WILL BROOKLYN SUCCEED ON BROADWAY??- Page 4

[Love4Cheno]

Posted: 9/27/04 at 4:55pm

Just saw BKLYN on Sat. 9/25 and let me jut say WOW! I went in with mixed expectations. The cd sampler disappointed me a bit- Once Upon a Time was the only song I liked. Totally different story now. I have to say it was some of the best vocals I have ever heard in a B'way show, and I see a lot of shows. Sure there are elements that had me rolling my eyes- but it just started previewing. The performances are SO strong they blew me away. The audience burst into applause in the middle of the songs- something very rare, and they got an instant standing ovation from the entire theatre. Whether or not the critics care for it, it's a huge audience hit.

It made me realize that shows like Bombay Dreams and Mamma Mia are third-rate and don't deserve to remain open. (In my opinion.)

[Sunfish]

Posted: 9/27/04 at 5:03pm

IN THE MIDDLE OF THE SONG?

I am not shouting I am speaking with a great amount of shock and disbelief in my tone. I cannot imagine anyone would interpret that as a good thing, on Broadway. It is incredibly rude to the performer, who may still have something to say (sing) while you all are happily clapping away over the high note. Cripes! No matter how good or bad the show is, *going to it* is sounding more and more like a train wreck!!

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 9/27/04 at 5:53pm

Hardly. It's not rude -- just the opposite. It's called a showstopper -- a musical number that can make a performer, a song and a show legendary. Performers dream of getting to do a song that will elicit enough audience response to stop the show and people like Merman, Verdon, Kiley, Rivera, Stritch et al became famous for being able to deliver the goods night after night.

I cannot speak for the audience reaction in "Brooklyn" as I have not seen the show yet, but one of the great musical theatre performances of the last 30 years or more was Jennifer Holliday's in "Dreamgirls." It was a regular occurrence that halfway through her performance of the show-stopper "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" the audience would spontaneously break into applause and give her a standing ovation -- before the number was even over, the audience was stamping their feet and cheering and carrying on, some from on top of their seats..... sheer pandemonium broke out nightly. The number made Holliday a star overnight and to be sure neither she, nor the composers, nor the producers, nor Michael Bennett (the director/choreographer), nor anyone else affiliated with the production thought the audience behavior rude -- they were all absolutely ecstatic because they knew they had a hit on their hands and were part of a piece of Broadway history. I saw "Dreamgirls" many many times and nothing else I've ever seen matches that experience.

Updated On: 9/27/04 at 05:53 PM

[Matt_G]

Posted: 9/27/04 at 5:55pm

I find that hard to believe, Margo. Didn't you tell me you saw THOU SHALT NOT?

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 9/27/04 at 5:57pm

Tugboat!
Tugboat!
Tugboat!

[Matt_G]

Posted: 9/27/04 at 5:57pm

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Borstalboy]

Posted: 9/27/04 at 6:02pm

If Bright Lights Big City, Taboo, The Life, Tick, Tick, Boom, and The Wild Party are any indication, theatergoers don't really give a poo about urban bohemians, despite Rent's success.

[Sunfish]

Posted: 9/27/04 at 6:16pm

Margo, I appreciate your input. I always thought a showstopper was a song which got a standing O at the *end* of the number. Standing and cheering and clapping during a number....well, I CAN see it with that one in Dreamgirls, but the discussion of Brooklyn so far has led me to believe there are no stand-out tunes just some great high notes or belts. I imagined yelps for those then quieting down for the rest of the song. I would find that disruptive, especially if it was a ballad or a song where the words were actually important to the story.

If it happens as you say it happened in "Dreamgirls", then more power to them.

[Plum]

Posted: 9/27/04 at 6:27pm

If a singer is given a "money note" and sings it out for all it's worth, it can prompt applause in the middle of a song. When I went to Chicago in August, Marti Pellow, who didn't exactly have a powerhouse voice, got some spontaneous applause for really holding that long note in "They Both Reached For the Gun."

