Friday, February 25, 2011
Innovations and Ovation for Drama Desk Awards
Backstage: "Another New York theater awards show is heading to national television. On Wednesday, Robert R. Blume, executive producer of the Drama Desk Awards, announced the telecast and several other changes to the annual ceremony.
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Televising an award show immediately commercializes the product. People who watch award shows watch to know what they should be buying (or viewing, seeing, etc.) Even though I am cynical of award shows the material they are awarding sets the bar for entertainment value and helps define the award winner in the public mindset. So, yes, the Tony Awards are just a commericial for Broadway producer's product but it helps to brand the names. This effects me (us) because people start to have an understanding of what theater is (and what they should/shouldn't see) based on what they see on television. This is good; the media that keeps people out of the theaters (let's just stay home and watch Friends instead of seeing a farce or comic play) is putting the theater in the public's mindset. Another televised award ceremony, one that includes non-profit and regional theaters in addition to Broadway, is helping to spread theater to the public.
As much as I would like to be excited that the "deskies" are going to be televised, I don't think that the awards show is well-known or marketable enough yet for this to be a successful endeavor. I know that I, for one, tend to look up the results online but never actually watch the show except in clips on youtube that my friends send me, and I worry that a show that might not have a clear guage on its online audience currently could stand to buff up its popularity first. A better move might be to work on spreading the awards online, then if popularity is achieved, trying for a live telecast, but as it stands (with the Tony Awards and their commercialization as a prime example) the national TV audience isn't in tune with what goes on on new york stages, and telling them to watch the deskies on ovation won't change that...
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