Our Civic Duty
Editorial
PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT
Last night, Damon Runnals, the Executive Director of the Southern Theater posted the following to his Facebook feed:
So on Saturday 5/31 at 1:55p (the time stamp in the image is four hours fast) the individual in this photo broke into The Southern Theater and then apparently broke into my office and Jamie Schumacher's office and stole three computers. If anyone knows who this is please contact Officer Marshall Collier of the Minneapolis Police Department at 612.673.5701 to let him know.
Thanks.
In Memorium
While we're honoring our civic duties, let us also take the time to remember someone who died recently. Last week we talked about knowing when to quit. Here is someone who didn't know the meaning of the word.
Hanna Maron, the woman who held the Guinness record for longest theater career, died this week at the age of 90. She started off as a 4-year-old in a Fritz Lang movie and never, ever stopped.
The Unseen Are Now Honored
Two weeks ago I shared with you the heartwarming tale of a Broadway producer who sort of stumbled into making his own awards for the management and technical people who make Broadway work. I'm happy to report that the votes have been tallied, and there is now a full slate of winners.
Granted, I do not know any of these people, nor have I seen any of these shows; (For all I know, he could be making these names up) but it is nice to see people whose work is vital but often ignored finally get a little attention. Over 4,000 people voted in the first annual Ghostlight Awards, which makes the process far more democratic than the Tony system. But let's be honest: there are military juntas with more democratic systems than the Tony Awards.
Still Harping on the Tonys, Huh?
Oh, hey, Header Title. It's been a while since you've stuck your opinion in here. In answer to your question, yes I am.
Commence Harping
Chris Jones at the Chicago Tribune (one of my favorites, if you recall) recently wrote a piece about the stunts, jockeying and politics that happen to sway the invisible cabal that hands out the Tony Awards. It got me thinking, once again, of just how much money sloshes around the big-budget world.
Last week on News and Notes, when I was bitching a moaning about having to cover the Tonys at all (as I am oft want to do), I shared an article about how Broadway's ticket sales are at record levels. It turns out to be more complicated than that. It is true that Broadway is bringing in record gross income, but this is not necessarily due to selling more tickets.
Former Executive Director of the American Theater Wing Howard Sherman recently shared a blog post about the steady rise in ticket prices on Broadway. He notes especially that this season the average price of a ticket rose to over $100 for a the first time, rising more than $5 since last season.
That's outrageous! I ain't paying' no hundred dollars for no goldurn the-ay-ter tickets! Why, in my day, a 10-spot could get you all the musical theater a man could need! And a gallon of gas was a dollar! And a gallon of milk was a quarter! And a visit to your doctor cost you a chicken! (Note: only one of those things is true.)
There's a Thing Called Inflation, Grandpa
Oh, Title Header, you're in for such a whuppin'. Sure, there's inflation: prices rise all the time. However, as Sherman points out, the average ticket on Broadway has gone up 77% since 2001. The Consumer Price Index for that same period increased 32%. Broadway tickets have increased in price at more than twice the speed of the rest of the economy. The last industry that did that and got away with it was health care, whose major product is continuing to live, as opposed to catchy numbers and a little razzle-dazzle.
But don't worry. All the money spent on big budget theater goes to a good cause. You should rest assured that the revival of Miss Saigon recouped all of its expenses in its opening weekend and that its producer is now a billionaire. And here's your one-stop shop for buying all the digitized Broadway music you can stand! And you're going to be getting a live action version of James Cameron's Avatar! Rejoice, for the future is here! And it looks a lot like the past. Only more expensive!
Now You're Going to Talk About Turn Off the Dark Aren't You?
No, Header Title, I made a solemn promise at the end of 2013 that I would no longer talk about the Spider-Man musical, no matter how tempting it may be. In its place, I will now reference Jesus Christ Superstar with Johnny Rotten, because that is a thing that was supposed to happen. John Lydon, former lead singer of the Sex Pistols, pissed off and confused a lot of his fans when he signed on to play King Herrod in the musical's touring revival (which was also supposed to include members of 'N Sync, Incubus and Destiny's Child. Seriously.).
