The Day That A Neil Simon Play Is Considered Passé... Is The Day that Broadway is DEAD.

Libertas1776

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Tue Nov-10-09 04:34 PM
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The Day That A Neil Simon Play Is Considered Passé... Is The Day that Broadway is DEAD.

Edited on Tue Nov-10-09 04:44 PM by Libertas1776

The day that a Neil Simon play is considered passé is the day that Broadway is dead.

This little rant that I am about to posit is a result of the closure of a revival of Neil Simon's classic, "Brighton Beach Memoirs," after only a week of performances and as a result, the complete scuttling of its sequel, "Broadway Bound" which was to play simultaneously with much of the same cast. Why? Because of poor ticket sales, despite the fact that Broadway ticket sales overall are doing quite well. The website of the play http://www.theneilsimonplays.com/

http://www1.pictures.zimbio.com/gi/Neil+Simon+Plays+Brighton+Beach+Memoirs+Broadway+t_gjRc2msEMl.jpg

Left, the older Eugene Morris Jerome of "Broadway Bound," Josh Grisetti, Mother Jerome played by Laurie Metcalf, and of course, Neil Simon, as well as the young Eugene of "Brighton Beach memoirs," Noah Robbins. The Jerome Household in Brighton Beach, Brooklyn.

This article from the NY Daily News sums up a lot the current state of Broadway "Theater."
http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/culture/2009/10/the-closing-of-brighton-beach.html

The Broadway audience, which highbrows condescended to, especially when it was at its height, in the decades after World War II, was certainly centered in New York. It was middle class (with significant exceptions both higher and lower on the social ladder.) It had a higher percentage of Jews than the population at large.

It also went way beyond the Hudson. In the decades after the war Broadway was a significant factor in middle class life all across the country. It was not only New Yorkers who knew Arthur Miller or Tennessee Williams (not to mention all the major figures of our musical theater.) Those names counted for something in every major city across the country, in part because their plays toured immediately after they finished their Broadway run, often with the original stars. That was how a little boy in Milwaukee (moi) became entranced with the theater.

The tourists who come to New York now, I'm afraid, are not really an audience. Their idea of entertainment is more likely a rock concert than an evening of theater. Seeing a Broadway show is one of the things they're supposed to do while they're here, like visiting the Statue of Liberty or riding the subway.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/culture/2009/10/the-closing-of-brighton-beach.html#ixzz0WUPqixS5

That pretty much sums up the Broadway theater goer of today, "their idea of entertainment is more likely a rock concert," which would probably explain the inexplicable flocking of people to "Rock of Ages" :puke:

or would much rather prefer to see big name pretty face actors like Jude Law in "Hamlet"
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_be6UWCLP7bU/Sh-i7KGg3YI/AAAAAAAAB_I/TuC84DHMrAA/s400/Jude+Law+as+Hamlet.png
or Hugh Jackman and Daniel Craig in "A Steady Rain."

Or even a nice, safe, kid friendly Disney production of "Mary Poppins" or the "Lion King."

A short description of "Memoirs" from Wikipedia...

Set in the Brighton Beach section of Brooklyn, New York in 1937, the coming-of-age comedy focuses on Eugene Morris Jerome, a Polish-Jewish teenager who experiences puberty, sexual awakening, and a search for identity as he tries to deal with his family, including his older brother Stanley, his parents Kate and Jack, as well as Kate's sister Blanche and her two daughters, Nora and Laurie.

A short description of "Broadway Bound" from Wikipedia...

The play is about Eugene and his older brother, Stanley, dealing with their parents' relationship falling apart as they are working together to becoming aspiring comedy writers for the radio, and, eventually, television.

For those of you that have seen a theatrical performance or big screen adaptation of this play, or by extention any other great Neil Simon play ( The Odd Couple , The Prisoner of Second Ave , Lost in Yonkers , The "Eugene Trilogy" ( Brighton Beach Memoirs , Biloxi Blues , Broadway Bound )just to name a few, as well as Simon's works that were exclusively made for the screen: The Out-of-Towners , The Lonely Guy , The Odd Couple Part II and so on) will understand the inestimable greatness and humor of this great American playwright and screenwriter.

To me, this is truly an indictment of the new Broadway audience and a general dumbing down of the American populace. Like the rest of New York today, its not about substance anymore. It's about glitz, big flashing lights, corporate sponsors, loud music, and big names. As for Neil Simon, Arthur Miller, and Tennessee Williams,...well...their just passé as far as modern theater is concerned. But for me, they, especially Neil Simon, will never be past their prime or outdated. They will survive and linger on in the conscious of the American theater-scape, on community stages and in non-profit theater groups, as long as there are people who appreciate their greatness and ability to capture the people's conscious.

I tip my hat to you, Mr Simon, and will be forever grateful for your contribution to American theatrical culture and comedy.

Rant Concluded. :hangover: