Broadway/San Diego Blog

Check this out. On December 2, 1979, FIDDLER ON THE ROOF (July 14-19, 2009) lost its title as the longest running show in Broadway history. It fell to the perennial favorite GREASE.  GREASE (March 3-8, 2009) was the longest running show on Broadway till it was knocked out of the top spot by A CHORUS LINE (August 12-17, 2008)   When CATS (June 3-8, 2008) hit 6138 performances, it overtook A CHORUS LINE as the longest running show in Broadway history–and on January 9, 2006, PHANTOM (July 16 – August 10 2008) became the undisputed king of Broadway, and it’s still running today. In the next calendar year and a half, Presented by Broadway/San Diego, the San Diego Civic Theatre will house the top 5 record breaking Broadway shows of all time.  So what makes PHANTOM so great? Romance, mystery, drama, and the aura of higher art ‘Opera’ are typical responses. Of course the great music is always the first and foremost reason. But then there’s that amazing set that transforms time and again, just when you think you’ve seen it all it does one more amazing thing. And the costumes? It’s a great period piece and the production takes full advantage of that fact – the costume designers put ALL the money on the stage. And what about the lighting? Or the props?  Or the . . .

Because PHANTOM has such universal appeal, it has become somewhat of an entry experience to the theatre. Many people when asked “what was your first show” will reply “PHANTOM”.  The show has been responsible for so many people getting ‘hooked’ on theatre.  The numbers on this show in terms of attendance, dollars earned, performances worldwide et cetera are staggering. Its just such a phenomenon and I’m really looking forward to the return of the show to San Diego.

Oh and by the way, before FIDDLER it was HELLO DOLLY, and there’s no production of that on the horizon. Oh well, you can’t have everything.

And also by the way, there have been other shows that ran longer than those that I’ve mentioned above but they didn’t break previously set records. They ran or are running while another show was or is the title holder.

Click this link: Playbill for the list of longest runs in Broadway history as of March 23, 2008 as listed in Playbill. See where YOUR favorites fit in.

Andrew Lloyd Webber’s THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA has a whole new look – and is beginning to use its “nickname” publicly. Always known to fans and cognoscenti as simply “Phantom,” the producers and the artists involved with the show have decided that the mask needed a facelift – so, in honor of the 20TH Anniversary of “Phantom” on Broadway – the show is using its nickname more and has a new look.
The rose is still there. The mask is still there. But now, rather than the mask hovering alone, or propped as if on a table next to the rose – the mask now has a face behind it, hovering in the mist. The rose is beautifully reflected in the surface upon which it lays. This is a more sophisticated look, matching the show itself – but then the title has been given a more casual feel – delving to the core of the show, to the Phantom himself…
We were concerned that this new look would be confusing – after 20 years of the blue “shattered” logo with rose and mask, this is a big change – but this really IS the National Broadway Tour of PHANTOM. Andrew Lloyd Webber’s THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA. THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA directed by Harold Prince. THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA that has held audiences enthralled all these years – but a “Phantom” that is attracting a whole new generation – with exactly the same level of thrills and romance. The show has not changed, just the look! (And, a quick note – you should know that if you DO see the “old” logo around town, on posters, etc. – it is still for this engagement of the “real Phantom” – sometimes these kind of graphic transitions take time…).

You could fill volumes of pages with the copy that has been written about the death of theatre. I think the breed of writer that spews such hyperbole is really just a simple sentimentalist that longs for the meaty theatre of their youth and cringes and the comparative fluff that they are forced to view today. The truth is that no experience of a current production can compete with fond memories of one that moved you in your youth and if you just accept that and use those remembered images and emotions to deepen your appreciation rather than to judge the validity of “the latest thing” both the writer and the reader would be happier.

Broadway has forever been dying and being reborn. To me that conjures up the image of the Phoenix–but the moniker that has always seemed to stick is “The Fabulous Invalid” meaning its always sick but always terrific. John Mellencamp and Stephen King are jumping in bed with the fabulous invalid. They are writing a musical called Ghost Brothers of Darkland County.  Check out the story in Playbill. 

http://www.playbill.com/news/article/115415.html

This is great! I love that the stage is such a magnet for talents all across the cultural spectrum. Boy George? Elton John? John Mellencamp? Anyone with something to say can and should throw in and see what happens. Musical Theatre is the ultimate form of cultural expression because it not only accepts and glories in all forms of artistic product but also attracts and ravishes the full spectrum of voices as well. Bring it on, bring it all on.  

            A simple and elegant and very pure idea, especially to any theatre lover, is what makes this show so brilliant. It’s just about a guy alone in his apartment listening to his records, but the beauty is that we get to see everything that those recordings represent fully and gloriously played out on the stage. The producers put all the money on the boards. They used to say that about shows like 42^nd STREET where the production values were unapologetically enormous and the result was a visual stunner. Couple that kind of stagecraft with the entire imagination of this musical theatre lover guy in a chair and you have THE DROWSY CHAPERONE. It’s a love song from a show lover to all the shows he’s ever seen.

             If you’ve ever loved any musical, you need to see THIS one. It has that Broadway insider feel to it like THE PRODUCERS or URINETOWN where in watching it you feel like your background in the lore and history of the musical is adding to your enjoyment of the night’s entertainment. The Man in the Chair stops the show every now and then to explain the appearance of a stock character or to comment on the career of that performer. All of it is fictional of course but that makes it that much more enjoyable because it’s a comment on the real world history of “the musical”. 

