Ugh, I really dislike that they decided to go with Wayne Cilento as a choreographer, there are probably 3 more people off the top of my head who'd have been more interesting for the job. He's just so...meh. Sad to see a risky new musical face plant like this. I assume there were financial decisions involved in not going out of town, which is a real shame. I wish there was a way for musicals like these to have the time to gestate and evolve and develop. Oh, and that comment about Leon made no sense. His direction for A RAISIN IN THE SUN was sublime, the work he did on that was as beautiful and nuanced as the work Tiffany did on THE GLASS MENAGERIE. That category was an embarrassment of riches.
"Some people can thrive and bloom living life in a living room, that's perfect for some people of one hundred and five. But I at least gotta try, when I think of all the sights that I gotta see, all the places I gotta play, all the things that I gotta be at"
The problem with the choreography, or perhaps the blocking, is that too much was happening all at once. I was never sure where my focus was supposed to be.
A little swash, a bit of buckle - you'll love it more than bread.
I know they are just rumors but wouldn't they announce it sometime soon that it's closing Sunday to get as many people out to see it as possible to recoup whatever they can?
If people have a desire to see it, and they are aware of how poorly the box office is, why wait? Unless you want to attend the final performance, just get a ticket.
Compared to how much they are losing, 2-3 shows with a few more seats sold isn't going to make a huge difference.
I assume they weren't even close to breaking even during their two weeks of previews so trying to recoup anything is pointless at this point. Announcing a closing date would probably just deter people from going anyway.
It is strange to me that it couldn't find an audience. Maybe trying to get a bigger name than Saul Williams would have sold tickets.
A little swash, a bit of buckle - you'll love it more than bread.
"The problem with the choreography, or perhaps the blocking, is that too much was happening all at once. I was never sure where my focus was supposed to be." Yeah I think this specific issue is the fault of Kenny Leon's direction.
"Not to spread unsubstantiated rumors, but I also heard that the show is likely to close Sunday."
This is my absolute favorite comment of this entire thread. Remember this trick kids when you are about to do something you know some might find distasteful.
"It is strange to me that it couldn't find an audience."
Well, their entire marketing strategy was Tupac. Even when tickets had gone on sale, their website didn't even mention what the story was. I am on every single list under the sun to get notices about promotions, discounts, etc., and this is the only show I never heard a word from. I don't even think they worked with the typical discount houses to do mailings, etc., so there has been a marketing disconnect from the beginning. I can only conclude they thought Tupac alone was going to bring in sales.
Of course, the people who got over that marketing hump discovered that the show wasn't ready for prime time anyway, but still... that is not a good thing to discover if you have almost zero advance sales, since all the people waiting to hear about the show heard it was a train wreck. So, the core Broadway audience side of the house (as opposed to the Tupac side), heard the show was bad and knew how to go for free, to add more reports that it was bad.
To me, the lack of a coherent book kept (and will continue to keep) me away, since it is the only bit they had to get right. Otherwise, the cast is good (I've seen many of them before, and they are talented and, at this level, unless you really miscast something, your cast will typically be capable), and Tupac's music is proven, so the one bit they came up with to fuse these elements together failed. So when people say they like the cast and the music, but not the book... that just sounds like a total failure to me. The one part they had to create is the weakest link?!
Some shows improve with out of town previews, others tinker with something broken but never quite fix it. We'll never know what the case would have been here.
They also could've managed their way onto the Tonys with a performance.
There is a ton of advertisements on subways (full subway cars are decked out in just Holler ads) but now that I think about it, I didn't get any flyers in the mail or any emails from the numerous discount/mailing lists I belong to.
A little swash, a bit of buckle - you'll love it more than bread.