getting the final bow...

[eatlasagna]

Posted: 7/6/05 at 12:10am

now... i understand that some stars get the final bow because they are the name star... but there are some shows out there where i've always wondered why the final bow went to someone else... for example..

I've always felt that Belle should get the final bow in the show because... well... she sings more and does more than the Beast... i never really understand why she doesn't get the final bow... she seems like the star of the show

The Phantom of the Opera... now I understand why the Phantom gets the final bow... but i've always felt Christine should... once again because the PHantom barely has any stage time... but whatever

Miss Saigon... now when Lea Salogna rejoined, she got the final bow... but i've always felt Kim deserved the final bow and now the Engineer... eh

not really a final bow... but in AIDA, why did Amonasro and the Pharaoh get a bow but Nehebka didnt???

[dry2olives]

Posted: 7/6/05 at 12:26am

Bows are often contractual, and there can be other reasons besides the size of a role that determines the bow order. Often a replacement simply inherets the bow spot from the production's originators. Also, directors try and avoid any drop in applause during the curtain calls. The Beast may be a smaller role, but he's a more colorful role than Belle and is likely to get more applause. The Phantom and the Engineer are also both flashier roles than the leading ladies and are also more likely to get a bigger hand.

[CurtainUp]

Posted: 7/6/05 at 12:40am

I don't want to be snarky, but the show isn't called "The Chick the Phantom Trained" - it's called "The Phantom of the Opera"

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 7/6/05 at 12:43am

And what's the world coming to when a big chunk of metal on wheels gets the final bow over one of the most talented actors of his generation? ahem. (And I don't care that the show is called "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" and not "Caractacus Potts." )

Updated On: 7/6/05 at 12:43 AM

[TonyBWay]

Posted: 7/6/05 at 12:48am

Its generally at the director's discrention who bows where and when. I have never read in a contract or have heard that it is in anyway contractually obligated for them to have certain bows. But I won't completely discredit that idea. That sort of negotiation usually complies with "right of nation" clause. Which refers to billing on a marquee, et al.

[apdarcey]

Posted: 7/6/05 at 1:07am

so i never liked that the emcee got the final bow in cabaret until one production of it i was in where it was utterly clear that it was the emcee's show. he was orchestrating the whole thing. it was marvelous... and a revelation to me as a performer

[Sumofallthings]

Posted: 7/6/05 at 1:15am

It was weird for me when I played Mr. Applegate because I got the most applause but bowed 3rd to last before Lola and Meg. It was just sort of strange.

Updated On: 7/6/05 at 01:15 AM

[apdarcey]

Posted: 7/6/05 at 1:17am

you bowed after lola? i think when i did it applegate, joe hardy and lola were the last three? who went after you?

[Sumofallthings]

Posted: 7/6/05 at 1:25am

No I meant I bowed before Lola and Meg. Sorry I'll correct that.

[BwayLeadman]

Posted: 7/6/05 at 2:29am

When I did Damn Yankees, Applegate was the last to bow.

[Broadway_Bound_Star]

Posted: 7/6/05 at 2:34am

I did South Pacific and Cable NEVER bowed.

[workmanarts]

Posted: 7/6/05 at 2:38am

When I played Applegate, the director had all 5 come out together (old joe, meg, young joe, lola and applegate) each couple took individuals bows together, then applegate.....sorry but that show is applegate's...he bow's last. Nothing like a bad curtain call..

[eatlasagna]

Posted: 7/6/05 at 2:57am

which one is Nehebka?

Nehebka was the chick who had the small solo during Dance of the Robe and The Gods Love Nubia... she also had like two or three lines... oh and she was the one that took Aida's place at the end and was killed instead of her...

[Unknown User]

Posted: 7/6/05 at 3:08am

If there's a lead couple, the man usually bows last because of "ladies first"

[Pinguin]

Posted: 7/6/05 at 3:11am

HA, I almost chided eatlasagna for spoilers but then I realized that the show isn't open anymore. and it really doesn't matter.

[eatlasagna]

Posted: 7/6/05 at 3:49am

this is random... but i hate that word chided... only because i missed it in a spelling bee in the 8th grade... aaargh

[wonderland]

Posted: 7/6/05 at 4:25am

Am I the only one who doesn't like curtain calls for this very reason? They always seem to set up a caste system for who has the "best" role, and there are invariably hard feelings over them. There's also that whole ensemble-destroying moment where one actor gets huge applause and the others don't. I prefer the curtain to come up and the whole cast to take one bow, gesture to the orchestra, and leave. That's one of the genius moments of ACL- no principals, no curtain call.

But since we're on the topic... I got the second to last bow as Charlie in Brigadoon, before Fiona and Tommy but after Meg and Jeff, something I never understood. Then again, as Patrick in Mame I bowed before Beau, which I disagreed with. So it goes both ways, I suppose.

[Eastwickian]

Posted: 7/6/05 at 4:53am

In the London production of Grease a few years back a 'star' (read failed pop artist) played teen angel and had the final bow over Sandy and Danny. I was furious, but probably the only one that really cared in the whole theatre

It really is as much to do with the actors performance as much as the characters importance - Ian McShane had the final bow after the three witches in The Witches of Eastwick and I remember a dip in applause when he came out. When Clarke Peters took over, the balance was restored and the order worked.

[WonderBoy]

Posted: 7/6/05 at 11:19am

Unfortunately was is missed here is the fact that the curtain call is for the actors to thank their audience not for the audience to praise a performance.

[PleaseChangeMe]

Posted: 7/6/05 at 11:26am

True, true, but in ACL, the reprise of One IS the bows. It's listed in the Vocal Score as Bows.

[WonderBoy]

Posted: 7/6/05 at 11:39am

"The Bows" in ACL are very interesting as most of the time the audience doesn't get that it is indeed the curtain call. Besides, the whole point of one is to show everyone in unison looking exactly alike and being unable to distinguish individual characters. I also don't feel like "One" is a curtain call. I always felt like the bow on SR was part of the choreography and not an individual bow.

[WOSQ]

Posted: 7/6/05 at 11:42am

Some calls are most definitely negotiated into the actor's contract.

"Last Star Bow" is a term for a solo call and the last one onstage. No one else is onstage when the star's entrance is made for their bow. Think most curtain calls for Rose at the end of Gypsy.

Solo Bow is when there company stays onstage and the star enters, bows, and then the company leaves stage (or the grand drape comes in, they leave and then it goes up again) so the star can have a solo bow. Then the company returns.

Yes, the bows are set by the director, but they are often mandated by agents doing their job. Some actors get solo bows (and featured billing) instead of more money.

What happens at the end of Wicked? Both actresses enter at the exact same time (or at least Idina and Kristen did), both walked down center and bowed at the same time. No one came onstage first, neither bowed last and neither took an extra bow. That's agentry. Also tact on management's part.