Spider-Man 2.0 discussion...

[BVS]

 

[BVS]

That just because U2 produces "radio friendly" hits, doesn't necessarily mean that's what they're going to produce for a broadway show. I never said that, based one "ONE" song that was "indicative as to how B&E would approach every stage endeavour". You made that part up.

The truth is I don't have to make up anything, it's all there in different shades of blue for everyone to see.

 

[mama cass]

if i think about U2 and musicals, i would imagine them doing something really hard-hitting and a bit political, with their own trademark sound, maybe along the lines of anti-war or anti-occupation, justice, freedom, something angry and shouty, something not safe, even thinking along the lines of "Bloody Sunday" kind of thing because of the obvious lyrical connection...

i guess Greenday did something a bit like that with American Idiot already though anyway...

 

[Registered Dude]

U2 and Spiderman makes as much sense as U2 and Batman

 

[bonocomet]

At first look the U2 (even if it's half of U2) and Spider-man combo seemed weird and mismatched, but not really when looked at from where they are in their lives. There was a time you'd never have caught Johnny Depp dead in blockbuster, kid-oriented movies. But even he said so himself, you have young kids and your POV changes and you want to make something for them. With Bono and Edge both having children at the age where they are probably getting into comics and super-heroes it doesn't look so unlikely anymore.

 

[deep]

main man behind it all (can't remember his name off the top of my head) suddenly died...

he took the easy way out

 

[bonocomet]

'Spider-Man' makes plans to hit the road, playing arenas in Europe - NYPOST.com

 

[deep]

10,000 seat arenas

what crap that is, they can put it on the jumbotron.

 

[Scorpionac]

With Bono and Edge both having children at the age where they are probably getting into comics and super-heroes it doesn't look so unlikely anymore.

I don't think they know jack about Spider-Man. I think they just smelled an opportunity to diversify their work some.

 

[bonocomet]

I don't think they know jack about Spider-Man. I think they just smelled an opportunity to diversify their work some.

Yeah I didn't say they did or didn't know anything about it. Only that yes, it was an opportunity to diversify, and do something that might appeal to their kids as well.

 

[mama cass]

he took the easy way out

yeah! lucky escape!

 

[hcbiggs2002]

'Spider-Man' makes plans to hit the road, playing arenas in Europe - NYPOST.com

Wow Hamburg, Germany!? Really!?! I might have to finally make that trip to Hamburg and visit my cousin who lives there, she's been wanting us to visit for like forever! And I've been a huge fan of Spiderman since my teens when I read all the comic books and watched all the movies and I love the few songs I've heard from this musical, so yeah, I'm prepaired to pay the air fare from Finland and tickets to go see this musical and I'm sure I won't be the only one!!

What's that old saying....there's no such thing as bad publicity.,..although this court case has yet to reach the European press, if ever!

 

[mama cass]

a touring Spider-Man... eww tacky

i guess Cohl is just thinking about recouping some money though... but yeah... tacky...

 

[Popmartijn]

a touring Spider-Man... eww tacky

i guess Cohl is just thinking about recouping some money though... but yeah... tacky...

I believe it has been the plan that the Spiderman show would go on tour, even when Taymor was still involved, so I'm not surprised by this news.
But why is it tacky?

Most of the people in Europe are not able to see the musical in New York, but it might be easier for them to see it in London or Hamburg.

 

[corianderstem]

Shows tour all the time ... but typically they're shows that have been around for a long time already (or are popular stories, like the recent string of musicals based on Disney stuff, like the new(ish) Mary Poppins touring production). And typically they play, you know, theaters instead of arenas.

It's a little weird, in my opinion. Something about it being in an arena, like it's some trumped-up rock show.

 

[mama cass]

oh it just seems tacky to me, going for the arenas purely for ticket sales because theatre venues aren't profitable enough... makes me think of Disney, Dancing On Ice, kind of thing... hell, why don't they just stick it in a theme park somewhere and have done?

Cori, i think you've hit the nail on the head - Cohl is marketing it like a rock show!

arenas are such a different scale to theatre - they will have to devise a whole new show more or less - it will at least require massive adaptation, especially re. technical aspects and playing to the audience, i would imagine! - will be a major scale-up!

Popmartijn, i could understand them showing it in the West End, sure, but arenas for musical theatre?? it's just wrong lol!! it would be remote and distant, and intimacy would be lost - would be very difficult for the actors to connect with their audience...

 

[mama cass]

U2 and Spiderman makes as much sense as U2 and Batman

they must seriously have a thing for men in tights!

 

[hcbiggs2002]

Wow you guys are so quick to judge!?! Arenas in Europe aren't all like the humongous types you have in America! Take for instance London's Royal Albert Hall, capacity just a little over 5000. It's well known for holding all sorts of events including, shock horror, MUSICALS! I've attended a few shows there, and it's a wonderful intimate venue and you can see the stage perfectly from anywhere in the arena. And I think Spider-man would go down a treat!

 

[mama cass]

i would never describe the Royal Albert Hall as an arena actually tbh... the article says they're looking at arenas with 10,000 seats which is TWICE the capacity of the Royal Albert Hall! plus many arenas in the UK have a capacity of around 15-18,000+ actually... i love the Royal Albert Hall though - it's a gorgeous space, but i tend to associate it more with concerts than theatre tbh... it could be a lovely venue for a show though i guess, but sounds like it might be too small for what the producers want...

re. being "quick to judge": i'm just stating the obvious really... 10,000+ seats is not your average theatre capacity... theatre is an intimate affair - put it up on a massive scale and the intricacies and subtleties of expression are lost

my guess is they would have to dumb it down further, up the amplification, and focus on the thrills and spills and spectacle so as to make it work in a big space - it will certainly no longer be Broadway theatre, but maybe more a rock circus type thing...

also, i was under the impression that they spent a fortune gutting Foxwoods theatre and customising it for the show? if it's so technical, i wonder how easy it would be to tour and adapt to other spaces?

