"The Spectacle has, indeed, an emotional attraction of its own, but, of all the parts, it is the least artistic, and connected least with the art of poetry. For the power of Tragedy, we may be sure, is felt even apart from representation and actors. Besides, the production of spectacular effects depends more on the art of the stage machinist than on that of the poet."
--Aristotle
I explained a little of this on my blog and over at ATC, but basically, we came into town as a limited run because St. Clement's was booked beginning in February. The producers had hopes that it could transfer, but there was no plan in place because we wanted to open first, and watch the response. Also, not knowing the future, we brought it in on a microscopic budget and crossed our fingers.
December went well, the reviews were more than positive, and suddenly, after the holidays, ticket sales exploded. Also, Broadway investors and producers started coming around, and everyone involved began becoming passionate about the play. Partly because of the wonderful ticket sales, but also because they love the play itself and what it's about, feeling that it's an important and authentic play (and performance).
So, they scrambled, pulled together a budget, found out about the DR2 and became enthused. The DR2 loved Zero. A deal was made.
So, we're still largely word of mouth. All chatter is appreciated, but it looks like Zero lives. Zero Hour
I'll use this thread instead of spamming the board.
We are thrilled and honored to get two nominations for DC's Helen Hayes Awards. Jim Brochu for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Non-Resident Production and "Zero Hour" for Outstanding Non-Resident Production.
When you look at the list, you can see what he's up against. All four of the other productions are from the Kennedy Center. They're huge, famous, first class touring productions of Broadway hits or international star productions. August: Osage County, Spring Awakening, Jersey Boys and A Streetcar Named Desire (with Kate Blanchett).
That the nominating committee also found and nominated our little Theater J production is high praise and an even higher honor. Those productions cost millions and millions of dollars. Ours, uh, didn't.
That this news came on the same day as the news of our transfer to the DR2 Theater makes this a wonderful week, indeed. And it helps bring always-needed (free) publicity. My blog.