THE PROM Previews- Page 4

[disneybroadwayfan22]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 9:19am

Guess I have a new addition on my list

[Talyn]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 9:33am

It amazes me the amount of people that pass judgement on something before they actually sit down and watch it. 

Saw the original production in Atlanta and could not WAIT for it to transfer.  It's a straight up old-fashioned proscenium musical.  No flashy sets, no projections, no turntable.  Just a downright hysterical book (Bob Martin strikes again), some incredible performances (Level especially), fun choreo (i was about to bust out of my seat during the Act One Finale) and great music (I cannot WAIT to get my hands on 'The Lady's Improving'.  In my opinion, that's really all you need.  You can't wish for a show to be something that it's not and hate on it.

[BentleyB]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 9:40am

We have tickets in March, but I    will be there next Thursday the 1st.  I    am concerned it may not make it till March, so I    guess I    should see it next week?

[jbm2]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 10:00am

 I have one slot left. Trying to decide between this and King Kong? 

[IdinaBellFoster]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 10:06am

I'm split between this and THE CHER SHOW for my upcoming trip. I don't want to miss Block as Cher, but this sounds so fun. 

[haterobics]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 10:12am

WhizzerMarvin said: "There could be a great story to tell of how a bunch of well-intentioned New York liberals, yelling to each other inside their echo chamber, descend on a small Indiana town and are just are judgmental and unwilling to listen as the bigots they have come to save."

So... The Laramie Project?

[TonyTilli]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 10:13am

I was lucky enough to see the show and I absolutely agree with the positive sentiments of this show. It is a really, really special musical that we are lucky to have on Broadway right now.

I went in not knowing too much, and was texting all my friends to buy their tickets NOW by intermission. I haven't seen a show with as many layers as The Prom on a Broadway stage in so long - they are tackling the issues of celebrity, politics, selfishness, intolerance - all while keeping you laughing and tugging at your heartstrings in a clever, engaging way. It allows you to escape into another world, one that we love so much as theater-goers, where the characters just burst into song, while also reminding you about the issues that we are facing in reality. This is what I think theater should do, and The Prom does it beautifully.

It is a love letter to Broadway, from a Godspell-inspired number to Beth Leavel's character giving you a final note that is a hysterical mix between the final notes of Rose's Turn and And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going. I found myself laughing throughout - it is silly and chaotic at points, and all you can do is giggle and be delighted. It is also VERY smart in its humor, sometimes almost too smart for a regular audience. The dancing is so fun and infectious and stays true to the tone/world of the show. Also something that stood out to me, strangely enough, was the overture - it perfectly sets you up for the ride you are about to go on - rock with a pop, a little quirky in its sound, and so, so good.

This is such a relevant show right now with all the intolerance happening right now. Also, something I feel like we don't realize in the Broadway community enough - theres a certain urgency to support a show like this. If we do not show producers, writers, directors, lyricists that we WANT to see a show we two gay leads, we won't see it again any time soon.I know that if I had a show like this when I was growing up, I would feel less alone and feel represented, and we need to support it for generations to come. 

 

[dramamama611]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 10:48am

Talyn said: "It amazes me the amount of people that pass judgement on something before they actually sit down and watch it."

Passing judgement?  The only way I see people even remotely doing that before if trying to decide to go or not.   Just like you make choices about what meal to eat, movies to see - you get a sense of whether or not it seems like it's for you.  Are you suggesting people shouldn't do so before buying a product?  Ridiculous.  While I see MOST of what opens on b'way, I'm not so financially well off that I'd spend money on something I don't think I'd like.  

[rwkpa26]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 11:10am

Rushed this morning at 1030. 2 tickets, 40 a piece, Orchestra A Seats 2-4.

[CoreyRyan3]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 11:10am

dramamama611 said: 
“Passing judgement? The only way I see people even remotely doing that before if trying to decide to go or not. Just like you make choices about what meal to eat, movies to see - you get a sense of whether or not it seems like it's for you. Are you suggesting people shouldn't do so before buying a product? Ridiculous. While I see MOST of what opens on b'way, I'm not so financially well off that I'd spend money on something I don't think I'd like."

I think they were likely referring to some of the earlier comments like “this has flop written all over it” and “I think this is going to just be another Gettin’ the Band Back Together”. This is absolutely not. And while this show isn’t perfect, it will win many people over. 

[Talyn]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 11:17am

CoreyRyan3 said: "dramamama611 said:
“Passing judgement? The only way I see people even remotely doing that before if trying to decide to go or not. Just like you make choices about what meal to eat, movies to see - you get a sense of whether or not it seems like it's for you. Are you suggesting people shouldn't do so before buying a product? Ridiculous. While I see MOST of what opens on b'way, I'm not so financially well off that I'd spend money on something I don't think I'd like."

I think they were likely referring to some of the earlier comments like “this has flop written all over it” and “I think this is going to just be another Gettin’ the Band Back Together”. This is absolutely not. And while this show isn’t perfect, it will win many people over."

BINGO .

[CoreyRyan3]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 11:23am

Look, this show is not perfect. It’s hokey, it chews the scenery, it wears its little bleeding heart on its sleeve and it loves every damn minute of it. But that’s exactly what makes this show so special. It achieves exactly what it sets out to do, which is to beat us over the head with heart and a message of acceptance and tolerance. And I know some people don’t go to the theatre to “preached” at, but this one finds new ways to make this journey fun, quick, enjoyable, and downright hysterical.

Beth Leavel and Brooks Ashmanskas are giving next level “scenery chewing performances” and should be in the running for their respective Tony Awards regardless of whether this closes before the award season. They bring this show to the next level. If it weren’t for them, I fear that this show would fail to do a lot of what it does best, but they are so exceptional that you can’t help but love them (love to hate them/roll your eyes at them?) from the very beginning.

