Interesting New Tale of Two Cities Target Dates

[son_of_a_gunn_25]

Posted: 4/28/06 at 2:16pm

http://www.syracuse.com/vadeboncoeur/index.ssf?/base/entertainment-0/1146214837208210.xml&coll=1

"We'll rehearse in the fall, going into previews and play through Christmas. We are not going out of town. We'll close down for a month, then go into previews again and open in April." -Thommie Walsh

So this is interesting. I was worried if they were planning to open in December how they would fare with the Broadway winter doldrums even though I love the show. Not sure how "official these dates are though. It could be wrong...

Updated On: 5/19/06 at 02:16 PM

[bare_nakedlady]

Posted: 4/28/06 at 2:30pm

Interesting way of doing things...

[Sleeper2]

Posted: 4/28/06 at 2:33pm

I hope Jim Barbour and Jenny Powers are returning.

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 4/28/06 at 2:39pm

Maybe he'll get out on good behavior.

[Sleeper2]

Posted: 4/28/06 at 4:15pm

Good behavior is over-rated.

[umgeoboy]

Posted: 4/28/06 at 4:32pm

Wow that's crazy. They are talking about previewing in December (if not before then), closing for Jan, and then previewing in Feb and March with an opening date in April. Thats atleast 3 months of previews!

[Ourtime992]

Posted: 4/28/06 at 4:50pm

They'll need it. Tale of Two Cities is one of the trickiest properties I can think of trying to musicalize.

[umgeoboy]

Posted: 4/28/06 at 4:59pm

but 3 months of previews and no out of town tryout? And they have been working on this show for years.

I am very excited it sounds like this is finally going to happen, but it still is striking me as odd.

[BobbyBubby]

Posted: 4/28/06 at 5:01pm

They're going to have 2 preview periods? Has that ever happened before?

[RentBoy86]

Posted: 4/28/06 at 5:58pm

See, I don't think that is such a smart idea. If they open the show in December, and people go and see it and it sucks, then word of mouth will spread around the city that it's terrible, and people won't go see it. Rather, if they previewed out of town for an extended period, worked the show, and got it solid before opening in NYC, then the buzz might be more favorable. Just look at Tarzan, if they had opened somewhere else and brought it in, it might have had a better buzz.

[son_of_a_gunn_25]

Posted: 4/29/06 at 12:22am

The question is whether an out of town tryout is any different than previews when it comes to word of mouth today. Just look at Lestat in LA. We all knew exactly how it was faring since the beginning. Granted I am sure going out of town still has it's benefits, but is that distance still worth the cost especially when the internet and sites like our beloved BWW to fan word of mouth across the globe? Of course, this topic probably deserves an entire thread of its own, but it is something to consider before passing judgement so quickly. Just because it has been done a certain way for a long time doesn't always mean it will always be the right way to do things. Now I admit I am no expert, and I can't pretend to know everything that a producer takes into account, but I think it is something that more and more producers and directors are probably going to have to look at if they haven't already.
(And feel free to blow holes in my musings if they are full of crap. )

Updated On: 4/29/06 at 12:22 AM

[Ourtime992]

Posted: 4/29/06 at 2:00am

I don't think you're completely off, as out-of-town tryouts no longer allow the kind of distance from the New York audience that they used to, considering the effect internet buzz had on shows like Seussical and Lestat. On the other hand, they do allow a show to tryout in front of people who typically see less theatre than the Broadway audiences or are accostumed to seeing productions with less money poured into them or at the very least aren't paying $110 per ticket. All of which adds up to an easier period for re-working the show AND an additional, fresh audience when the show hits NYC.

[RentBoy86]

Posted: 4/29/06 at 2:28am

Well, for one, Lestat tried out in SF...but anways...

Yeah, I think even with internet sites, the majorty of theatergoers aren't on BWW or other sites. I think in NYC, most of the people that go to the theater are New Yorkers or people from surrounding areas. So, if they were to see a show early on, like in the begining of an extended preview period, they might not understand what they're getting. Like, if you got SF or something, they may be more willing to see the show, considering its going to Broadway...(sorry its late, not sure if any of that made sense)

[son_of_a_gunn_25]

Posted: 4/29/06 at 3:27am

"Well, for one, Lestat tried out in SF...but anways..."

Sometimes you just have to sit back and realize that you are an idiot.

Thanks for the input. I think it is just interesting how the dynamics of new media and the internet affect art forms that existed before their advent. The schedule of A Tale of Two Cities just made me think about it more.

Is the audience for shows on Broadway still mostly New Yorkers? I was under the impression that it now was mostly tourists, hence the having to cater to the fluff that the majority of tourists seem to want right now.

Updated On: 4/29/06 at 03:27 AM

[Hawker]

Posted: 4/29/06 at 2:22pm

The biggest red flag about this show in my opinion is that the "official" website has not reflected any changes in months. Avid fans of the show have not posted for almost four months, the music has not been updated to reflect cut, or new songs, but mostly it really sounds incredibly like an attempt to do another "Les Miserables".

Just listen to the Act One finale, "Until Tomorrow":

http://www.ataleof2cities.com/sounds/mp3/16-until_tomorrow.mp3

Will backers really be set in fire by this? It also reminde me of something Frank Wildhorn wrote for "The Scarlet Pimpernal".



Updated On: 4/29/06 at 02:22 PM

Posted: 4/29/06 at 4:48pm

I just hope Cheyenne is cast as Charles Darnay.

[RentBoy86]

Posted: 4/29/06 at 5:38pm

Well, with Les Miz back on Broadway in the fall, maybe audiences will welcome another 80's esque pop opera.

[son_of_a_gunn_25]

Posted: 4/30/06 at 3:40am

"The biggest red flag about this show in my opinion is that the 'official' website has not reflected any changes in months."

