Would a revival of OH! CALCUTTA! succeed on Broadway now?

[markypoo]

Posted: 10/18/19 at 7:59pm

With the passing of Bill Macy - noted as being one of the original cast fifty years ago - and one previous revival that lasted thirteen years, just how would it resonate now?
Gratuitous nudity has been known to sell tickets occasionally...
Comments/opinions?

[thirtythirtyninety]

Posted: 10/18/19 at 8:08pm

Nope.

[UncleCharlie]

Posted: 10/18/19 at 8:58pm

A show that was groundbreaking and a perfect fit for the late 60's/early 70's with the dawning of the sexual revolution would in 2019, I think feel hopelessly dated. When every strand of sexual activity can be viewed with merely a mouse click, the idea of paying $189 just to see nudity would seem to have limited appeal for most people. It's sure not helping Linda Vista sell tickets and the nudity in that show is hardly gratuitous.

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 10/18/19 at 10:04pm

I agree with Uncle Charlie. The long-running revival was basically pre-cable TV, pre-internet, pre-Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Prime.

If you want nudity or scenes about sexuality, you have many, far better options.

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 10/19/19 at 1:03pm

No. Not to mention that it's an extremely misogynistic piece. The "Jack and Jill" sketch would not be tolerated in this day and age. Here is a brief synopsis from the show's Wikipedia page:

A boy and a girl who just met are in their own playland, with the boy constantly trying to find ways to seduce the girl who is afraid of him because he is a boy. The sketch ends with the girl in a coma after the boy rapes her.

 

Updated On: 10/19/19 at 01:03 PM

[Dollypop]

Posted: 10/19/19 at 2:57pm

NAKED MEN SINGING continues to run and run and run...

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 10/19/19 at 3:40pm

Dollypop said: "NAKED MEN SINGING continues to run and run and run..."

Did Naked Boys Singing start again? I remember they seemed to close at Theatre Row without a press release even.

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 10/19/19 at 4:16pm

They moved over to the Theatre Center at some point during the summer. They have a grueling schedule of one performance a week in front of Perfect Crime's set (I have no idea how much of that gets moved out of the way for their performance as I sure as hell have no plans to spend any of my time or money to see either one).

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 10/19/19 at 4:40pm

AEA AGMA SM said: "They moved over to the Theatre Center at some point during the summer. They have a grueling schedule of one performance a week in front ofPerfect Crime'sset (I have no idea how much of that gets moved out of the way for their performance as I sure as hell have no plans to spend any of my time or money to see either one)."

I didn't know! It looks like Naked Boys Singing is at the Jerry Orbach Theatre though. Perfect Crime is playing at a different theatre in the same building.

[Jarethan]

Posted: 10/19/19 at 11:07pm

UncleCharlie said: "A show that was groundbreaking and a perfect fit for the late 60's/early 70's with the dawning of the sexual revolution would in 2019, I think feel hopelessly dated. When every strand of sexual activity can be viewed with merely a mouse click, the idea of paying $189 just to see nudity would seem to have limited appeal for most people. It's sure not helping Linda Vista sell tickets and the nudity in that show is hardly gratuitous."

You give it way too much credit.   It was a terrible show that got terrible reviews.  Its sole reason for running as long as it did was the novelty of nudity and stupid, smutty skits, like the masturbation contest.  The joke many years ago was that male Japanese tourists kept it running for years.

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 10/20/19 at 1:09am

CATSNYrevival said: "I didn't know! It looks like Naked Boys Singing isat the Jerry Orbach Theatre though. Perfect Crime is playing at a different theatre in the same building."

It could be. I haven't been in the Jerry Orbach Theatre since The Fantastiks was in there and it was set up in 3/4 thrust style, so when I glanced at the seating chart and saw it showing as more traditional proscenium I assumed it was in Perfect Crime's space.

[AADA81]

Posted: 10/20/19 at 9:53pm

I doubt it.  First, it's not a good show.  Nudity helped propel the original but that's old news now.  Also, that kind of nudity on Broadway now precludes the family business, which makes up a huge part of revival audiences.  Off-Broadway, sure; on-Broadway, nope.

[Jarethan]

Posted: 10/20/19 at 10:53pm

I don’t even think Off-Broadway. It was really bad and would be unwatchable today.

[markypoo]

Posted: 10/21/19 at 8:14am

But by the same token, just who would be going to see Naked Boys Singing! after more than twenty years?

[temms]

Posted: 10/21/19 at 10:22am

You can watch OH CALCUTTA on video. As mentioned above, the Jack And Jill sketch alone is utterly horrifying. I turned it off the first time I watched it and bad ‘70s rock shows are totally my jam. I watched it again some time later to see if it was really as bad as I’d thought and it was. I presumed they must have cut it at some point but it seems like it was part of the show until the end.

And for a show with music by PDQ Bach (aka Peter Schickele) the score is surprisingly bland and thoroughly uninteresting. Even Let My People Come has more interesting music.

[g.d.e.l.g.i.]

Posted: 10/21/19 at 12:32pm

(And Let My People Come is similarly banal and vanilla by today's tastes, as a revival with some new bits recently proved.)