Saturday, October 31, 2009
'Neil Simon Plays' closes on Broadway
Variety: "The Broadway revival of 'Brighton Beach Memoirs,' part of what was to be a double-bill titled 'The Neil Simon Plays,' will close Sunday,November 1, just a week after it opened."
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9 comments:
After reading an article about Mr. Simon and his thoughts on the revival it is sad to see this fail immediatly. is dissappointing. After so much hype to see a show close so quickly makes me think how theater is all about names and not about the story. Without the stars like the article discusses it seems there never may be a chance to succeed without a huge name (ie: Craig or Jackman) and without major hype like Jude Law in Hamlet. Theater should be about the live experience of telling a story, but it seems that big names in huge productions is more important.
Its very disappointing to see a set of shows like this close so quickly. It is truly a gamble on Broadway, particularly when opening shows of this type without the star power (other than Neil Simon's name). The Coast of Utopia series last year at Lincoln center was vaguely similar, and it succeeded, yet this one did not. It would be an interesting study to see why this one was not successful in particular, but that is for a different article.
It's very sad to see any show like this close so soon. I wish it had had more of a chance, but unfortunately the article was right about it not being the most popular thing on Broadway currently. With Jude Law in Hamlet, and Hugh Jackman and Daniel Craig in A Steady Rain, the revival of Brighton Beach Memoirs is really not going to look so interesting to the average audience member. It's really unfortunate that Broadway shows seem to be becoming so star-driven recently. That affects less-known, but maybe better-quality shows that are trying to survive without big name actors.
I don't have too much to say about this article, except to say that this makes me so incredibly sad! I was planning on seeing the Neil Simon Plays over winter break! I've seen Brighton Beach once, and seriously, I love that play so much. It's such a good story and I would see it again in a heartbeat. I can't believe this show didn't last more than a week, and it's such a blow to Neil Simon fans. But it should also get people thinking about the business side of Broadway. In foundations, we've all been talking about what sells in terms of stars, story, etc. And a lot of us have been pretty traditional in the sense that we've been tossing around the idea, "if the story is good, if the production is good, it will sell." Clearly, that is not the case, as Brighton Beach is a fantastic story, and according to the article it got fairly good reviews. It makes our jobs that much more difficult.
Oh and I would also like to add I posted this comment during my interp class, but class had yet to start because my teacher was late, so technically I was being efficient and wasn't breaking any rules.
I am so sick of celebrities controlling Broadway. It is almost the same in this article as it was in another I commented on about the broadway show Fela. For that show the want celebrities at the opening and for this one it didn't do well because a)it is not a musical and b)no one famous is in it. Why can't any straight plays do well on broadway and why is it that nobody wants to go see great theatre just because it is depressing or not a musical? These are questions that we are constantly asking in Foundations class with every play we read. I understand the basic reasons of why these things happen but I still think it is really stupid.
I was so excited after reading the last article about this show for my brother to get to see a Neil Simon show. I think if this were opening in another economic climate the show would be a success. Then again maybe not. Being a Broadway producer is an art, not an exact science.
This seems very strange to me. Rarely nowadays do we see these 'one night wonders' of shows disappear overnight. It seems awfully 'max Bialystok' to me. Ira Pittleman recently got in a spat with the NY Post head theater gossip columnist - over him being ruled as an 'amateur' producer. Unfortunately - it seems that Mr. Pittleman will continue his losing streak on the great white way.
The fact that they gave up on this show so quickly is just depressing. Giving a show on broadway one week to be a hit is just ridiculous. It takes some time for the ticket sales to really take off--unless there has been some marvelous publicity or some big name actors. One week isn't nearly enough time to gauge the possible success the show could have had. It seems that these days, to get a successful show on Broadway, it either has to be based on a band or musician (Elvis, the Greenday show, etc.) or it has to have a major Hollywood actor in it. Are we really so mesmerized by pop culture that we can't sit through (and maybe even enjoy) a show that isn't based on celebrity?
Producers and backers need to have more faith that shows will take off--even without big name actors--or that's all we'll be left with.
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