Worst Show Ever? October 16, 2008
Things have been pretty quiet around here with most of my blog-like talk going on in behind-the-scenes email conversations with NY bloggers about San Francisco Ballet’s stop in New York. Anyways, recent turn of events have gotten me thinking about the economy which seems to be the hot topic right now. Being in the academia bubble, it hasn’t affected me much (except for the high gas prices, but thankfully they’ve been going down a bit now) but more than the actual money in my bank account, it feels like the economy has set a mood in this country that’s affecting my spending. This includes spending on performances, which has decreased a bit for me in the past few weeks. It’s funny that it’s not necessarily that I don’t have the money to go, but the economy has affected me somehow to stop spending money for it. I’m hoping this will pass soon.
Anyways, I recently asked a question to an avid theater goer, “What was the worst Broadway show ever?” and surprisingly stumped this person, which intrigued me. So I’m posing the question to blog readers – what’s the worst show (Broadway or otherwise) that you’ve ever seen? Post your answer in a comment below.
My hands down winner would be Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Whistle Down the Wind. It’s a British version of what the deep South is like, where kids are named “Po’ Baby” with an awkward moment of an almost-kiss between an older convict and a young teen thrown in. It was a parade of one stereotype after another, with odd Phantom-like music in the scene changes amongst a score of banjo twanging. Horrible. It was even worse because I saw it around the same time when The Color Purple was on tour, and the authenticity of emotion between the two shows was basically polar opposite. I hope it never makes it to Broadway, but if it does, it’d better be vastly changed from the show that I saw.
The Women in White, Shrek (the previews anyway), anything that Sondheim’s done except for West Side Story(though he didn’t do much there either)…
Hi Jolene,
A long while ago, my GF took me to a Lennon Musical at the Orpheum theatre (it was actually an opening night, before this went to broadway later that year). In my opinion, this was the worst musical I’d ever attended. To make it worse, I was sitting next to some of the actors, singers, understudies and their families who came to celebrate the production. One singer even turned to me and asked :”what do you think?” Oh..goodness me, I did not want to lie, but I did not want to hurt his feeling, so I told him the production needed more development, as my GF whispered into my ear :”why are you being such a jerk?” Anyhow, some time later I read in a newpaper where critics ranked it as one of the 10 worst musicals. I am going to see the Kirov Ballet this weekend (I can’t miss it, as you know why) and Lines Ballet next week, I hope you go too so I can read your reviews. I think you are very good, how can you manage to balance your Medical Study and this?
You’re joking, I take it, about “Whistle on The Wind.” I saw the Hayley Mills/Alan Bates downer black-and-white art film set in rural England not long after it came out in the early 1960s. Andrew Lloyd Webber actually transferred the setting to “Song of the South”? That’s fabulously grotesque and no wonder it was such a disaster.
I’ve seen lots of “worst” shows over the years and I tend to flee them during the performance even if I have to crawl over a few other patrons. The worst was decades ago at a cabaret/restaurant in the Castro in the 1970s when I went into the empty venue to have a quiet talk with an old friend, Lee Brenneman, and we sat in a corner. Before we knew it, the place instantly filled up and some awful chanteuse trying to channel Edith Piaf singing Jacques Brel proceeded to set the scene for us with a heavily accented monologue. She wasn’t thirty seconds into it before my friend Lee and I looked at each other and we actually started projectile laughing. I felt terrible for the poor performer and her fans, but we couldn’t stop our uncontrolled howling until we had climbed over all the tiny tables and chairs out the entrance. There. That’s my worst performance as an audience.
Katrina – yeah, I haven’t heard much about Woman in White. About Sondheim – I guess to each their own, yeah?
JAD – your Lennon story is pretty funny! I can never lie either. I remember it being on Broadway a few years back, and it looked like a disaster. It’s surprising how some really horrendous muscicals are still being made, and you wonder how they ever make it to Broadway. Oh, and sorry but I can’t attend Kirov or Lines! I was talking mostly about Kirov and the Morris R+J that I missed at CP when I was speaking about the economy; I was waiting for tickets to go on sale on Goldstar, but it doesn’t look like that’ll happen anytime soon. I was craving to see Diana Vishneva dance, but it’s just not going to happen this time. Thanks for enjoying my reviews so much! About balance – I feel like I try to do too much, but this is what I truly love to do. I feel that it sometimes helps my work, when I get motivated to finish up my work and prioritize, so that I can see good theater. And having balance in my life (not having it just be about work) makes me a MUCH happier camper. But yeah it’s not easy, and I’m not sure how I’m going to do this next year pulling 30-40 hour shifts at the hospital.
Mike – I can’t believe it’s based on that movie! I looked up the synopsis on Amazon, and it’s the same story, just set in the south. There’s still talk of it going to Broadway, so let’s all keep our fingers crossed that it won’t go through… hehe, when was the last time you walked out of a show? I’ve never done it; I think I always hope that it’ll get better, because things possibly can’t get any worse. And usually so much money is spent on the process, I just can’t bear to walk out and not get my money’s worth, at least in time spent at the theater if not in enjoyment.
Yep! I know I’m in the minority *shrugs* I tend to be for most things anyway LOL
The reason for you not hearing much about it is because it only had a small run and did horrible.