Variety: To recast or not to recast? That's the question for producers of Broadway play "The Mountaintop." The show has so far eked out a single-week extension of a limited run that, at least for now, ends Jan. 22, when Samuel L. Jackson, who stars in Katori Hall's two-hander with Angela Bassett, must exit to shoot a film. And it's a question faced by every producer of a promising production that can attribute a major percentage of its aud-appeal to a big-name cast.
Saturday, November 05, 2011
'Mountaintop' mulls options
Variety: To recast or not to recast? That's the question for producers of Broadway play "The Mountaintop." The show has so far eked out a single-week extension of a limited run that, at least for now, ends Jan. 22, when Samuel L. Jackson, who stars in Katori Hall's two-hander with Angela Bassett, must exit to shoot a film. And it's a question faced by every producer of a promising production that can attribute a major percentage of its aud-appeal to a big-name cast.
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2 comments:
I can't help but be skeptical for the future of The Mountaintop. The only buzz about the show that I have heard is about Samuel L. Jackson and Angela Bassett, even to the point that the :15 ad didn't make reference to Martin Luther King at all! As strong of a play as it may be and with the consistent African American demographic (as noted in the article), this production seems inseparably tied to the cast members in it, and unless a new MLK is just as well-known and commanding of the character as Jackson, it may be difficult to maintain the show's box office numbers when he is forced to leave.
I have to disagree with Brian about the future of The Mountaintop. I think recasting would prove successful in that this is a story that is largely untold and I think there's an audience for the show no matter what names are attached to it. As long as the quality remains the same or better, which I don't think would be a problem, then I see this show having a future. The marketing for this show might have been closely tied to Basset and Jackson but now that the word is out all that needs to change is the marketing. If they focus more on the story and less on the actor, they will draw people in simply because the story is compelling.
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