The Little Dog Laughed is Closing on Feb. 18- Page 2

[FOAnatic]

Posted: 1/4/07 at 7:41pm

For a second there, I thought Rath was referring to a Broadway transfer for THE SCENE that I hadn't heard about.

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 1/4/07 at 7:45pm

Would that surprise you? If the reviews are good and the schedules check out....I hear the Cort's available...

[FOAnatic]

Posted: 1/4/07 at 7:48pm

I wasn't surprised at all. I just thought everyone knew about it but me.

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 1/4/07 at 7:53pm

Nope, Rath was just unfocused.

But I can see THE SCENE moving.

[jakebloke]

Posted: 1/4/07 at 8:14pm

Glad I saw it the other night. Went to TKTS and got front row center tickets. It was a little too close, but then I was only about 10 feet away from 2 naked guys, and got to see every "inch" of both of them. (great scene by the way)

[Smartful Dodger]

Posted: 1/4/07 at 10:19pm

Question: why doesn't/didn't it move to the Helen Hayes? I don't get it. The running costs on the show can't be that high that the Hayes couldn't support it. I forget, what's going in there now that THE TWO AND ONLY left?

Solid play (not great) with an amazing performance by a female lead.

And, I fear for the future of mainstream legitimate American plays. Complete bummer...

[Correction on Jay Johnson's play, which I'd had as THE TWO OF US -- sorry -- don't type after a single malt, straight up.]

Updated On: 1/4/07 at 10:19 PM

[FOAnatic]

Posted: 1/4/07 at 10:25pm

A) It's THE TWO AND ONLY.

B) The theatre was still booked when the transfer was made.

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 1/4/07 at 10:27pm

The Hayes was booked with Bridge and Tunnel & Two and Only, besides the fact that it's an independently owned theater and LDL has Shubert backing.

The story, and it's legendary in theater circles by now, is that Julie White went up to Gerry Schoenfeld along with the lead producer to beg for a theater. He gave her the Belasco, Cort, Lyceum....and told her to pick. She chose the Cort.
Updated On: 1/4/07 at 10:27 PM

[Becoz_i_knew_you21]

Posted: 1/4/07 at 10:37pm

"The story, and it's legendary in theater circles by now, is that Julie White went up to Gerry Schoenfeld along with the lead producer to beg for a theater. He gave her the Belasco, Cort, Lyceum....and told her to pick. She chose the Cort. "

Really? Interesting. I don't know why she would choose the Cort for this show.
Updated On: 1/4/07 at 10:37 PM

[FOAnatic]

Posted: 1/4/07 at 10:39pm

Not great choices.

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 1/4/07 at 10:49pm

Three choices with undesirable locations. The Belasco and Cort are beautiful.

[FOAnatic]

Posted: 1/4/07 at 11:14pm

Yes, gorgeous theatres...in horrid locations.

[1183]

Posted: 1/4/07 at 11:30pm

Do you really think poor location had anything to do with this show closing? Or are we seeing the results of poor marketing? This is a very good show, that got lucky with great reviews. I dont think any specific theater would have made any difference. Smart marketing would have.

I think a LA production at the Mark Taper is a great idea.

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 1/4/07 at 11:56pm

Location really wasn't the main problem and its marketing campaign was actually pretty good.

But either way, marketing can't save a rather slight non-musical play with no major stars, awards, or the kind of reviews that call it a "Must See" event. Tourists want to see musicals and the local audience for straight plays has been getting greyer and dying off for some time now, in addition to being turned off by being asked to pay $96.25 (just $15 less than most musicals with huge casts, sets and costumes) for a 4 actor play. LITTLE DOG is having the same fate as WELL, LIEUTENANT OF INISHMORE, GEM OF THE OCEAN, and SOUVENIR, all of which had mostly very positive reviews, but had no major stars, no awards and no buzz.

For a play to succeed (financially) on Broadway, apparently you either need a major star name (Julia Roberts, Julianne Moore, Ralph Fiennes, Denzel, Nathan Lane) or a combination of rave reviews and awards and GREAT word of mouth that turns it into a "must-see event" (HISTORY BOYS had the Olivier; DOUBT had the Pulitzer).

