NEXT TO NORMAL Replaces Rush with Lottery- Page 4

[Plum]

Posted: 10/6/09 at 1:37am

I'm prone to defending the fannish, since I've definitely gotten more a few weird looks for getting as excited about musicals (and sci fi, and comics) as I do. And I can almost see what would drive someone to go and wait for rush tickets at 5am - the status it gives you, the sense of ownership it gives you of the show you love, and the community of fellow-fans who get it, which is no small thing. (I think that last factor has been a bit underrated in this discussion - lotto fanatics come in gaggles for a reason. Fandom can create a community, but in the end the community can end up sustaining and increasing the intensity of fandom as well.)

For those fans, this is going to stink for a while. But they'll still have their fansites, the stage door, and plenty of other ways to express their devotion. And from a broader point of view? This opens up discounted tickets for other people. You know, the ones who actually can't afford full price, not the ones who can buy $25 seats 50 times.

[BlueWindSadness]

Posted: 10/6/09 at 2:09am

i think this is a fabulous idea, and something that should have been done a while ago.


i would like to see how many of these crazies would be complaining if Alice Ripley left the show....then they wouldn't give a rats a$$. Am I right?

It's pathetic....god forbid you have to see an "understudy" or "replacement"


The show is the show, and the performer is the performer.

There is a difference, and it is a shame that some of these people can't find the line between it.

[adamgreer]

Posted: 10/6/09 at 8:06am

i would like to see how many of these crazies would be complaining if Alice Ripley left the show....then they wouldn't give a rats a$$. Am I right?

No, with a lot of them, it goes beyond Alice. Jessica Phillips has picked up a few fans from this crew.

[legally_popular]

Posted: 10/6/09 at 8:17am

^True, yet some people still have a nervous breakdown if they buy tickets to a show and Alice happens to be out that night.

I know that these people are harmless and would never hurt Ripley or anyone else, yet some of this behavior is borderline stalkerish or flat out stalking.

It doesn't matter how old they are, all of them are adults. I don't know what worse: their behavior or the fact that they don't know how inappropriate it is. It's unhealthy. Do they ever have a moment and stop and think to themselves, "Hey am I going too overboard?"

It's very clear that this rush was changed because of them, so now they're complaining? haha, you're the ones that got it changed!

[winston89]

Posted: 10/6/09 at 12:04pm

I don't think that they do. I do think that it is possible to see a show a bunch of times and be a fan of it but not to do anything that these guys are doing such as stalking or going overboard in more ways then one.

When I was younger I did see Rent a good amount of times, yet, I never stage doored, I never followed the actors to the subway nor did I ever pretend that I was friends with any of them. So I do think that it is possible to just be touched by the show itself and not perform any of these acts that can be considered stalkerish or fangirlish.

[alightinthedark23]

Posted: 10/6/09 at 12:11pm

This is amazing news and well over due. I might actually get a chance to see it from the front row without waking up at two in the morning to do so.

[BlueWindSadness]

Posted: 10/6/09 at 12:43pm

"No, with a lot of them, it goes beyond Alice. Jessica Phillips has picked up a few fans from this crew"


I'm talking the majority. MOST of them wouldn't give a damn about the show if Alice left.

[alightinthedark23]

Posted: 10/6/09 at 12:55pm

I have to agree with BlueWindSadness, I think when Alice leaves the show, if it hasn't closed by then, Next To Normal is going to be in serious trouble. They would need to find an outstanding replacement to fill her shoes.

[Mildred Plotka]

Posted: 10/7/09 at 2:22am

I'm still traumatized from the near pouncing I got for not loving Sweet Charity when I saw it. The fangirls next to me wanted to bite my head off when I didn't feel the way they did about the show, sat with my head down to avoid the criminal choreography, and refused to clap when I didn't enjoy something. During intermission they stared me down and almost ordered me to sit down (talking to friends on the aisle) several minutes before curtain. It was quite odd. Love a show but don't force those around you to have the same experience.

