[notice of closing]
[notice of closing]Late Friday came word that Broadway's little tuner that could soon can't.
[title of show] is now set to close after its October 12 performance, which ModFab duly notes is the same day that a more prodigious cult, camp hit Xanadu will shutter. Helmed and choreographed by Michael Berresse, [title of show] is a musical starring co-creators Hunter Bell and Jeff Bowen, along with Heidi Blickenstaff and Susan Blackwell.
When [title of show] departs Broadway's Lyceum Theatre, it will have played 102 regular performances there. Given the wildly mixed critical response, which -- with all due apologies to A Tale Of Two Cities -- really was the best and worst of times, the closing notice is not surprising when you factor in the overall sinking fortunes of the Great White Way during these softening economic times.
Indeed, as Chris Caggiano has so adeptly described over at Everything I Know I Learned From Musicals, "I've been watching the weekly grosses for [title of show] since it opened in July, and frankly I've been cringing." Last week, the show only managed to attract a capacity of 30.4%, down 1.5% from the week before.
Personally, I have not seen the current mounting (I took in one of its last performances at the Vineyard Theatre two years ago) and am not certain I'll have an opportunity to take in Bell and Bowen's latest installment of their chronicles of mounting a musical. As much as I enjoyed the show two years ago, I've been ambivalent about plunking down my money for a ticket, especially in light of rising ticket prices coinciding with an economic downturn. Sad to say, like others in the vast Broadway audience, I'm being a bit more judicious in my selections.
Had [title of show] been my favorite musical of 2006 as opposed to, oh, say my ninth favorite, perhaps I'd have already gone. Still, I'm sad to see this chapter come to an end so quickly.
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
Labels: Box Office, Broadway, Closing Notices, Heidi Blickenstaff, Hunter Bell, Jeff Bowen, Michael Berresse, Musical, Susan Blackwell, title of show
posted by Steve On Broadway (SOB) @ Monday, September 22, 2008
3 Comments:
Steve
Great to see you back posting again. I admit I had withdrawal symptoms when I did my morning "click" on your site to find you away!
Sad to see tos and Xanadu close but while I liked both I'm actually surprised the end didn't come sooner.
Did you see any of the NYMF? I loved seeing a few musicals up close and in a small space.
Elisabeth, Thanks for the kind words. In amongst work-related and family issues, along with travels and my concentration on politics, I haven't had a chance to see any shows at all of late. That will change in the days to come.
I understand that sometimes you need a break. You will probably go with a fresh perspective after time off. I often find the first show after a long break tends to look better than it might really be!
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