So, is Always...Patsy Cline happening or no?

[bjh2114]

Posted: 6/18/13 at 8:49pm

It's supposed to start in a month, right? But no theatre has been announced or anything.

Updated On: 6/18/13 at 08:49 PM

[CapnHook]

Posted: 6/18/13 at 9:03pm

It's obvious at this point that it is delayed. Because we haven't heard why yet, it's probably because they still aren't financed.

I know this Crystal Bowersox person is supposedly one of the most popular American Idol contestants...but is she really that much of a draw? (Apparently not.)

[egghumor]

Posted: 6/18/13 at 9:12pm

I agree. Seems to me that Crystal Bowersox in ALWAYS... PATSY CLINE would be much more successful on tour than parked in NYC, hoping for tourist trade.

[RippedMan]

Posted: 6/19/13 at 12:19am

Maybe now the investors are having cold feet? Seems like something Reidel should investigate. I would think it wouldn't cost that much to produce. If you can do Tom Hanks' show for $3 Million, this can't be that much.

[CapnHook]

Posted: 6/19/13 at 12:35am

Musicals cost more. I would bet this is around $4-5 million.

[RippedMan]

Posted: 6/19/13 at 12:43am

You think so? I mean, it's a unit set. There's two characters and the band is onstage, and it's not like it's a big orchestra.

[two ladies tickets]

Posted: 6/19/13 at 12:58am

ah, but you're forgetting the hidden costs of running a Broadway show...theatre rent, crew salaries, advertising is very expensive and for a juke box musical like this the majority of the weekly nut is : song royalties! Small shows can cost just as much to run as their bigger competition.

[Joviedamian]

Posted: 6/19/13 at 2:16am

two ladies, why will there be song royalties for this show...does it not come with the songs when you pay for the rights to perform it ?

[someone.else's.story2]

Posted: 6/19/13 at 11:36am

This show is too intimate for a big broadway stage.

[bdn223]

Posted: 6/19/13 at 11:47am

The show was likely waiting for the Golden since it was the only unclaimed small house since the Hayes will be occupied by Rock of Ages for the next few years, the glass menagerie was quick to grab the Booth post I'll Eat You Last, leaving only the Golden left of the small Houses. I am guessing its producers didn't think Vanya would extend or at least for an extra month without star Sigourney Weaver.
If the production is still happening I will probably wait an extra month or two for The Golden to be open. Considering Crystal Bowersox' career isn't going anywhere and was likely contracted for at least a year 2 months won't make much of a difference to a production that will be gone come january.

[Liza's Headband]

Posted: 6/19/13 at 12:04pm

"two ladies, why will there be song royalties for this show...does it not come with the songs when you pay for the rights to perform it ?"

Huh? When there is a jukebox musical using a catalog of songs, whether it's from one artist (JERSEY BOYS) or numerous (ROCK OF AGES), there are weekly royalties that have to be paid to the writers and/or rights holders of each song. It's not a one-time thing. The same is true for selling cover versions of a song. The copyright holder and/or writer of the original song receives a royalty, albeit very small, for every download or sale of the cover version.

It's the same model for the dramatic performance of a standalone song, although it's entirely possible that the deal might be structured differently depending on each show. But yes, the producers have to pay music royalties every week and they typically add up to much more than the weekly box office split to the composers (unless we're talking about someone like Sondheim or Schwartz)

[Liza's Headband]

Posted: 6/19/13 at 12:08pm

I should also add that the practice of using catalogued tunes is a double-edged sword. It's usually a fixed royalty, not a percentage. So if you do poorly at the box office for a couple weeks, it doesn't impact those copyright holders who are still receiving the same royalty thus putting a bigger dent in that weekly operating cost. But if you have a killer summer, you are not giving up as much!

[bdn223]

Posted: 6/19/13 at 12:25pm

The Double Edged sword of using a catalogue and royalties is part of the reason Rock of Ages still hasn't recouped after 4 years on Broadway, in addition to the million dollar move from the Atkinson to the Hayes.

