Film Broadway Bootlegs- Page 5

[CandiceElyse]

Posted: 7/6/10 at 12:47pm

I agree. watching a bootleg of Wicked and seeing it live are two WAY different experiences. but also, for people who dont live in the city, and have to commit a major investment into going up and seeing a show, bootlegs (even just audio) are a great way to decide if its worth the money. i know that sounds bad, but imagine paying 400 dollars for tickets/hotel/travel to see something you absolutely hated. Word of Mouth is only so reliable. especially if you read these boards haha, someone has something nasty to say about every single show that has ever graced the stage.

[devonian.t]

Posted: 7/6/10 at 12:48pm

If theatre can only be enjoyed as a live medium, we'd all better throw away all those Broadway cast recordings.

i think we are intelligent enough to understand that when we watch a recording, it is not the same experience as seeing a live performance.

[TheKandyLife]

Posted: 7/6/10 at 12:51pm

I buy the soundtrack....if i like it, (99% of the time i do!) i'll try my hardest to find a bootleg of the show....needless to say i enjoy it a hell of a lot more!.....then, i buy tickets to the show! because it'll be a new cast! and it'll be new and vibrant, i've yet to see a show with the original cast live on the stage....i only see the original cast in bootlegs, which is a shame, but when it first comes out, there's no way i can afford it, i'd gladly wait for a price drop to see the show, and have the bootleg and the soundtrack to tide me over till i can see it!...bootlegs for me actually make me want to see the show more! of each show i've seen, i've got a bootleg before i seen it, and enjoyed it all the same!

[Felm_heart]

Posted: 7/6/10 at 12:51pm

How in the world do you get your hands on these bootlegs?!

[TheKandyLife]

Posted: 7/6/10 at 12:54pm

i message people on youtube/facebook etc, who love broadway shows and see if they have any or would like any etc, their all really friendly and nice, i made 2 good friends out of it! lol

[phantom39]

Posted: 7/6/10 at 1:01pm

You may not have found the LEGALLY BLONDE broadcast enjoyable Eris, but the fact is that those 3 hours on MTV and the packaged reality series sparked much needed interest in the tour- and, asking the producers, it is a big part of why the first tour was a box office hit. The good numbers for the tour and the interest that resulted from the MTV broadcast are in fact what helped the London production happen- which is a box office sellout hit. It takes some brave producers, but more shows should follow this path.

Updated On: 7/6/10 at 01:01 PM

[CandiceElyse]

Posted: 7/6/10 at 1:32pm

the fact that broadway made it to MTV period is worth celebrating, regardless if you like the show or not. It woke a lot of kids who brainlessly follow the trends presented on MTV to the theatre. All it takes is one show to get someone hooked. i speak from experience :) the more exposure the better.

[tazber]

Posted: 7/6/10 at 1:35pm

I wish they would have done something with Spring Awakening.

[julesboogie]

Posted: 7/6/10 at 1:42pm

"the fact that broadway made it to MTV period is worth celebrating, regardless if you like the show or not. It woke a lot of kids who brainlessly follow the trends presented on MTV to the theatre. All it takes is one show to get someone hooked. i speak from experience :) the more exposure the better."

Exposure is great! especially since people got paid for that. In this case i agree. Even though im not sure the broadcast isnt responsible for the bway closing. Why spend 100.00 to see what you can see on tv for free?

It is a little different tho when boots are used to steal copyrighted material.

[SonofRobbieJ]

Posted: 7/6/10 at 1:54pm

As a performer, it's a verrrrry hard problem to resolve in my mind.

I do not own bootlegs...I don't feel comfortable doing so. I have, however, been able to see clips of friends in shows because of them. My friends have directed me to them, and it's great to see that moment in time.

But...on the flip side...I once got royally screwed by an unauthorized video of a show I was in. It was used to shop around the show to producers, directors and future cast members that replaced us. The show went on to win 3 Tonys. I know the business sucks...but that tape was used by folks to make money off their royalties. The cast got $50 bucks each...and nothing else.

So...yeah...I got f*cked by an illegal video. So, I have a different opinion than most of you.

But they exist. And we try to make peace with that. I think I've gotten to the point where the only people I truly hate in regards to these videos are the ones who make a profit off of it. Truly hateful, vile people. You want to share for free? Fine. You want to pay for it? Or get paid for it? I find that to be an awful, disgusting practice.

[Weez]

Posted: 7/6/10 at 3:01pm

If you take a picture of the show curtain, the tourists have won.

Bravo! That was BEAUTIFULLY done! :3

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 7/6/10 at 3:39pm

I must confess that I enjoyed Legally Blonde so much more live than on the MTV Broadcast.

[jennafan]

Posted: 7/6/10 at 3:47pm

Not living in NY, I must admit boots make me WANT to see a certain show when it tours.

