RAGTIME -- The 2015-2016 Phoenix Entertainment Tour

[MikeInTheDistrict]

Posted: 10/20/15 at 12:35pm

According to the website, this tour is opening in two days. 

Is anyone planning to see it? It doesn't come to my neck of the woods until next summer, but I've been looking forward to this since they announced it a year ago. It is directed by Marcia Milgrom Dodge, but I'm not sure if it's a full-scale reproduction of the 2009 revival. I am curious to hear if they use the same set design and staging as that production, and how the (non-Equity?) cast is.  

Updated On: 10/20/15 at 12:35 PM

[TheGingerBreadMan]

Posted: 10/20/15 at 12:49pm

I'm planning on seeing it during the Charlotte run during the first few days of December. 

[RippedMan]

Posted: 10/20/15 at 1:02pm

Was at an audition a few weeks ago and heard them rehearsing, they sounded good?

[neonlightsxo]

Posted: 10/20/15 at 1:31pm

"(non-Equity?)"

Yes, it is a non Equity tour.

[JoseLee_]

Posted: 10/20/15 at 1:38pm

It's not even coming to LA. 

[MikeInTheDistrict]

Posted: 10/20/15 at 1:43pm

^Yes, the venues are a bit off the beaten path, but isn't Cerritos kind of close to L.A.?

[ChrisTyler12882]

Posted: 10/20/15 at 2:16pm

It's supposed to be highly influenced by the '09 Broadway production. 

[thommg]

Posted: 10/20/15 at 2:50pm

The 2009 production staged by Marcia Milgrom Dodge was a fantastic staging of the show. I was surprised it didn't do better in NYC, where I saw it.

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 10/20/15 at 4:16pm

I'm guessing that this is bus and truck just basing it off the dates

[MichelleCraig]

Posted: 10/20/15 at 4:23pm

Yes, the venues are a bit off the beaten path, but isn't Cerritos kind of close to L.A.?

One would think so, but in reality, driving from Hollywood to Cerritos could take over two hours... I just mapped it on WAZE and at 1:22 on a Tuesday afternoon, it's a 55 minute ride...29 miles. The joys of Los Angeles traffic!!

[RippedMan]

Posted: 10/20/15 at 4:35pm

Oh it's def. non-union 1 nighters. That doesn't mean it can't be entertaining. But I wouldn't think it's too lavish as they have to put it up and tear it down almost every other night. 

[Brave Sir Robin2]

Posted: 10/20/15 at 4:51pm

Thousand Oaks ins't horribly far from LA, and us Orange County folks can see it at Cerritos!

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 10/20/15 at 10:59pm

It is based on the Broadway revival, but features a very new scenic design by the FANTASTIC Kevin Depinet. I have seen a few snippets of the thing and like what I have seen,

[Comden Green]

Posted: 10/21/15 at 6:11am

It's in my town mid November.  Thinking of seeing it but do not feel good about supporting this trend of non equity touring shows.  

[Liza's Headband]

Posted: 10/21/15 at 9:38am

^ That's an incredibly dangerous and foolish statement to make. You're conflating regular non-equity tours with non-equity tours being promoted as "Broadway" or "Direct from Broadway" tours by presenters that can afford to tour with an AEA cast. These are two separate issues as there are plenty of lower-scale non-equity tours happening all the time (Camelot, Ragtime, etc.). What Equity is focused on is different from this. 

[Comden Green]

Posted: 10/21/15 at 10:24am

^.  Well, I still don't understand.  So I am still dangerous and foolish.   

The tour is being advertised as "Broadway in Roanoke". My impression is that previous tours through here were equity.  This tour is being sold as the same but is not.    

Now, help me understand the situation.  I don't understand what you were trying to teach me.  And which of those situations you describe is good and which is not so good?

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 10/21/15 at 10:59am

^ liza is saying that there are some touring companies that are non equity, but can afford to have equity actors. So in that terms they are bad people. But some companies like Phoenix probably can't afford equity actors.

[felixleiter]

Posted: 10/21/15 at 11:24am

Yes, believe it or not, there is some nuance to this debate.  While the "Broadway" moniker, when applied to Non-union touring shows is frustrating and somewhat misguided, it is only really part of the problem. The real focus of AEA's beef with these shows is basically a marketplace one.  A non-union show like the current tour of Annie, which is produced by Troika, has been playing longer sit-down runs in larger markets.  It is on a comparable schedule to the current union tour of Sound of Music. Coincidentally there was an overlap of the two tours-both playing the Los Angeles Metro area at the same time.  The two shows, playing to arguably the same demographic in the same market, at the same time, provided a unique opportunity for AEA to mount a campaign to highlight the differences in the two productions from a Union/Labor standpoint.  Removing the aforementioned "nuance" this all comes down to dollars and cents, of course.  You basically have the public paying the same price for similar products. One costs more to make (the union production) and one costs less (the non-union one). The Union tour has actors who receive a higher wage, health and pension, and have more favorable working conditions (health and safety, regulated hours, regulated housing and transportation etc.).  The Non-union actors, who honestly aren't being abused per se, are not afforded those same benefits.  But with the same ticket price being paid by the consumer-the money flows to the producer as profits. 

