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[Theater'sBestFriend]

Posted: 4/13/20 at 2:35pm

I remember when VCRs came out. Everyone said: "Live theater is dead!" 

It turns out VCRs are dead.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 4/13/20 at 2:40pm

To be fair, I don’t believe anyone ever said the VCR would end live theatre.

[darquegk]

Posted: 4/13/20 at 2:43pm

I had a professor who complained that cast recordings had killed the concept of encores as audience demands instead of song tags.

[Theater'sBestFriend]

Posted: 4/13/20 at 2:44pm

Jordan Catalano said: "To be fair, I don’t believe anyone ever said the VCR would end live theatre."

Oh yes they did! They also said it would going to movie theaters.

 

Updated On: 4/13/20 at 02:44 PM

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 4/13/20 at 2:47pm

I’d be very interested to know where that came from. I’m not saying you’re making it up, I’m just saying that as someone who has extensively studied that format and time period as it related to home entertainment and how people consumed media, that’s just something I don’t believe I’ve ever heard said.

Updated On: 4/13/20 at 02:47 PM

[Theater'sBestFriend]

Posted: 4/13/20 at 3:02pm

I'm delighted to know you studied that time period, and to answer your question. I myself lived in it and remember it clearly. Believe me, everyone said VCRs would end both live theater and going out to the movies.

Here's just one example I found from a 1987 NY Times article (NY Times 1987 "Movie Theater is Back in Mainstream"). From the article (this was absolutely typical of the time): 

''We have lots of room for a stage,'' he said. ''The senior citizen's group has a theater organization, they can put on plays here....Mr. Shulman is also counting on Hartford Areas Rally Together to follow through with its pledge to support the neighborhood theater.... 'Everybody is happy about the change,'' said John S. Serra, vice president of the organization. ''This is a heavily residential neighborhood and a lot of people will go. I've been there a couple of times myself. It's better than sitting in front of a VCR"

Don't worry folks - Broadway will be back as soon as you can say "vaccines and testing." To paraphrase Mark Twain, the reports of its death are greatly exaggerated.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 4/13/20 at 3:11pm

That’s a great article, thanks for sharing. But to be fair it is talking about movie theaters not live theater venues.

[Theater'sBestFriend]

Posted: 4/13/20 at 3:22pm

Jordan Catalano said: "That’s a great article, thanks for sharing. But to be fair it is talking about movie theaters not live theater venues."

Actually the article talks about the building having a stage for multiple uses, and addresses people congregating in public venues for a variety of shared ceremonial and performance experiences. The quote makes the point that a personal screen doesn't replace it. Someone else in this thread also made the point, They are 100% right.

Since you're interested in studying it maybe you'll find a better reference - please let us know if you do. And if you want to include oral history sources for your scholarship, feel free to use mine.

Either way, the important point is that people said VCRs would end live theater and movie going.They didn't. And this won't. 

 

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 4/13/20 at 3:28pm

Well I just so happen to have a lot of time on my hands lately lol. So I’m going to go back and take a look. And it’s not to “prove you wrong” it’s legitimately something I’m curious about because I have zero memory of coming across that before.

The idea that VCRs would kill the movie industry is very well known and documented and it even went in front of the Supreme Court. A machine that was simply invented as a time-shifting device that would let you watch football while you taped FALCON CREST to watch later upended the entertainment industry and forever changed how we consume media. And as someone who grew up (literally) in video stores the history of the medium is something that will always fascinated me.

[JennH]

Posted: 4/13/20 at 3:29pm

Theater'sBestFriend said: "I remember when VCRs came out. Everyone said: "Live theater is dead!"

It turns out VCRs are dead."

YEP! This right here! I was born right when they were born as well, and fast forward 15 years, VCR's was already obsolete by then

[Jarethan]

Posted: 4/13/20 at 4:40pm

I think the DVR analogy is too narrow. DVRs were simply replaced by DVDs, digital, streaming services, and etc. they clearly have successfully coexisted, although I do believe they are a Contributing factor to small movies having an increasingly harder time in cinemas; I also think the original increasingly speedier availability of movies on-demand in homes is hurting attendance for non-must see movies as well.

Up to now, however, there has always been a large number of people who like to see movies in a movie theatre with large screens, etc. There have always been people who view movies as a relatively inexpensive night out. Ultimately, those people are not disappearing; however, COVID19 may have a more significant negative impact on movie attendance for some time, at least until there is a vaccine and it has been distributed widely. Especially when you can see movies on-demand three months after initial release, I am not going to be rushing to a movie theatre (or a stage or performance) anytime soon. Don’t know if I represent the majority, but I am sure I do not represent a small subset of the theatre / movie going public.

[Theater'sBestFriend]

Posted: 4/13/20 at 6:33pm

Jarethan said: "I think the DVR analogy is too narrow."