People seem to forget that pissing off and confusing people is the entire point of Johnny Rotten, so it's unfortunate that this super-weird production was abruptly canceled this week. As much fun as it would have been to see Lydon "sing" when this show slouched through Minneapolis later this year, it's more fun to have a new reference point for rock and roll hubris in the musical theater world, since I can no longer mention that one musical about that one guy who was bitten by that one radioactive spider.
Thankfully, the producer who tried to get this version of JC Superstar off the ground is the same guy who produced the Spider-Man musical. Michael Cohl, you are the gift that keeps giving!
Recognizing Achievements
Since we started today with trying to be good citizens and veered off into petty complaining, let's get back to recognizing good in the world.
First of all, I'd like to recognize some people in Chicago that I know (Hey, I don't care how much the Twin Cities is supposed to hate the Windy City; I'm from Illinois). I've written before about Oracle Productions, that little group that went totally free before our own Mixed Blood thought of it. Well, I'm please to see that they have been getting a lot of love lately. On top of gaining 11 nominations in this year's Jeff Awards (kind of like our Iveys Awards, except the categories make sense), they have also been awarded the Emerging Theater Award from the League of Chicago Theaters.
Next, congratulations are in order for Bedlam Theatre's big damn Grand Opening in St. Paul. It's been a long, winding, dirty and confusing road from the old Bedlam Social in Cedar-Riverside to the swank new digs in Lowertown, but they've finally made it.
And, last, but certainly not least, I would like to send a shout out to John Lacy, who turned an actor's worst nightmare into an actor's fantasy, consequences be damned! Mr. Lacy was performing as Big Daddy in a production of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof that was not that different from the thousands of productions of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof that came before it until a drunk man wandered in on May 31 and upped the bar for all productions of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof to come. The intoxicated patron began heckling the production, reportedly for its closeted gay content, with all the wit and panache of Adam Carolla (by which, I mean, none). After the heckler yelled a slur at the stage, and no usher or house manager was on the scene taking care of the situation, John Lacy broke character, left the stage, and forcibly removed the belligerent. He returned and finished the show, which received a standing ovation, and then was promptly fired. In protest, the lead actor in the show quit as well, and the entire production was canceled.
There will be plenty of arguing about whether or not your actions were correct, John Lacy, but I will still salute for your decisive action. May we all have such courage in the face of obnoxious drunk jerks.
So on Saturday 5/31 at 1:55p (the time stamp in the image is four hours fast) the individual in this photo broke into The Southern Theater and then apparently broke into my office and Jamie Schumacher's office and stole three computers. If anyone knows who this is please contact Officer Marshall Collier of the Minneapolis Police Department at 612.673.5701 to let him know.
Thanks.
In Memorium
While we're honoring our civic duties, let us also take the time to remember someone who died recently. Last week we talked about knowing when to quit. Here is someone who didn't know the meaning of the word.
Hanna Maron, the woman who held the Guinness record for longest theater career, died this week at the age of 90. She started off as a 4-year-old in a Fritz Lang movie and never, ever stopped.
The Unseen Are Now Honored
Two weeks ago I shared with you the heartwarming tale of a Broadway producer who sort of stumbled into making his own awards for the management and technical people who make Broadway work. I'm happy to report that the votes have been tallied, and there is now a full slate of winners.
Granted, I do not know any of these people, nor have I seen any of these shows; (For all I know, he could be making these names up) but it is nice to see people whose work is vital but often ignored finally get a little attention. Over 4,000 people voted in the first annual Ghostlight Awards, which makes the process far more democratic than the Tony system. But let's be honest: there are military juntas with more democratic systems than the Tony Awards.
Still Harping on the Tonys, Huh?
Oh, hey, Header Title. It's been a while since you've stuck your opinion in here. In answer to your question, yes I am.
Commence Harping
Chris Jones at the Chicago Tribune (one of my favorites, if you recall) recently wrote a piece about the stunts, jockeying and politics that happen to sway the invisible cabal that hands out the Tony Awards. It got me thinking, once again, of just how much money sloshes around the big-budget world.
Last week on News and Notes, when I was bitching a moaning about having to cover the Tonys at all (as I am oft want to do), I shared an article about how Broadway's ticket sales are at record levels. It turns out to be more complicated than that. It is true that Broadway is bringing in record gross income, but this is not necessarily due to selling more tickets.