I was frustrated by the lack of updated info on the website myself which is why I started a news update page on my personal website. People have told me they appreciate my time and efforts which helps to keep me on top of keeping it updated.

"Avid fans of the show have not posted for almost four months,"

The website in its current form has very little to keep people coming back again and again to post after they have read everything. (Yes I am a loser and have been paying attention to that. I have a Digital Media Design Minor and this stuff really interests me.) What little info that comes out about this show at this point doesn't really warrant a response on the messageboard because there is not that much to discuss. What there is to discuss gets more attention being posted on BWW than it would on the official website messageboard. That is one of the reasons I really don't post on it much. I feel I am of more help informing people about the show here. Do a BWW search with "A Tale of Two Cities" you will find a lot of people who are genuinely excited for the show (including myself of course )I do know they plan on redesigning the website. One of the producers is Sharon Fordham and she was in charge of E-business for Nabisco (it was under her direction that the online games based on food snacks were created), and was the CEO of WeightWatchers.com. She has a great history of incredibly creative marketing strategies so I am excited to see what she is going to bring to the table. It might even bring in some fresh thinking on how to market Broadway online which would be exciting!

"The music has not been updated to reflect cut, or new songs."

I was lucky enough to see the presentation back in November, and yes there had been changes made at that point, and a few since then. I do know they want to make sure the book, music, and lyrics are as tight as possible and they are not afraid to change the schedule to make sure that they put out the best show that they possibly can which is something that I find really refreshing. Maybe it is just me, but it seems many shows are rushed through the creative process much too quickly.

Probably much more than you wante to know. :-P If I can help clear anything else up for you, I'd be more than happy to. It's a labor of love.

Updated On: 4/30/06 at 03:40 AM

[Elphaba]

Posted: 4/30/06 at 11:23am

if this truly happesn next April, my birthday gift to myself will be a weekend there......

[Sleeper2]

Posted: 4/30/06 at 12:16pm

A whole big bunch of people I call friends did various workshops and run-throughs of this -- and I wish them only the best. I hear the producers have the dough to put it on, and have made good moves to replace the director.

But, daaaaay-um, if this isn't Les Miz redux, I don't know what is.

[MCfan2]

Posted: 4/30/06 at 1:40pm

I have the recording of this with Alex Santoriello (don't know if there was more than one recording) and I love it. "Two Cities" is my favorite novel and I think they did a great job with this adaptation, even if it does sound like "Les Miz Take Two" at some points. I hope it does well!

[Hawker]

Posted: 4/30/06 at 2:33pm

Re: "Les Mis redux".

Ron Howard who knows something about directing said something interesting about such projects (specifically, he was referring to "The DaVinci Code").

More or less he said that when you are dealing with such an incredibly well-known entity the suspense has to be in its execution rather than its story. Almost everyone knows how "A Tale of Two Cities" plays out so its success will be if it's told in a way that even devotees find refreshing.

The people behind "Les Mis" borrowed heavily from concepts devised by the RSC for its production of "The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickelby."

If you think about it, McIntoshes "Les Mis" was far more Dickensian than Hugo. As a matter of fact the original concept album had almost no similarity in mood or tone to the finished product thanks to the creativity of the RSC.

The question is going to be for "A Tale of Two Cities" "Can the people behind it rework the original concepts enough so that the audience doesn't immediately think "Les Mis?".

This is one of the problems I have with "Billy Elliot"--at least on the cast recording.

It starts with an archived newsreel--very muck like "Evita" and then goes right into a song which, like "Stars" sung by Javert speaks of Stars as almost living beings which guide human moral choices.

Now that seems like small criticism but imagine a show that started with an auction in an old movie theater that leads to a flashback.

It seems that the "Billy Elliot" people could have come up with something not as strikingly similar to Harold Prince's opening image in "Evita".


Updated On: 5/11/06 at 02:33 PM

[TotallyTale]

Posted: 5/10/06 at 10:05am

A Tale of Two Cities is similar to LES MES, yet on the other hand it is different as well. I believe 'Tale' will do fine. Broadway needs this real musical to come to the stage. Enough of the comedy and fiction shows, we need history. Tale is going to be the best show on Broadway!!! LOOK OUT!

[Phantom05]

Posted: 5/10/06 at 2:09pm

"Broadway needs this real musical to come to the stage."

- Does this mean that all of the other musicals currently running in New York aren't "real" musicals, they're "fake" musicals?

"Enough of the comedy and fiction shows, we need history."

- Charles Dickens' story is fictional, lol. The era and setting are quite historical, but the characters themselves are not real people, making the story fictional.

"Tale is going to be the best show on Broadway!!!"

- If they were to open what I saw in the workshop they would have some serious problems. The show does have some great moments, and if tended to, could be something wonderful. Musically however, it does resemble a bit of "Les Miserables meets Frank Wildhorn."

It'll be interesting to see how this preview treatment fares in terms of word-of-mouth reaction. I look forward to seeing the show when it begins previewing, and then again after opening.

Tootles,

Phantom05

[sanda]

Posted: 5/10/06 at 2:24pm

Hawker, that is an interesting opinion.

Could you give some details about "The people behind "Les Mis" borrowed heavily from concepts devised by the RSC for its production of "The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickelby." "? I didn't see the production of "Nickelby" so I have no idea how it works.

Also, the "McIntoshes "Les Mis" was far more Dickensian than Hugo. As a matter of fact the original concept album had almost no similarity in mood or tone to the finished product thanks to the creativity of the RSC. ". I have listened to the french concept recording, but I cannot figure out whether the original one is more Hugo than London's version. I would love to know more about your opinion.