Side Show is a must-see show on Broadway
Nov 24th, 2014, 01:19 PM
#21
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Hoping to catch Side Show Friday afternoon (day after Thanksgiving), I see they are one of the few shows that are having matinees that day. I think they've been on TKTS most days, and that's what we're going to try to do.
Nov 24th, 2014, 02:03 PM
#22
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Side Show will probably be availale at TKTS Friday. However, I would suggest, just in case it's not available there, that you run off a copy of the discount offer available on playbill.com and broadwaybox.com., which you could take to the box office.
I hope you enjoy the show as much as we did.
I hope you enjoy the show as much as we did.
Dec 12th, 2014, 04:35 AM
#26
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Very sad. But want something rather bizarre? Side Show is based on the lives of the famous Hilton Sisters, a pair of conjoined twins. They died on >>January 4, 1969>January 4, 1998>January 4, 2015
Dec 12th, 2014, 09:08 AM
#28
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By the way, I'm curious if anyone knows of any Broadway musical "flop" which got revived and became a big hit? I can't think of any. I spend a lot of time on some theatre blogs, and regarding Side Show, even the following of those who always loved the show predicted it would never sell in a revival -- not that they're always right. I'm curious why the producers thought the show could be a hit when it failed so badly the first time -- when incidentally it also met with good critical response, it just couldn't find an audience.
Dec 12th, 2014, 10:18 AM
#29
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Patrick, that's a good question. As you well know, sadness in a musical show usually doesn't sell well! I can only wonder how the show would have done had it starred a couple big names.
It all seems just so sad to me that such a wonderful show couldn't find an audience. Yet, some crappy musicals, likr Jekyll & Hyde and others by the same guy (whose name I forget), while still losing money, can play for months and months.
Anyway, I'll definitely buy the CD of the music when it's released!
It all seems just so sad to me that such a wonderful show couldn't find an audience. Yet, some crappy musicals, likr Jekyll & Hyde and others by the same guy (whose name I forget), while still losing money, can play for months and months.
Anyway, I'll definitely buy the CD of the music when it's released!
Dec 12th, 2014, 10:49 AM
#30
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"sadness in a musical show usually doesn't sell well!"
hmmm. Define "sadness".
Phantom of the Opera
Les Miserables
Miss Saigon
Rent
Sweeney Todd
Once
Into the Woods
You're thinking of Frank Wildhorn who wrote Jekyll and Hyde which like Side Show, seemed to have a cult following, but did run a long time thanks to "celebrity casting" -- David Hasselhoff included. But odd example as it seems his musicals are easily doomed -- Bonnie and Clyde, Wonderland, and Scarlet Pimpernell among them. But put me into the group that actually liked the musical Jekyll and Hyde.
Meanwhile, the new cast recording of Side Show has been available for pre sale, but I question whether it will ever be released with the early closing of the show.
hmmm. Define "sadness".
Phantom of the Opera
Les Miserables
Miss Saigon
Rent
Sweeney Todd
Once
Into the Woods
You're thinking of Frank Wildhorn who wrote Jekyll and Hyde which like Side Show, seemed to have a cult following, but did run a long time thanks to "celebrity casting" -- David Hasselhoff included. But odd example as it seems his musicals are easily doomed -- Bonnie and Clyde, Wonderland, and Scarlet Pimpernell among them. But put me into the group that actually liked the musical Jekyll and Hyde.
Meanwhile, the new cast recording of Side Show has been available for pre sale, but I question whether it will ever be released with the early closing of the show.
Dec 12th, 2014, 12:12 PM
#31
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Gee, maybe I should have said that people don't want to see a show about "freaks," unless. of course, it's starring a celebrity like Bradley Cooper! Whatever, I wouldn't refer to any of the shows you mentioned as "sad."
PS: For the record, Wildhorn's The Scarlet Pimpernel ran for a total of 772 performances during its three incarnations.
PPS: Since you liked Jekyll & Hyde, I guess I can say that our tastes obviously don't always agree!
PS: For the record, Wildhorn's The Scarlet Pimpernel ran for a total of 772 performances during its three incarnations.
PPS: Since you liked Jekyll & Hyde, I guess I can say that our tastes obviously don't always agree!
Dec 12th, 2014, 12:31 PM
#32
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well, Howard, I wouldn't consider Side Show any "sadder" than any of those shows. In fact I found much of it very uplifting! But for the life of me I can't call Sweeney Todd or Les Miserables particularly happy!
And while the three mountings of the Scarlet Pimpernel may have added up to a total of 772 performances, it was still a financial failure -- in theatre terms -- a flop.
Howard, out of curiosity, did you happen to see the first round of Jekyll and Hyde with Robert Cuccioli, Linda Eder, and Christiane Noll? It was an excellent production regardless of the quality of the script or score. In fact Linda was so spectacular in that production, Frank Wildhorn married her! LOL
But it went downhill quickly with the "stunt" casting. And I understand the very brief revival a couple years ago was one of the worst productions to ever hit Broadway.
And are you just now realizing that our tastes obviously don't always agree? I've known that for some time. Although I think we agree more than we disagree.
And while the three mountings of the Scarlet Pimpernel may have added up to a total of 772 performances, it was still a financial failure -- in theatre terms -- a flop.
