Broadway panders to the mainstream- vol. 2

Back in April, I blogged about the Glee phenomenon, and how a show that's supposed to make Broadway cool is actually doing more for the current pop artists that it pays tribute to. You can read that post by clicking below

http://http//broadwaysnark.blogspot.com/2010/04/glee-phenomenon-is-broadway-going.html

Now along those same lines, Michael Riedel reported today that the opening medley at this year's Tony Awards is "Pop Songs You Didn't Know Were on Broadway". Yes, the Broadway league is practically begging America to think that theater is cool by showcasing the well known songs that you can see performed on the stage. Million Dollar Quartet will break out it's rock jukebox catalog, Kristin Chenowith will perform "I Say A Little Prayer", Twyla Tharp's crew will do their "So You Think You Can dance to Sinatra" show, Catherine Zeta Jones will perform "Send In The Clowns" , and Green Day will finish with songs from American Idiot.

Hey, you know who ISN'T being mentioned?? The cast of Memphis, which is the only original musical of the season to be nominated, and considered by many to be the front runner to win Best Musical.

Isn't it a shame when the show that might be the best show of the season ends up getting buried because it's not a star driven jukebox??

But it isn't just the musical category that is guilty of this. The Tony Awards have reportedly decided to showcase the most successful plays of the season, featuring appearances from Denzel Washington, Viola Davis, Scarlett Johannson, and Christopher Walken. Interesting that nobody was doing that for a couple of years ago, isn't it? Then again, the show didn't have a Hollywood A-lister headlining it.

I get it. The Tony telecast is a chance to reach out to millions of potential tourists (although given the usual ratings for the Tonys, you still aren't reaching as many people as a new Family Guy episode) and get them to attend live theater. It's an important audience and we need it. But it seems hypocritical to say Chenowith's performance was not as worthy of an award as Montego Glover's, only to pimp Kristen on the telecast since casual fans know her from Glee, while Montego will be buried in between technical awards in the middle of the show.

Maybe Montego's agent can get her on Grey's Anatomy between now and her next Tony nomination. Then she'll be important enough to be on the show.

Good news for Michael Douglas???

He likely won't have to take his son's framed mugshot down off of the mantle to clear space for his wife's Tony Award. People in the know all seem to insist that Catherine Zeta-Jones' award season hopes are fading, after the Oscar winning actress missed 5 performances over the last two weeks with a viral infection that has killed her voice. To make matters worse, the missed performances have come at a critical time, when Tony voters are attending shows and deciding on who to vote for.

While I certainly empathize with the frustration of losing your voice at such a critical time, I will also go on record and say that healthy or not, CZJ probably doesn't deserve the award in the first place. I attended a performance of A Little Night Music while visiting the city in April, and while Zeta Jones looked amazing, she didn't SOUND amazing. Her voice was already showing some wear and tear from the eight performances a week, and while she may have won her Academy Award for belting out Velma's songs in Chicago, she did sound different without the added help of some good, old-fashioned, Hollywood post production. "Send In The Clowns" is not the most vocally demanding song in the Sondheim catalog, requiring an actress to hit all of about 7 notes, but even so, I didn't think she pulled it off. Her acting performance was convincing, but this is the Tony's. Your vocals have to count for something s well.

All that being said, her six month run at the Walter Kerr Theater is good for Broadway. I suppose her winning an award on a national telecast to casual theater fans would be even better for Broadway.

It just might not be the right decision artistically.

Box Office Results- The Tony Aftermath

Now that the Tony nominations have been announced, it's interesting to take a look and see if there is any correlation to the box office receipts for last week. By and large, the answer is a resounding "no".

Of the 4 nominees for "best musical", only Fela saw a significant bump over the previous week, filling the Eugene O' Neill theater to 93% capacity (a 22% increase), and a $163,000 increase in gross. To me, Fela feels like the Passing Strange of the season in that it's been a far bigger critical hit than a commercial one, so hopefully the Tony buzz translates into business beyond the next few weeks. The producers (including Will and Jada Pinkett-Smith) are trying their best to capitalize on the momentum, announcing plans for a national tour in 2011.

American idiot and Memphis were essentially flat from last week's attendance, although their grosses were up a little (probably more to do with fewer discounts). The surprise nominee, Million Dollar Quartet was actually down 10% after it was nominated for best musical, taking in nearly $40,000 less and playing to only 57% capacity at the Nederlander Theater. Still though, the producers are soldiering on and have announced that they are selling tickets through November. Anyone care to wager as to whether the show actually lasts that long?

Of the two nominated revivals that are still open, only La Cage saw a spike, up $60,000 from last week and filling the Longacre to 88% capacity, which is more impressive when you see the overall anemic attendance across the board last week.

