NYTimes.com: “Holler If Ya Hear Me,” the ambitious and flawed Broadway musical based on the work of Tupac Shakur, is scheduled to close on Sunday, after just 17 preview performances and 38 regular performances, losing most of its $8 million capitalization.
2 comments:
I think the author of this article nearly nailed the reason this show failed- the audience isn’t right. Broadway tickets are pricy and people who constantly see shows had shows that appealed to them much more, and people potentially interested in this show might not have the desire to pay $150 for something they could experience in a $12 CD. That is another thing to be considered- what exactly is gained from this story being set as a musical? There was no one asking for it- so why was this medium chosen? Perhaps if they highlighted what viewing this story as a musical gives to you that CD’s and documentaries do not. This could be similar to how ‘Chicago’ failed when it first came to Broadway because of the shows it had to compete with ‘The Producers.’ It could’ve just been the wrong time. But if they fix their marketing and appeals I think now is a good enough time as any.
I don’t see any reason why hip hop wouldn’t work on Broadway. The music and dance are great, and they provide plenty of opportunity for the spectacle people expect, especially when it comes to lighting. I think the main barrier to hip hop is just people needing to get used to it. People expect show tunes with a pretty specific feel when they go to see a musical, and hip hop musicals would both turn away some of the existing audience and attract a new one. It will take time for those new people to show up.
I think “Holler If Ya Hear Me” failed because the songs weren’t new. I think in general musicals that exist to string together an artists songs tend to be harder to pull off. If hip hop songs were written for a musical, it would probably work out better. “Holler If Ya Hear Me” may have worked if hip hop were more standard for musicals, but I think the combination of songs that already exist being strung together, as well as a less common genre of music for musicals, cause “Holler If Ya Hear Me” to fail.
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