Howard, out of curiosity, did you happen to see the first round of Jekyll and Hyde with Robert Cuccioli, Linda Eder, and Christiane Noll? It was an excellent production regardless of the quality of the script or score. In fact Linda was so spectacular in that production, Frank Wildhorn married her! LOL
But it went downhill quickly with the "stunt" casting. And I understand the very brief revival a couple years ago was one of the worst productions to ever hit Broadway.
And are you just now realizing that our tastes obviously don't always agree? I've known that for some time. Although I think we agree more than we disagree.
Dec 13th, 2014, 04:03 AM
#34
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A couple interesting articles in the NY Times this weekend about the show. Without giving details, the producer is quoted as saying that he had a rescue plan for the show. I hope he can pull it off.
This same article quotes a theater ticketing agency official who said, "We tell the clients the show was about conjoined twins, Siamese twins, and it just created horrible images in people's heads. The only clients who bought tickets had seen the original 'Side Show' on Brosday and loved it. Everyone else was turned off." That really tells it all!
In another article in which the critic Christopher Isherwood lists his choices for the best shows of the year, he says this about "Side Show": "...Erin Davis and Emily Padgett were vocally resplendent as the twins, whose rise from freak-show attractions to vaudeville stars ultimately causes as much pain as pleasure. But for musical theater lovers, the return of this musical is pure bliss." That also says it all!
This same article quotes a theater ticketing agency official who said, "We tell the clients the show was about conjoined twins, Siamese twins, and it just created horrible images in people's heads. The only clients who bought tickets had seen the original 'Side Show' on Brosday and loved it. Everyone else was turned off." That really tells it all!
In another article in which the critic Christopher Isherwood lists his choices for the best shows of the year, he says this about "Side Show": "...Erin Davis and Emily Padgett were vocally resplendent as the twins, whose rise from freak-show attractions to vaudeville stars ultimately causes as much pain as pleasure. But for musical theater lovers, the return of this musical is pure bliss." That also says it all!
Dec 13th, 2014, 04:27 AM
#35
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If only Sting had written the music, he could have gone in to play one of the twins to save the show. People would line up to pay for that -- the way they're doing for The Last Ship, which was also miserably failing in ticket sales.
Meanwhile, I could mention that the middle aged Long Island couple who sat next to me at Side Show were less than enthusiastic. At intermission, the man turned to me and said "well, I sure wouldn't recommend this to anyone. I don't know a single person in the show. Do you?" He looked puzzled when I said I was loving it. I still say the biggest problem was not the conjoined twins theme, but the total lack of a name for ticket sales to a huge theatre. Isn't the TV show American Horror -- Freak Show with the same twins as the focus doing really well?
Meanwhile, I could mention that the middle aged Long Island couple who sat next to me at Side Show were less than enthusiastic. At intermission, the man turned to me and said "well, I sure wouldn't recommend this to anyone. I don't know a single person in the show. Do you?" He looked puzzled when I said I was loving it. I still say the biggest problem was not the conjoined twins theme, but the total lack of a name for ticket sales to a huge theatre. Isn't the TV show American Horror -- Freak Show with the same twins as the focus doing really well?
Dec 13th, 2014, 05:19 AM
#37
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Oh, I should mention something else. Here in the greater NYC area, there have been a lot of TV ads for Side Show. It shows the twins standing side by side holding hands and singing "I will never leave you" -- which is a beautiful song. But when I told friends I was seeing Side Show, one said "oh, I've seen the ads. It's about two lesbians?" I don't think anything is said in the ad about their being conjoined twins and one would never guess that from the image, but I could be wrong.
Dec 13th, 2014, 02:28 PM
#38
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Well, I'm glad my wife and I saw Sideshow back at Thanksgiving. We really enjoyed it - several excellent numbers and a great cast (for me, especially Ryan Silverman as Terry).
This is an interesting conversation as seeing Sideshow got me thinking about how it ranked compared to others I've seen on Broadway. I wouldn't put it in my top five, but still a great show. But as I thought about the various shows I'd seen, only one that had a headline name (Follies/Bernadette Peters) would rank among the best. It's sad to think that audiences are pursuing recognizable names over quality but probably not surprising.
This is an interesting conversation as seeing Sideshow got me thinking about how it ranked compared to others I've seen on Broadway. I wouldn't put it in my top five, but still a great show. But as I thought about the various shows I'd seen, only one that had a headline name (Follies/Bernadette Peters) would rank among the best. It's sad to think that audiences are pursuing recognizable names over quality but probably not surprising.
Dec 14th, 2014, 06:24 AM
#39
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And now more "truth" comes out. Seems the St. James Theatre has essentially "kicked out" Side Show. They have a new musical "Something Rotten" waiting to come in. Since a theatre depends on its share of the profits of a show, they aren't happy with their meager returns from Side Show.
Dec 14th, 2014, 10:17 AM
#40
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Patrick, as you well know, that's a standard practice, i.e., a contract with a theater contains a (in my words) "minimum box office take" clause, allowing the theater to evict the show if the box office take runs below that figure for x number of weeks. That info about the Side Show "eviction notice" was included in the same Times article that I quoted from in a previous posting.