Now in my eyes that is a truly apples to apples comparison and in that situation, I believe that AEA has a valid argument. (Full disclosure: I'm a 10 year member of AEA and a working actor)  In regards to Ragtime and other, lower tiered Non-union Tours (Producers, Joseph, etc.), the union, while not exaclty loving their existence, takes a somewhat softer stance. This is mostly because the financial structure and schedule (route/markets) that these tours have.  The simple fact of the matter is that AEA doesn't really have a contract that would be workable for those tours  because the venues aren't compatible (health and safety, dressing rooms etc), the schedule is too tight (travel time is too great between cities,  shows scheduled too close together) and the ticket prices/promoter gurantees are such that AEA salary and per diem would be financially unsustainable. However, this hasn't stopped promoters and producers, in their marketing, from advertising these shows as "Broadway" shows.  Personally I totally understand why they do it. It sells tickets to a somewhat non-savvy public. 

On a somewhat side-note, but still germane to the original topic of this thread-I understand that this particular production of Ragtime features and orchestra of...wait for it....a grand total of 2 musicians.  Yes, ladies and gentleman, one of the finest scores of the last 20 years is going to be played by 2 synthesizers.  They don't include that in their advertising do they?  Knowing that might help you to make an informed decision about both the price of your ticket but also the cost-cutting necessary to mount a touring musical production in this day and age.  Food for thought, for sure.

[Liza's Headband]

Posted: 10/21/15 at 11:26am

If either the presenting house/organization or the touring company (Phoenix Entertainment) are billing it as "Direct from Broadway," then AEA has a problem with them. In this case, despite the series name of 'Broadway in Roanoke,' I'd assume that AEA doesn't necessarily have a problem with it. If the Broadway team of producers for Kinky Boots or Newsies or Once came through with a non-Equity tour, however, they would be on this list. Find out more by going to http://askifitsequity.com/facts/. 

 

ETA: I also see that felix provided a great, comprehensive response above. Hopefully this is helpful in understanding the nuance of the campaign. Not every Non-Equity touring production is promoting bad practices and policies. Please avoid these dangerous sweeping generalizations at all costs or else the entire industry (and art form) will suffer for no reason!

Updated On: 10/21/15 at 11:26 AM

[felixleiter]

Posted: 10/21/15 at 11:36am

It also gets confusing because sometimes you will have one of the lower tiered non-eq tours squeezed into a larger market for a short period of time (with the same price ticket as the big union tours of course) and then they will go right back to a one nighter the next day.  What I mean is that sometimes a promoter in an A market (Chicago, San Fran, etc) might bring in the Ragtime tour for the weekend, and charge the high ticket price to his "Broadway series" subscribers. Ragtime plays that market, closes on a Sunday night, and Monday night they are back in the C and D Market, playing Bakersfield CA or Champaign IL on a one nighter.  90 bucks a seat on Sunday, 35 bucks on Monday.

I guess it's good that we at least have people asking on this board about the makeup of these tours, aside from just judging their quality.  

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 10/21/15 at 11:38am

Felix in regard to two musicians does that mean they won't be augmented in each stop?  I know even equity tours usually bring in local musicians at each stop although they usually tour with a core of five or so musicians

[felixleiter]

Posted: 10/21/15 at 11:42am

It might be in some of the larger markets.  More full disclosure-earlier in my career I toured Non-eq. In my experience, it was only on the longer sitdowns that the orchestra would be augmented, although we traveled with about 10 musicians.  Honestly, I don't see how local augmentation can be done on a one nighter situation.  The time and organizational obstacles would seem to be too great.

[TheGingerBreadMan]

Posted: 10/21/15 at 11:49am

I very much hope that augmentation is used. This score cannot be done justice by two petty synthesizers. 

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 10/21/15 at 11:58am

felixleiter said: "It might be in some of the larger markets.  More full disclosure-earlier in my career I toured Non-eq. In my experience, it was only on the longer sitdowns that the orchestra would be augmented, although we traveled with about 10 musicians.  Honestly, I don't see how local augmentation can be done on a one nighter situation.  The time and organizational obstacles would seem to be too great.

 

"

Good point--I kinda thought about that just as I posted (that it would be awfully hard to pull off on one day stops.) 

I remember when I saw the Chorus Line tour (during its Equity run,) and being damned confused that so few musicians were listed in the program--missing the note about it being augmented (ACL has a covered orchestra pit, so...) 

 

[felixleiter]

Posted: 10/21/15 at 12:01pm

Just to clarify-when I say "augmented" I mean hiring a local musician to come in and read the score and play a horn (or banjo, or violin).  I don't mean a symphonia, or Rehearse-score situation.