Industry Insight - by Cara Joy David Industry Editor Exclusive: The Evolution of Cell Phones Use at the Theater (And What to Do About It)by Cara Joy David - October 10, 2019 Years ago, when the popularity of cell phones started exploding, theaters in other countries started experimenting with the idea of using signal jammers to prevent cell phone use in the theater. It never took off. And more and more people started using cell phones in the theater. There is the photo before, the texting during, the random cell phone ring and sometimes the recording of the performance. Most of it is not supposed to occur. We've all heard stories about performers stopping the show until phones are put away. But some wonder what can be done to stop it or even if it should be stopped. (more...)  Industry Editor Exclusive: The Rise of the Broadway Concertby Cara Joy David - September 26, 2019 It used to be young Broadway performers rarely did their own shows, at least not in NYC. Some of them found a place-and there are examples to be cited for sure-but it wasn't all that common. The Laurie Beechman Theatre, downstairs at the West Bank, likely hosted the most. The more established music venues, such as Birdland, were for more established performers. While Joe's Pub was established for 'young artists' in 1998, it often didn't recruit from the Broadway stable. Some theater companies would host a pop-up night or series, but it usually wasn't more than that unless the performer would automatically attract a big crowd. (more...)  Industry Editor Exclusive: Filming a Broadway Show From Your Seat - Is It Ever Allowed?by Cara Joy David - August 23, 2019 Last week, many fans who couldn't fit in the theater got to enjoy part of the final performance of THE PROM courtesy of Beth Leavel's personal publicist. Lisa Goldberg, founder of her own LSG Public Relations, put up on her social media pages two-minutes-20-seconds of Leavel singing the song 'The Lady's Improving' with a note that said she recorded six minutes ('including 1.5 minutes of entrance applause') and 'received full permission to post.' The shaky video was clearly shot from a seat in the theater, which would generally be forbidden if there was no permission. So what kind of permission do you need to do this in a Broadway show? Well, it is more than a 'sure' from a producer. (more...)  Industry Editor Exclusive: Closing Time on Broadwayby Cara Joy David - August 8, 2019 Of course, everyone has been freaking out about the amount of closings announced in recent months. From the acclaimed musical THE PROM to the cult show BE MORE CHILL to the big-budget musicals KING KONG, PRETTY WOMAN and THE CHER SHOW, it's a rough time to be a producer of tuners. But rather than wondering why so much is closing, my first thought was: a?oeWhy mid-August?a?? After all, Labor Day weekend (or slightly after) used to be the preferred time of slaughter. Producers would ring every last bit of summer tourism buck before shuttering. This year the shows are going out this month, August 11 and 18. That is because sales are dropping off after that point. But why? Most say it is the shifting of school start dates earlier. (more...)  Industry Editor Exclusive: PUFFS' Magical Futureby Cara Joy David - July 8, 2019 PUFFS, the long-running off-Broadway HARRY POTTER-inspired comedy, is going the way of many Broadway shows, with a closing in August. But it is doing something differently: licensing four different versions of the show through Samuel French. (more...)  Industry Editor Exclusive: The Return of TheaterWorksUSA Summer Theatreby Cara Joy David - June 24, 2019 Last year many families were disappointed by the lack of TheaterWorksUSA free summer theater, which had become someone of a New York City institution. This year it is back, sort of. During the week community partner groups will be able to see DOG MAN: THE MUSICAL for free (or almost free); average weekend theatergoers will pay. (more...)  BWW Exclusive: David Petro's Broadway Break Thru Failed to Pay Instructors, Suspends College Program for 2019by Cara Joy David - April 10, 2019 The theater community spans across the world, but it is famously small. So when you don't pay people who works for you, it tends to get out, especially if those folks have Broadway connections. Such is the pickle that former performer and casting director David Petro seems to have found himself in. He allegedly hasn't paid various people who worked for him teaching master classes and word is now spreading. (more...)  