GETTIN (G) THE BAND BACK TOGETHER Previews

[#1Elphie]

Ken Davenport recently posted this on Facebook:

[UncleCharlie]

#1Elphie said: "Ken Davenport recently posted this on Facebook:

"

Hey, are you really famous and would be willing to help bring publicity to my struggling show for free?

[Elegance101]

I don't understand that post at all. Is he literally asking for orchestra players? Is he looking for cast replacements? Why is doing this on Facebook?

[UncleCharlie]

Elegance101 said: "I don't understand that post at all. Is he literally asking for orchestra players? Is he looking for cast replacements? Why is doing this on Facebook?"

He's looking for a nightly "celebrity guest"  to bring the show buzz and free publicity like Oh, Hello and other shows have done. I don't know that for a fact but that's what it appears.

[ryankon]

Couldn't disagree more.  HEAD OVER HEELS is silly, subversive fun that is marked by craft and ambition(presenting a first trans leading lady is an and of itself worthy of respect).  BAND aims low and, yes, on rare occasions it hits its mark but it's awful. 

[broadwaysfguy]

im excited to see this just because i like the storyline.

its too bad the season has started with this and hoh(a truly horrible show)

im hopeful pretty woman will do well and very encouraged by early takes on moulin rouge in boston and hadestown pre broadway-

this wont be the best season in broadway musical history but it probably wont be the worst either....
oops forgot king kong is coming...(sigh)

[mcclernon2]

It's actually much improved since its tryout, as one would expect.

[mcclernon2]

I thought the show was very funny. I, too, am interested in how knowledgeable people view it. And in sifting through pages of posts, there are even a few actual show comments!

[mcclernon2]

Very well said

[Pammylicious]

mcclernon2 said: "I thought the show was very funny. I, too, am interested in how knowledgeable people view it. And in sifting through pages of posts, there are even a few actual show comments!"

 

I enjoyed the show yesterday afternoon. Yes it is silly but so is a lot of musical comedy.   The audience seemed to love it also. Mariluu looks terrific.

 

[HunterK]

Mitch Jarvis was out at this afternoon’s performance. Wondering what’s going on! I have any thoughts running through my head, but just putting it out there!

[dramamama611]

Going on?  Maybe he wasn't feeling well.  Why does everything have to have secret meaning?

[Jordan Catalano]

We live in an age where many actually believe that Hillary Clinton ran a child sex ring out of a pizza parlor. To some people, EVERYTHING is a conspiracy theory.

[HunterK]

dramamama611 said: "Going on? Maybe he wasn't feeling well. Why does everything have to have secret meaning?"

Was making a joke, but I need to go back to Himor 101

[Sauja]

Still out tonight and Scott Richard Foster was on for him despite. It being the listed understudy in the Playbill.

Hated the show, but that wasn’t Foster’s fault. Or really anyone in the cast’s. It’s just a long, dull slog peppered with frustratingly easy and repetitive jokes and terribly uninteresting songs. Ah well. At least I didn’t pay.

[AEA AGMA SM]

HunterK said: "Mitch Jarvis was out at this afternoon’s performance. Wondering what’s going on! I have any thoughts running through my head, but just putting it out there!"

Their schedule is kind of crazy. 5 show weekends are pretty tough to begin with. 5 show weekends that are NOT followed by a day off are just brutal.

[Evans2]

Does Ken Davenport come out before every show? 

[10086sunset]

Got around to seeing this last night and while I'm happy some of you enjoyed the show, I spent much of my time watching in a state of complete shock. 

Wow. Just wow. 

If you went and enjoyed it, I'm glad that was your experience. I wish it was my experience.

Parts of the show that were attempting to be funny played as uncomfortable stereotypes. I cringed watching the mitzvah at the top of the second act. During "Jersey," I thought the production owes the entire state of New Jersey an apology. If the song wasn't questionable, those license plates...Ugh.

Mr. Davenport came out at the top of the preview, celebrating how this show is unique because it's an original musical and proudly declaring how it's not The Iceman Cometh. I'd imagine Mr. O'Neill is thankful for that. He's right about original musicals being great.  Problem is that just being an original musical does not make it great, or even good. While I don't believe every show has to be high art, I do believe a show should have some craft and be more than a vanity project for the creatives involved. 

On the positives, performance wise, the cast really is giving everything they have. Brandon Williams really stood out as Tygen Billows. Thought he was excellent. Off topic but related, did anyone else think the Tygen Billows character was borrowed straight from the movie Dodgeball?  Even though they seemingly went to the well too many times with the "My father used to say" gimmick, his performance was earnest and funny. The cowbell bit was cute and worked as a nice little surprise. 

The show's rally cry or Mr. Davenport's rally cry seems to be if you don't like the show, you are a theater snob and don't like having fun.  That's all well and good but the argument would be stronger if the show was good. While HOH may not always work, it's such a better crafted show. GTTBT's book feels like it has 13 writers. Oh wait...While I admire Mr. Davenport's energy and passion for the production, I simply wish more of that energy and passion was coming from the book and lyrics of the production.

 

[BroadwayConcierge]

10086sunset, I totally forgot to mention how many moments in the show made me feel like I was watching Dodgeball. Spot on.

[JBroadway]

10086sunset said: "Off topic but related, did anyone else think the Tygen Billows character was borrowed straight from the movie Dodgeball?"

 

Yes, I thought the exact same thing. Tygen Billows is virtually a carbon-copy of White Goodman from Dodgeball. They even both have a scene where they attach electrodes their muscles, don't they? 

 

 

[Evans2]

10086sunset said: "Off topic but related, did anyone else think the Tygen Billows character was borrowed straight from the movie Dodgeball?"

Completely!

 

[HunterK]

Did anyone see the new "discount" that started today? I really think Davenport is reaching now. 

"Give your teen a break laughing at your dad jokes and take them to something that's actually funny - today ONLY, buy one ticket to Getting' The Band Back Together and get one for your teenager for 40% off!"

Ummmm isn't that more expensive than his that promo "$40 over 40"? or just using a promo code from BroadwayBox or just trying "discount" into Google? 

I am looking forward to tomorrow's promo! 

[Jordan Catalano]

OMG HunterK is SO right! A show offering discounts in order to get people in to see it and hope that they like it and word of mouth can spread is the LITERAL DEFINITION OF REACHING. HunterK, I can’t wait to see what they do next, too! Maybe they’ll get desperate enough to actually do publicity and get the word out about their show! Can you imagine how REACHING it would be of them if they did that???

[dramamama611]

It's almost like they want people to see the show!

[Jordan Catalano]

dramamama, can you even imagine anything as pathetic as that? Like literally OMG Ken Davenport promoting his show is SO desperate!