Today's Column from Riedel

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 11/14/07 at 10:15am

Some interesting info:

"AND now the game is: How long can they stand the pain?

As the brutal stagehands strike enters its fifth day, Broadway producers have concluded that the rank and file is going to have to miss a few paychecks before everybody heads back to the bargaining table.

And not just a couple of paychecks.

More like three or four.

Which means the strike is likely to drag on through the Thanksgiving Day holiday - generally Broadway's most profitable weekend - and possibly into December.

"Right now, there's euphoria out there," one producer said. "They've defied us, and they're united with the musicians and the actors. But let's see how they feel when there's blood on the street."

It's not the stagehands who'll feel the pain right away. They have a $4 million strike fund, which should keep them warm on the picket line for awhile.

Far more vulnerable are the non-star actors - "featured players" and chorus kids - and musicians, who have refused to cross the picket lines.

Such actors and musicians do make as much money as the stagehands. But their strike funds are not as robust, although the stagehands have said they will help out their "brothers and sisters" during the strike.

Actors in particular live paycheck to paycheck.

"A lot of actors have no financial cushion at all," said one actor, who has a supporting role in a popular Broadway musical. "They're just kids, and they're scared."

When the actors and musicians start feeling the pinch, their union leaders will put intense pressure on the stagehands to make a deal.

That's what happened during the musicians strike four years ago. The stagehands walked out in sympathy. But after three days, they nudged the musicians back to the table.

The producers, with their $20 million war chest to cover the fixed expenses of their shows during the strike, believe they can hold for several weeks, with only a show or two falling by the wayside.

For their part, the stagehands are counting on the fact that the producers simply will not be able to part with the millions of dollars they'll lose over holidays.

And if the strike slides into December, a number of shows will have no choice but to put up the closing notice. Once that happens, the stagehands believe that the producers' united front will crack.

Already the producers of "The Grinch" are screaming. They lost $500,000 over the weekend. And since they're checking out of the St. James in January anyway, there's no point in reopening if the strike lasts past Thanksgiving.

"The Drowsy Chaperone," which has announced a January closing, is also vulnerable, as is Tom Stoppard's "Rock 'n' Roll," which is saddled with paying living expenses for actors imported from Britain.

One veteran producer, who never believed there would be a strike, said: "If this is not settled soon, everybody in the industry is going to be hurt very badly."


http://www.nypost.com/seven/11142007/news/columnists/hard_lines_on_strike_could_off_broadway_111553.htm

[being.jeremiah]

Posted: 11/14/07 at 10:23am

"The Drowsy Chaperone," which has announced a January closing, is also vulnerable...

When did that happen?

[dancingthrulife04]

Posted: 11/14/07 at 10:35am

"The Drowsy Chaperone," which has announced a January closing, is also vulnerable...


I missed something...

[jaystarr]

Posted: 11/14/07 at 10:36am

Which means the strike is likely to drag on through the Thanksgiving Day holiday - generally Broadway's most profitable weekend - and possibly into December.

******
^^^ this is not good

So basically I would not be able to see all the shows I am suppose to see:

August: Osage County -11/24- re-schedule- ( I should have not done that)
The Little Mermaid -11/25
Rock N Roll-12/1

I was just hoping (at the back of my mind) that this will be soon over (like 1-2 weeks strike..) I guess .. I was wrong....I lost all my shows and got slammed by processing fees !

and Drowsy closing in January?

J*



Updated On: 11/14/07 at 10:36 AM

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 11/14/07 at 10:36am

Drowsy's impending closure is the worst kept secret in town.

And it's also a large mistake on Riedel's part, since it was Spelling Bee, not Drowsy, which has announced a closing date in January.

[dancingthrulife04]

Posted: 11/14/07 at 10:39am

I know about the "impending closure," but I wasn't aware that anything had been announced. Which it apparently hasn't been.

Updated On: 11/14/07 at 10:39 AM

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 11/14/07 at 10:46am

Yeah, Drowsy's closing (and Cry Baby taking over the Marquis) has been much discussed here and at ATC, but Riedel jumped the gun as far as the official announcement is concerned.

[billynj]

Posted: 11/14/07 at 10:54am

The curse of the Marquis continues ...when was the last time they had a long running show ?

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 11/14/07 at 10:57am

Well, I'd hardly call it the curse of the Marquis since Drowsy did in fact recoup over a year ago and will have made a pretty substantial profit by the time it closes.