Former Executive Director of the American Theater Wing Howard Sherman recently shared a blog post about the steady rise in ticket prices on Broadway. He notes especially that this season the average price of a ticket rose to over $100 for a the first time, rising more than $5 since last season.
That's outrageous! I ain't paying' no hundred dollars for no goldurn the-ay-ter tickets! Why, in my day, a 10-spot could get you all the musical theater a man could need! And a gallon of gas was a dollar! And a gallon of milk was a quarter! And a visit to your doctor cost you a chicken! (Note: only one of those things is true.)
There's a Thing Called Inflation, Grandpa
Oh, Title Header, you're in for such a whuppin'. Sure, there's inflation: prices rise all the time. However, as Sherman points out, the average ticket on Broadway has gone up 77% since 2001. The Consumer Price Index for that same period increased 32%. Broadway tickets have increased in price at more than twice the speed of the rest of the economy. The last industry that did that and got away with it was health care, whose major product is continuing to live, as opposed to catchy numbers and a little razzle-dazzle.
But don't worry. All the money spent on big budget theater goes to a good cause. You should rest assured that the revival of Miss Saigon recouped all of its expenses in its opening weekend and that its producer is now a billionaire. And here's your one-stop shop for buying all the digitized Broadway music you can stand! And you're going to be getting a live action version of James Cameron's Avatar! Rejoice, for the future is here! And it looks a lot like the past. Only more expensive!
Now You're Going to Talk About Turn Off the Dark Aren't You?
No, Header Title, I made a solemn promise at the end of 2013 that I would no longer talk about the Spider-Man musical, no matter how tempting it may be. In its place, I will now reference Jesus Christ Superstar with Johnny Rotten, because that is a thing that was supposed to happen. John Lydon, former lead singer of the Sex Pistols, pissed off and confused a lot of his fans when he signed on to play King Herrod in the musical's touring revival (which was also supposed to include members of 'N Sync, Incubus and Destiny's Child. Seriously.).
People seem to forget that pissing off and confusing people is the entire point of Johnny Rotten, so it's unfortunate that this super-weird production was abruptly canceled this week. As much fun as it would have been to see Lydon "sing" when this show slouched through Minneapolis later this year, it's more fun to have a new reference point for rock and roll hubris in the musical theater world, since I can no longer mention that one musical about that one guy who was bitten by that one radioactive spider.
Thankfully, the producer who tried to get this version of JC Superstar off the ground is the same guy who produced the Spider-Man musical. Michael Cohl, you are the gift that keeps giving!
Recognizing Achievements
Since we started today with trying to be good citizens and veered off into petty complaining, let's get back to recognizing good in the world.
First of all, I'd like to recognize some people in Chicago that I know (Hey, I don't care how much the Twin Cities is supposed to hate the Windy City; I'm from Illinois). I've written before about Oracle Productions, that little group that went totally free before our own Mixed Blood thought of it. Well, I'm please to see that they have been getting a lot of love lately. On top of gaining 11 nominations in this year's Jeff Awards (kind of like our Iveys Awards, except the categories make sense), they have also been awarded the Emerging Theater Award from the League of Chicago Theaters.
Next, congratulations are in order for Bedlam Theatre's big damn Grand Opening in St. Paul. It's been a long, winding, dirty and confusing road from the old Bedlam Social in Cedar-Riverside to the swank new digs in Lowertown, but they've finally made it.
And, last, but certainly not least, I would like to send a shout out to John Lacy, who turned an actor's worst nightmare into an actor's fantasy, consequences be damned! Mr. Lacy was performing as Big Daddy in a production of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof that was not that different from the thousands of productions of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof that came before it until a drunk man wandered in on May 31 and upped the bar for all productions of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof to come. The intoxicated patron began heckling the production, reportedly for its closeted gay content, with all the wit and panache of Adam Carolla (by which, I mean, none). After the heckler yelled a slur at the stage, and no usher or house manager was on the scene taking care of the situation, John Lacy broke character, left the stage, and forcibly removed the belligerent. He returned and finished the show, which received a standing ovation, and then was promptly fired. In protest, the lead actor in the show quit as well, and the entire production was canceled.
There will be plenty of arguing about whether or not your actions were correct, John Lacy, but I will still salute for your decisive action. May we all have such courage in the face of obnoxious drunk jerks.