I totally disagree with the sentiment that Whizzer has stated about this show being “so bad it’s good”. I love Whizzer and his reviews and I wholeheartedly agree with him that you should see this show but I do disagree here. This show is NOT bad. It’s actually very cleverly written and performed, and while it’s sentiment is different from most shows on Broadway, as I’ve said before, it is doing exactly what it’s trying to do. I think saying this show is “so bad it’s good” takes away from what this show was meant to be when it was written. It’s not a Sondheim-ian mental and emotional analysis of a small town in Indiana, it’s not some grand statement on the state of our country, it’s not a nuanced socio-political play about a young lesbian, it’s an old-fashioned (and hokey) musical, meant to make you smile, dance in your seat, and leave with joy and pride in your heart for the story it tells. And for the first time in a long while, I left the theatre with a smile plastered across my face that I wasn’t able to remove for the rest of the night.

See this one. It’s special.

[perfectliar]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 12:44pm

dramamama611 said: "Talyn said: "It amazes me the amount of people that pass judgement on something before they actually sit down and watch it."

Passing judgement? The only way I see people even remotely doing that before if trying to decide to go or not. Just like you make choices about what meal to eat, movies to see - you get a sense of whether or not it seems like it's for you. Are you suggesting people shouldn't do so before buying a product? Ridiculous. While I see MOST of what opens on b'way, I'm not so financially well off that I'd spend money on something I don't think I'd like."

Yes, passing judgment. There were a couple users on the first two pages of this thread doing just that, not to mention all those in a separate thread about a clip of one song assuming the whole score sucks (and that all modern lyricists are lazy) because they didn't like one snippet.

[Bwayfan292]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 12:51pm

Thanks for the reviews everyone! I will try to add this to my list! Since it sounds like we have a positive show on our hands, I hope they can find a marketing technique that works!

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 2:53pm

Also, there were quite a few school groups there last night and the kids all seemed to absolutely love it. That made me really happy to see.

[raddersons]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 3:15pm

perfectliar said: "Yes, passing judgment. There were a couple users on the first two pages of this thread doing just that, not to mention all those in a separate thread about a clip of one song assuming the whole score sucks (and that all modern lyricists are lazy)because they didn't like one snippet."

Welcome to the internet, hun.

[Sondheimite]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 3:41pm

I don't think you people understand how this works, sometimes.

Theatre is a high risk commodity that has a high price tag for an audience member to attend.  

One of the reviews on here, from our main man Whiz, basically says that it's so bad that it has to be seen to be believed.

They released a snip of the score.  And I said it was lazy and uninteresting... because it was/is.  I said the set looks awful... because it is.

Nothing I've seen has made me want to see this show, except a BroadwayWorld review from a poster I trust that basically paints it as this seasons Disaster! The Musical (a show so bad that it ended up being a great night in the theatre but for all the wrong reasons).

If you put your art out onto the internet, expect judgment. 

 

Updated On: 10/24/18 at 03:41 PM

[haterobics]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 3:49pm

perfectliar said: "There were a couple users on the first two pages of this thread doing just that, not to mention all those in a separate thread about aclip of one song assuming the whole score sucks (and that all modern lyricists are lazy)because they didn't like one snippet."

I feel that if you criticize a show in advance, you are reviewing the job its marketing team has done to make you care about seeing it.

If you criticize a song, well, it is also valid, since that is yet another kernel of information on whether to see the show.

Some people start in a default YES position on whether to see a show, until a few things knock it down to a MAYBE, then a NO.

Some people start at NO and need to be won over before getting to MAYBE and then YES.

It's all the same thing, though.

[CoreyRyan3]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 4:36pm

Sondheimite said: "I don't think you people understand how this works, sometimes.”

I’d actually beg to differ that you don’t understand how this works if you think we’re not right in posting our disagreements. It’s a discussion board. For discussions. 

 

[dramamama611]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 4:43pm

oh come on....he was just adding to the conversation.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 4:49pm

I so absolutely, 100% disagree with the "it's so bad it's good" statement. 

[Mitch101]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 6:19pm

I am with Jordan on this one. To suggest this is a flop is odd. There is so much smart writing, great composing, inventive direction, and a cast that just knocks it out of the park- this is not a case of so bad it’s good. This is good good. Again, it’s an old fashioned musical in style and it takes a very big risk to make left leaning do-gooders look just as foolish as those on the right who hate “the other.” There is nothing flop about this show. “Dance of the Vampires” was so bad it was great. Nobody at The Prom last night was laughing AT the show.

[Bwayfan292]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 6:23pm

The show may not be “flop material” but it’s not selling well, so it could most definitely be a flop.

Updated On: 10/24/18 at 06:23 PM

[dramamama611]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 9:41pm

It being a flop or not, has little to do with quality. A great show often flops, a terrible show sometimes succeeds.

The industry standard for a flop is not running long enough to pay back your investors. No quality judgement at all.

[yfs]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 11:28pm

Bwayfan292 said: "The show may not be “flop material” but it’snot selling well, so it could most definitely be a flop."

This feels like a non-sequitur to me. The show is not selling because, frankly, until it gets in front of an audience, it has nothing to sell -- no stars, no famous (Sondheim/Lloyd Webber) collaborators, no spectacular spectacle (King Kong) no famous title or beloved piece of underlying material (Pretty Woman)  -- there's just no basis on which to expect the show to sell tickets unless and until word of mouth and reviews hand the producers a selling too if they do. In that respect it seems like a brave and possibly foolish thing to attempt on today's Broadway of heavily pre-sold, risk-averse productions. But I admire the gumption, and the fact that it hans't sold well so far was an inevitable result of what it is and who's doing it. NOW we'll find out if it starts selling. Check back in about ten days.