The ethics of Spider-Man's marketing

I haven't said very much about Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark because I haven't seen the show and I didn't feel like I had anything to add to the debate that hadn't already been said.

But I just read a column about the ethics of professional critics reviewing the musical while it's still in previews and this jumped out at me:

"Broadway audiences know that previews are early glimpses of works in progress, and that is part of their appeal. The audiences for previews are part of the creative process, for how they react to a performance will help decide what stays and what gets cut. The prices they pay for the privilege of being Broadway guinea pigs are fair if they choose to pay them."

Sorry, that holds true for a portion of the audience. But 63 percent of Broadway tickets are purchased by tourists and I bet many of them have no idea when a show is in previews or exactly what that means. For some, Spider-Man may be their first Broadway experience.

In fact, if you go to the Spider-Man web site, it says "Now playing on Broadway." It doesn't say in previews or that the musical is subject to change. I don't think the word "preview" is even mentioned on the web site, so I don't know if it's a "choice" on the ticket-buyer's part or simply not knowing how privileged they are to be attending a preview performance.

And if they are familiar with previews, they may have purchased their ticket thinking it was after the much-delayed opening night, now scheduled for Feb. 7.

I just checked Ticketmaster for a performance in late January, while the show is still in previews, and ticket prices range from $76.50, for the cheapest seat in the balcony, to $289, for a premium seat in the orchestra. If you have a family of four, $306 is a hefty price to pay to be a "guinea pig" for director Julie Taymor and rest of the creative team.

You can debate the appropriateness of professional critics buying a ticket and writing a review before opening night. But please, don't tell me that Broadway audiences fully understand what a preview means, especially when the show's own web site misleads them.

If you want to talk about ethics, let's talk about the ethics of producers who fail to tell the ticket-buying public exactly how much of a rough draft they're spending their money to see and charging them plenty to be part of a work in progress.

From Spider-Man's Reeve Carney, Good Morning America!

I'll admit that hearing a song out of context is not the best way to sell a Broadway show. Still, I was underwhelmed by the debut of a song from Spider-Man: Turn off the Dark on Good Morning America.

First of all, the cameras should have taken us inside the Foxwoods Theatre for a tour and an interview with director Julie Taymor. Having her sitting in the GMA studio, holding still photographs of the set and costumes on her lap, didn't do much to convey the tremendous scope of this production.

I mean, according to an interview in The New York Times with lead producer Michael Cohl, the musical has a price tag of $60 million, making it the most expensive show in Broadway history. C'mon, show me how spectacular that set looks. Make me think I need to get my ticket now.

(Interestingly, the article notes that Cohl got his big break as chief promoter for the Rolling Stones "Steel Wheels" tour, which I saw in Syracuse in 1989. I remember it was a big deal - everyone I know went - and I think I still have my bootleg T-shirt somewhere.)

There are two reasons I'm interested in Spider-Man. One is Taymor, whose work on The Lion King I loved. And the other is the music, written by Bono and The Edge, from U2, a band I love (at least their early stuff).

The musical's Peter Parker, Reeve Carney, performed "Boy Falls From The Sky,'' backed by his band, Carney.

It was different from a traditional show tune and I like the idea of mixing up the sound on Broadway. There ought to be all different kinds of music on the Great White Way.

But it struck me as a generic slow rock song from a slight twentysomething with his hair falling in his eyes. Plus, Carney was slurring the lyrics so much that I could hardly understand them. And he's not exactly a commanding presence onstage. Hope he's got enough stamina for eight shows a week.

You can watch his performance here:



Having a national television audience, I was hoping the creative team would come up with something a little more jaw-dropping than what I saw. Don't get me wrong, I'm still interested. But I think they hit a single when they should have been trying for a home run.

Spider-Man begins previews Nov. 14 and opens Dec. 21.

Foxwoods and Broadway

I was surprised yesterday to find out that Broadway's Hilton Theatre is now the Foxwoods Theatre, after Live Nation sold the naming rights to the Connecticut casino in a multiyear deal.

I'm sure Live Nation could use the money. The Hilton has been dark for more than a year in preparation for the much-delayed Spider-Man musical.

And it gives Foxwoods a major presence in Times Square, as well as a connection to the musical that marketing officer Robert Victoria calls "the most anticipated Broadway production of all time." Yes, of all time.

(As an aside, I highly recommend the book Without Reservation, by Jeff Benedict, about the Mashantucket Pequot tribe that built Foxwoods.)

Personally, I'd love it if theatres were named for people who have some connection with Broadway. But beyond that, I have a bigger concern - Does this mean the casino is dipping its toe further into the musical stream?

A full-length production of Hairspray played Foxwoods in December. As the Hartford Courant's Frank Rizzo reported, it was the first time a Connecticut casino had presented a traditional Broadway musical.

He questioned the impact on venues like New Haven's Shubert or Hartford's Bushnell if Foxwoods competes for musical theatre patrons. (Not to mention the impact on restaurants and other businesses that help keep urban downtown areas vibrant.)

At the time Bruce Flax, director of marketing for MGM/Foxwoods, said that Hairspray would be a test case and if successful, could pave the way for other Broadway-type productions."It's a big commitment for us," he said.

There's no indication the naming deal is anything more than that. But it makes me nervous. Look at where bands and musicians go now.

Over the next month Counting Crows, Stevie Nicks, Donna Summer and John Fogerty will perform at the 4,000-seat MGM Grand at Foxwoods. There was a time when they would have made tour stops in cities like Boston, Providence or Hartford.

Foxwoods is in the middle of nowhere - 2 1/2 hours from Boston, an hour from Providence or Hartford. You can take an infrequent bus or drive. It's not an easy place to reach compared with any of those cities.

I'd hate to see touring productions of Broadway shows migrate there, too.

Spider-Man the Musical

Okay, might as well keep today's aerial theme going.

According to Playbill, the Spider-Man musical has a theatre - the Hilton; a first preview - Jan. 16, 2010; and a subtitle - Turn off the Dark. (Why don't they just call it Spider-Man the Musical? That's what everybody is going to end up calling it anyway. Oh, I just learned from the New York Times ArtsBeat blog that "Turn Off the Dark" is the title of one of the songs.)

Also, not to be nit-picky so early, but I'm a little concerned about the Hilton. All of those words people used to describe it turned out to be true - cavernous, barnlike. When I saw Young Frankenstein I was on the right orchestra, about two-thirds of the way back. In most Broadway theatres, that would be fine. But in the Hilton, I felt really far away.

I have to admit, I'm not into comic books and I'm not a big fan of superhero stories or Evan Rachel Wood, the only performer who's been announced so far.

But I'm excited about this because Bono and The Edge are writing the songs and Julie Taymor is directing. I like U2 - at least their older songs. And I'm a big fan of Julie Taymor.

When I was watching the fantastic documentary Jerome Robbins: Something to Dance About on PBS last week, I tried to think of choreographers working today who would be considered as innovative.

While I know she's not a choreographer, Taymor came to mind for her work on The Lion King. I loved the way she used puppetry and elements of Asian theatre and video projections to make the African landscape come alive. If anyone can put that space at the Hilton to good use, she can.

So I'm hoping this will be an uplifting collaboration.