[AngActing]

Posted: 11/14/07 at 11:00am

"Me and MY Girl", perhaps?

[DottieD'Luscia]

Posted: 11/14/07 at 11:12am

The revival of Annie Get Your Gun did very well at the Marquise.

[mlsheehan]

Posted: 11/14/07 at 11:13am

To thread jack some more...

I have to say Marquise is the wrong theater for Cry Baby. I saw the show last night, and it will get lost in the Marquise. I'm sorry, but I can't see that being a financial success.

[Calvin]

Posted: 11/14/07 at 11:15am

Since when is almost two years not considered a long run?

Millie was there for quite a while, too. Updated On: 11/14/07 at 11:15 AM

[RentBoy86]

Posted: 11/14/07 at 11:19am

Well the theatre is in a great location. The only real problem for the theatre is that the marquee gets swallowed up with all the other Times Square billboards and stuff. It needs something more substantial.

[Testing1232]

Posted: 11/14/07 at 12:25pm

Forgive me if this was mentioned in the article, or by anyone else on the thread- also heard that "Les Miz" not will re-open
if the strike goes past Thanksgiving.

[BrianS]

Posted: 11/14/07 at 12:52pm

Millie didn't recoup.

[Calvin]

Posted: 11/14/07 at 1:15pm

No, it didn't, but the question was when the Marquis last had a long-running show. Again, two years is a pretty long run.

[Tkt2Ride]

Posted: 11/14/07 at 1:18pm

If Drowsy is closing in January they should make an official announcement. Hopefully this is official. I had hoped it would at least last out Bob Saget's contract. I wish these shows wouldn't wait so long to announce their closing. I just kind of figured they did that to see if they could still sell February tickets. If the sales were good they would stay open the other months.

I knew of Cry Baby and who knows how well it well do? It isn't really well known and Grease only did fair. I felt this was why the Marquis was holding onto the Drowsy. It was making money for them. They may not make much off of this new show though I have seen some interest in it. Though I agreed, Drowsy new ad Campaign just didn't have what Bob Martin's had but it seemed too early to shoot Bob Saget yet for trying. It did have a long run and people get bored. It is a big house to have to fill every night. It would have been great if they could have downsized but with so many shows begging to be on Broadway and a Tour, I wasn't holding out too much for that happening.

They had an outstanding cast. Even though Mara didn't pull in the raves Sutton had it was still a good opportunity for her to pad her resume. I will miss terribly not being able to see the rest of the cast and Bob S's take on the role. They really did capture some of the best talent on Broadway and I will look forward to seeing what cast will be doing next. It is just all of these great Actors won't get the opportunity again to work together like this probably in another show. At least until we see what Bob Martin and Casey Nicholaw come up with next.

If anything, seeing Drowsy leave will just make the rest of us anxiously look forward to what is next in line for this crazy group of comics to put up for us on stage. So as it is now, we are just waiting, waiting for the show to go on...

[myManCape]

Posted: 11/14/07 at 1:29pm

Riedel jumped the gun on the Drowsy notice. I think he meant Spelling Bee as well. How ever it would not surprise me if the producers tried to pass Drowsy’s closing off as a causality of the strike. Wait until the strike ends then announce sometihng along the lines of "the strike forced us to close"

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 11/14/07 at 1:30pm

Well, while they may have planned on a January closing, I imagine they might be holding off on that official announcement until they see how the strike shakes out. If it goes on for a few more weeks, they may not bother to re-open and announce that fact at some later date.

And Grease has done a heck of a lot better than fair. Its attendance was in the 90s most weeks and it was grossing over (or just under) $800K all but a few weeks -- pretty damn good for a show with such lousy reviews.

[Yero my Hero]

Posted: 11/14/07 at 1:46pm

Back on topic, hasn't Local 1 said that their strike fund is going toward members of other unions, too? And Equity pays their members a sort of unemployment (albeit far less than actors' usual salaries). It's not like Local 1 is just callously leaving their supporters in the snow without a coat.

By the way, I don't think Riedel meant to say Spelling Bee, because it will only benefit from the strike.

[dancingthrulife04]

Posted: 11/14/07 at 2:10pm

I think he did mean spelling bee for no other reason than he says it has already been announced.

[Yero my Hero]

Posted: 11/14/07 at 2:13pm

In that case, maybe he meant Les Mis.