MiamiHerald.com: Everyone loves a good train wreck, literal or otherwise.
In 1913, somebody decided it would be fun for two locomotives to collide in an explosion of steam and shrapnel at the California State Fair. Film of the event has been viewed perhaps millions of times in old newsreels and silent-movie compilations and, of course, on YouTube.
12 comments:
This article is a funny but good summation of the overall problems that have plagued this production. I did like however that the author talked about Lion King and how Taymore took a concept that seemed not translatable to the stage, and was able to produce a possibly disastrous failure into a money making machine.
I'll also like how the first part reminds the reader that spider-man is not the only show that has had some spectacular problems during development.
This production sounds about as surrounded by mythos as King Tut's tomb. I believe that even if Spider-Man ends only as a train-wreck, it will have left a much bigger impression on society than I thought it would. With the out of control budget reported months if not years ago, I was surprised the show even got to previews. With all of the insanity, the danger, and the injuries, it really feels like the unintended disasters are the new appeal. I have to confess, I was ambivalent about the production until report after report of mini-disaster leaked onto the internet. The cynic in me starts to think it'd be worth asking if that might be a more profitable aspect to cash in on? Or at least, why do we so love a train-wreck?
Hey you know what people love more than saying they saw the next Rent first? Saying they saw the crash and burn of a huge megamillion-dollar Broadway show "first." This article doesn't really say anything new about Spider-Man and really just tried to staunchly pick the winning side whilst trying to convince us they saw it coming. It smacks of, "I TOLD them the Hindenburg was a bad idea!" You know, I have my own issues with Taymor (LOVED Titus; want to punch her in the neck for Across the Universe; jury's still out on Tempest...), but even I will admit she's managed to do what just about all of us WISH we could do ourselves: Leap from the Lion's head without so much as looking down first. She takes massive risks (financially and artistically) and a good many of them have paid off. Yeah, this one might fall flat on its face but no one can say it hasn't pushed and pushed at its respective boxes and envelopes in the process. That, alone, should be worth $65 million dollars of someone else's money...right?
(That Lion's head reference was Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, in case you're keeping track...)
I think this show will probably go down the history of theater as another Carrie: The Musical. I personally have not heard the music, but I have a feeling it'll create a cult-following with multiple bootleg recordings being circulated religiously around the fangirl/boys who were too young to have seen it. And according to Michael Riedel (whom I consider relatively reliable), the ticket sales have been slowing down for February/March, and if that's the case, even if they are able to fill the seats with tourists in the summer, I definitely would not be surprised if they post up closing notice by the end of next January.
But other than that, I don't understand why this article (that basically reiterates everything that has been stated by every major newspapers) was even posted.
I really don't understand why everyone is viewing this show as such a "train wreck". Sure, there have been issues, as this article points out, and some of them are really serious issues, but people continue flocking to the show. Hiro mentioned the Carrie musical, which was a flop because no one wanted to see it. There are plenty of people who want to go see this show. The only thing standing in the show's way is the producers shutting the show down before it opens. Once it opens, I think it has at least a solid 1-2 year run in it as a big tourist attraction, and that's what it will be remembered for.
I read the first two sentences of this article and immediately went to YouTube to watch the 1913 California State Fair train collision. Unfortunately the hype did not live up the anticipation even though I only waited for the train wreck video for about 10 seconds. I hope Spider-Man will fare better. But when I read the list of other disaster shows, I see that they just became historical blurbs.
Here is MY prediction of how Spider-Man will do. I predict a 12 month run. That is this summer and then through Christmas. That will give the Broadway/Marvel/U2 faithful a chance to see it. Most long running musicals survive on repeat business(I have seen RENT 5 times) but Spider-man, for the lack of a weak story, will not. Two Months after it closes next year it will open in Vegas as the Spider-man Las Vegas Spectacular. There it will run for 10 years as a 90 minute show.
yes
Just some rough number crunching: At a 75% house estimating $125/ticket and an 8 performance/week run they meet $1.4 million on ticket sales alone. That's before any of the percentages go to the house, salaries or anything of the like and does NOT include merchandising.
But just for a little perspective, the smallest budget on the top ten highest grossing films in 2010 was $68 million for the latest twilight movie. It pulled in $693 million in gross revenue. Toy Story 3 grossed over $1 billion in revenue after a $200 million budget. Sometimes it takes a lot of money to make a lot of money.
Yes the economics of film vs theatre is different, but seeing as it is the most talked about piece of theatre of the last 10-15 years, it may be worth examining under a different category other than "broadway show."
As Much as human beings as a race love watching the ideas of violence we do not as a great majority appreciate actual disasters. I believe spiderman is a train wreck for the producers and those who have invested millions of dollars in it. ii have yet to see it and may be completely wrong however any show that cant get through so many issues safely and effectively and ever actuallty open is a train wreck for the technical and production team in my book.
I agree with Hiro, the answer to this article is so obvious, it seems pointless to even ask the question. If Spiderman has taught us anything, it's that no one should try this again. Julie Taymor is not always right! Considering the musical appears to have no intellectual or artistic redeeming value, perhaps the value is that the shows that go over in Las Vegas, should stay in Las Vegas. Yes, the press will possibly carry the show for a year or so, but undeniably Spiderman will live on in infamy: a mythic cautionary tale.
In response to the title... Yes...
People are talking about and clamoring to see Spider Man for two reasons. One, it is the biggest endeavor on Broadway ever. That has created a lot of buzz. People want to go see what is being talked about, reason number two. I think this would be the case even with out the tragic preview reviews and accidents. I do not doubt they are also playing a role in ticket sales and fueling the buzz. I don't really think anyone is hoping to see an actor die. Though it has been the butt of many jokes and internet videos. But that is a all just a part of the buzz and fueling the fire.
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