Sunday, January 22, 2012

Butterfly's Trouble on the road

Great show! Wonderful twist on Madama Butterfly! That's the feedback from the off-off Broadway premiere of Butterfly's Trouble at the 45th Street Theatre. See for yourself:
http://www.youtube.com/user/voiceafire#p/a/u/0/dfNVdTdf51Q
OK, the video is slightly out of focus - I accidently hit the wrong button on my camcorder. Still, it seems like the perfect show for touring. Essentially, it's Madama Butterfly with an interesting, creative twist and for only 7 performers.

Attending the show, we had at least a couple of representatives from each of the three major arts presenters organizations holding conferences in New York that week, APAP and ISPA and CMA. After the show I had people lining up to tell me how much they enjoyed it.

So why are we still not signed up for a tour? I need feedback. Here are a few possibilities:
  • It's great, but it will never sell in Peoria
  • The word adaptation is box office poison
  • The word opera is box office poison
  • It's too long (2 hours)
  • It's too expensive (No it isn't)
  • It has an unhappy ending (suicide)
  • It has an unhappy beginning (suicide)
  • B. F. Pinkerton is not a nice man
  • Cho-Cho-San is not a good mother (She tells her son that she is killing herself "for his sake")
Am I giving up? No way! Why?
  • I'm a stubborn German? (actually half Austrian)
  • I have money to burn?
Real reasons:
  • Good music (even Puccini) is worth fighting for
  • I believe in the concept of music theatre embodied (or invented) in Butterfly's Trouble
I will consider all advice, commentary, and criticism (both constrictive and destructive)





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