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View Full Version : What they SHOULD do at the Hyperion



Morrigoon
10-06-2002, 06:12 PM
If you've seen the musical Barnum, (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000059PQI/qid=1033956217/sr=1-2/ref=sr_1_2/103-8107578-1660628?v=glance) you know what I'm talking about. It's the perfect musical for that theater. It's fun, almost Disneyesque, the subject has some striking similarities to our beloved Uncle Walt (though it takes some liberties with Barnum's life story), and well, it's just all-around good show. (read the reviews!)

Disney could put together its own repertory group to fill the Hyperion - a great season would pull guests in. After all, admission to DCA is about the price of a mid-range theater ticket, and they'd get DCA in the bargain!

Anyway, I'd like to see it.

Morrigoon
10-06-2002, 07:42 PM
Lol, just noticed the major typo in the title ;) obviously I mean THE Hyperion.

Bill Catherall
10-06-2002, 09:39 PM
Originally posted by Morrigoon
obviously I mean THE Hyperion.
Fixed. :)

Morrigoon
10-06-2002, 10:25 PM
thanks

sydney
10-06-2002, 11:02 PM
The concept of a "season" type repitoire at the Hyperion is interesting. The shows might make up what they lack in spectacle by way of being regularly changed. (ie instead of spending 6 million on one show, they could spend 1 million on each of six shows)...

But part of their investment (or so they've said) is in the possibility of taking what they produce here to new york if it does well. I can understand their urge to create shows that are "spectaculars" and the investment and time that requires.

I'm really interested to see what Aladdin turns out to be, basically because it's always been my favorite of the "modern classics". I am glad we got blast at DCA, and I think its run was of the appropriate length. At the beginning of its run I would see it on my weekly visit to the parks, but by the end... I don't think I'd seen it in a couple months. I know there were people among the frequent visitor (ap) population that liked it much more than me, so i'm obviously glad it was here for as long as it was.

To answer your question, Morrigoon, I've never seen Barnum (which is saying something as my cd collection consists of about 100 disney cds and 100 broadway cds) so I couldn't say specifically. but do you think people expect a disney show at a disney park?

Morrigoon
10-06-2002, 11:12 PM
well, Blast! did well - and it was only a 40 minute version of the Broadway piece.

You can find some of the music from Barnum on Kazaa or other file-sharing place - or you can get the show itself off Amazon. I highly recommend it to Broadway lovers it's fun in the way that the old Rodgers & Hammerstein shows were

ErikBsandiego
10-07-2002, 09:31 AM
I think a season of Rep. Theater would be a GREAT idea.
My two cents (offered as a regular theater goer as opposed to management).

A) Facility costs paid for.
B) Opportunities to piggyback on marketing dollars (that synergy thing).
C) Opportunity to increase patronage of Downtown Disney/DCA eateries before shows
D) Major competition located some distance away(Costa Mesa- Orange County Center for the Performing Arts).
E) Overhead (payroll, ticketing, other front of the house activities) reduced by leveraging existing Disney crew
F) If season focused during non-summer months opportunity leverage existing technical talent (back of the house) which you have on payroll.

My own suggestion would be to price it as either a stand alone (but with DCA access AFTER the show since it is easier to simply let people out into the park), or "deeply discounted" with DCA admission. AP holders would need to be accomodated - But that also means you have a subscription base opportunity that other Reps. would die for.

Finally, I would say the theater DOES NOT need to be disneyfied. You probably can't do "rated R" theater with really controversial themes (for example the Laramie project - a GREAT work BTW - is probably out) but you could do Miller and Ibsen and do well.

In addition, with a solid Rep in place (and thus people "attuned" to seeing a play in a theme park) then you could try some "best of broadway" efforts - picking up road companies of the major musicals. Since the company owns some of the bigger shows. KINDA competes with El Cap. but you could focus on OC/Riverside/Northern SD in your marketing and minimize problem. The best part of going Rep first; broadway road show second is that it minimizes your downside risk since, if it turns out people WONT go to a themepark for a musical you haven't shelled out millions and locked yourself into expensive contracts with touring Broadway shows.

oregonzooron
10-07-2002, 09:45 PM
Let me cover a few points first. I have performed on the musical theatre and opera stage for twenty years. And I LOVE "Barnum", it's on my "some day I MUST do that show" list (a rather extensive this, that...)

I see some problems trying to mount full-scale productions at the Hyperion. First is the length of the shows. If I remember correctly, "Barnum" runs at least two hours, with intermission. For one thing - the intermission: this theatre just isn't designed to accommodate an intermission. I know, you say, just skip the intermission. Believe me, that's not as easy as it sounds. Most intermissions serve not only as a break for the audience, but a much needed break for the cast, and more difficult to work around, a re-set or set change for the tech crews.

While we're on theatre design, does anybody know the dimensions of the Hyperion stage? Blast! was a pretty compact show, and still seemed a little cramped in that house.

The longer length also means you can't get four or five shows up in one afternoon. Two is max, which brings us to another point:

Actor's Equity. I don't know of any Equity contract that would allow for more than the two shows, unless you had two completely seperate casts. ($$$) Which brings us to:

Royalties. No matter how you slice it, these things are expensive. You pay the owner of the work thousands of dollars for each performance. All of this, actor's salaries, crew salaries, royalties, all come from ticket sales. So the question is:

Are you going to pay $20 - $60, or more, to spend two hours in a theatre, away from the park you've already spent $43 to enter?

Just my thoughts.

(Congratulations, Morigoon. You've entered the world of theatre and as a reward received my longest post to date )

see you at the zoo

ron