[title of show] going to Broadway?- Page 2

[Princeton78]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 11:28am

Perhaps the Booth? Next to the Helen Hayes, isn't it the smallest?

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 11:30am

The Booth is 785 seats, and The Circle is 623.

[leefowler]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 11:40am

No show is guaranteed of success, of course. But of the shows you listed that were "terrific" but still not financially successful, there was a cost element at work here that contributed to their failure. Company, Grey Gardens, and Caroline Or Change were much bigger shows than TOS, so the fact that weren't big tourist shows doomed them. (Also, they all received mixed reviews).
No Broadway show is inexpensive to get on, but TOS has just four principals (none of whom would recieve a star salary) and a pianist. A cult following might be enough to make them profitable.

And I'm afraid we'll have to agree to disagree about Jay Johnson being a terrific show!

[vfd88]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 11:45am

I wouldn't care if it ran for a week. As long as I can see it on Broadway, I'll be happy.

As much as I love Spelling Bee, I wouldn't mind it closing because Circle in the Square is perfect for [tos]

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 11:49am

Not to mention that COMPANY had 1096 seats to fill at the Barrymore, and CAROLINE, OR CHANGE had 1108 seats to fill at the Eugene O'Neill.

Plus, as Lee mentions, in terms of orchestra, this show has only a pianist. That's a huge overhead taken away from this production's weekly running costs.

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 11:56am

Remeber orchestra minimums on Broadway.
A small band would actually be cool.
Loved this show.

[InfiniteTheaterFrenzy]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 12:01pm

I remember reading in a musical theatre book once, about the theatre community doubting A Chorus Line's success once it transferred to Broadway. I mean, the immediate theatre audience had adored it at the Public, but how could a show about Broadway gypsies have any sort of mass appeal? No one would care about the mundane details of dancers' lives! How would they relate?
And look what happened.
I really wish I could remember which book described this...
[tos] on Broadway would have excellent producers and publicists, and a Broadway- size marketing budget. They would just need the right strategy to get butts in seats, and with that, they would succeed brilliantly. No one could possibly see it and hate it. It would have great word- of- mouth. And if it was at Circle in the Square, it would get the boost of being next to Wicked. With the right advertising, timing, and reviews, this show could be 9 people's favorite thing, 900 people's favorite thing, and 9000 people's favorite thing.
I believe in [title of show]!!! Who is with me!?!?!?!

[NJgirl]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 12:03pm

That brings up a good point - what's the Equity rule on the orchestra minimums right now? I believe you can file for a waiver on orchestra size, right? Considering I think Larry had at least a line or two in the show, does that make him an actor/musician ala John Doyle shows?

[Lavieboheme3090]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 12:23pm

PROOF and DOUBT kind of won major awards like ummm the Pulitzer Prize, so that really helped to make these smaller shows run longer. Don't get me wrong, I love [Title of Show], but I don't know if it has that caliber of being a Broadway show.

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 12:29pm

ANNA IN THE TROPICS also won the Pulitzer Prize, and it failed miserably on Broadway.

COMPANY won the Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical and it closed 30 days later, while LEGALLY BLONDE, which won nothing and didn't even perform on the Tonys telecast, is still bringing in a million dollars a week.

It's all a toss up. You just never know.

Would you have thought that URINETOWN, AVENUE Q, or SPELLING BEE could have survived on Broadway? I saw all three Off-Broadway and *adored* them but I had serious doubts about their abilities to draw a Broadway crowd, and look, as a result of being such inexpensive productions and drawing such great critical praise, they recouped and each won a couple Tonys along the way.

[WaltSummersPI]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 12:30pm

I'd agree with the poster above. [tos] is cute, but it doesn't seem to wave a "hugely marketable" flag to me.

[KChenowethfan]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 12:30pm

I love [title of show] and while I do think it is "terrific" as lee fowler says, it has a strike against it that Spelling Bee and others did not have. It presupposes a certain level of musical theatre knowledge (and love) of its audience. Spelling Bee explores a universal theme (also, spelling bees are very common in children's schools), and while [title of show] also has some universal themes, it explores a very intimate world with which the typical (now mostly tourist) audience in NY may not be very, very familiar. The jokes would likely land flat. Unlike Chorus Line, [title of show] is very community-based.

That said, I hope it does transfer and has somewhat of a decent run.

Updated On: 8/13/07 at 12:30 PM

[Lavieboheme3090]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 12:47pm

Foster, all the shows you mentioned all have/had cast larger than four. Also, the shows such as Urinetown, Ave. Q, and Bee came to Broadway shortly after very successful Off-Broadway runs, its getting to be over a year since the production of [Title of Show]. You really can't compare it to Blonde and Company to [Title], because they are two completely different beasts.

