THE GREAT GATSBY at Paper Mill Playhouse - Critics’ Reviews — Page 5

I’m seeing the top of the website reads “SOMETHING GREAT IS COMING TO BROADWAY”, whereas last month is still just read “SOMETHING GREAT IS COMING”.

When did this change? Any other materials out there alluding to a transfer floating around yet?

Philip Boroff/Broadway Journal is always reliable for accurate info.

This is gonna flop so bad

Updated On: 12/26/23 at 05:22 PM

These are the Broadway credits for the lead producer so clearly this is going to go very well. Not a single run longer than 4 months.


Chunsoo Shin Credits

I really hope they have made the necessary fixes to the show, primarily to the book. Otherwise, this version will flop badly on Broadway. I'm still wondering which theatre this will be going into. Either the Broadway or the Palace.

Again, let's just hope they've made the necessary fixes between Papermill and now.

Can’t imagine they’ve made any changes.

I actually really enjoyed the show at Paper Mill. I agree the book needed a lot of work but I enjoyed the score immensely and I liked the production itself. But the producers are absolute fools on this. The timing is so off and the theater choice is all wrong. In an already way-too-crowded Spring season, they're going to open in literally one of the worst theaters on Broadway that is going to swallow the production up whole. They should have waited until the summer and open at a much smaller venue (Barrymore, Belasco). Not saying it would still succeed, but it definitely would have more of a fighting chance if it opened somewhere else at a later time. At least there will probably be a cast album and I see it doing well in licensing.

I can always be wrong though.

Updated On: 1/16/24 at 10:18 AM

RippedMan said: "Can’t imagine they’ve made any changes."

If that's the case, then this will get trashed by the critics and flop severely!

ACL2006 said: "So it is taking the Broadway? Yikes! Hopefully they make the necessary changes, otherwise this will be gone by Labor Day."

Um, if they bring what they did at Paper Mill with little to no changes, it'll be gone way before Labor Day. I hate to be judging this before it takes its Broadway bow, but this show was just not good.

Jeremy Jordan didn't sellout WAITRESS during his time there, so he's not going to pack the Broadway. Was there no other viable theater available for this? Something slightly smaller?

Jordan has never really demonstrated an ability to be a major box office draw in larger venues. That’s not a knock on him- there are very, very few performers predominately associated with theater who are those kind of draws anymore. Moreover, his fanbase skews younger and as we’ve seen time and time again, they are not a reliable ticket buying bloc on Broadway.

The Broadway is rarely anyone's first choice (except it was for HLL), but these aren't arbitrary decisions. It's all based on budgeting. They've budgeted for a large-scale show in a large theatre. Taking ATG/Jujamcyn houses out of consideration (because Roth is producing the other Gatsby), the Broadway is the only 1400+ seat theatre open at this time (save for possibly the Majestic or Nederlander's Palace). It would be borderline fraudulent to go to, say, the Barrymore if the numbers don't make sense based on the number of seats.

And they obviously needed to go this Spring or risk the other Gatsby making it to Broadway before them.

Considering the title, if they play their cards right with the advertising I could see this lasting 9-12 months ahead of a robust tour and international life and stock/amateur licensing. Not that that's a perfect scenario, but it's a possible one.

Updated On: 1/16/24 at 10:51 AM