Saturday, August 08, 2009

Another guest ramble...

This one is from phair in response to Joan's ramble last night.
On getting what you pay for...

Decades ago Boston was considered the mandatory pre-Broadway run. Producers wanted to make sure shows could be successful here before they fully financed a run at the BIG time. Remember, if you can make it in New York then you can make it anywhere. At least, that's what the song says.

I'm not sure why they picked Boston. It might be because of its proximity to their ultimate destination. It could be because famous names and flashy staging would not overly impress the Brahmins. I like to think it was because they could test things out on a similar group of people who were a smidgen less jaded than the regular New York theatergoers.

The bottom line was the people of Boston got cheap seats for Broadway quality work. However, the works were not fully cooked. Depending on audience reactions, acts were added, subtracted, multiplied, and/or abandoned. It saved producers money and the embarrassment of failing in New York.

I was lucky enough to catch a couple of shows in their pre-Broadway state. A few were stinkers that nothing could fix. A couple were savaged by critics, revamped dramatically and managed to fly on Broadway. But, one gave me a magical moment which will forever thrill me. The audience became one with the performer and we collectively salvaged a show. Well, maybe not the whole show but at least a piece of it.

Lily Tomlin was getting one of her shows ready for Broadway. I don't even remember which one. She was amazing throughout the entire performance. Frequently, she tore open the fourth wall and spoke directly to us. Then IT happened: pure entertainment.

Toward the end of the show, Lily stopped dead in her tracks. She paused then looked at the audience and said, "We took something out of here last night which wasn't working. I'll be damned if I can remember what I'm suppose to say next. I can only remember what I'm not going to use." Of course, the audience howled with laughter. She commented it might have been the best laugh of the night. Somebody in the audience suggested she use the piece that didn't work and let us decide. That made Lily laugh.

Then Lily did something I had never seen before or since. Lily Tomlin ambled over and sat down on the stage stairs to talk to us. She told us what they took out and why – she was right, it didn't really fit. It must have been five full minutes of Lily being Lily; who was much different from the character she was playing on stage. She asked us what we thought and listened when several people called out thoughtful answers and truly helpful suggestions. She thanked us and then went back up on stage to finish the show.

The play was brilliant. It did fabulous on Broadway. When it came back to Boston post Broadway, I went to see it. It was wonderful but it was different from the show I originally saw. It was polished and gleaming and flawless…and a little less fun than the first time. Oh, it was funny, very funny. But, the show didn't need me or the audience anymore. It was complete and beautiful and perfect. Perfect.

Anybody seeing it would know when to laugh. It didn't need a room filled with other people laughing to make the humor happen. It could be filmed and shown without a laugh track and people would still laugh right when they were supposed to laugh. Which is, what I believed happened to the production.

I think of writing on the internet in much the same way as a pre-Broadway run. Anything can and does happen. Writers are working through the kinks and teasing out knots. Readers supply feedback about what is or isn't working. Some writers experiment with formats, grammar, voice, settings, genre, and many times the experiments cross over the rules of the KING's English. I think that's okay because we ain't got no kings here and can talk how we feel like it 'cause were just plain vulgar - in the most literal definition of the word.

I don't mean this to sound like a push back. Joan is right, E is right, everybody who demands good editing is right. Technically, very right. But, I wonder if the desire to be entertained by a perfect performance cheats all of us out of moments of pure entertainment: absolutely memorable magic.


Okay, I want to thank phair for sharing such a great story and I do see the point, but I'm not sure I can agree. I think I want to be cheated when it comes to those writing magical moments. But, I will say it again, thank you, phair and please keep calling it as you see it!

Now to your updates, enjoy 'em.

Elisa

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