[VonTussleGirl]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 12:48pm

As much as I love Spelling Bee - and it's in my top two favorite shows of all time - [tos] would be PERFECT in the Circle. It'd keep the intimacy from the Vineyard run (at least, I think it was at the Vineyard, can anyone correct me?).

And yeah, I think Larry might qualify as an actor/musician... but who knows? I just want this to happen. Badly.

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 12:53pm

Lavieboheme3090, nobody hasn't attempted to explain this argument that shows with four of less cast members have less of a chance at success. Care to try?

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 12:56pm

By the way, SPELLING BEE was sold out before coming to Broadway.

URINETOWN and AVENUE Q (which started at the Vineyard, like [title of show]) were not sold out.

Their producers took a chance and it paid off.

[Lavieboheme3090]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 12:57pm

Not so much that the show has four or less cast members, its that I feel that it lost its chance. Should have transfered right after its Broadway run, that way it still has a good amount of press behind it.

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 1:01pm

Your arguments are changing, and are still weak.

Looks like you just want to see the show fail.

Hey, as long as there are producers who are willing to take risks on shows like AVENUE Q, SPELLING BEE, URINETOWN, and IN THE HEIGHTS, new artists have the opportunity to try to mix things up and get their voices heard on Broadway. Nobody gets hurt along the way. So I don't see why you're pulling at strings for reasons as to why this show will fail.

[wonderfulwizard11]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 1:11pm

"Looks like you just want to see the show fail."

Where do you get THAT?

[Lavieboheme3090]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 1:22pm

"Looks like you just want to see the show fail. "

O no, you found me out. As an enemy of the small artist and I am about to be brought down by you. Haha.

First off I said that I like the show, however, I do not think that Broadway is the place for this show. Broadway is way to commerical and a show such as this does not have the gimic to survive on Broadway. Will people be willing to pay $110 to see actors with just four chairs, that no one has heard of? Will tourist from Utah want to see a show about two guys writing a show about two guys writing a show for a theater festival, ask your basic tourist what a theater festival is, and they most likely won’t be able to tell you. You are right it is amazing that we have producers who are willing to take risks on the smaller Off-Broadway shows and bring them to a sorely lacking Broadway, but where are those champions for [Title]? Don’t you think that they would have been very open and public about it if someone were willing to put up millions of dollars to bring this show to the great white way? The things that shows like this typically rely on before transferring are a successful run Off-Broadway, and as many people said before in its closing weeks it wasn’t selling out, major awards of some sort like the Pulitzer for Doubt and Proof, gimmick, those puppets sure are cute and Urinetown’s name defiantly peaks your interest, or a top notch creative team that people have heard of such as the team behind Spelling Bee. O yeah, and a plot that is really universal, [Title] has some hilarious jokes, but not everyone has seen the national tour of 1776.

Then again maybe I just hate all art, and want it to fail...Well, at least Spring Awakening.

Updated On: 8/13/07 at 01:22 PM

[TulitaPepsi]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 1:28pm

I would not be surprised if [title of show] had some tricks up its sleeve. A revised Broadway [tos] may not be strictly what we all saw off-Broadway - Jeff & Hunter's opening number for this years Easter Bonnet peagent may offer a clue to what MIGHT be the Broadway [tos].

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 1:37pm

Lavieboheme3090, pardon my overreaction.

You have a lot of good points. It's out of anybody's hands but the producers right now. So I guess we'll just have to see what happens. I agree that the average tourist from Utah will not have interest in this show, but if it is in a small theatre like Circle with a tiny overhead, a New York audience may be all it needs to get started, spreading word of mouth, making back its small investment, and garnering more critical praise and possibly awards. They have the New York Times on their side. Isherwood gave it a rave Off-Broadway, and one would assume he would follow-up with something along the same lines for Broadway. Again, sorry for my previous response.

[Timmer]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 1:39pm

So is it coming to Broadway or not?

[NJgirl]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 1:40pm

Sure, [tos] the premise is about 2 guys writing a show about 2 guys writing a show for a theater festival. Who cares if a tourist knows what a theater festival is? It's got a deeper message and heart than what the plot premise leads you to believe. "die vampires, die" anyone?

[Lavieboheme3090]

Posted: 8/13/07 at 1:42pm

Haha, its ok Foster, guess like most things in life we will just agree to dissagree.