PET PEEVE - PREVIEW PRICING
Back in the day, the typical
Broadway show, both musical and play, had an out-of-town tryout, came into
town, had a few lower-priced previews and then opened. Nowadays, most shows play an extended preview
period at their New York theatre before opening. In extreme cases, that preview period can
last months (eg: Spiderman). Shows do still have out-of-town tryouts (eg: The Producers, Aida, Kinky Boots, The Addams
Family, all of which played in Chicago before heading east), but then
typically, they go back into extended rehearsals and then have a few weeks of
previews before opening. I have no
problem with previews. In fact, I enjoy going
to previews because I get to see a show before the critics put their two cents
in. What I don't enjoy is paying
full-price for them. Here's my beef with
that. People have told me that sometimes
I'm too critical of shows when I see the show in previews and I don't
especially like it. "It's in previews," they say. "Things aren't set in stone yet. Don't be so critical." Okay, I get all that. Previews are
where shows have the opportunity to see what works and what doesn't. But when I'm paying full price (and producers
are fielding premium-priced tickets for previews), well, then, I expect
the show to be in opening night condition or, at the very least, damn close to
it. I think that's why I don't have any
qualms about critics reviewing a show in previews anymore. Let me rephrase that: I don't have any qualms
about critics reviewing a show in previews, even the first preview (to be fair,
they need to acknowledge that), if that show is charging full-price for
previews. If that's the case, the show
is fair game for a critical look-see. To
me full price=show's ready. But what
about the harsh economic realities of the theatre today, you ask? That's a conundrum. Union contracts dictate
certain pay and working conditions. (And
for the record here, I'm all for the unions.)
But couldn't a two-tier contract be developed? A contract that sets different working
conditions and a lower pay scale for all involved while a show is in
previews? That way, ethical producers
could translate the cost savings into lower-priced previews (at least 25% lower
than regular price) and audiences would then pay fair dollar for a work in
progress. Just an idea.
January, 2013. When the best performance in a show called
Sweet Charity is given by the actor
playing Oscar, that says volumes about the show. A very mixed bag with a good
ensemble and that terrific Cy Coleman score, terrible costumes (Charity in pink
gingham? Really?), a "meh" physical production, only serviceable
choreography, an odd directorial approach and a dull, lackluster leading
performance. Writers' is a very intimate space, perhaps too intimate for this
big, splashy 60s show. The cast of 11
seemed too small by about 4 and the competent band of 5 sounded too thin at
times. The director's choice for Charity
was a major misstep. I felt no
camaraderie existed between Charity and her two pals at the dance hall (or
between Charity and Oscar for that matter) and as a performer, she was distant
and, frankly, although not untalented, lacked the stage presence, charm and
acting and vocal chops to carry a lead role, especially this one. A far better choice for Charity would have
been Karen Burthwright who sparkled as Nickie.
Kudos to the talented Jarrod Zimmerman, whose Oscar truly was the
highpoint of the evening. An unexpected
disappointment from this usually fine company. Not crazy about the program
graphic, either. First preview. Full price.
See above. - at Writers' Theatre,
Glencoe, IL
July, 1975. What? Broadway's Maria and Robert Goulet's ex
as Ziegfeld's funny girl? She's not Jewish! And she wasn't Streisand, either.
(Okay, I admit it. I'm not a huge fan of Babs. She takes too many liberties and
now sounds shrill.) But Lawrence was really quite good in this part. Certainly
sang and danced it well. Jazz and cabaret singer Sylvia Syms played Mrs. Brice
and Harve Presnell was a big-voiced Nick. The Muny is this 11,000 seat open-air
theatre in St. Louis' beautiful Forest Park and every year they produce a
season of musicals, usually featuring B-list stars, but with fine production
values, large choruses, and a big orchestra. It's usually a grand time.
Something I haven't done in decades, either. Need to fix that. — at Municipal
Opera, St. Louis.
July, 1981. Elizabeth Taylor made her Broadway debut as
Regina Giddens in Lillian Hellman's classic play of greed and revenge. I love
this play; it's in my top twenty-five. Maureen Stapleton as Birdie was touching
and commanded the stage, as you would expect of this stage veteran. And look at
that supporting cast. Producer Zev Bufman obviously went for the best to
support his fabled star. For a stage neophyte, Taylor handled herself with
aplomb, and while she may not have been the most riveting Regina on record, she
was, without a doubt, the most glamourous. And her presence kept the "sold
out" signs up at the Beck for the entire run. — at Martin Beck
Theatre, New York City.
