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| re: FWIW, I think Ben Platt has much more box office power currently than Tony Danza did for Honeymoon in Vegas | |
| Posted by: ryhog 09:02 pm EST 12/23/22 | |
| In reply to: FWIW, I think Ben Platt has much more box office power currently than Tony Danza did for Honeymoon in Vegas - Chazwaza 07:35 pm EST 12/23/22 | |
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| I agree that Ben seems like the best option here, but I just don't see this finding the kind of audience that it needs any more than the original did or that any of JRB's shows have. The capitalization is low for a musical so it is fairly obvious they are not transforming it into some significantly more extravagant show (and it may also mean that they will not have a fortune to spend on marketing). But the big red flag here is that (unless they do some major surgery) the number of bodies required translates into a hefty nut. That's true of the competition (meaning Sweeney), too, of course, but I'm not sure I like the matchup. Announcing a musical as a limited run is curious, suggesting I guess that Ben has other ideas beyond mid-August, and good luck mustering the target audience in the dog days of summer. Against ST (and FG), where does this land? I don't know obvs but I am not confident. | |
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| re: FWIW, I think Ben Platt has much more box office power currently than Tony Danza did for Honeymoon in Vegas | |
| Last Edit: Delvino 09:06 am EST 12/24/22 | |
| Posted by: Delvino 09:05 am EST 12/24/22 | |
| In reply to: re: FWIW, I think Ben Platt has much more box office power currently than Tony Danza did for Honeymoon in Vegas - ryhog 09:02 pm EST 12/23/22 | |
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| Similar reaction. Though the score is justifiably beloved, the show never quite worked, its ambitions more notable than the ultimate execution (mentioned in more than one of the recent reviews). The original production featured stellar performances, to a person, the stars just about perfect. Yet it left many unsatisfied. Disturbed and unable to recommend it. What's still missing from discussions: this show is powerful yet crushingly grim. Though its critical slant on history could not be more timely, its story is a spiral down tragic trajectory, the horrific ending known from the start. Does that matter with a major theater star? Perhaps not. But for comparison's same, though Sweeney is about violent death and unchecked revenge, its darkness is tethered to delicious melodrama, its plot peppered with bravura comic sequences. Parade is a slice of our darkest history, and that slice -- no matter how critical to our nation's overdue self-reflection or lack thereof -- has always been a hard sell to a larger audience. I will purchase a full price ticket willingly; will thousands? | |
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| re: FWIW, I think Ben Platt has much more box office power currently than Tony Danza did for Honeymoon in Vegas | |
| Posted by: lordofspeech 09:23 am EST 12/24/22 | |
| In reply to: re: FWIW, I think Ben Platt has much more box office power currently than Tony Danza did for Honeymoon in Vegas - Delvino 09:05 am EST 12/24/22 | |
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| I feel the same way and might not see it just because of what it sounds like. The destruction of an innocent by a society? Not the stuff to bring me to the theatre. I’ll go see The Diary of Anne Frank or Man of La Mancha, but the focus there is on the transcendent power of the spirit, not on the trampling of the protagonist. This evokes an old, classic discussion. What makes tragedy? Is Death of a Salesman a tragedy? Can a tragedy (like Troilus and Cressida) really work or be a commercial success unless its hero is uplifted or ennobled by the struggle (as per Josh Logan’s paradigm)? Aristotle wrote about the qualities needed for a protagonist. But Sweeney Todd is a different kettle of fish. He is not really a protagonist. You can’t root for him. SPOILER about Sweeney Todd: At least, for me, I am quite distanced from the Sweeney story, even though its eleven o’clock storyline revelation does send chills up my spine. |
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| re: FWIW, I think Ben Platt has much more box office power currently than Tony Danza did for Honeymoon in Vegas | |
| Posted by: bway1430 09:50 am EST 12/24/22 | |
| In reply to: re: FWIW, I think Ben Platt has much more box office power currently than Tony Danza did for Honeymoon in Vegas - lordofspeech 09:23 am EST 12/24/22 | |
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| "I’ll go see The Diary of Anne Frank or Man of La Mancha, but the focus there is on the transcendent power of the spirit, not on the trampling of the protagonist." There is SO MUCH more to PARADE than that, not to mention that it's core theme is as relevent now, albeit in a dark, disturbing way, than it ever has been. Saying that PARADE is merely about the trampling of the protagonist is like saying GYPSY is merely about a bad mom. |
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| re: FWIW, I think Ben Platt has much more box office power currently than Tony Danza did for Honeymoon in Vegas | |
| Posted by: KingSpeed 08:52 pm EST 12/24/22 | |
| In reply to: re: FWIW, I think Ben Platt has much more box office power currently than Tony Danza did for Honeymoon in Vegas - bway1430 09:50 am EST 12/24/22 | |
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| Wait, we’re comparing PARADE to GYPSY?? | |
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| re: FWIW, I think Ben Platt has much more box office power currently than Tony Danza did for Honeymoon in Vegas | |
| Posted by: bway1430 03:37 am EST 12/25/22 | |
| In reply to: re: FWIW, I think Ben Platt has much more box office power currently than Tony Danza did for Honeymoon in Vegas - KingSpeed 08:52 pm EST 12/24/22 | |
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| Not if you read that post correctly. Try again? |
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| re: FWIW, I think Ben Platt has much more box office power currently than Tony Danza did for Honeymoon in Vegas | |
| Posted by: ryhog 10:15 am EST 12/24/22 | |
| In reply to: re: FWIW, I think Ben Platt has much more box office power currently than Tony Danza did for Honeymoon in Vegas - bway1430 09:50 am EST 12/24/22 | |
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| I don't think lordofspeech is saying that and I don't think anyone is oblivious to the unfortunate relevance of the story but, dramatically, relevance does not automatically translate into broad resonance which, one might say, has to be earned. It's interesting to have Parade paired with Sweeney in 2023, for several reasons including Sondheim's brush with the former. | |
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| re: FWIW, I think Ben Platt has much more box office power currently than Tony Danza did for Honeymoon in Vegas | |
| Last Edit: Delvino 10:57 am EST 12/24/22 | |
| Posted by: Delvino 10:57 am EST 12/24/22 | |
| In reply to: re: FWIW, I think Ben Platt has much more box office power currently than Tony Danza did for Honeymoon in Vegas - ryhog 10:15 am EST 12/24/22 | |
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| "...dramatically, relevance does not automatically translate into broad resonance which, one might say, has to be earned..." So well said. Precisely an issue with this show, as earnestly focused the tragedy's teachable moments for 2023 might be. Since this is a discussion of commercial prospects, very much the point. We can debate the box office potential without doubting the artists' intentions or the gravitas of the piece's subject and theme. |
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