<p>Attended ELF at our local community theater last night. In the program, it says that ticket purchases only provide about half the funding needed for keeping the theater open and running. They also have acting classes, fundraising and a LOT of corporate sponsors to help keep themselves running. One of the other community theaters recently closed down after running for decades.</p>
<p>I too hope that more young people are drawn to attend theater, community and other productions and support it. I prefer it over movies, but each has its place. I am glad the SOM made enough that networks will consider doing similar productions and hopefully cutback on some of the awful reality “programming” that is so pervasive and billed as “entertainment.” </p>
<p>Fiddler on the Roof, properly done is always a delight; those songs are magical. Camelot is another classic with lovely songs, as is Show Boat, South Pacific and so many others. Hope there are lovely new musicals as well that can grow on us. Sure miss the genius of Rogers and Hammerstein, Lerner & Lowe.</p>
<p>Absolutely! I don’t know when this changed from “Yikes!” to they shouldn’t have done it at all. I really liked it and definitely hope there will be more.</p>
<p>That’s funny stuff. Actually, Christina Aguilera and Britney Spears in “Chicago Live” sort of shines a spotlight on the hypocricy of this whole thing. Look at some of the people who have done stints in the Broadway revival of Chicago…Jerry Springer, Usher, Billy Ray Cyrus, Wendy Williams, Brooke Shields, Christie Brinkley. I’m sure they were all compared to Olivier doing Henry V. Christina and Britney don’t seem so far fetched really. Also look at the current poster for Chicago. More risque than the parody one with Christina and Britney. </p>
<p>Almost every Broadway musical these days is based on a cartoon, movie or is a jukebox show with rehashed oldies or pop songs. Is one night of Rodgers and Hammerstein that is well-sung by all and acted not so well by one really worse than much of what Broadway is giving us these days, even with great singer/actors in the leads? A lot of shows that make it to broadway are artistically thin and are not even as good as stuff that ended up in R&H’s waste basket.</p>
<p>The second thing I read on Theatremania was about “Gossip Girl’s Leighton Meester” coming to Broadway in Of Mice and Men. She might be great, who knows. But they sure made “Gossip Girl” the prominent part of that press release, didn’t they? And she is not getting that gig because she paid her dues on the stage, is she? </p>
<p>Broadway, for better or for worse, is about the almighty dollar as much as NBC.</p>
<p>This is typical but most theatre fans aren’t aware how difficult funding is for most theatre companies. A good amount of time is spent wooing (and keeping) generous donors and corporate sponsorships, completing lengthy grant applications, all while operating on what most would consider a shoestring budget. </p>
<p>Broadway is no different, really. Don’t be fooled by attendance numbers in the millions. Only about one in five Broadway shows ‘covers its nut’, i.e., recoups its investment. When it isn’t unusual for a musical to require $20 million capitalization before anyone even sets foot on stage, the chances of anyone making a profit, are slim, unless it is one of the fortunate ones that ends up running for years and years. Most shows don’t. Have a look at shows opening and closing each year and it’s easy to see how so few make money.</p>
<p>Although SOM had some issues, it did reach 18 million people. If even a small percentage of those people decide to spend some money and go to the theatre to see a show, that’s great. Perhaps one or more of Carrie’s colleagues or friends will make a donation to their local theatre company as a result of her being in the show. Again, great. Stranger things have happened. You never know who is in an audience and who may be inspired to get involved, or to hire a particular actor they like. One thing to think about, especially at this time of year, if you have a favorite theatre company in your town, consider making a donation to them, maybe in honor of your theatre kid. Some of them even have charitable status so you’ll get a tax receipt. </p>
<p>Not every show you see is going to be a winner in every way, even on Broadway. It’s the nature of the beast.</p>
<p>One last thing on this. I saw on Good Morning America that the woman who played Gretl in the movie made a negative tweet about Carrie Underwood. This woman hasn’t been in anything in decades in spite of “returning to acting in 2005,” probably hit her high mark as a five year old a half century ago, yet she feels like she has the standing and some right to be critical of Carrie Underwood. Total bush league move, and not too bright for someone who is attempting a comeback. Well, she got her name and picture on GMA, anyway, which was probably her goal.</p>
<p>I have the utmost respect for all the talent and hard work that goes into theatre productions, especially on the Broadway level. But as alwaysmom said, not everything that gets produced is a winner, even on Broadway.</p>
<p>One of the things I found most amusing about all the tweets, reviews, blogs and CC comments that were written on the SOM was the absolutely referential regard people had for Broadway and its actors.</p>
<p>In contrast, Carrie Underwood, who did not have Broadway credits, was regarded at such a lowly level from the start. It would have been near impossible for her to raise her stature to the vaulted levels of a Broadway veteran, even if her performance had more dazzle. </p>
<p>Now truly, how much Broadway did many of these harsh critics actually witness over the years? Seeing only hits and multiple times at that certainly doesn’t count! Because the truth is that there is plenty of bad to be seen on Broadway, too. And I am not stating that as a criticism, but as a way of having people realize that without experimentation and failed efforts, theatre would remain stagnant and people won’t take chances on something new or discover and develop new talent. So for every hit on Broadway–and many of these shows are not the most acclaimed by critics–there are an even greater number of poor to mediocre Broadway shows and performances. That is the reality of Broadway, but it is also the reason for its survival. </p>
<p>So, it is nice to hear that NBC will officially create more live Broadway musicals annually. And I would expect to see “stars” at the helm who are not just Broadway veterans. I think we should give them more of a chance to succeed next time out.</p>
<p>They are also going to try to do the next live musical in a shorter time frame. Some people supposedly turned down SOM because of the long time commitment. (Anne Hathaway? Kate Hudson?)</p>
<p>Love some of the possibilities that are on bisouu’s link!</p>