BWW Exclusive: The Race for Best Revival of a Musicalby Cara Joy David - April 8, 2019 For a while, it seemed like we might only have one musical revival, the Roundabout Theatre Company production of KISS ME, KATE. Then a transfer of critical darling OKLAHOMA! was announced for the Circle in the Square, adding some excitement to the Tony race. This excitement is not just over which of these revivals will win, but rather whether there will be a Best Revival of a Musical award at all. All signs point to yes, though it is not a definite. (more...)  Industry Editor Exclusive: Women Playwrights Make Inroads, But Broadway Still Eludesby Cara Joy David - January 1, 2019 We have a lot of new plays on Broadway this season. Thirteen are currently set. There are also seven play revivals. Two of the new plays were written by women--both produced by non-profits and both already closed. Not one revival is of a play written by a woman. (more...)  Industry Editor Exclusive: Givenik- Broadway's Way to Give Backby Cara Joy David - December 24, 2018 Ten years ago, Jujamcyn Theaters founded Givenik, a service that enabled ticket buyers to give a little back to charity when buying tickets to a show. (more...)  Industry Editor Exclusive: BAT OUT OF HELL and the Tour That Never Wasby Cara Joy David - November 20, 2018 It was around 3pm on November 1, 2018. The members of the company of BAT OUT OF HELL, which was in the midst of an engagement at Toronto's Mirvish Theatre, received a text saying there would be a company meeting at 7pm. Nothing good ever comes of those; veterans knew there was something up. Once gathered, the Company Manager told them the bad news: the tour was ending where it began, in Toronto. The final performance there was to take place, as scheduled, two days later. The rest of the stops had been cancelled. Their futures were now uncertain. The night they were told that news, one actor broke his hand during the performance, another his foot. (more...)  Industry Editor Exclusive: Tony Awards Voting and the Flaw in the Systemby Cara Joy David - November 2, 2018 The Tony Awards policy has always been that in order to vote in a certain category, you needed to have seen all the shows nominated in that category. If, for example, you missed one show that was nominated in eight categories, those eight categories were off limits to you. Makes sense and seems a simple enough rule to remember. Except folks have constantly complained that people violate the policy and just vote regardless. (more...)  Industry Editor Exclusive: A Paperless Broadway- Technology in the Rehearsal Roomby Cara Joy David - October 19, 2018 Theater folks are not necessarily the first to embrace change or technology. So it's not surprising when you walk into a rehearsal room and see creatives sitting with giant binders of paper. But certain companies are trying to change that. (more...)  Industry Editor Exclusive: Revival(s) on the Horizonby Cara Joy David - October 1, 2018 We are still fairly early in the Broadway season, but it is never too early to start thinking of the Tony race. And what do people seem to be focused on? Whether the Roundabout Theatre Company revival of KISS ME, KATE, which is currently the only announced musical revival, will simply be handed a Tony. (more...)  Industry Editor Exclusive: The Fate of Broadway's Criticsby Cara Joy David - August 21, 2018 In the last few decades, theater has become much bigger business than it used to be. However, in that same period of time, the coverage of it in mainstream media outlets has dwindled. Many of us may not remember a time that off-Broadway openings were covered on Entertainment Tonight, but it happened. In recent years, even in America's theater epicenter, theater is losing ground in major publications. Neither The New York Post or The New York Daily News has a critic on staff any longer. It is hard to even tally the amount of veteran theater writers from around the country that have lost their jobs in the last decade. (more...)  Industry Editor Exclusive: TheaterWorksUSA's Summer Vacationby Cara Joy David - August 1, 2018 If you have kids, or just a love of children's theater, you may have noticed that TheaterWorksUSA-and, yes, after a rebranding, that is how to write it-is not presenting its free summer theater in New York this year. The program has happened almost every year since 1989, but not this one. (more...)  Industry Editor Exclusive: New York Stage and Film- Broadway's Upstate Playgroundby Cara Joy David - July 9, 2018 What do HAMILTON, THE HUMANS, DOUBT, SIDE MAN, THE WOLVES and AMERICAN IDIOT all have in common? They all started with New York Stage and Film (NYSAF). Since 1985, the non-profit's summer program, set at Vassar College, has presented a variety of readings, workshops and productions of in-development works. (more...)  