Updated On: 6/19/13 at 12:25 PM

[Liza's Headband]

Posted: 6/19/13 at 12:55pm

Exactly right, bdn.

[MCfan2]

Posted: 6/19/13 at 4:40pm

For what it's worth, the new issue of "Country Weekly" has an interview with Bowersox about the show. It says that they talked to her during rehearsals, and that the show opens in the fall. Doesn't say when they actually did the interview, though, so it's possible things have changed since then.

[RippedMan]

Posted: 6/19/13 at 5:32pm

The fall? Wasn't it always the summer? It'd fit nicely in the Kerr or Lyceum. Both are slightly bigger, but to me feel intimate.

[Matt Rogers]

Posted: 6/19/13 at 7:39pm

Maybe one of the producers finally rose from a coma and realized how God-awful this show is.

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 6/20/13 at 5:02pm

http://www.broadway.com/buzz/170100/summer-plans-for-alwayspatsy-cline-starring-crystal-bowersox-fall-to-pieces/

[Joviedamian]

Posted: 6/20/13 at 6:32pm

"Huh? When there is a jukebox musical using a catalog of songs, whether it's from one artist (JERSEY BOYS) or numerous (ROCK OF AGES), there are weekly royalties that have to be paid to the writers and/or rights holders of each song."

That is fascinating. I remember a local community theatre production did the show and only had to pay for the rights to the licensing company to perform the show. They only had to do it for each time they performed the show. Whether that included song royalties in the licensing fee, I have no clue, but I remember not hearing that they had to pay individually for each song when discussing performance rights.

If you are doing a big production like JERSEY BOYS for the first time, yes, then I can see you having to pay for each song...but since PATSY CLINE is already a musical that is available for commercial and amateur productions, I would not think you would have to go through all that as well. Very interesting to know. Thank you Liza's!

[wdwfreak]

Posted: 6/21/13 at 12:10am

It's not all that shocking that it got postponed until the fall, since the theater they want is booked in the summer, but I am sure will be open come September.

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 6/21/13 at 12:55am

"That is fascinating. I remember a local community theatre production did the show and only had to pay for the rights to the licensing company to perform the show. They only had to do it for each time they performed the show. Whether that included song royalties in the licensing fee, I have no clue, but I remember not hearing that they had to pay individually for each song when discussing performance rights."

The community theatres and regional companies that do the show will pay one fee to the licensing company that will then distribute the fees and royalties as appropriate. However a large-scale commercial production like this will most likely need to set up an entirely different license, which will most likely include much higher royalty payments than would be expected of a 3 weekend run in a community theatre.

[two ladies tickets]

Posted: 6/21/13 at 8:05am

re: song royalties: I actually just ran into someone who worked on Million Dollar Quartet when it was on Broadway and I asked them about royalties. They said that song royalties actually made up a huge chuck of their weekly running cost and that was the main reason why that small show never made any money even though it sold well in it's first year of the run.

[someone.else's.story2]

Posted: 6/21/13 at 10:05am

I worked on a fairly long running regional production of this awhile back and remember that they kept having trouble with the estate and had to keep pulling songs and replacing them with standards whille the run progressed. While I wasn't involved in the business dealings, I think that it's a valid point that with a show like this, it's probably difficult and costly dealing with the music rights.

[Liza's Headband]

Posted: 6/21/13 at 10:12am

AEA already answered it but yes, you're referring to what we call a "second class" market of productions. That is for a show that is already packaged for licensing; regardless of its amateur or professional status.

When you license a musical, you are paying for the royalties of those songs in a roundabout way - they are usually packed in as part of the licensing fee. Or, in some cases, the original creator/producer of that jukebox musical will have their own longterm deal with all of the copyright holders so it doesn't even become an issue on the licensing side. There are many ways to go about it. Not one exact formula. It's a different beast in television but I have dealt with music licensing in that realm -- all the same, more or less