The Gazillion Bubble Show @ New World Stages

[PB ENT.]

Posted: 2/21/07 at 8:45pm

Anyone seen this in New York yet?
The bubble man was on Regis & Kelly the other day. This and Toxic Audio were the hit of the APAP showcase this year.

I'm previewing it on March 3rd and was looking for some feedback.

Thanks
Gazillion Bubble Show

[Yero my Hero]

Posted: 2/22/07 at 6:14pm

I saw it! I liked it. He did some really amazing things with bubbles, and he was great with kids. There was a lot of audience interaction.

At one point (I won't say which because it's a surprise) I couldn't help but feel like a six-year-old again. It was great.

Don't wear any clothes you wouldn't mind getting wet. You won't get soaked, but you will get a few bubbles on you.

His accent is a little hard to understand sometimes, and they have screen projections with instructions for the audience that the little kids can't read, but overall it's fine.

[PB ENT.]

Posted: 2/28/07 at 2:20pm

Here's a better look at Fan, the bubble man!
Newsday.com article

[Trailer Trash Jones]

Posted: 3/16/07 at 5:28am

Wow, where to begin?! I just saw this tonight and although the bubbles were amazing now and then, the real show is comprised of so many deliciously ridiculous elements: poorly edited, cheesy new-age-ish synth music screaming throughout the whole show, cheaply made video clips with horribly written text, lots of self-congratulatory repetitive background info on Fan Yang's life and love of bubbles and several sappy "beautiful stories" that were contrived to display more bubble tricks. You will feel like you are trapped in Kathie-Lee Funship hell. The most absurd moment came when he chose two children (one boy of Asian decent and an African American girl) to come up on the stage and participate, they stood side by side and he said "Looks like the united colors of Benetton!" I couldn't believe my ears!

This thing needs an actual director. Fan Yang seems like a genuinely decent (except for the racist comment!) & enthusiastic guy, but the show is a mess! He should not be ad libbing at all, because he repeats the same few pat phrases and almost bored me to death. We were in hysterics, but not for the right reasons, especially during combination onslaught-of-wet-bubbles-that-shoot-right-at-your-face and the green-varilites-that-repeatedly-shine-directly-in-your-eyes. Most of the people around us spent several minutes desperately shielding their faces to avoid being slimmed and blinded during what should have been the most visually impressive part.

Don't get me wrong, you should see it if you get a chance. It's like a hilarious SNL sketch. I can't remember the last time I laughed so hard!!

[lancerpanz]

Posted: 3/16/07 at 8:53am

don't waste your time with this - trailer trash basically covered all of the bad points.

I felt like the show was meant to be put on for people in a communist nation where people were mainly confined to their houses everyday and had no view on the outside world. Audience members are supposed to be amazed at some things but we just looked at each other and giggled at the kid-like performance.

The technology he uses is 20 years old or older - maybe that's another thing that bothered me. He had such huge build-ups for some parts and then when that exciting part finally came I was thinking, "I can totally order that machine from my Oriental Trading magazine.

Did anyone else think that the "Noel" segment was hilarious for the wrong reasons?

Anyone else catch the bit about how "bubbles do not discriminate?"

I hate to sound so negative...I guess though on the plus side, the kids in the audience really seemed to enjoy themselves...So I guess that I'm not his target market.

[PB ENT.]

Posted: 3/16/07 at 4:02pm

I appreciate the feedback. For those who are seeing the show, please post your thoughts. I am sending some of the "constructive criticisms" to their management team.

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 3/16/07 at 4:04pm

I'm seeing it Sunday - I'll be sure to post my thoughts for you.

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 3/16/07 at 4:07pm

Is there any nudity involved?

[PB ENT.]

Posted: 3/16/07 at 4:28pm

Bubbles tickle on your birthday suit. But, sorry this one is rated G.

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 3/16/07 at 4:29pm

ah.

[lancerpanz]

Posted: 3/16/07 at 4:34pm

I forgot to mention his hilarious costume changes...

[Mistress_Spouzic]

Posted: 3/16/07 at 5:38pm

i saw this show on a comp ticket and thought most of it was really boring. The video clips were just bad and the english at times didnt make sense. The only trick that impressed me was the under water one with the blue green lasers, smoke and tons of bubbles. At that point I wondered if he should help with Little Mermaid.