Which of this season's musicals ARE doing big business? The panned Addams Family and Promises, Promises, both topping the million dollar mark once again. Should we be surprised that this season's most negatively reviewed shows are grossing the highest?? Not really. All you have to take a look at last weekend's Hollywood box office, where the widely panned Iron Man 2 took in $133 million dollars to see the disconnect between critics and audiences. By the way, despite the negative buzz on IM2, all I read this weekend on facebook were status updates from moviegoers praising it as being better than the first one.

The bottom line?? Today's audience doesn't want to be told how they should feel about the product. They are happy to judge for themselves.... and isn't that what makes art great???

The biggest losers on Tony nomination day....

The Tony committee giveth...and they also taketh away. By now, you have already read about the big winners (Fela, Memphis, etc), but let us take a moment to see who lost the most based on this morning's nominations.

1. Enron- On paper, this seemed like it was going to be a no brainer. The show was enormously successful in the UK, where the West End production is still running. The American cast was strong, the production was slick and stylized, and in the end, it didn't matter. Enron, which was not well received by critics, was playing to about 65 percent capacity at an average ticket price of $35. While it was nominated for 4 awards this morning, it was not included in the all important "Best Play" category, and the closing notice was posted just hours later, a mere 12 days after opening

2- The Addams Family- As I discussed in yesterday's prediction blog, the show has been the target of largely unjustified hatred by theater insiders. Ken Davenport may be the only person I know of to come out and say the show deserved a "Best Musical" nomination. While I figured the backlash would keep TAF of that category, there were enough strong performances by Nathan Lane, Kevin Chamberlain, and Carolee Carmello to merit multiple acting nods. I also figured that such a visually impressive show would be acknowledged in the technical categories. At the end of the day, it was only nominated twice, an acting nod for Chamberlain, and a surprising best score nomination for the heavily panned music from Andrew Lippa. The good news for Addams Family?? It's consistent seven figure weekly gross should keep it going strong for the time being, avoiding the fate that 9 to 5 suffered after last year's Tony snub.

3. Broadway stars- This year, many beloved Broadway performers were passed over in place of their Hollywood counterparts. Noticeably absent from the acting categories this year were Kristen Chenowith, Nathan Lane, and Bebe Neuwirth. In their place were Denzel Washington, Sean Hayes, Scarlett Johannson, and others. The only one of those omissions that I personally have a problem with is the extraordinary Lane, who single-handedly carries Addams on his back 8 shows a week. Broadway fans shouldn't be too upset about this trend as the Denzels and Scarlett's of the world do bring new fans to the theater, and legitimize Broadway to people who might not otherwise care.

The winners will be announced June 13th at Radio City Music Hall.

Tony Award Predictions

The Tony Awards are announced tomorrow morning, so let's take a minute to make some predictions.

This was an absolutely atrocious year for original musicals, especially on the heels of last season's slew of work like Billy Elliot and Next to Normal. Most of this year's likely nominees are shows that would have been featured in the "Theatrical Event" category last year.

Assuming that Fela, Memphis, and American Idiot are shoe-ins, that leaves one spot, and no strong contenders. The Addams Family seems to lack any goodwill among the New York insiders who are making this decisions, even if the hatred is somewhat unfair. Everyday Rapture only transferred to Broadway at the last minute after Megan Mullaly pulled a Jeremy Piven (enjoy that career as a butter substitute pitch woman, Megan!). Sondheim on Sondheim got love from the outer critics, but doesn't deserve a Tony nomination. That leaves us with Twyla Tharp's non-musical, musical, Come Fly Away for the last spot, in a move that will inspire a fair amount of debate in the coming weeks. The Addams Family will still settle for multiple nominations in acting and set design

The musical revival category seems pretty cut and dry, with A Little Night Music, La Cage Aux Folles, and the highly praised, but not well attended Finian's Rainbow all sure to get some love. The wild card here is Ragtime, which was snubbed by the outer critics, but the most nominated show of the season by the Drama Desk. I personally hated the production, but it seems like a show that will resonate more with the Tony committee than Promises, Promises.

The most wide open category this year will be for best play, where only Red and Next Fall are guaranteed to be nominated. I would have expected Time Stands Still to be on that list until it was snubbed by the Drama Desk. Still though, I think it has enough buzz to get a nomination tomorrow. From there, it's a toss up between Race, Superior Donuts, and Enron. Enron has the advantage of being the shiny, new toy, but the reviews might cool off the voters. I think you will see Donuts slip through, if for no other reason than love for the playwright.

And now... time once again for the game sweeping the nation.... "IF I WERE MICHAEL RIEDEL", where I try to guess how he will bury The Addams Family in his next coulmn.

"The Pakistani Taliban has still not take credit for last weekend's bomb in Times Square, but have said in a prepared statement that they would rather take credit for that mess than the one currently playing one block away at the Lunt-Fontainne Theater. Not even the Taliban will support The Addams Family".