 

[Nick66]

I really have no problem w/them taking it on the road. That's what everyone (including Taymor) really wants b/c that's where the dollars, pounds and euros are.

But mama cass has good point...once you start putting a show like this in a 10,000 seat arena, it becomes less an intimate experience (which is what theatre is supposed to be), and more like some concert spectacle. You can't overstate the importance the intimacy and good audience has to a theatrical performance. These are stage actors, and making a connection w/the audience is part of their craft. The closest equivalent I can think of, and it's not a perfect analogy, would be comparing seeing U2 at 360 show and seeing them in a club.

Having said that, this isn't Shakespeare or Stoppard we're talking about, and Spider Man is a unique case. It's probably well suited to this kind of show, especially considering that I'd imagine a significant percentage of their audience is/will be people who don't regularly attend the theatre.

 

[mama cass]

it's not the touring that bothers me at all - theatre companies/shows tour all the time...

i'm just skeptical about the scale-up to arenas so as to pack as big an audience as possible in there every night... and i think it's hard for shows that are on that kind of scale not to end up gimmicky/tacky... and i think it would become something other than theatre in that context... just my opinion though

 

[mama cass]

I really have no problem w/them taking it on the road. That's what everyone (including Taymor) really wants b/c that's where the dollars, pounds and euros are.

But mama cass has good point...once you start putting a show like this in a 10,000 seat arena, it becomes less an intimate experience (which is what theatre is supposed to be), and more like some concert spectacle. You can't overstate the importance the intimacy and good audience has to a theatrical performance. These are stage actors, and making a connection w/the audience is part of their craft. The closest equivalent I can think of, and it's not a perfect analogy, would be comparing seeing U2 at 360 show and seeing them in a club.

Having said that, this isn't Shakespeare or Stoppard we're talking about, and Spider Man is a unique case. It's probably well suited to this kind of show, especially considering that I'd imagine a significant percentage of their audience is/will be people who don't regularly attend the theatre.

it's also about really basic things like the audience actually being able to "see" the actors, their facial expressions and movements clearly... they can't just bang it all up there on screens like they would a rock concert - the whole point of theatre would be lost... the audience may as well just go see the movie in that case lol

guess they could always go the way of The Wall and use gigantic puppets and go for stadiums if they want lots of seats - Taymor is GREAT with puppets

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

Most Broadway shows go on tour. That Spiderman will as well should be surprising to nobody. Its always been the plan, ans is where many shows make their money. The Lion King is in tour. Wicked is on tour.

Arenas are probably the only way they can a) set up the stunts quick enough, b) recoup enough ticket sales to make this never ending money pit worth it.

 

[BVS]

it's also about really basic things like the audience actually being able to "see" the actors, their facial expressions and movements clearly... they can't just bang it all up there on screens like they would a rock concert - the whole point of theatre would be lost... the audience may as well just go see the movie in that case lol

guess they could always go the way of The Wall and use gigantic puppets and go for stadiums if they want lots of seats - Taymor is GREAT with puppets

Aren't you just applying some stuffy rules as to how YOU think theater should be? I mean the biggest characters are wearing masks anyways

If they have the audience for it, and people want to see this and be entertained then what's the big deal.

This was never meant to be typical.

 

[Hollow Island]

Aren't you just applying some stuffy rules as to how YOU think theater should be? I mean the biggest characters are wearing masks anyways

If they have the audience for it, and people want to see this and be entertained then what's the big deal.

This was never meant to be typical.

Theatre is an intimate experience, and when you throw it into an arena it will lose that. It is important to see the actors. There's nothing stuffy about that idea. You're supposed to be able to see them! This Spiderman thing might be different though, since it's stunt based.

Really, this thing shouldn't exist so who cares what happens with it.

 

[BVS]

This Spiderman thing might be different though, since it's stunt based.

Well I'm glad you responded only to agree with me at the end...

 

[mama cass]

Aren't you just applying some stuffy rules as to how YOU think theater should be? I mean the biggest characters are wearing masks anyways

If they have the audience for it, and people want to see this and be entertained then what's the big deal.

This was never meant to be typical.

masks, faces, what's the difference if you need binoculars to see them?

fwiw i trained in mask work (as well as acrobatics, clowning, mime, circus, commedia dell'arte, physical and traditional theatre) - my theatre experience is FAR from "stuffy"

and i am EXTREMELY opinionated on the subject (you'd never guess though)

look, alright, i admit, i just refuse to like anything about this Spider-Man thing OK?

 

[BVS]

look, alright, i admit, i just refuse to like anything about this Spider-Man thing OK?

Acceptance is the first step.

 

[mama cass]

Most Broadway shows go on tour. That Spiderman will as well should be surprising to nobody. Its always been the plan, ans is where many shows make their money. The Lion King is in tour. Wicked is on tour.

Arenas are probably the only way they can a) set up the stunts quick enough, b) recoup enough ticket sales to make this never ending money pit worth it.

yeah i have no problem with touring like i said - it's the scale-up to the spectacular spectacular that makes me want to heave

 

[mama cass]

Acceptance is the first step.

stop water-boarding me BVS!