National tour before Broadway?

[silent]

Posted: 7/25/16 at 9:10pm

What is the purpose of a full scale national tour of a show before it hits Broadway? Doesn't it negate casual fans (from other cities) from seeing a show once it hits NYC?

Updated On: 7/25/16 at 09:10 PM

[gypsy101]

Posted: 7/25/16 at 9:25pm

What about all those people from those cities that probably will never go to see shows on Broadway?

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 7/25/16 at 10:11pm

silent said: "Doesn't it negate casual fans (from other cities) from seeing a show once it hits NYC?"

How so?

[silent]

Posted: 7/26/16 at 4:33am

I can understand a show going on the road after it has run on Broadway, thus opening it up for theater fans who can't make it to New York. I'm just confused by a show doing it before  it has played on Broadway. Most shows have their test run in one city, make their changes and then debut on Broadway. 

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 7/26/16 at 5:33am

If a show has something that will draw crowds on the road WITHOUT a Broadway production (it is a revival of a hugely popular classic; it's an adaptation of a beloved source, particularly a family-friendly one; it has stars that are proven box-office draws), it may make sense to tour for a while.

Producers can rake in the cash and pay off most of the cost of mounting the show BEFORE facing New York critics. Those critics can sometimes turn a hit into a bomb virtually overnight.

(Of course, sometimes a pre-Broadway tour is extended while work is done on the show, but now that previews charge full price, this doesn't seem to be as common as it was once.)

 

 

[nycgogetter]

Posted: 7/27/16 at 10:48am

1) Build up word of mouth

2) Entice investors for a Broadway run with proven box office receipts.

3)Refine production prior to a Broadway run.

4) Use the "Pre-Broadway" title as an advertising gimmick with out any real or realized plans to bring it to Broadway.

 

I feel like many shows who go this route never make it in . . . 

[Mike Costa]

Posted: 7/27/16 at 11:37am

The reason is to make money before taking the chance on the New York critics.

Also, if a show opens out of town it is probably part of a subscription series so there is an audience that is already forced to see it.

Lastly, when you present a show pre-Broadway in a city other than New York you probably are the only game in town vying for attention and an audience as opposed to presenting in New York where you have thirty other players on the field.

[TheSassySam]

Posted: 7/27/16 at 1:41pm

Mike Costa said: "The reason is to make money before taking the chance on the New York critics.

Also, if a show opens out of town it is probably part of a subscription series so there is an audience that is already forced to see it.

Lastly, when you present a show pre-Broadway in a city other than New York you probably are the only game in town vying for attention and an audience as opposed to presenting in New York where you have thirty other players on the field.

 

 

Bless Chicago for having endure some of these pre-Broadway productions. I am still trying to forget First Wives Club. (They even tried to entice subscribers to see it again with a $13 orchestra seat promotion.) 

[Liza's Headband]

Posted: 7/27/16 at 1:57pm

^ Just to be clear.. what you're referring to -- a sit-down pre-Broadway tryout production, such as SPONGEBOB or FIRST WIVES or BEACHES -- is very different than what the original poster is talking about (a bonafide national tour with multiple cities/venues).