It depends what you're analogizing. The point was whether Covid-19 will make people feel live streaming on their personal devices at home is preferable to live theater. VCRs made pretty clear they won't. 

Better analogies to whether fear of illness will end a human need for live theater would be to historical epidemics in Athens, Rome, Constantinople and 13th C Europe. They were all vastly worse than Covid-19. None of those ended theater. This won't either.

Testing, contact tracing, targeted quarantines, vaccines, good governance, and honesty will bring Broadway back. If you love the theater, demand them.

[yearofthesnk]

Posted: 4/13/20 at 8:32pm

Jordan Levinson said: "darquegk said: "You really think the end of physical community, and that humankind will retreat into a permanent hermetic existence?

We are too bored, and too horny, for this to really happen."

Well, schools and businesses would all be online, I believe people will still get paid, and we'll all shop for necessities(food, clothes, etc.)online. That's pretty much all we need in life, and with today's technology, we don't even have to leave our houses to do so. Food delivery services (from restaurants) will also be on the rise, and romantic relationships will blossom on social media, Zoom, FaceTime, etc.Everything else is leisure. People working in the theatre, sports, etc. businesses will have to find new work-from-home jobs. Bored as we may be, this is actually a plausible new way of life."

No, it isn't plausible. Good lord.

[BWAY Baby2]

Posted: 4/13/20 at 11:55pm

No denying that Covid 19 is a shock and a severe deterrent to living life as usual- but this too shall pass- and as the economy is brought slowly back to life, and people slowly regain confidence in life as they once lived it- going to movies, theater, airports, sports events, etc.- in five years, this will be but a horrific memory. That is, of course, if a new outbreak does not occur in the fall . And that is what I am hoping for. No one, of course, can predict the future- but if a second round of this does not occur, the healing and getting back to normal routines will certainly happen more quickly.

[MadonnaMusical]

Posted: 4/14/20 at 11:04am

Doubtful, if anything, once there is a vaccine people will be rushing to do public things again. I envision a boom in theatre as people want to do anything but go home.

[kaykordeath]

Posted: 4/14/20 at 11:45am

MadonnaMusical said: "Doubtful, if anything, once there is a vaccine people will be rushing to do public things again. I envision a boom in theatre as people want to do anything but go home."

After the initial boom of everyone wanting to go out and splurge and celebrate and enjoy life, I'm worried, about 6 months later, people realizing how FINANCIALLY precipitous everything is and a a falloff in "disposable income" spending.

While, clearly, the members of this boards are more active theater fans in general, and we will, statisically, continue to want to go see live theater, as an employee of the industry, I am worried that entertainment (including dining out, and leisure travel, etc) is going to take a long, slow, drawn out, financial hit as people re-evaluate their budgets in light of realizing how tenuous the economy as a whole, is.

[PatrickDC]

Posted: 4/14/20 at 12:42pm

Kay brings up a great point, that even if theater is available, will people pay for it? Yes, as time passes, investments go up, jobs are more secure, people will spend more. But short term, maybe not.

I’m a major gifts fundraiser and we’re looking at these same issues for philanthropic giving.

Makes me think in the next couple years we’ll see less elaborate productions, more scaled-down, and more concert-style performances. There is still a cost but I presume less, which could lead to lower ticket prices (for a while) so producers can get butts in the seats.

[Jarethan]

Posted: 4/14/20 at 1:18pm

Theater'sBestFriend said: "Jarethan said: "I think the DVR analogy is too narrow."

It depends what you're analogizing.The point was whether Covid-19 will make people feel live streaming on their personal devices at home is preferable tolive theater. VCRs made pretty clear they won't.

Better analogies to whether fearof illness will end a human need for live theaterwould be to historicalepidemics inAthens, Rome, Constantinople and 13th C Europe. They were all vastly worse than Covid-19.None of those ended theater. This won't either.

Testing, contact tracing, targeted quarantines, vaccines, good governance, and honesty will bring Broadwayback. If you love the theater, demand them."

I absolutely do agree, but I think it will take awhile.  Not sure how long.  Big stars in well known/loved shows can help Broadway.

i also agree that nothing beats live, just didn’t think the DVR analogy worked.   (Note: has have still LOVED a number of NT Live productions; some of the shows that made their way to PBS.  Not as good as live, but still pretty damn good.

[Theater'sBestFriend]

Posted: 4/14/20 at 1:32pm

Love live theater? Want it to come back? Demand Trump use the Defense Production Act to start making widespread Covid-19 testing available. He has refused to do so. That would allow public health measures to permit a controlled end of general economic shutdown in cities, pending development of therapeutics and vaccine.

[Theater'sBestFriend]

Posted: 4/14/20 at 1:32pm

Love live theater? Want it to come back? Demand Trump use the Defense Production Act to start making widespread Covid-19 testing available. He has refused to do so. That would allow public health measures to permit a controlled end of general economic shutdown in cities, pending development of therapeutics and vaccine.