[winston89]

Posted: 10/7/09 at 2:39am

I don't know if the crazies will calm down post Ripley's run in the show. I mean I do feel like Alice and co are responsible for some of what has been going on in terms of them doing things like handing out cards telling people to add her on facebook. But, I do think that this is starting to spread to other members of the cast as well. I do think that there is an over the top love for Ripley that these fanboys and girls are showing and then on top of that there is an over the top love of the show in general. I think that it is the over the top love for the show in general that is keeping people like Jen from wanting to sign autographs at the stage door after knowing darn well the kind of people she is bound to run into. And, you know what? I really can't say I blame her. If I knew that those nuts would be out there after I was done doing a show, you bet that I wouldn't want to stick around signing autographs.

[GoodMorningStarshine]

Posted: 10/7/09 at 1:04pm

I am very happy for the change. I have wanted to try rush in the past and have been told not to bother if I don't plan on sleeping overnight at the theatre. I think it's nuts to sleep on the street for a show that performs 8x a week, especially to do it on a regular basis, it's not like it's a superstar performer only on for one night.

Lotto is the fairest way to distribute the discounted tickets.

[TheaterBaby]

Posted: 10/7/09 at 2:48pm

Bravo to whoever made this decision.
I might actually go see it now.

"I'm still traumatized from the near pouncing I got for not loving Sweet Charity when I saw it. The fangirls next to me wanted to bite my head off when I didn't feel the way they did about the show"

That happened to me at Rent. Some girls behind me were bragging about how it was their 80 something time (and 100 something for the other one) seeing it. During intermission I was privately discussing with my friend how I was underwhelmed. Those crazy girls overheard me and flipped out.

Guess what...there are shows I love that others don't. I say to each their own.

Also, I too have heard stories about that one girl who feels entitled to "her seat." Though I've yet to ever actually see her anywhere. Perhaps because based on these stories, I have avoided Next to Normal like the plague.

[Bettyboy72]

Posted: 10/7/09 at 3:16pm

To watch those rush line videos or fangirl/boy videos on youtube whether it be Rent, N2N, Spring Awakening, or WICKED is just so sad, almost tragic. Many of these kids are a mess. They take absolutely no pride in their appearance, probably are depressed or anxious, hide themselves in oversized show sweatshirts, have little to no social skills, and are so deluded and live in fantasy. Some of them clearly aren't taking care of themselves.I am all for theatre being escapist fun, but some of these kids (and adults) are sad. I mean, anyone who can spend that much time rushing a show clearly is neglecting other portions of their life. They get their emotional needs met through a Broadway show and that terrifies me.

I love Broadway with every fiber of my being and it helped me out during some tough times, but what some of these folks are doing is scary to me. It's like an emotional crutch and a fanstasyland.

[Yero my Hero]

Posted: 10/7/09 at 3:30pm

They take absolutely no pride in their appearance, ... hide themselves in oversized show sweatshirts

When you spend the night on the sidewalk, you dress for comfort, not style.

I'm not excusing these crazy fans, just their clothes.

[TheaterBaby]

Posted: 10/7/09 at 3:42pm

I was about to similarly reply.

If I were sitting/sleeping outside all night, I would likely be in over-sized sweats as well.

I actually do know a couple of the people who have rushed that line on a pretty regular basis. While I think it's bizarre that they've done it, I do know for a fact that they (the few I know anyway) are college students who go to school AND work. They also dress quite nicely when not standing in a line at 4am

I don't think it's fair that the rush had gotten to that point where the same people were constantly in line so early, and this might seem bias, but I am less put off by students and young people doing that stuff than I am by adults who should be working.
What are your teens and early 20s for if not to do crazy things like stay in a line all night for something you love?
Mind you, to do it multiple times is nuts....but I do get it to a degree.

