I was just watching Andrew Lloyd Webber on Piers Morgan and he was asked why Broadway is doing well right now. His response was interesting even though he didn’t answer the question. Webber (“Cats,” “Evita,” “The Phantom of the Opera”) said he thinks people go to Broadway because they crave the live experience and seeing other people respond to what’s happening. He likened it to going to a restaurant and enjoying the food and people watching.
That is the answer a theatre professional always gives to that question. The “live theatre is indispensable, lifts us from the depths of despair, gives people a shared moment in time and so they will always come” answer.
No, they won’t.
Broadway is expensive, a long trip for most of the people buying those tickets, and they want to be entertained. Their showing up is not a given. It’s only worth it to them if they like the show.
If Broadway has edgy, compelling, entertaining shows that people actually want to see, then it’s no problem selling tickets. It’s the best thing for all of New York City and the best thing that can happen to American theatre. “Book of Mormon” is the perfect example. It’s appealing to men and women, who seem to find it hysterically funny in equal measure, yet it doesn’t care that it offends some people.
When Broadway has fresh material that takes risks but gives people a story that they can get into and puts entertainment first…well, that’s the definition of a hit. A show that doesn’t, that’s what you call a flop. Or if it’s off-Broadway, an experiment.
If I wanted a history lesson I’d take a class. If I wanted to resolve angst over the moral wrongs of the ages I’d meditate with the monks.
When I want to be entertained, moved, swept away into another place and time and marvel at the talents of my fellow human beings, I go to the theatre.
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