What we learned from the Outer Critics Circle Nominations

If today's news from the Outer Critics Circle is indicative of what's to come when the Tony nominations are announced, we may be headed for a big controversy in the best musical category.

First, a little background. This is the first year since 2000 that the Tonys will not be presenting an award for "Special Theatrical Event", a category deemed necessary when Susan Stroman's dance show, Contact, won best musical ten years ago despite being a dance show with recorded music and no live vocalists. The award has been a valuable way to acknowledge shows that were neither plays nor musicals, such as Billy Crystal's 700 Sundays, Liza Minelli's concert at the Palace, and Will Ferrell's George W Bush one man show.

The Tony committee elected to abandon the award this year, which just so happens to be a season where the most buzzed about shows have been "special theatrical events". Two productions, in particular, were nominated for "Best Musical" by the Outer Critics Circle earlier today. The docu-musical Sondheim on Sondheim, and Twyla Tharp's Frank Sinatra tribute, Come Fly Away. The first show is a glorified cabaret, repackaging Sondheim's entire catalog with no original music to be found. The second is a dance piece that utilizes prerecorded vocals over a live orchestra. Are these shows in the spirit of what the "Best Musical" category embodies?? Probably not. Is either one going to be talked about in 20 years the way that last season's Billy Elliot and Next To Normal were?? Not a chance. Is one of these shows likely to win a Tony over Memphis or American Idiot?? Perhaps, and there sure will be some ticked off producers if that happens.

At the end of the day, this is a function of it being a bad year for musicals. The best offerings came courtesy of revivals like Finian's Rainbow and La Cage Aux Folles, while new shows like The Addams Family and American Idiot did not live up to the hype. The biggest loser in all of this is probably the producers of Memphis, a show that received solid reviews, but hasn't done huge box office business. It could stand to benefit the most from a Tony win, one that would have been easier if it weren't up against non-musicals in their category.

What do you think? Should the Tony Awards bring back the "Special Theaterical Event" category?

How to Lose Money on Broadway Without Really Trying

It seemed like in the 1990's, the best way to have a sure-fire hit in New York was to stage a revival. Shows like "Cabaret", "Annie Get Your Gun", and "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum" all did big business. In fact, the "Chicago" revival is still running at the Ambassador theater 15 years after it opened, even spawning an Oscar nominated film version in the process.

Conversely, over the last decade, there is an equally long list of revivals that did not recoup their investment. Some of them, including the 2002 version of "Into The Woods" and the 2005 version of "La Cage Aux Folles" won tony awards. Others, like last year's "Ragtime" and "Finian's Rainbow", garnered rave reviews from critics, none of which translated into money at the box office.



It amazes me how some Broadway producers don't learn from past mistakes. For instance, does anyone believe that Kelsey Grammar is still a big enough star to guarantee huge houses for this season's "La Cage", when the show just failed 5 years ago? How about the revival of "Promises, Promises"? There is no bigger female star on Broadway than Chenowith, but there was also no bigger star than Bernadette Peters in the 90's, when she was paired with a fading TV star, and a Neil Simon script. "The Goodbye Girl" turned out to be one of the ten biggest flops of the last 20 years. Now, fast forward to 2010, replace Martin Short with Sean Hayes, throw in dated Neil Simon material from 40 years ago, and we could have another recipe for failure.


What are the two reasons to do a revival?? Most theater people will tell you this:


A) Because you are stunt casting with an A-list star (Angela Landsbury and Catherine Zeta Jones are proving to be a formidable combination right now in "A Little Night Music")

B) The source material is totally relevant to today's theater audience (The Diane Paulus revival of "Hair")


With all these things being said, there was an official announcement today that Daniel Radcliffe will return to Broadway next year in a revival of "How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying". Don't get me wrong, the theater nerd part of me is intrigued. The businessman part of me??? Eh... not so sure.


The show was last seen in New York in the mid 90's, when Des McAnuff staged it as a star vehicle for Matthew Broderick (and John Stamos after him). The show received generally positive reviews, but closed after a 15 month run, just missing out on recouping it's investment. So what has changed in 2010? The star of the world's biggest film franchise, Daniel Radcliffe, will be on the marquee.

Radcliffe's name was also on the marquee of last season's "Equus", a show that got great reviews and didn't recoup. Of course, one could argue that younger Potter fans weren't going to get mom and dad to spring $125 a pop to take them to see full frontal Harry (not hairy) nudity onstage. But are we sure that they are going to want to pay that amount to see a story about a young man trying to scheme his way up the corporate ladder? Furthermore, is there any evidence that Daniel Radcliffe is even a draw away from the Potter movies? It's not like he's done any commercial films other than that.

Naturally, we have to wait and see how this all plays out. Maybe director Rob Ashford has a concept that will totally reinvent the show and it will be the greatest piece of art of all time. History has shown us though, even if this is an artistic success, it may not be a financial one.