Unfortunately, in today's Broadway climate for straight plays (and it wouldn't have worked financially to do it in commercial off-Broadway) LITTLE DOG never really had a chance.

Updated On: 1/4/07 at 11:56 PM

[1183]

Posted: 1/5/07 at 12:39am

but margo, don't you feel that of the other shows you listed, little god is the most inherently commercially viable....especially in a city filled with celebs, agents, and the like. i mean souvenir didn't have a chance, even with judy, inishmore, well, it was a long shot. the star of little dog is the genre/topic

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 1/5/07 at 1:28am

While on the surface, it would seem that a play so in tune with our celebrity-obsessed/tabloid-frenzied times should have done better, at the same time there is something inherently too trite and lightweight about the subject matter to justify a $96 price tag to many potential audience members (however, it probably would have scored decent ratings as a -- free -- tv movie for HBO or something).

For the most part, light comedies and contemporary dramas no longer seem to have a place on Broadway largely due to the vast amount of quality drama and sitcoms available nightly for free (or for a nominal cable fee) on television. However, TV has never been able to consistently create new longform musicals, so audiences still seek those out in the one place that can provide that form of entertainment -- live theatre. Plus, for most audiences, if they're going to shell out hundreds of dollars for a night out, they want a certain amount of "bang" for their buck; they want spectacle and dance and costumes and a live orchestra and to have an experience bigger and more thrilling than something they can get for free in the privacy of their own home. Thus, non-musical plays (without a celebrity) are rarely at the top of their agenda on the handful of times per year that most people see a show. The era of there being a new hit Neil Simon play (or similarly sitcom-esque light entertainment) every season is long past -- it's just too expensive to pay for that sort of theatrical junk food on a regular basis when you can have basically the same experience at home watching tv.

In most seasons, only one or two non-star-driven, non-revival, non-musical offerings manage to break through and create enough of a buzz to succeed financially, and those that do typically aren't light comedies (TALE OF THE ALLERGISTS WIFE is one of the last ones that did), but more substantial, provocative works that have the air of being "important" in some way or get chatted about at cocktail parties and/or smack of an "event" that must be seen (such as DOUBT or HISTORY BOYS). LITTLE DOG never had that kind of cache and while its subject matter was timely and very much in the current cultural zeitgeist, it never got the kind of word of mouth or "must-see" status it needed in order to survive.

[1183]

Posted: 1/5/07 at 2:12pm

Well said.

[Mistress_Spouzic]

Posted: 1/5/07 at 2:20pm

its been on play-by-play lately. hopefully ill see it before it closes.

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 1/9/07 at 11:38pm

I saw this again tonight with a friend. White is still at the top of anyone's game, and Scott has improved a bit - still not convincing to me that he is the character, some of his line readings are still high school, but he's better. Ari Graynor is still quite good, and Galecki has improved 100% for me. His line readings and business are exactly the same, but now there is something beneath them - I finally believe him. I was pleasantly surprised by that.

I don't know where the marketing people are here - you have a play with three extremely recognizable faces - stars from other mediums. It should be a walk in the park to get asses in these seats. Julie White is giving a performance that won't soon be forgotten by anyone who has seen it - and she won't get near Tony because of the early closing. This show should run at least through the duration of the actors' contracts, and with full houses.

[FOAnatic]

Posted: 1/9/07 at 11:48pm

Couldn't agree more, Rath.

I haven't seen a woman completely own a stage like White since I saw Bernadette in GYPSY.

And I'm glad you like Galecki. There's no doubting he has quite a...well...BIG...talent.

Updated On: 1/9/07 at 11:48 PM

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 1/9/07 at 11:53pm

And that was more convincing tonight as well! My God.

[Cape Twirl of Doom]

Posted: 1/10/07 at 7:39pm

Does anyone know if they have student rush for this show? I'd love to see it before it closes if possible.

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 1/10/07 at 7:43pm

No Student Rush. Only $26.25 Balcony Seats.

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 1/10/07 at 7:49pm

Get there any way you can, Cape, and anyone else who is considering it. I can't recommend it strongly enough, if only for Julie White.

Before I saw it, I thought no one could live up to the hype her performance has been getting. I was wrong. Really, really wrong.

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 1/10/07 at 7:52pm

We will get to see it next weekend. Glad we are getting in under the wire