Shows that have TOTALLY turned it around during previews or out of town?

Having seen the second preview performance of "Titanic", I can attest that it was a hot mess when it first started. I'm among those who still think it fell far short of the mark in it's final version as well but it sure was a vast improvement.

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Does it count if they close on the road and then a completely new production opens up and is a hit?

Oklahoma in its out of town tryouts never really "hit"--I think I read that anyway. I'm sure there are a lot of other examples.

Oh one more I just remembered--Funny Girl. A HUGE mess of a musical, finally Jerome Robbins came in and whipped things into shape and it was a hit when it reached Broadway.

Seesaw is a different example--again a HUGE mess out of town, depeserate they hired Michael Bennett who came in, fired half the cast including the lead, got a lot of new music, redid most of the choreography, rewrote most of the book, got some different sets and then it managed to somehow, millions later, open on Broadway to good reviews. It wasn't enough to really carve a long run, but it certainly was a lot more successful show than it woulda been

TITANIC was an INCREDIBLE show!

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Wasn't Movin' Out hammered by the critics in Chicago, then eventually opened to great reviews in NY?

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I don't know that Wicked was such a "mess" before, but they did change a lot before Broadway.

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The biggest turnaround I can recall in my lifetime is My One and Only.

Here's a recap from a website about the show. Some of this text is a bit over the top, but the facts are generally accurate:

"Perhaps no musical arrived on Broadway with a stranger history and became a runaway surprise hit…

Originating as a misguided Peter Sellers attempt to bring Russian deconstructionalism to the Broadway stage, the show faced the most devastating pre-Broadway reviews in history…even Tommy Tune apologized to the audience on opening night in Boston.

Taking the helm, Tommy Tune reconstructed the entire show in one month before opening in New York City. Peter Stone (1776) was brought in to fix the script virtually overnight, and even Mike Nichols took his hand at fixing what skeptical New Yorkers had already nicknamed "My Flop and Phony". Every single song was gone, every scene re-written, every character changed, and every dance step re-choreographed. No Broadway-bound cast had ever done that, and in only 4 weeks time.

Imagine New York’s surprise when what arrived was a tuneful, fast paced romp through 20’s Gershwin tunes with inventive choreography and a bubbly, funny script. Gone were the factory gear-like sets, and in their place was a simple show that brought audience after audience to it’s feet. Opening in the same year as CATS, this was no mean feat.

The rest is history…the show received unanimous rave reviews, and went on to keep the St. James theatre filled for almost two years."

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Updated On: 11/14/08 at 11:19 AM

I do recall Ragtime being a terrible mess out of town and in previews and then it turned around to become the masterpiece that it is. My boss, who has his doctrette in theatre saw it in previews and said he walked out it was so terrible. And now its one of the most treasured in the american theatre IMO.

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Yes, I saw Ragtime in Toronto and it was fabulous then and only slightly more fabulous later on Broadway.

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How is this thread different from the other thread???????

"lol Wannabe didn't see much in Billy Elliot but thought Titanic was an 'Incredible' show"


TITANIC was an infinitely better show than BILLY ELLIOT. 'Production value' does not equate 'quality.'