NY's Ziegfeld DREAMGIRLS Roadshow being *spoiled*!

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 12/16/06 at 1:23pm

Per OneNightOnly on the DREAMGIRLS IMDB Message Board:

Opening Night at the NYC Roadshow Engagement (Ziegfeld Theater)

If you plan on attending the Roadshow presentation of Dreamgirls in NYC....BEWARE. The theater management is playing the ENTIRE soundtrack on the auditorium's soundsytem as you sit and wait for the movie to begin! In other words, you will HEAR the movie musical before you see it. Many people around me were quite upset that in essence their first viewing was being "spoiled" before the movie even began...especially for those who had taken great lengths NOT to listen to the soundtrack so their first viewing would be "a special experience".

Many people in my party were quite upset at this marketing ploy to "increase awareness/sales of the Soundtrack in the theater lobby" (which was the official response by management). People were saying "shut it off", "why are we hearing the movie", etc

10 minutes before the movie began, we were 'treated' to THE song in all it's glory before the house lights went down. Unbelievable. If you are going to charge 25.00 a seat, don't ruin or diminish the viewing experience by playing the movie soundtrack before we see it. Can you imagine walking into a broadway theater and hearing the cast ablum playing on the soundsytem before the curtain goes up, just to "increase awareness/sales of the cd in the lobby"? Shame.

So the moral of this story is...if you have reserved seating at the Ziegfeld and don't want to HEAR the movie as you sit there waiting for it to begin....do not enter the theater until minutes before "curtain time".

[emg_sound]

Posted: 12/16/06 at 1:31pm

I saw it last night and they are playing the soundtrack at the ArcLight.

[ruprecht]

Posted: 12/16/06 at 1:34pm

I love the DRAMA of it all. Why don't you put in your iPod and listen to the original Broadway cast recording as you're waiting for the lights to dim? Or some random bootleg recording you probably have of some random Effie's quintessential retelling of the character? Show queens are a trip.

[Caleb]

Posted: 12/16/06 at 2:07pm

Do you need to buy a ticket far in advance, or can you still get a ticket if you show up at the theater an hour or two in advance?

[soapguy17]

Posted: 12/16/06 at 2:14pm

rup, some people avoid those actor's version of the songs so they don't make any judgements before the show. Honestly, I wish I hadn't listened to Keith Robinson and Jamie Foxx, before hand. I'm already majorly let down. And not listening to J.Hud's version of AIATY, would preserve some of the magic.

[kidmanboy]

Posted: 12/16/06 at 2:57pm

Caleb, last I saw online, the showings were sold out through Tuesday. And I assume the rest will sell out before the day of.

[ICEcreamAssassin]

Posted: 12/16/06 at 3:45pm

They played the soundtrack as we walked into the theater which at first was like "why are they playing this?" So i crossed my fingers that they wouldn't play jhud's AIATY..she starts the song off then the lights go down.. thank god.. some of us were yelling dont play this or shut it off. It is a big deal us theaterphiles. However, once you've experienced the movie.. you could care less! :) Its funny, my best friend had heard Jhuds version of the signature song about 3 months ago and he said "this has nothing on hollidays version. it sounds too young etc." I said, reserve your judgment till after you see it on screen. After the movie last night he said " OMG that was amazing..I should have given Jhud much more credit"

[cooperross]

Posted: 12/16/06 at 3:49pm

That's really nothing new...it has been standard practice to play the soundtrack of the film before and after a movie, sometimes at intermission if there is one, since roadshows began. In fact the practice wasn't limited to just roadshows, back in the days before multiplexes theatres almost always played the soundtrack of the movie they were showing, esp if it was a musical.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 12/16/06 at 3:54pm

Sorry, Caleb...but you need to purchase your tickets in advance at this point. Advance showings are selling out like crazy as of yesterday's first day, so there is nothing available at the box office when you get there, no matter how early you arrive.

They're suggesting looking for tickets to the weekday showings since everyone is attacking the weekend showings (for obvious reasons).

Good luck!

[Kringas]

Posted: 12/16/06 at 4:01pm

It's not like the soundtrack isn't out already.

[soapguy17]

Posted: 12/16/06 at 4:36pm

But, the people who are complaining, (I think) have been avoiding the soundtrack until AFTER they saw the movie.

[GYPSY1527]

Posted: 12/16/06 at 7:11pm

I was there last night and didn't mind them playing the soundtrack a bit. I found it created quite a nice atmosphere stiring up conversation about the Broadway production ect...

Anyways, about the movie...PERFECTION!!!

[YankeeGal#24]

Posted: 12/16/06 at 8:03pm

I saw it in NY this afternoon at 2 and they did NOT play the soundtrack..maybe they got the message??