November, 1971. Margo Channing sings. Eve Harrington
dances. It's "All About Eve" set to music. A faithful retooling of
the beloved movie, the score for this Tony-winning show is hopelessly a product
of the 70s, with too-cute chorus numbers and an energetic, but totally unbelievable
number where the star mingles with the common folk. On opening night. In a gay
bar. Nope. Don't believe it. Not a bit. Doesn't work that way. And let's not
forget the horror of a final number where Margo Channing sings about
"being to your man what a woman should be." WTF?? By this time,
Bonnie Franklin was seriously infected with the "cutes" and I wanted
to slap her silly. The film's Eve, Anne Baxter, took over from Lauren Bacall to
good notices. I loved Bacall, but thought Baxter was just a hoot and a holler.
What fun! And standing room, no less! (Sad footnote: Gwyda DonHowe (Karen) was
married to producer Norman Kean. In
1988, Kean killed DonHowe, then committed suicide.) — at Palace Theatre, New York City.
A potpourri of ticket stubs.
September, 2005. One of Andrew Lloyd Webber's lesser
efforts. To be honest, I don't remember
much about this musical at all. The
reason we went to it was because of Ruthie Henshall, but, as luck would have
it, she was out for that performance.
Her cover was excellent, but the show wasn't. What I do remember about the show is the use
of projections in place of physical scenery that was mighty impressive at
first, but then got rather old.
"Oh, look! More
projections." Simon Callow was also
in this and for the longest time we wondered why, but then he had a song or a
scene, maybe both, where Bob and I went, "Oh, right. Nicely done, Simon, nicely done!" The show was still a waste of his terrific
talent, but that song/scene was a corker.
I couldn't hum a tune from this is my life depended on it, even
immediately after hearing it. Pretty
much forgettable from start to finish. -
at the Palace Theatre, London.
October, 1970.
Here's how this show was billed: "The Art Institute of Chicago
presents The Goodman Resident Theatre Company in The Three Penny Opera."
This was back in the days when the Goodman's home was at the Art
Institute, before it became a regional powerhouse. In fact, according to my program, this
production kicked off its second (!!) professional season and was, at
the time, Chicago's only resident theatre company. How times have changed. But I digress. I hated every minute of this. I don't like Brecht. I don't like Weill, with few exceptions. I hated the actors. And I loathe "Mack the Knife." Bleh.
- at the Goodman Theatre at the Art Institute, Chicago
October, 1978. Timbuktu! Is basically Kismet with a locale change - from
Baghdad to Timbuktu, in the Ancient Empire of Mali, West Africa. Okay.
Whatever. Roundly panned when it
opened in New York, this was gorgeous to look at and beautifully sung, and if
you're a fan of Kismet, as I am
(okay, okay…sue me!), that is enough for a pleasant evening at the
theatre. BUT, this also had Eartha
Kitt. THE Eartha Kitt, live and in
person and slinking about the stage in full, legendary glory. She could seductively purr and then fiercely
growl in a split second and dared you to look anywhere else whenever she was on
the massive Arie Crown stage. She was…a
marvel. I thoroughly enjoyed it. (Note: for quite a few years, the Arie Crown,
located in McCormick Place, was a regularly used venue for musicals. A huge barn of an auditorium with lousy
acoustics and no warmth, it was a theatregoer's nightmare, but producers loved
it because of the loads of money they could potentially make due to the
theatre's seating capacity. Fortunately,
it's not used anymore for touring productions.) - at the Arie Crown Theatre,
Chicago
December, 2006. I
really love this show. It's in my top
twenty-five. I enjoyed playing the Snake
and Sanjar in a community theatre production in Waukegan back when the earth
was cooling. The score is among my
favorites. It's one of those charming
shows that, I feel, is under-appreciated.
Having said that, it's no surprise that I was really looking forward to
seeing this. And, really, although I had
some major reservations as noted below, I wasn't disappointed. Brian d'Arcy James, in the Alan Alda parts, is
a first-rate and talented actor and was excellent in all three acts. We know Brian. He's the brother of Bob's former boss and is
just as friendly and charming as he is talented. Marc Kudisch, in the Larry Blyden parts, was
at his best as the Snake, but underused in the other two, a fault of the
writing. (I never said the show was
perfect.) Kristin Chenoweth, in the
Barbara Harris roles, was the reason most of the audience was there and I'm
sure she didn't disappoint the majority of them. In my opinion, however, she was a case of
diminishing returns. In "The Diary
of Adam and Eve," she was outstanding.
Warm, touching, funny. In
"The Lady or the Tiger?" she was getting a bit too broad. In "Passionella," she was, well,
just not funny. It was all surface
Kristin Chenoweth tricks and though "Passionella" is the broadest of
the three acts and is somewhat of a
cartoon, it's also a satire and needs to be played straight, but with a knowing
wink. Chenoweth was just out madly
chewing scenery and it hurt her overall performance. Director Gary Griffin got a superb
performance out of her in the first act, but sadly seemed to lose directorial control
over her as the show progressed. And
that was a shame. Had she been better
directed, she could have been a worthy successor to the iconic Barbara Harris
performance. Quibbles aside, though, it
was great fun. - at Studio 54, New York
That's all for now! Comments always welcome!
No comments:
Post a Comment