Will Chase on HiFi's Closing

http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=43581893&blogID=205881410


He's not wrong.

I agree that the internet has changed the preview period. This is why I wait to see a show until it is frozen to comment on it.

Will is so charming (clearly moreso from his blog--thanks Yankee for pointing us there), and I wish him the best of career.

Even last night, the audience gave great feedback to the show. Yet the same people who were "hooting" around me did not like the show. I think the response is due to the fun the performers were having.

They gave it their all and believed in the material. As a performer, that is your job. It's hard to separate.

I understand his "catty" comment. It's true. Some critics go in with the review semi-written. Most BLOGGERS on this site or any other LOVE to bash a show during or before it's frozen.

However, when the majority of national critics and others agree on the fundamental problems on a show, it should be no surprise that it doesn't sell.

Word of mouth is the key to Broadway. Even greatly reviewed shows won't run if the audience doesn't connect. (Sondheim, anyone?)

HIGH FIDELITY connects temporarily, but the audiences are not telling their friends about it.

Will Chase and his cast members have nothing to be ashamed about.

The work is solid.

The show itself just does not connect...

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"These days it seems it is more fun for the "critic" to be as witty and nasty as possible...

The absolute truest line in there. These days, reviews are all about cleverly using a show's negative aspects in witty little puns. I'm not just speaking of this show, though. That's the entire critical approach to everything, it appears.

Will definitely has a point, I think. The focus in theatrical criticism seems to be on the critic's stylistic flair rather than the material at hand. It's difficult to even tell what Ben Brantley thinks of a show some of the time (though not, obviously, in the case of High Fidelity) because his writing is so meandering. Of course it's fun to read an amusing review, but not at the expense of valid criticism or praise of the material.

Such true words.

Man, I loved this show... I was planning on seeing it like 4 more times in January and Febuary.

But people on here are not professional writers that are influencing thousands of people on whether or not to see a show.

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Rubbish..

Look at any of the flops over the last 12 months and most of the damage was done way before a critic even had put pen to paper...While most of the shows will have closed in due course, they have no hope of ever getting bums on seats, cause within hours of the first preview finishing, the show is being ripped apart on the internet.

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There can be nothing wrong with too much information. If this forces people to raise the level of what gets produced on B'way, then I am all for it. (I doubt it will)
According to the Boston Critics-High Fidelity was in trouble there.
The audience never picked up here in NYC-that is what doomed it. Jekyll didn't get anywhere near rave reviews, but an audience who loved the show kept it alive. Sometimes things just don't work out. It very rarely has to do with how hard you work on something. It's the hardest lesson in showbusiness to learn. Will has been around long enough to know that.

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It was great to read Will's personal thoughts on it, thanks Yankee. I saw the show tonight as well and I really really wanted to just sit back and have a good time, but the more it went on, the more annoyed I got...I'm not going to be negative and so I'm not even going to bother posting an analytical critique--that's like kicking someone when they're down--but I found myself agreeing with most of the critics. You guys are coming down on the critics, but they were just stating their educated opinions. The only critic I thought was overly nasty was Brantley (sorry, but "Top Five Most Forgettable Musicals" was just uncalled for).

"Look at any of the flops over the last 12 months and most of the damage was done way before a critic even had put pen to paper..."

Hmm, yes. I completely agree with all the proof you cite. Too much proof, if you ask me.

The thing is that advanced sales have a ton to do with how long the production can stay open, and the advance sales for High Fidelity were not good. Before any professional reviews were posted, High Fidelity was already in bad shape. A nasty review from a newspaper on opening night would not have hurt the show at all. It's just that a good review could *theoretically* have helped the show to stay open a little longer. But this show definitely did not deserve good reviews. I know it doesn't necessarily deserve catty reviews either, but we cannot blame the critics for a show's closing when we all know that the show on it's own is just not good. I always say "Give credit where credit is due, and point the finger only when someone is truely at fault." We cannot point the finger at the critics here, but rather at the musical itself.

So after the first one or two previews of "Any of the flops in the past 12 months", how long did it take for the first post asking "How long before this closes".

And yes why that staement above may have been broad,I do believe people will read what others think before spending money on a show in previews.

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The real problem with the internet is not people reviewing previews, but people bashing shows based on what others said. More than half the people that bash shows on here have never even seen them. This is so immature and rude and it's causing failure to shows that could have been possibly entertaining to someone.

I too have fallen victim to this at times because whenever I plan on seeing something new, I read the board reviews also. Therefore, don't review or bash a show if you haven't seen it.

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