| re: ENCORES! 2025 season just announced | |
| Last Edit: Chazwaza 06:41 pm EDT 05/14/24 | |
| Posted by: Chazwaza 06:35 pm EDT 05/14/24 | |
| In reply to: re: ENCORES! 2025 season just announced - lowwriter 02:10 pm EDT 05/14/24 | |
|
|
|
| But think about how many of the 3 shows every season before that didn't interest every subscriber based on title or reputation, or even if they'd seen the original or a smaller production. Part of the point with Encores is to trust they are producing scores that deserve to be heard again and showcased and celebrated despite having been relatively ignore on broadway and/or since their original run. I think you/we have to get used to the idea that 2025 and beyond means that shows from the 1990s, 2000s are definitely eligible age-wise for Encores, the way older shows from the 40s, 50s, 60s and 70s. were when Encores began in the 90s. Let's not forget that their landmark production of CHICAGO in 1996 happened 21 years after Chicago opened on Broadway in 1975, where it played for *over 2 years*! It also toured and I don't think it was ignored in regional and school productions either. I hope they don't make it a practice that only 1 show a season is from before 1980... though that does seem to be the way it's going. Whether they do older shows that have not yet been done at Encores, or that have, I'd like to see them make sure it's still a big part of what they do. Just because they did 4-10 performances of a show 10 or 20 years ago does not mean they can't do it again for a largely new audience who wouldn't have seen it, or just give it a new director and cast! LaChiusa & Wolfe's The Wild Party was on Broadway *25 years ago*, ran for 3 months, and got many Tonys noms including Best Score, Best Book and Best Musical... it is also almost never performed since. It qualifies on every level for Encores treatment. I'm grateful it's getting produced in a major NYC production. Considering they were in full plans to do Millie 4 years ago when it was only 20 years old, and got far more recognition and popularity than Wild Party... this is an improvement in commitment to the mission. Urinetown was on Broadway 24 years ago. It had a very healthy 3 year run, and pulled of Tony wins for Best Score, Best Book and Best Direction, which was all quite something for a weird inherently off-broadway show from the Fringe Festival. It is done around the country often-ish but I don't know that it's even Ragtime-level in how popular it is to produce outside of school productions. I think the surprisingly wonderful score deserves a chance to shine in NYC again... 21 years since it closed. But I'm also grateful to see Encores is not just doing recent-ish musicals that are beloved and constantly produced in regional, community and school productions... like Into the Woods, Millie (planned but canceled), Oliver, and Ragtime this season. But they also have to make money. At least they're doing popular musical with scores worthy of hearing with a full orchestra. These days, Encores is now the only place that will happen, so even popular or oft-produced shows may be deserving because it's the only chance people get to hear those scores with a full orchestra, rather than the reduced or even tiny orchestra they'll have in any other production including a Broadway revival. |
|
| reply | |
|
|
|
| Previous: | re: ENCORES! 2025 season just announced - lowwriter 02:10 pm EDT 05/14/24 |
| Next: | When do we get STEEL PIER? - KingSpeed 10:08 pm EDT 05/14/24 |
| Thread: |
|
Time to render: 0.096929 seconds.