Industry Editor Exclusive: The Trouble with Late Seatingby Cara Joy David - June 19, 2018 We've all had it happen--we're sitting in the theater, we're enjoying a scene and half a row in front of us gets up because of the arrival of a latecomer. You think: 'Can no one stop these people?' (more...)  Industry Editor Exclusive: The Year Away for FringeNYCby Cara Joy David - May 8, 2018 When FringeNYC announced in fall 2016 that it would take a year off, some wondered if it would come back. After all, since the festival began in 1997, many others have sprung up around the city. Was there really a need for it? FringeNYC producer The Present Company believes there is. (more...)  Industry Exclusive: Solving This Year's Biggest Tony Nomination Mysteriesby Cara Joy David - May 1, 2018 As we enter into this, the most industry of all industry times, there are some Tony related questions that many believe need answering. (more...)  Industry Editor Exclusive: THE STONE WITCH- Donations to a Non-Profit with a Commercial Upsideby Cara Joy David - March 30, 2018 Very rarely do you hear of new ways to invest in, or contribute to, the theater. Something surprised me recently however--on the website for the off-Broadway commercial production of THE STONE WITCH, you can make a tax deductible donation to the Berkshire Theatre Group (BTG) and have the money go to THE STONE WITCH. According to producers Laura Janik Cronin and Darlene Kaplan, the money goes not to increase BTG's share of the profits, but rather to keep the show afloat. (more...)  Industry Editor Exclusive: Actors' Equity vs. ROCKTOPIAby Cara Joy David - March 16, 2018 When you think Broadway, a lot of things come to mind. For me one of them is unions because I've had to cover many a threatened strike in my day. Except Actors' Equity, the union that represents actors and stage managers, doesn't have a hold on every Broadway show. It has a contract with the Broadway League for 'First Class Performances,' as defined by the Dramatists Guild. That generally means what we think of as Broadway plays or musicals, though the actual definition is way more confusing: 'live stage productions of [a] play on the speaking stage. . . under Producer's own management, in a regular evening bill in a first class theatre in a first class manner, with a first class cast and a first class director.' The trouble hits for Equity when shows come that aren't what we traditionally think of as a play or a musical with people we traditionally call actors. In those cases, if the producer is a member of The Broadway League, which has a production contract with Actors' Equity, that producer has an obligation to at least try to negotiate with Equity, at least according to an Equity spokesperson Brandon Lorenz. If a producer is not a member of the League, and is bringing in a show that is not a 'First Class Performance,' there is no obligation for that producer to even speak to Equity. Except Equity wants all producers to speak with them and they are willing to put pressure on producers to do just that. The latest example is the current situation with ROCKTOPIA. (more...)  Industry Editor Exclusive: To Dim or Not to Dim? How Broadway Chooses When to Dim Its Marqueesby Cara Joy David - March 2, 2018 A couple of weeks ago when five-time Tony nominee Jan Maxwell died, I assumed the marquees of Broadway theaters would be dimmed. I emailed the Broadway League--the association of theatre owners and producers who issues press releases on such things--to ask 'when' it would happen. I don't know why I automatically assumed it would. (more...)  Industry Editor Exclusive: How THE PLAY THAT GOES WRONG Went Rightby Cara Joy David - February 15, 2018 In fall 2016, when it was announced that THE PLAY THAT GOES WRONG was coming to Broadway in the spring, I don't think many in the community thought it was the best idea ever. It was a play with no stars, announced for an open-ended run at The Lyceum Theatre (not exactly a house of hits). It was a success in London, but decidedly British seeming. Mischief Theatre, the company that created it, was an unknown quantity in the United States. The one 'name' it had was television and film producer/director/writer J.J. Abrams, who signed on as a producer after seeing it in the West End. And even his involvement was perplexing-known for his eye for action fare, the early ads humorously stated he 'must have lost a bet.' Yet the show is still running, making it Broadway's longest running play. (more...) |
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