            This little apartment transforms into fully realized old fashioned box sets, production numbers are of the size and intensity of the old shows, and the second act opener (and the concept that drives it) is worth the price of admission alone. You’ll want to get GOOD seats for this one.

Staff Picks: Broadway favorites for 2008

The lights on Broadway were bright as New York City celebrated as the famous ball drop in Times Square, ringing in 2008. With the conclusion of the recent Broadway stagehands strike and general craziness that accompanies the holidays, perhaps now is a great time to pack your bags and check out what’s happening on Broadway.

We have polled the staff here at Broadway/San Diego and are happy to share with you some of our favorite shows currently playing on Broadway’s stages and hitting the road in 2008.

Read the entire E-Lert as a web page.

Spring Awakening

Spring Awakening explodes on the stage and pours out over the audience like hormones raging through a sixteen year-old body. Watch a clip from the show and find out more by clicking here.

Tim’s take:

You’ve really got to see this show. It’s very, very good and that’s enough reason but you need to see it because it’s such a phenomenon. It doesn’t have huge moving sets, or special effects to wow you. But it does what every successful musical theatre piece must do, it engages and entertains from beginning to end. The story isn’t anything new but the take on it certainly is.

There’s a funny dichotomy at work with this piece. It’s a real departure from any other Broadway show that you’ve seen, but structurally it’s actually a bit of a throwback. If you study the history of musical theatre chronologically, you see the art form struggling with the blending and fusing of Scene, Song, and Dance.  Academic commentary is consistently reacting to what is past (the separation of the individual art forms that we see in the Follies and Revues and most of the Rogers and Hart pieces) and lauds the artistic development toward unity. SHOWBOAT and OKLAHOMA are most commonly cited as the largest strides toward the achievement of this unity but there’s no question that in modern musicals we have achieved exactly the unity that has been strived for. SPRING AWAKENING creates a very clear separation between the scene and the song and dance. The structure reminded me a bit of the movie Dancer in the Dark where Bjork breaks from the reality of the movie and comments on her personal journey in song and dance, then returns to the scene - that is the structure at work with SPRING AWAKENING. So it really could be categorized as a play with music rather than a musical. (I cannot agree more about the importance of seeing this show - but my take is that is is almost operatic, rather than like a play with music - but as Tim notes, the characters completely remove themselves from the action, and comment on it through song.  They separate themselves from the late 19th century sensibility of the action and plunge headlong in to Duncan Sheik 21st century music, emphasizing the timelessness of the issues.  DEW)

But the real beauty of this piece that all of this egg head academic mumbo jumbo goes away the moment you hear that first guitar riff. It absorbs you for the entire time you are in the theatre. It hits you in the gut (sometimes even lower) and leaves you with songs to hum concepts to think about. Besides — backside and above the waist nudity? Ok so it’s nothing you haven’t seen before in HAIR, but the overall effect is very compelling. Definitely put this one on your list of MUST SEE shows. (Being the esoteric type, I love the academic mumbo-jumbo - and this show reached in and wrenched me inside out from my toes - the importance of this work is incredible.  It speaks to some things most of us have experienced to one degree or another in our adolescence: alienation and miscommunication.  Even well-meaning adults can’t always get it right, and sell the “kids” short…or sell them out altogether.  There is a lot here for adults and for older teens - in New York, families are using the show to open lines of communication that are too easy to shut down.  This show was banned in its original incarnation, and I am certain that it would be banned in some communities today - but it does bring out universal, timeless issues that cannot be ignored.  This confrontational, unsettling work moved from off-Broadway to the Eugene O’Neill Theatre and won the Tony Award for Best Musical of 2007, along with a slew of other awards.  DEW)

Legally Blonde

Sorority star Elle Woods doesn’t take “no” for an answer. So when her boyfriend dumps her for someone “serious,” Elle puts down the credit card, hits the books, and sets out to go where no Delta Nu has gone before: Harvard Law. Watch a clip from the show and find out more by clicking here.

Tim’s comments:

This show to me is like a modern GUYS AND DOLLS not because of the subject matter but because of the audience experience. This is two and a half hours of pure escapist fun; big brassy characters, heroes to cheer and villains to hate, dazzling production numbers and intimate ballads - there ought to be 3 or 4 shows like this on Broadway EVERY season. If you saw the MTV broadcast of this show, and you weren’t impressed, don’t let that sway you. If you are a regular theatregoer then you are savvy enough to know that the experience in a theatre does NOT translate directly to a screen. Don’t miss a chance to see this show. It’s NOT going into the annals of musical theatre history as an “important” piece. It’s NOT something that will be analyzed and dissected in grad school. It IS what musical theatre is all about - pure joy, delight and entertainment. (I’ve got nothing to add - I loved the experience, never saw the movie, but you don’t have to know the story  have to - I just loved the fun and the fluff for what it is - so if you find yourself in New York looking for a good time - look for it at the PALACE, 8 times a week! DEW)

Oh No! A Padres game, four conventions and construction. Watch this category for important announcements and alerts concerning traffic and other alerts that may affect your travel time to the show.

Watch this category for news and links to shows on Broadway and shows that will be coming to San Diego!

Watch this category for news such as cast blogs, cast info, current or upcoming show news.