"Semi-Staged" Productions

I saw On The Town in Concert with the Boston Pops Orchestra last night and they also labeled it as “semi-staged”. For this concert, they sang all the musical numbers including dialogue, but conductor Keith Lockhart had to set the scenes. There were minimal use of props like tables, chairs and benches. Brandon Victor Dixon, Andy Karl, and Christian Dante White who played Gabey, Ozzie, and Chip respectively were in sailor outfits the entire show. There were choreographed dance numbers, but not as extravagant as a fully staged production. But with a stellar cast that included Dixon, Karl, Laura Osnes, Megan Lawrence, Marc Kudisch, Andrea Martin and a full orchestra, it hardly matter that it was “semi-staged”.

It really ranges from show to show.

In my experience, it usually means that there are costumes, and some basic set design to communicate the general setting of the piece, but no big sets pieces coming on and off. A lot of the time they are onstage with the orchestra, so their movement is somewhat limited that way.

But it really ranges. In some cases, they sing into microphones at the front of the stage. Sometimes they have body-mics. Sometimes they have scripts in their hands, and sometimes they are off book. Sometimes the only staging are the movements that are essential to the plot, while the rest of it is just facing forward and reading from scripts. Other times, like the ENO production of Carousel, they called it "semi-staged," but really there was nothing "semi" about it. It looked and felt like a full production, albeit one that didn't have huge set pieces.