[Trailer Trash Jones]

Posted: 3/17/07 at 4:40am

It seems to me that the real primary mistake -- other than the lack of a director with an American sensibility -- is that the current "concept" is to tell the story of Fan Yang. The problem with that is that no one here knows Fan Yang, so no one cares. And the way that it's told, you'd think he cured cancer with nothing but a child's imagination and some suds. The fact is, people who go to this just want to see tons of bubbles and bubble tricks, not have to applaud after each of the numerous bubble-making achievements is explained (repeatedly) over the loud speaker.

Also, sometimes the narrator on the recordings is Fan Yang, who has a distinctive accent, but there are times another narrator speaks in the first person (as Fang Yan)g with no accent at all. Clearly it's not him though, so it's a jarring continuity problem.

I read one review that mentioned that it would've been a lot better without any chit chat or intrusive music (he failed to mention the background of fake Christmas trees). I have to agree.

G-d! Clearly, I am so disturbed by the craziness of this show!! I think I may need therapy. I'll be sending the bill to Fan Yang.

[PB ENT.]

Posted: 3/17/07 at 1:30pm

If I can share my opinion and what I know about this project...I agree with some the constructive parts of what people are saying about the direction, the film projection segments and other production factors.

In an attempt to undertatand what's going on over there...this show is coming directly from another country and has been booked corporately including Chrysler Corp.,IBM, Pepsi & more for several years. That means it plays to adults as well as young people and in my view, is condsidered more of a "family entertainment event" showcased in an Off Broadway house. To my knowledge, the creative team is not your standard American directed/produced show.

If you visit the website http://www.gazillionbubbleshow.com you will see that this show normally plays in 2,3, and 4,000 + seat venues.
It was drastically scaled back technically to fit a 500 seat house. Not an easy task. I anticipate that they will continue to make some adjustments once feedback and experiences come in over the next few months.

Castle Talent, who also manage Toxic Audio and other acts are very successful at what they do. Yes, I plan to submit some of the "constructive opinions" with them. I also will be working with them while it is in NY and and beyond their NY stay.

Just a little heads up on what is taking place surrounding this project.

Updated On: 3/17/07 at 01:30 PM

[Anakela]

Posted: 3/17/07 at 2:23pm

Thanks for this info, those of you who have seen it! I wanted to see this because I thought it was just going to be lots of fun bubbles all over the place, and I was curious to see that played out- I almost went to see this as one of my "20 at 20" shows even- but there's no way I'm going to enjoy what y'all are describing.

Although- "Kathie-Lee Funship hell" is totally brill, I might have to steal that description the next time I am trapped in something like that!

[stevenycguy]

Posted: 3/17/07 at 5:25pm

I agree with the posters- I haven't laughed so long in a long time, but for all the wrong reasons. "Bubbles do not discriminate", "Bubbles are like the greatest things in the world". Don't forget how he cannot speak English very well so he's ad-libbing to a voice-over, but he can't even ad-lib correctly (he's ad-libbing different words than are being said!!) Everyone around us were cracking up hysterically! Way funnier than Saturday Night Live - if they did that on that show, the audience would be cracking up!! I suggest you see it just to be able to make fun of it - it's THAT bad.

[Jane2]

Posted: 3/17/07 at 5:37pm

Wow, I work there and haven't gone in to see this one yet. After reading Trailer Trash's review, I'm dying to see it-thanks TT!

[myManCape]

Posted: 3/19/07 at 6:56pm

I saw Fan Yang’s Bubble Show this weekend and while it has its flaws I left the theatre with a smile on my face and I think the majority of the audience did as well. The shows many flaws have been listed in this thread and they are all true, but I couldn’t help but to get the feeling like it was a tiny production that Fan put on for his friends and family in his backyard, rather than a large scale off broadway show. From the rear of the auditorium you feel disconnected from whats going on, on the stage (and I couldn’t imagine sitting in the rear of a 4000 seat auditorium and watching him). I think Fan depends way to much on the videos which are really unnecessary to the show. He speaks English well enough to get his message across and does not need to rely on narrated videos to support his on stage presence. A real stage director could make this show 100 times better with about a half hour of work. Something as simple trying to hide the stage hands between scenes could be done so much better than it is. Over all the show is very cute and cozy, unlike anything you would expect off broadway, but be warned it is not worth the full price of a ticket. If you can get a discount defiantly check it out!

