it probably will hit at least the 3 year mark) all sources suggest it will still NOT have broken even and therefore will still be a flop.
Whether you like or loathe the show, anything that can run 3-5 years can hardly be called a flop no matter what its ultimate box office receipts.
#11SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
Posted: 11/25/11 at 6:53pmOh yes it can. Just read Not Since CARRIE.
TheatreDiva90016
Broadway Legend Joined: 4/10/04
#12SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
Posted: 11/25/11 at 6:57pmThe Macy's Parade performance was enough to convince me that the show is still garbage, since it isn't anything without it's special effects.
LegallyBroadway2
Broadway Star Joined: 8/19/10
#13SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
Posted: 11/25/11 at 7:25pm
Shows like Spider-Man are unique in that it was written in such a way that the special effects are another character. Most shows are written and the design is just an interpretation of what's on the page, but spider-man is different than that common formula. Maybe I'm biased, but I thought the performance was just good fun. I truly believe they could perform a song, like boy falls, and represent a lot of the show's real personality, but the Macy's performance attempted to preview a scene in which a performer was missing- the brilliant technology. So maybe they chose the wrong numbers and camped it up so much it didn't reflect the show inside that it really is, but again, it was a family event on thanksgiving. Not a test of fate and strength, not a competition. It was very clear from the beginning that this show would be a spectacular. I'm not sure why it's still surprising people that it is. Change doesnt come easy on Broadway. That's clear.
Respectfully, I say calm down. Don't judge too quickly, although with this amount of passion on these boards- hating everything Spider-Man has done, the tunnel vision won't go away.
#14SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
Posted: 11/25/11 at 7:31pm
^That is a brilliant way of putting it. I have never really thought of spectacle being a character in its own right.
I still do not like the show but the way you put it certainly makes me understand why others do.
LegallyBroadway2
Broadway Star Joined: 8/19/10
#15SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
Posted: 11/25/11 at 7:55pm
It's an important element to think of. I find next to normal brilliant but can see why others dont. I don't like glee but I can see why some do. It's the same with Spider-Man, except a good amount here don't see it that way. I see why some don't enjoy it, at the same time iI love Spidey. The difference is I, along with others don't use that condescending tone as if Spoder-Man is an abomination because it uses a character that we've only seen in cirque before.
Updated On: 11/25/11 at 07:55 PM
#16SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
Posted: 11/26/11 at 12:04pm
Tossing "brilliant" around so freely in this thread makes it difficult to take seriously.
Spider-man is a financial and critical flop, and a producing nightmare, and little more, even if you enjoy your evening seeing it. Do any of you seriously see Turn Off the Dark having any influence upon the industry besides being a cautionary tale?
LegallyBroadway2
Broadway Star Joined: 8/19/10
#17SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
Posted: 11/26/11 at 2:48pm
Oh sweet Jesus. The technology used in Spider-Man has already affected "The industry" which is much more than actors and writers btw. no, broadway isn't going to be changed in content and convince writers to create musical adventures, but the industry has changed. It really has, behind the scenes, directors and creative teams have so many new ways to achieve broadway magic.
I'm sorry you hold such dark opinions about the show. Spider-Man is not a critical flop, it's a media misunderstanding, with the same grade range as Memphis or Wicked. Today, the show is finally standing up on its own. Becoming JUST another broadway show to blow minds away, to have fun. And they are doing that, no matter what the cost or legal issues are. It's fantastic to hear the screams and the cheering for Spidey when he soars across the house. The passion put into the show, without looking at money, is mind blowing. Any other show with such issue would close. But look at Spider-Man. They spent more money to finish the show. Why continue this negative whining? The show is just a show now. It wasn't your money spent. It wasn't taking space in your home. You don't even have to see it. It's just a show now. A broadway spectacular, they aren't meant for all people. But so many that go (seems to be a popular ticket to me...) are enthralled in general, not all, but enough to say this. Good Opinions are the higher majority. Most in the audience don't care about production cost, about legal drama, they care about seeing a show they've heard is a great night in the theatre, with effects that will have them talking for a long long time.
I'm not trying to convince anyone to love the show, no way, I'm merely trying to put forth an opinion that isn't self destructive, and obviously en route to. . what? Just whining. That's all. At the Addams Family I realized it wasn't what I thought it would be. Did I sit there and start sculpting my message board hate post? At Spider-Man 1.0 did I ponder the way to kick and scream about the poor content and for some reason the fact it had poor this and poor that backstage? No, like any show, I try to have fun, or take the content and enjoy what good aspects exists. Not hate it. There is no reason. No reason. It's laughable, reading what's on these message boards. . . it's difficult to take seriously.
If only we knew the worse charades that have happened to get shows afloat. Or maybe we do. . . but no one cares. . because from the get go, Spider-Man?? ITs going to be horrible. I am going to put my blinders on now and never give the show a true chance.
I hope you, and any other readers with the ailment don't continue having such a stale view about a show for the rest of your life. Life's too short! :)
Updated On: 11/26/11 at 02:48 PM
#18SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
Posted: 11/26/11 at 3:12pm
Life's too short to give into the pandering, empty, garbage that our culture too commonly spits out. I seriously question the taste level of anyone who believes that Spider-Man: TODT is anything other than a step backward. And an irresponsible one, economically speaking.
Just because the show isn't "taking space in my home", whatever that's about, does not remove the fact that it is a mismanaged lowest-common-denominator salvage job. I'm not whining, I am being critical, thank you. And it's not an opinion, the evidence of this show's mismanagement has been widely analyzed.
In a year that saw a smaller scale show such as Book of Mormon succeed, I hope the message to be taken away from Broadway's past year is that WRITING should be the special effect showcased, not sheer spectacle. As an arts manager, I believe Spider-Man: TODT should be a cautionary tale, in league with Legs Diamond, The Capeman, and any number of 1980s musical flops produced by people who did not know how to effectively produce a Broadway musical.
LegallyBroadway2
Broadway Star Joined: 8/19/10
#19SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
Posted: 11/26/11 at 3:22pm
Condescending! I like it haha- No more arguments. Agree to disagree. Moving on-
Congratulations to Spider-Man!
Updated On: 11/26/11 at 03:22 PM
#20SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
Posted: 11/26/11 at 3:30pm
Another lesson to take away from this mismanaged mess is to work out issues with the book and score in advance of moving the production into the performance venue. Rehearsing and reworking in a rented theater gets expensive fast. Workshops are fairly commonplace, so why didn't Bono, et. al go that route? Hubris.
The only time I've heard of another musical rehearsing and tweaking in a Broadway house instead of a rehearsal hall was "Illya, Darling" in 1967. From what I recall that show was produced by Greek film producers who, much like the TODT team, had little to no theater production expertise.
theatreguy
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/31/03
#21SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
Posted: 11/26/11 at 10:14pmBono, et. all DID go that route. There were several readings before they started rehearsals for Broadway.
#22SPIDER-MAN - One Year Later
Posted: 11/27/11 at 5:28pm
The Taymor version was complete and utter crap. Period. End of story. The replacement director did a massive overhaul to save this turkey, and he should be canonized for his labours.
And if the producers had had the good sense to bring in the tech people from Cirque de Soleil, the much ballyhooed flying would have been far better.
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