#26
Posted: 8/29/17 at 10:59pm
I didn't see it, but the concept of 101 Dalmations: The Musical makes my skin crawl.
Worst National Tour — Page 2
#27
Posted: 8/29/17 at 11:26pm
Was going to mention 101 DALMATIANS - I never saw it but wish I had. It looked like a camp classic in the making!
#28
Posted: 8/29/17 at 11:38pm
I saw a tour of "The Music Man" in Huntsville, AL in the early 2000s or late 1990s, and I was infatuated. I thought it was amazing. Not sure if it was non-equity or Equity, as that didn't matter to me then, but now I'm curious. I thought it was such a lush production.
I'd think most of the "worst" are going to be Non-Equity tours that just don't have the budget for their Broadway counterparts. I'm SO curious about the Ghost tour though. Like, how'd they do all those effects, etc.
#29
Posted: 8/30/17 at 12:28am
I had forgotten about that Camelot mess from a few years ago. I feel sorry for everyone who saw that and thought that was what the show was supposed to be.
#30
Posted: 8/30/17 at 12:44am
RippedMan said: "I'm SO curious about the Ghost tour though. Like, how'd they do all those effects, etc."
Most of them were the same as on Broadway. I enjoyed that tour a lot.
I saw a chamber music version of Ghost here in Lancaster,PA(it also played in Maine) that wasn't the best thing ever but it was equity. The girl that played Molly was amazing. The watering down of the music was not amazing.
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#31
Posted: 8/30/17 at 2:14am
Titanic. The music was beautiful but the cheap recreation of the Broadway set was unforgivable. They should have completely reconceived the production. The sinking scene was laughable.
#32
Posted: 8/30/17 at 2:20am
TapDanceGal said: "Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat tour with Ace Young & Diana DeGarmo
This.
#33
Posted: 8/30/17 at 4:00am
Three big ones come to mind:
- Beauty and the Beast Non-Equity circa 2013
- Dirty Dancing circa 2015
- The Little Mermaid (currently running)
I must say the worst would be the current Mermaid. It was downright dreadful. Boring uninspired script, adverage staging, horrible set, with maybe two standouts in the cast. I had never wanted to leave during intermission before seeing that show. Sadly I was there on a press comp because I was reviewing, so my morals made me stay. If that tour comes near you avoid it like the plague. 2.5 hours of sheer boredom I'll never get back.
#34
Posted: 8/30/17 at 10:17am
Dirty Dancing came to Philly a few months ago and I got free tickets through a contest and my god what a cheap piece of crap. The set was insanely cheap, the acting was pitiful [sans the hilarity of the girl playing Lisa who I just kept saying was the true star of the show], and it was barely musical - the poor cast members who did all the singing [while doing great work] couldn't even save it. At intermission I turned to my aunt and I referred to it as Dirt Cheap: The Barely Musical.
"Anybody that goes to the theater, I think we’re all misfits, so we ended up on stage or in the audience.” --- Patti LuPone.
#35
Posted: 8/30/17 at 10:37am
Wildcard said: "Titanic. The music was beautiful but thecheap recreation of the Broadway set was unforgivable. They should have completely reconceived the production. The sinking scene was laughable."
I need to see video of this sinking scene now.
For me, it was the Rent 20th Anniversary Tour. Just awful. The kids in the show seemed like they just got out of high school and didn't really understand the material. Didn't help that Mimi couldn't find the right note to save her life or that the audience wouldn't stop singing...
#36
Posted: 8/30/17 at 10:48am
Anybody here see the national tour of Bullets Over Broadway last year? i had the misfortune of buying discounted tickets at $25 a piece in Chicago and even that was too much for what I had to sit through. My bf and I contemplated walking out through most of it. I guess I'm not surprised looking it up now to see that it was a non-equity tour but God was it just TERRIBLE.
#37
Posted: 8/30/17 at 10:53am
The Dirty Dancing tour was embarassingly bad.
I kind of blocked the Diana Degarmo and Ace production of Joseph from my memory.
I have to agree about Matilda. I walked out during intermission.
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Updated On: 8/30/17 at 10:53 AM
#38
Posted: 8/30/17 at 10:54am
Has there ever been a non-equity tour that used at least an equity tours set?
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#39
Posted: 8/30/17 at 10:57am
^I'm almost positive that the Once non equity tour (which was great) used the Equity tour set.
"Anybody that goes to the theater, I think we’re all misfits, so we ended up on stage or in the audience.” --- Patti LuPone.
#40
Posted: 8/30/17 at 11:04am
Call_me_jorge said: "Has there ever been a non-equity tour that used at least an equity toursset?"
pretty sure the most recent Pippin tour. which was stellar btw
#41
Posted: 8/30/17 at 11:10am
The best part of the Ghost tour performance that I caught was when the actor playing Carl removed his shirt.
#42
Posted: 8/30/17 at 11:20am
RippedMan said: "I saw a tour of "The Music Man" in Huntsville, AL in the early 2000s or late 1990s, and I was infatuated. I thought it was amazing. Not sure if it was non-equity or Equity, as that didn't matter to me then, but now I'm curious. I thought it was such a lush production.
