Variety: Now that "The Glee Project" has wrapped its latest season and NBC skein "Smash" is holding off on its return till 2013, where's a legit-minded tube-watcher to turn? They can try PBS, where the reality series "Broadway or Bust" is the latest mark of TV's increasing interest in exploring the backstage drama of theater. There's also a basic cable series in development that is on the lookout for theater troupes that will compete for the resources to stage a New York production.
8 comments:
I think it's wonderful that theatre is getting so much nation wide attention, thanks to the success of shows like Glee and Smash. What is kind of tragic about the whole situation is I feel like it almost ruins the essence that goes with the theatre art. Part of the magic of theatre is that you don't see behind the scenes; that audiences come and see this performance by someone they don't know and are (hopefully0 moved by them. I understand why this is happening, I'm just not sure how I feel about it just yet.
I agree. I think it is amazing that theatre is being brought to the forefront of everyones minds. Each of these shows brings a new perspective on the life of an actor, designer, director, writer, or anyone else on or off stage. "Glee" seems to over dramaticize the world of theatre performers and directors. "Smash," although realistic seeming, also seems to portray "theatre people" as well. It is exciting that "Broadway or Bust" is going to portray 60 actors and actresses from around America in a honest way. I hope that this show will inspire writers of "Glee", "The Glee Project" and "Smash" to become more realistic and true to real life.
I had this idea!!! No, but seriously, my freshman year Sam and I said that it CMU didn't work out we would leave and produce a technical theatre reality show. While these aren't REALLY completely technical theatre oriented, their close enough. They're also a great idea (just sad that someone got their hands on it before I did.) Reality shows bring so much attention to whatever subject their touching upon. You could have a relaity show about shopping for vegetables and, as long as it was somehow shipped into something terribly exciting, everyone would be out shopping for vegetables all the time. So, maybe theatre isn't a dying art, maybe it just needed a reality TV show to push it along.
While I agree that there will be a lot of attention focused on Broadway, the prospect of a reality TV show has me a little worried. I'm not sure the idea of dramatizing the theater in a reality show will exemplify theater in a good light. When people think about reality TV, they could be obsessed with it but they probably don't think that it is a quality viewing experience. With theater especially, there are times when you aren't completely sure what is being acted and what is being real. That could be misconstrued and put a few people off. "Glee" and "Smash" are not real, they are helped out a lot and they have a storyline. Hopefully we know that these TV shows work off compelling plots. I'm just apprehensive about the whole thing. Maybe it will turn out to be okay, I don't want to be too much of a cynic, we are in the age of reality TV.
EEEeeeeek. I'm always a little nervous about reality shows. While this sounds a whole lot better than Real Housewives and is bringing more attention to theater, which is fantastic, it still is television and not live theater, which seems funny to me. Are people too busy watching tv about theatre to come to an actual theatre? Hopefully not and this is something that will peak their interest. It actually does sound like something I would want to watch, but I hope that it doesn't fall into the trashy, annoying reality tv trap. We'll see.
My sophomore and junior years of high school I LOVED watching Glee. Then I saw the Rocky Horror Picture Show episode, and I stopped watching it. That episode offended me so much. The method in which they made that show happen so was unrealistic that I no longer had any respect for the show and its writers/producers. The last line of that article "a bad dress rehearsal is a good show for us", also offends me. People who watch and produce these "theatre" shows often don't respect theatre anymore than they respect the housewives of New Jersey. It's all about the drama of the situation, regardless of where it comes from. Yet another TV show misleading the public as to what theatre is, a bunch of sob stories who always have bad rehearsals and yell at each other. Give me a break. We're people, not TV producer puppets.
I think it's great that people are more interested in theatre thanks to things like Glee and Smash, but things like this reality tv show always make me nervous. The backstage of a theatre is a world that a lot of people know almost nothing about, beyond the fact that somehow things happen backstage that make things happen onstage. With Glee and Smash, people do know that they are fiction, even if they make assumptions about the role of a stage manager in real life based on the stage manager who sits in rehearsal in Smash. However, this new show, with the moniker of reality tv, is a little more dangerous, since I'm sure that the producers have amped up the drama to incredible levels. Furthermore, following the experience of musical theatre teenagers, who are generally dramatic all on their own, means that this show may have the same level of "kind of real, but mostly fake" that Smash has.
I wish this article had done more to highlight the difference between “Broadway or Bust” and “Make My Musical”. PBS is a not-for-profit television station, meaning their show will likely not be employing all of the bullshit methods that for-profit stations use to get more viewers such as pitting the contestants against each other and causing unnecessary hurt. Hopefully “Broadway or Bust” will provide an informative documentary style glimpse into the contestants talent and the opportunities afforded to them through the Jimmy’s.
“Make My Musical” on the other hand will be aired on a for-profit television station. It is important to remember that this means their number one goal is to make money. They say it right in the article: “A bad dress rehearsal makes for a great show for us.” They are looking for things going wrong, people fighting, emotional breakdowns, and general cattiness because that is what gets viewers. Sure, having a show about the backstage workings of a theatrical production might give the general population a better appreciation for our art and hopefully up theatre attendance. But the show will not be about the wonderful work we do. It will be about all of the things that go wrong, the crazies, and poorly handled situations. Reality TV disgusts me.
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