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 7/6/10 at 3:48pm

I actually knew about Bare because I saw a bit on it in my playbill from Wicked back in '04. The subtitle, "A pop opera", certainly caught my attention. And then, when I was surfing YouTube, I found the clips from the show and the rest is history. Now it's a frickin' cult classic amongst me and all my friends.

[Eris0303]

Posted: 7/6/10 at 3:57pm

This past fall I was at a show and was seated in the third row from the stage. This kid sitting next to me was scurrying all over the row to take pictures of the stage curtain before the show. I found it to be pretty annoying so I asked him to please stop citing the fact that what he was doing was illegal. He plopped in his seat to pout and shot back at me five minutes later "It may be illegal but they let you do it!"

Wait? What? That has to be the lamest comeback ever. I looked at him and informed him that the set design, stage curtain included, is copyrighted and cannot be photographed without permission from the producers.

He didn't speak to me again nor did he take another picture.

I must confess that I enjoyed Legally Blonde so much more live than on the MTV Broadcast.

If I had let the soulless MTV Broadcast deter me from seeing the show live I would have never witnessed the Great Golf Cart Crash of 2008. And then where would I be?

Updated On: 7/9/10 at 03:57 PM

[frontrowcentre2]

Posted: 7/6/10 at 4:52pm

I buy the soundtrack....if i like it, (99% of the time i do!) i'll try my hardest to find a bootleg of the show....then, i buy tickets to the show!

So you see bootlegs as "valuable promotional tools?" I think that's pushing it, but I see your point: it whets your appetite to see the show, as do TV appearances and Cast Albums (NOT SOUNDTRACKS!!! Soudntracks are only the movie version!! I pity anyone who came to NINE via teh movie soundtrack CD.)

Do you pay for teh boots you get?

[twinbelters]

Posted: 7/6/10 at 5:05pm

Interesting thread. Makes one wonder if there were no bootlegs, what percentage of American musical theater history would be lost forever? Over 50%?

[frontrowcentre2]

Posted: 7/6/10 at 5:15pm

Actually the biggest archive of extended scenes and songs from classic Braodway shows is THE ED SULLIVAN SHOW. Many clips that were on a website were ordered taken down a year ago by the Sullivan people, although sadly they have no intention of doing anything with the material themselves. One real gem was a complete run through of roughtly the first 20 minutes of DO RE MI with Phil Silvers and Nancy Walker running from "Waiting Waiting" throgh "All You Need is a Quarter" and "Take a Job."

This was in the days before the networks decided people's minds would wander if they stayed with any one idea more than 3 minutes.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 7/6/10 at 5:51pm

Luckily some people have 11 DVDs full of pretty much every Ed Sullivan performance.

[kc2]

Posted: 7/6/10 at 6:13pm

but also, for people who dont live in the city, and have to commit a major investment into going up and seeing a show, bootlegs (even just audio) are a great way to decide if its worth the money. i know that sounds bad, but imagine paying 400 dollars for tickets/hotel/travel to see something you absolutely hated. Try thousands for those of us living abroad :o(

The few bootlegs I've been able to get my hands on were shows that already closed (eg Last Five Years, Urinetown, DRS) or original casts (eg RENT, Wicked). They are invaluable for those of us stuck on the other side of the ocean from our beloved Broadway.

[alliez92092]

Posted: 7/6/10 at 6:25pm

I have a lot of thoughts on this subject, but one new thing that I'd like to throw out there is to makethe videos at the Lincoln Center Library more accessible. I know this doesn't do much in terms of people outside of the city, but it would be nice to be able to go and view shows that closed long ago (or even not so long ago) legally with less hassle.

[My Oh My]

Posted: 7/7/10 at 2:15am

I have the world's oldest bootleg of a Broadway show up on my YouTube...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVkmzmeLTkU

God bless the kid who filmed that, even though it's only a few seconds in length (see video description for details).

[jennafan]

Posted: 7/7/10 at 2:20am

I am surprised this thread is still up. Maybe it's due to the fact the heading is not english.

"Film Broadway Bootlegs"

Come on now...

[Amalia Balash]

Posted: 7/7/10 at 7:25am

I appreciate bootlegs for the chance to see and hear shows I never got the chance to attend. I know live theater can't be fully captured on even a professional video, so I definitely don't judge the show based on a bootleg.

If Lincoln Center were more accessible, I would pay for the ability to watch shows in their archive. I'd also pay for professional videos of some shows I've enjoyed on bootlegs and most shows I've enjoyed live.

Thank you to anyone who's captured and shared bootlegs for allowing me to experience some of what I would have loved to have seen live and relive some of what I did.

[TheKandyLife]

Posted: 7/8/10 at 4:08pm

"Do you pay for teh boots you get?"

no i don't, no. I trade what i have for what others have, i've done it with people on facbook and youtube as well as on this board! their all real friendly! and looking for more bootlegs tbh =)

no matter how long we argue about this, people are still going to do it or it least get caught trying. regardless if its illegal.