I'd think most of the "worst" are going to be Non-Equity tours that just don't have the budget for their Broadway counterparts. I'm SO curious about the Ghost tour though. Like, how'd they do all those effects, etc."
Two of my favorite tour shows were The Music Man tour that you refered to and The Miss Saigon tour (that starred JonJon Briones) which came a few years later. Both Big League Theatricals. They were both non-equity but were fabulous. The Miss Saigon tour was the best Saigon production I've ever seen.
Non equity doesn't have to mean horrible. And Equity doesn't make it good either.
#43
Posted: 8/30/17 at 12:39pm
There are a few national tours I have seen that I have found to be horrendous. Some may be unpopular opinions, but these are just my thoughts.
Dirty Dancing- Like you said, It seemed a little cheap. Also the script seemed to make not sense to me. I also felt that the actors were lacking.
Flashdance- I saw this show probably about 5 years ago and it was just terribly boring to sit through. The script lacked interesting dialogue.
Finding Neverland- I am personally a huge fan of Finding Neverland, but in my opinion, every time they moved the show it just got a little worse. I found the show to be brilliant and beautiful when it had its debut and the ART, but once they took it to broadway, the took some songs and scenes out that I felt added a layer to Barrie's character and his internal conflict. Once it started its national tour, they removed even more songs and scenes which seemed to leave some holes in the plot.
#44
Posted: 8/30/17 at 1:17pm
I was in callbacks for Flashdance and found the music to be super catchy and fun - at least the 2 I sang. Not sure about the rest.
#45
Posted: 8/30/17 at 1:26pm
Call_me_jorge said: "Has there ever been a non-equity tour that used at least an equity toursset?"
Yeah, it happens all the time. When the Equity tour closes, the producers sell the physical production to the next company (or keep it if they're the ones going non-Eq). The set will often be scaled down, but is still from the original tour. Recent examples off the top of my head: Once, Anything Goes, Pippin, Cinderella
#46
Posted: 8/30/17 at 1:49pm
I didn't see it, but the concept of 101 Dalmations: The Musical makes my skin crawl.
Funnily enough, I gave away my ticket to 101 Dalmations to a BWW member and we've been like family ever since. Glad he didn't hold it against me.
I actually didn't hate Dirty Dancing or Ghost. Probably because I got tickets cheap and my expectations were already very low. Dirty Dancing was silly, but I still had fun with the story and the songs. The worst thing about Ghost was the cheesy ensemble choreography, but there were things I enjoyed about it. Didn't love it, didn't hate it, seen worse.
I did see a really shoddy tour of Beauty and the Beast around 2001. I attended the world premiere of the show and the rigging for the big transformation at the end didn't work. The 2001 tour was the first opportunity I had to finally see the effect and the whole production was a letdown, especially that effect. The Beast looked like he should have been strapped to a target while a magician threw knives at him. Everything was marked, phoned in, and devoid of energy or spontaneity. It was like watching a dress rehearsal for a summer theme park show.
"What can you expect from a bunch of seitan worshippers?" - Reginald Tresilian
#47
Posted: 8/30/17 at 2:46pm
Non-Equity tour of AIDA back in late 2006. One unimaginably dull set, cheap costumes, almost no costume changes except Amneris, weak staging (some dance numbers were O.K.). Cast was obviously trying so hard. They looked relieved to be done at curtain call.
Despite that, the future Congressman sitting behind me was sobbing at the end of each act.
#48
Posted: 8/30/17 at 3:38pm
I actually really enjoyed Flashdance when it came to Philly a few years ago. The score is super catchy and the show was silly and felt like a mash up of Rock of Ages and The Wedding Singer which worked for me. Jillian Mueller, Corey Mach, Ginna Claire Mason, and Dequina Moore were highlights for me.
"Anybody that goes to the theater, I think we’re all misfits, so we ended up on stage or in the audience.” --- Patti LuPone.
#49
Posted: 8/30/17 at 9:40pm
ClumsyDude15 said: "I actually really enjoyed Flashdance when it came to Philly a few years ago. The score is super catchy and the show was silly and felt like a mash up of Rock of Ages and The Wedding Singer which worked for me. Jillian Mueller, Corey Mach, Ginna Claire Mason, and Dequina Moore were highlights for me."
And I was about to type that I HOPED that the touring production that I saw of Flashdance represented the absolute nadir of national tours, because I could not imagine having to sit through anything worse than that. I only stayed for Act 2 because I was with other people...and I occasionally regretted not sitting it out in the lobby. I will also admit that I had no interest in seeing it in the first place, but somehow someone purchased a ticket for me.
#50
Posted: 8/30/17 at 10:24pm
The recent Dreamgirls tour.
the NETworks Beauty & the Beast tour.
the Pippin non-equity tour.
The Annie tour(non-equity, ~2002/2003?)
The Cats tour(non-equity, ~2011?)
A Chorus Line revival played its final Broadway performance on August 17, 2008. The tour played its final performance on August 21, 2011. A new non-equity tour started in October 2012 played its final performance on March 23, 2013. Another non-equity tour launched on January 20, 2018. The tour ended its US run in Kansas City and then toured throughout Japan August & September 2018.
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