[Auggie27]

Posted: 12/16/06 at 8:54pm

A lot of show queens ... and plain old ordinary musical lovers, you know, Monday Night Football types who grew up in a home where Mom listened to SOUND OF MUSIC as she balanced the bank statement ... won't buy an album before seeing a show, wanting the thrill of the first hearing to be tied to a life performance. This is a "Lite" verson of that seeking-virgin ears syndrome, and I am with them. It think for twenty-five smackers, you deserve a pure theatrical experience. It's very consistent with the pitiful state of theatrical trailers, which in general reveal the structure and highpoints of an ENTIRE film.

As Carrie Fisher said in POSTCARDS, nowdays, "...instant gratification isn't fast enough" amen.

Posted: 12/16/06 at 8:57pm

What are the official LA roadshow dates, tobiasragg?

[sidneybruhl]

Posted: 12/16/06 at 9:25pm

Pleazzzzzzze.....Be glad you can actually go see the movie even if the soundtrack is playing in the lobby.....those of us who live in "podunk" have to wait until Christmas Day.

[SeanMartin]

Posted: 12/16/06 at 9:32pm

And given how things are marketed these days, the DVD will probably go on sale in February or March.

[Broadwayboy2631]

Posted: 12/16/06 at 9:34pm

I was there this afternoon and problem fixed! The soundtrack was not being played..

[Ghosthost999]

Posted: 12/17/06 at 3:11am

I was at the 7:30 showing at the Arclight tonight and being a COMPLETE Dreamgirls virgin I was pretty pissed at them playing it, so I just turned on my ipod and blasted it untill the lights dimmed. The arclight did the same thing opening night of Phantom of the Opera, that pissed me off pretty good too, I was really avoiding the movie soundtrack before I had seen it. So that night I just chilled in the regular arclight lobby untill the movie started

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 12/17/06 at 3:30am

Mr. Bruhl, go back to poor bitter teacherville. We don't want to hear it.

Updated On: 12/17/06 at 03:30 AM

[TheatreDiva90016]

Posted: 12/17/06 at 3:50am

So, All the 'Roadshow' is the theater playing the sound-track before the film?

[DAME]

Posted: 12/17/06 at 4:03am

And a mediocre souvenir program.

Posted: 12/17/06 at 5:16am

I was at the 10:30 showing opening night at the ArcLight and I was pissed off too! Me and my 3 friends had all been on a Dreamgirls Diet, not letting ourselves listen to even the Broadway soundtrack let alone the new one for a week prior to the movie. We are obsessed with the YouTube clip too and it was painful not to watch that all week, hahaha. I really don't think we're crazy, two of my friends are casual, new Dreamgirls fans thanks solely to the YouTube clip, and they were so mad they were being spoiled! We totally didn't want to hear "It's All Over" so we tried to sing to ourselves and talk loudly and hum but it was hard...but when "AIATYING" started we were PISSED, and I yelled out "Don't play this!" I am not one to yell anything at a movie but it just wasn't cool...luckily the movie started before JHud got very far into it.

BTW, I have never been part of a movie like this in my life. The whole theatre collectively held their breath through the entirety of THE song, and people were just visibly overwhelmed and shaking and crying and myself, I was just sitting there stunned...STUNNED...it was one of the most powerful things I have ever been a part of!

I really want to see the movie with a different crowd too though...I wanna see how JHud wins over a half-full theatre in Bumble****, Missouri, to see if she can get them to applaud in the middle of a movie like we all did, multiple times, even standing up for her...

[sidneybruhl]

Posted: 12/17/06 at 6:27am

Wanna Be A Foster--I sent a more explicit PM to you that succinctly tells how I feel about you, but I also wanted to deal with your insulting post here on the board. I am by no means bitter about anything. I happen to like the town where I live and I love my profession. I just find it funny that people who live in and around NYC complain about something as silly as a soundtrack playing in a lobby when they should count themselves lucky that they have already been able to see the film. My "podunk" reference was aimed at how those who market films perceive those of us who live in small towns. Believe it or not, many of us can read, write, and enjoy films other than the lastest one featuring Larry the Cable Guy. As for your "teacherville" reference, what lofty profession do you have that allows you to make fun of people who have dedicated their lives to helping young people? It's people like you that can make this board a miserable place!
Updated On: 12/17/06 at 06:27 AM

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 12/17/06 at 8:39am

Sweetie, my reference was only to the fact that all you do on here is complain about how much you dislike your job. I didn't pull it out of nowhere.

Updated On: 12/17/06 at 08:39 AM