Variety: "If the producers of the Broadway play 'Lombardi' were professional athletes, they'd probably be offensive linemen, since Tony Ponturo and Fran Kirmser are using some serious marketing muscle to create an opening for sports on the stage. Their play about the life of famed Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi is the longest-running new play now on Broadway. And the pair is developing another project in the genre -- 'Magic/Bird' -- centering on former NBA stars, and rivals, Magic Johnson and Larry Bird.
3 comments:
I've been really impressed by the advertising I've seen for this show around New York. I think that having grown up around lots of advertisement, I've become numb to it, but this show has managed to catch my eye by being different in a lot of ways. They've used the NFL connection with superbowl ads and talk show visits as the Packers were making their way to the finals, and they've managed to reach to new audiences pretty effectively, in my opinion. I hope it gives other producers some new exciting ideas for how to advertise their shows.
I am really glad to hear that 'Lombardi' has and continues to do so well. It also makes sense that this show is going to new and different lengths to market and advertise their show. Seeing as how they are trying to market themselves to an audience that doesnt normally frequent the theatre. The best part is this type of show opens up a whole new avenue for playwrights to go. A story about an inspirational sports figure has proven to work. I like it myself because it is showing people who may not have liked theatre before that it has something to offer them. Making people realize that theatre could be for them is a great thing to do and we should always keep trying to figure out new ways to do it.
To me, the Lombardi show makes a lot of sense, because that show would be more about Lombardi telling stories about his days coaching rather than actually needing to watch the games. I think a play about the Magic/Bird rivalry, though, is going to be much tougher because the audience is going to want to see footage of them competing against each other. Their is an interesting story to tell there, which has already been told in both book and documentary format, and I feel that these formats will probably be stronger in telling this story.
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