[DRSisLove]

Posted: 10/7/09 at 3:51pm

It takes me ten minutes to get to Times Square from my campus, and I still have yet to rush a show on a school day, or even lotto one at night. I simply do not have the time with homework, and other work at school. I do not understand where they find the time. I'm not commenting on their educational situation, but maybe I'm just "envious" of their amount of free time.

[EveHarrington]

Posted: 10/7/09 at 3:57pm

I've been in "rush seats" before, and I can say that it's not just during rush that these kids are dressed that way. This breed is always wearing some kind of show shirt, or worse, shirts that are "home-made" and have quotes or "inside jokes" written all over them, so they can get more attention from their front row seats. Very sad and very disturbing. Time rushing might be better spent learning about the value of the way you present yourself to the world.

Also I concur with the question of where these kids find the time? Aren't there other, more valuable things they could be doing? Perhaps they're all in very not rigorous college programs because in high school, they spent too much time living in their deluded fantasy world rather than studying.

[Yero my Hero]

Posted: 10/7/09 at 3:59pm

DRS, where do you go to school? Just wondering because it used to take me ten minutes to get to Times Square, too.

[legally_popular]

Posted: 10/7/09 at 4:04pm

Also I concur with the question of where these kids find the time? Aren't there other, more valuable things they could be doing? Perhaps they're all in very not rigorous college programs because in high school, they spent too much time living in their deluded fantasy world rather than studying.

And where do they find the money? I know $25 is the cheapest price, but at 10, 20, 30 times that some of these people are seeing it during only a couple months sure can add up.

[TheaterBaby]

Posted: 10/7/09 at 4:30pm

Fair questions.

And it doesn't surprise me that a lot of them do still dress foolisly when attending the show. I could only speak for the 2 or 3 people I know out of all those who frquently rushed.

[winston89]

Posted: 10/7/09 at 4:34pm

I was at the stage door of Legally Blonde one night. Another show mind you that had rush problems and fangirl problems. And, I was walking away with a group of young teen girls and one of the girls father who was basically buying everything for the girls including theatre tickets. I guess I could semi sort of see how people see shows like Next To Normal or another fangroup show that has a rush or lotto go several times. But, when it comes to something like Wicked, that one always baffled me due to the fact that the lotto is so damn crowded and it is still a hot ticket.

And, I have taken advantage of the fact that I live in New York and that I am a half hour away from Broadway. I can't tell you the number of times where I was having a bad day or in a bad mood, or hell, just even needed a good escape and I up and splurged on a favorite show. But, I do think that is different then seeing a show thousands of times just for status points. I mean, plenty of people have their favorite source of entertainment that they turn to when they are blue. Be it a book or a song or a move. That is why I see nothing wrong with turning to a favorite show every so often when your in need of a pick me up.

[TheaterBaby]

Posted: 10/7/09 at 4:41pm

"Every so often" being the key phrase there.

[taylorPHENOMENON2]

Posted: 10/7/09 at 4:44pm

Well maybe that's part of the answer - what they don't spend on clothes they spend on theatre tickets.

[Bettyboy72]

Posted: 10/7/09 at 4:54pm

Yea, I wasn't referring to the attire to camp out for tickets, I was referring to how many of these kids look on film. They are most likely depressed or disenfranchised. They are often overweight, a little slovely, and act age inappropriate. I mean some of these girls who would gush over Matt Doyle and some of the other boys from Spring Awakening and act like they were friends-it made me terribly sad. These are girls who are probably overlooked at school and distract themselves from their own issues with these odd crush/obsessions.

Not to mention these shows like SA, N2N, and Wicked all deal with, in a way, mental health, identity, and coming to terms with your life and yourself. It's too bad some of these intense fans don't actually take a lesson from the show and look at themselves.

[binau]

Posted: 10/7/09 at 5:19pm

Hitler discovers Next to Normal rush replaced with lottery

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGrsGqBKEb8