Was The Revival of Miss Saigon Considered a Failure? - Page 2
Was The Revival of Miss Saigon Considered a Failure?
#25Was The Revival of Miss Saigon Considered a Failure?
Posted: 1/18/18 at 11:33am
newintown said: "I, too, never understood the enthusiasm forMiss Saigon,.............
....less insight into human relationships than a Hallmark greeting card.....
This solemnbore of a show is interrupted from time to time by a cardboard yet showyvillain who embodies much of the same disgusting vices as our current President;strangely, audiences mindlessly and inexplicably seem to identify most with this grotesque, driven solely bygreed and love of material consumption."
It's clear that there is a lot you don't understand. I would suggest to watch the show first before you talk. If you miss all these points and layers if you have seen the show, then our worlds are too far apart to even start a discussion.
#26Was The Revival of Miss Saigon Considered a Failure?
Posted: 1/18/18 at 11:49am
"It's clear that there is a lot you don't understand. I would suggest to watch the show first before you talk."
I've seen the show several times, and think I understand it pretty well, thanks. Telling someone that they don't understand something that you like is nothing but a very easy way to close your eyes to disagreement.
#27Was The Revival of Miss Saigon Considered a Failure?
Posted: 1/18/18 at 11:51am
evic said: "Like the flop that was the revival of Cats, no one was interested in seeing it. Originally, it received huge publicity because there was a helicopter on stage. Imho itis a very boring show. Both shows are head scratcherson how long they originally ran. I would say that combined , they lost 20million which is a drop considering how much they have made over the years.. ."
Not a fan of Miss Saigon or Cats, but facts matter...
Cats grossed over $65 million in about 70 weeks. That's hardly a flop. Whether they made back their investment (probably not as they would have announced it) technically determines whether it's a "flop" - but the financials have changed a great deal as people have discussed. More than likely they made back a great deal of their investment and the show will launch on tour a year from now.
Miss Saigon is a bit of a surprise in that it grossed about $35 in 44 weeks and many(myself included) thought it would have done a lot better, particularly with Cameron leading the charge to revive this. But, again these producers are reviving known properties that - while obviously not everyone's favorite - are obviously popular.
I appreciated Lot666's assessment of some of the problems with the Miss Saigon revival. I had seen the original production only once and would've been frustrated to have that type of "talk-singing" in what has always been known as a through-sung piece.
#28Was The Revival of Miss Saigon Considered a Failure?
Posted: 1/18/18 at 11:59am
newintown said: ""It's clear that there is a lot you don't understand. I would suggest to watch the show first before you talk."
I've seen theshow several times, andthink I understand it pretty well, thanks. Telling someone that they don't understand something that you like is nothing but a very easy way to close your eyes to disagreement."
My eyes are fully open. But the relationships in this show are actually very complicated, as is the situation they are in, and enjoying a corrupt character is something very different than identifying with it.
Edit: Was it the glorious music that made you come back several times? Or the impressive story?
#30Was The Revival of Miss Saigon Considered a Failure?
Posted: 1/18/18 at 12:25pm
I'm glad you seized the opportunity to go several times when you had the chance.
#31Was The Revival of Miss Saigon Considered a Failure?
Posted: 1/18/18 at 12:30pm
"Seized," or "was dragged?"
#32Was The Revival of Miss Saigon Considered a Failure?
Posted: 1/18/18 at 2:49pm
Maybe somewhere in the middle. Being dragged multiple times doesn't exactly show much respect for your free will, does it? Are you that submissive? Were you tied up in the seat too?
#33Was The Revival of Miss Saigon Considered a Failure?
Posted: 1/18/18 at 2:56pm
It's possible, don't judge.
#34Was The Revival of Miss Saigon Considered a Failure?
Posted: 1/20/18 at 3:33pm
jimmycurry01 said: "I don't think CamMac was ever thinking it would turn a profit on Broadway. It playing on Broadway was more likely a marketing point for the tour. He can now tout it as "Direct from Broadway." This will likely helpsell tickets to those who are not subscription holders. "
As mentioned before in another thread (I started) anything and everything is now promoted as "Direct from Broadway" whether it is or isn't - and most times it isn't. It's how they sell tickets to people who don't do Broadway, and it seems to work. So really, if he wants to market this revival that way on tour, it never had to actually be revived on Broadway first.
#36Was The Revival of Miss Saigon Considered a Failure?
Posted: 1/20/18 at 4:52pm
Curious why the OP has decided to start a thread on this subject, despite not seeing it him/herself, despite ample opportunity whilst visiting the city on business many times?
Cameron Mackintosh revived this show, for no other reason than out of all his shows, this had the most requests to be revived.
For an avid theatre fan such as myself, it was the only show that gave an opportunity to see 3 shows on Sunday.
#37Was The Revival of Miss Saigon Considered a Failure?
Posted: 1/20/18 at 5:09pm
So that made it a success?
Cameron planned for the West End run to be at least 5 years and then 3 years on Broadway prior to touring. Everything had to be scaled back because sales were so disappointing.
#38Was The Revival of Miss Saigon Considered a Failure?
Posted: 1/20/18 at 6:49pm
dramamama611 said: "You are comparing apples and oranges. People know Phantom because it's still running and still touring.
I think it has far more to do with it being unproducible at colleges, high schools and community theaters since, under most situations few of them have the necessary people to cast. That's what kept Oklahoma, West Side Story, etc alive."
I think the brand "Phantom" has much more behind it. For example the Hollywood movie from 2004, the Royal Albert Hall dvd show of the 25th anniversary, the other video promo clips, the whole world knows what this show looks like since the 80's, everyone knows the iconic boat scene with the blue/green lighting etc. Multiple recordings and videoclips floating around for decades. Same goes for Les Mis, the show has really been "out there".
With Miss Saigon there wasn't anything since the 1996 cd. A whole generation has no idea what this show is or looks like. They are only starting to rebuild the brand Miss Saigon since 2014. It takes time.
#39Was The Revival of Miss Saigon Considered a Failure?
Posted: 1/21/18 at 2:33am
newintown said: "I, too, never understood the enthusiasm forMiss Saigon, an inert pop-operetta in which two-dimensional characters tend to stand still and sing inane, soppy lyrics set to Composition 101 music, and with a book that has less insight into human relationships and the politics of the Vietnam situation than a Hallmark greeting card. This solemnbore of a show is interrupted from time to time by a cardboard yet showyvillain who embodies much of the same disgusting vices as our current President;strangely, audiences mindlessly and inexplicably seem to identify most with this grotesque, driven solely bygreed and love of material consumption."
This is the most ridiculous thing I've read in a while. At least this production understands that American capitalism/consumerism is not essentially different from communism. It also seems from your post that you are unable to understand sarcasm, which you flippantly dismiss as "a cardboard yet showyvillain who embodies much of the same disgusting vices as our current President."
mc1227
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/29/07
#40Was The Revival of Miss Saigon Considered a Failure?
Posted: 1/21/18 at 5:37am
Lot666 said: "evic said: "Like the flop that was the revival of Cats, no one was interested in seeing it. Originally, it received huge publicity because there was a helicopter on stage. Imho itis a very boring show. "
I'm always amazed when people make absolute, declarative statements like "no one was interested in seeing it", and then say "imho". There's nothing "humble" about your opinion as written, evic. Your assessment is obviously incorrect, as I (along with many others, just on this board) was very interested in seeing Miss Saigon, and not just because "there was a helicopter on stage"."
Totallly agree. Even saying outright that something is a failure is totally unfair. From a perspective of not liking the show? Financial considerations cannot be solely based on the Broadway run.
I never got to see the original and looked forward to seeing this. I thought it was a beautiful production, slow moving at times, but overall worth seeing. The subject that is a reminder of the very worst exploitation and human behavior and a very dark era in our country’s history, doesn’t help draw audiences. Some of us lived through those times and there are very painful reminders. Unfortunately, 25 years from now, this sad time in history will become overshadowed by equally embarrassing memories.
The only review of a show that matters is your own.
Princeton2
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/1/08
#41Was The Revival of Miss Saigon Considered a Failure?
Posted: 1/21/18 at 6:07am
devonian.t said: "So that made it a success?
Cameron planned for the West End run to be at least 5 years and then 3 years on Broadway prior to touring. Everything had to be scaled back because sales were so disappointing."
This!
And it doesn't matter if a show is the most requested for revival. The same was said of Evita when it was revived in London and that disappointed too
#42Was The Revival of Miss Saigon Considered a Failure?
Posted: 1/21/18 at 6:56am
mc1227 said: "
Totallly agree. Even saying outright that something is a failure is totally unfair.From a perspective of not liking the show? Financial considerations cannot be solely based on the Broadway run.
I never got to see the original and looked forward to seeing this. I thought it was a beautiful production, slow moving at times, but overall worth seeing. The subject that is a reminder of the very worst exploitation and human behavior and a very dark era in our country’s history, doesn’t help draw audiences. Some of us lived through those times and there are very painful reminders. Unfortunately, 25 years from now, this sad time in history will become overshadowed by equally embarrassing memories."
Exactly. Although I think a big part of this person's problem is also "not understanding the show". This show is in fact very complex in terms of human relations, the dark sides of human behaviour, the politics, the painful situations, the harsh reality of war (which is part of why I love this show so much), the very fine and complex line between what makes someone's choices sincere or bad. We can not expect everybody to grasp or understand this, and therefore like the show. You need to have a certain level of intelligence to take in all of this and see the bigger picture. Literally, I have seen people posting stuff complaining about a line a certain tormented and confused character says and whining that that does not match their own personal and political views, which is absurd of course. If you live like that you should not go to see another show again in your life, period. There will always be people getting offented by what's right in front of their nose without having the ability to understand the other layers.
#43Was The Revival of Miss Saigon Considered a Failure?
Posted: 1/21/18 at 7:04am
Dancingthrulife2 said: "At least this production understands that American capitalism/consumerism is not essentially different from communism. It also seems from your post that you are unable to understand sarcasm, which you flippantly dismiss as "a cardboard yet showyvillain who embodies much of the same disgusting vices as our current President.""
This. The way the show handles this comparison, this inconvenient truth, is brilliant.
They walk the same fine line with this as they do with the personal choices of the characters. Which really forces the audiences to think out of their boxes and is a work of art in writing if you ask me.
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