[Marquise]

Posted: 9/27/04 at 9:40pm

No only has it happened in "Dreamgirls" it's happened in many shows...I was re-reading "A Chorus Line and The Musicals of Michael Bennett" by Ken Mandelbaum and in it he describes a classic showstopper from another Bennett show: "Promises, Promises". The Act I closing number "Turke Lurkey Time" was choreographed and staged by Bennett in a way to get the audience applauding before the number was over.

According to the show's dance arranger Harold Wheeler Bennett built an ending with the dancers dancing dangerously on table tops, and with the repitition of steps and music, it was so infectious you hadto applaud.

In everything Michael Bennett did later on he would refer to the number earmarked as the "show-stopping" number in the show as the "turkey lurkey" number. He even asked for that in vocals. For Jennifer Holliday's big number in "Dreamgirls", Michael said, "The ending has to be like 'Turkey Lurkey', remember how we made them applaud before it was over?"

And THAT is a showstopper. Bennett was a genius!!!

[Tiny-Toon]

Posted: 9/27/04 at 10:16pm

..

Updated On: 9/27/04 at 10:16 PM

[RadioTV2]

Posted: 9/27/04 at 10:36pm

So Brooklyns grosses show a 60% attendance level, kind of disappointing for a first week of previews, so definitely not selling out with those numbers.

[Tiny-Toon]

Posted: 9/27/04 at 11:00pm

"a first week of previews"

NO!!
THATS ONLY FOR 4 PREVIEWS!!

[DirectorGP]

Posted: 9/27/04 at 11:05pm

I went as a skeptic... Really thought it would be mediocre... I was blown away... I cannot believe that 5 people could make the sound that they make. It is enchanting and enthralling. I could have watched another hour of it... The cast is perfection. They signed playbills after and they were so generous with their time and humble... Mega stars are being born in this one folks... Go see it... Its MAGNIFICENT theatre!

[RadioTV2]

Posted: 9/27/04 at 11:14pm

Hey Tiny Toon, 60% is 60%. whether its for 4 preview or 8 won't matter. still the total seats filled divided by the total available times 100. SO CALM DOWN!

[Tiny-Toon]

Posted: 9/27/04 at 11:23pm

sorry.. i did not see i was in caps..

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 9/27/04 at 11:54pm

"Mega stars are being born in this one folks."

Really? Are you talking like Gavin Creel and David Burtka level mega stars???????

[Matt_G]

Posted: 9/27/04 at 11:57pm

Namo, don't be stupid.

To reach that level of stardom one would have to at least co-star in TWO Broadway shows.

Duh.

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 9/28/04 at 12:14am

Oh. Right. But DirectorGP can dream, right?

[wickedjfan]

Posted: 9/28/04 at 11:16am

What is the average capacity for shows in preview?

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 9/28/04 at 11:31am

It depends. Mega-hits like Wicked and The Producers were already selling out (or very close to it) from the very beginning of previews. Hairspray was in the 80s and 90s in previews, but became a sellout hit as soon as the reviews came out. Other shows take much longer to find an audience (if they ever do it at all). Good word of mouth can help.

[popcultureboy]

Posted: 9/28/04 at 11:32am

I appreciate your input

Am I the only person who thinks of Bloodhound Gang's song The Bad Touch upon reading the above sentence?

[Matt_G]

Posted: 9/28/04 at 11:44am

"So Brooklyns grosses show a 60% attendance level, kind of disappointing for a first week of previews, so definitely not selling out with those numbers."

But I thought tickets were SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO hard to get! What happened, guys? Could it have been you were lying?

[JohnPopa]

Posted: 9/28/04 at 11:45am

"If Bright Lights Big City, Taboo, The Life, Tick, Tick, Boom, and The Wild Party are any indication, theatergoers don't really give a poo about urban bohemians, despite Rent's success. "

With the exception of 'Tick Tick ... Boom' which I thought was strong those other shows have the added handicap of being garbage.

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 9/28/04 at 11:46am

this season is off to weak start..