CMU School of Drama


Tuesday, February 24, 2009

A Questions from a reader: "What happens if I flop?"

PRODUCER’S PERSPECTIVE: "I was speaking to a class at Columbia today, and right after we solved all of the problems of producing on Broadway, I got this question: 'What happens if my first show right out of the box is a flop?'"

3 comments:

Chris said...

Theater is a very high stakes industry. Especially when working in such a visible position like director, producer, or designer. Like the author says, it is important that you get right back up on the horse so to speak. Everyone has done shows in their past that they don't feel the best about, but, if we were always perfect how would we learn. Sometimes, it is important for our first show to be (not unsuccessful, but not a hit either) otherwise people might get too cocky.

sarah benedict said...

This is such a good idea! A little bad since you're finding pleasure in other people's suffering. but quite reassuring. I really think this "game" can be played with any aspect of theatre - not just producing. Everyone can make a mistake and everyone can learn. What's important is you get back on your hourse and use those failed appenpts to help you learn.

Anonymous said...

The moral of this article is incredibly relevant to us as college students. No, really. No one makes us go to classes or turn in our work. There are consequences for not doing either of those, but when it ultimately comes down to it, we are responsible for our own learning and contributions. If we fail, and fail we will at some point in our academic career, we have to pick ourselves up and try all over again.