[Trailer Trash Jones]

Posted: 2/9/08 at 10:45pm

OK, well once again, I went to see the Gazillion Bubble Show with my bro from out of town and his kids. I have to say I was pretty psyched to check it out again and I was NOT disappointed! PB ENT., I see Fang Yang and the management got right on top of the "constructive criticisms" made here last year.

I kid. The show was exactly the same, but this time with Fan Yang's wife Anna, who was so sweet and enthusiastic, you couldn't help but root for her to do well. Unfortunately, she is not quite the bubble-master her hubby is, but that didn't matter. Lucky for us, she used all of his old tricks. She even told the bizarre and contrived "beautiful story" about the niece in Bangkok (featuring a bewildered little girl she had just plucked from the audience) who had never seen snow...blah, blah...Anna made her some bubbles....the niece's lifelong dream of seeing snow was inexplicably fulfilled...the end. Mind you, all of the audience participation moments are crafted to promote the Fang Yang bubble products sold in the lobby after the show, since they give different ones out to the participants after each event.

From a directorial standpoint, one big problem is that the tricks are repetitive and the level of complexity is mixed up, so it can get boring to see very simple tricks after you've seen more impressive ones, so there is no climax. But I digress....direction be damned! All of the important elements remain in tact. Clearly, Fan taught Anna the critical moves, like milking the audience for applause after every single bubble pops out and constantly ordering your confused participants to "smile." We are still assaulted with cheesy synth music, ridiculous screen prompt questions like "would you like to see a tower of bubbles?" and my favorite, the underwater fantasy, which consists of slimy, wet bubbles shooting straight into your eyes while a green laser blinds you.

Oh, I almost forgot, there is a whole video about the magic and the life-changing effects of bubbles. This will make you laugh til you cry.

I just cannot believe this thing is still running! We were in hysterics throughout! You must see it to believe it. Think of it as a night of cruise-ship comedy and sit in the first few rows center for the full effect. My brother wisely brought a windbreaker which shielded him from the vast majority of slime, so keep that in mind. Also, I definitely recommend volunteering as an audience participant, since you get free swag. She mostly asks for kids but there is one time she asks for a male/female couple.

Thanks for indulging me, as I am a little obsessed with this thing. PS: the kids had a good time, especially after they were slimed.



Updated On: 2/9/08 at 10:45 PM

[Jane2]

Posted: 2/9/08 at 11:09pm

The show is now running for at least a year and has no plans to close, so I guess they don't feel that they need to change it much.

When it first opened, it ran about an hour 45, and now it's down to an hour 25, depending on the size of the house. A very small house will have a 70 minute show. They also had a change at holiday time-there was a special holiday show, which is now back to the regular show.

Basically, this show is for kids, and the house is usually made up of all kids with their parents. Some performances at night have more adults.

Some adults like it because it's funny without trying to be. The kids just like it for what it is.

[Trailer Trash Jones]

Posted: 2/10/08 at 12:11am

"The show is now running for at least a year and has no plans to close, so I guess they don't feel that they need to change it much."

Maybe, or maybe that's the reason there were only about 30 people in the audience when we saw it!

[broadwayfan7]

Posted: 2/10/08 at 9:56am

Glad you had a nice time!

[Jane2]

Posted: 2/10/08 at 11:51am

"Maybe, or maybe that's the reason there were only about 30 people in the audience when we saw it! "

Some performances have that size audience, others are packed. That's the way it's been for over a year.

I'm not sure if you like the show or not, since you've already gone twice and are obsessed. If it changes, you may not like it as much.

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 2/10/08 at 2:23pm

It was an incredibly bizarre show - from the "Kiss Cams" at the beginning, the "let's bring up as many ethnic kids as we can to make a United Colors of Benniton joke," to the various misspellings and gramatical errors in the subtitles.