ebook img

The box office effects of casting celebrities as replacement actors on Broadway PDF

186 Pages·2017·2.53 MB·English
Save to my drive
Quick download
Download
Most books are stored in the elastic cloud where traffic is expensive. For this reason, we have a limit on daily download.

Preview The box office effects of casting celebrities as replacement actors on Broadway

SSaann JJoossee SSttaattee UUnniivveerrssiittyy SSJJSSUU SScchhoollaarrWWoorrkkss Master's Theses Master's Theses and Graduate Research 2009 TThhee bbooxx ooffifficcee eeffffeeccttss ooff ccaassttiinngg cceelleebbrriittiieess aass rreeppllaacceemmeenntt aaccttoorrss oonn BBrrooaaddwwaayy Douglas Santana San Jose State University Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/etd_theses RReeccoommmmeennddeedd CCiittaattiioonn Santana, Douglas, "The box office effects of casting celebrities as replacement actors on Broadway" (2009). Master's Theses. 3669. DOI: https://doi.org/10.31979/etd.ae9w-b6mw https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/etd_theses/3669 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Master's Theses and Graduate Research at SJSU ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Master's Theses by an authorized administrator of SJSU ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE BOX OFFICE EFFECTS OF CASTING CELEBRITIES AS REPLACEMENT ACTORS ON BROADWAY A Thesis Presented to The Faculty of the Department of Television, Radio, Film, Theatre San Jose State University In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts by Douglas Santana May 2009 UMI Number: 1470981 INFORMATION TO USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleed-through, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. UMI UMI Microform 1470981 Copyright 2009 by ProQuest LLC All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest LLC 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 ©2009 Douglas Santana ALL RIGHTS RESERVED SAN JOSE STATE UNIVERSITY The Undersigned Thesis Committee Approves the Thesis Titled THE BOX OFFICE EFFECTS OF CASTING CELEBRITIES AS REPLACEMENT ACTORS ON BROADWAY by Douglas Santana APPROVED FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF TELEVISION, RADIO, FILM, THEATRE sfiq/t)^ V\ (^JcM^t ck VyxjL^J Dr. David Kahn, Department of Television, Radio, Film, Theatre Date m*l A Dr. Ethel Walker, Department of Television, Radio, Film, Theatre Date V/^fOf ^S= Professor Buddy Butler, Department of Television, Radio, Film, Theatre Date APPROVED FOR THE UNIVERSITY \ l/ttvi/j \y^ fjvft Associate Dean Office of Graduate Studies and Research Date ABSTRACT THE BOX OFFICE EFFECTS OF CASTING CELEBRITIES AS REPLACEMENT ACTORS ON BROADWAY by Douglas Santana This thesis addresses the commercialization of Broadway theater through the casting of celebrities from another medium. The celebrities are brought in as replacement actors for trained theatrical performers with the intention of extending a production's longevity. Twelve Broadway musicals that have opened since 1994 are examined through a series of case studies to determine the effectiveness of this casting technique through analysis of box office gross proceeds, theater capacity, and overall ranking of theater capacity compared to weekly competition. Case studies include Grease, Beauty and the Beast, Smokey Joe's Cafe, Rent, Chicago, Jekyll and Hyde, Cabaret, Annie Get Your Gun, Aida, Hairspray, Monty Python's Spamalot, and The Color Purple. The research explains the financial success of this trend and the potential benefits for producers, actors, and theater professionals. TABLE OF CONTENTS I. Introduction 1 II. "Grease Is the Word" For Celebrity on Broadway 18 III. Beauty and the Beast 29 IV. Smokey Joe's Cafe 38 V. Rent 50 VI. Chicago 60 VII. Jekyll and Hyde 84 VIII. Cabaret 92 IX. Annie Get Your Gun 105 X.Aida 112 XI. Hairspray 120 XII. Monty Python's Spamalot 136 XIII. The Color Purple 144 XIV. Conclusion: Legally Blonde Taps Into Reality 150 Works Cited 162 v LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1. Beauty and the Beast (July 20, 1997-July 12, 1998) 36 2. Beauty and the Beast (July 19, 1998-July 11, 1999) 37 3 Smokey Joe's Cafe (Aug. 23, 1998-Aug. 15, 1999) 48 4. Smokey Joe's Cafe (Aug. 22, 1999-Jan. 16, 2000) 49 5. Rent (Jan. 6-Dec. 29, 2002) 56 6. Renf (Apr. 4, 2004-Mar. 27, 2005) 57 7. Rent (Jan. 7-Dec. 30, 2007) 58 8. Rent (Jan. 6-Sept. 6, 2008) 59 9. C/7/cago (July 19-Dec. 27, 1998) 79 10. Chicago (May 20, 2001 -Mar. 3,2002) 80 11. Chicago (Mar. 5-Dec. 28, 2003) 81 12. Chicago (Aug. 7, 2005-Oct. 22, 2006) 82 13. Chicago (Oct. 29, 2006-Dec. 30, 2007) 83 14. Jekyll and Hyde (Jan. 16, 2000-Jan. 7, 2001) 91 15. Cabaret (Jan. 13, 2002-Jan. 5, 2003) 103 16. Cabaref (Jan. 12, 2003-Jan. 4, 2004) 104 17. Annie Get Your Gun (Jan. 23, 2000-Jan. 14,2001) 110 18. Annie Get Your Gun (Jan. 21-Sept. 2, 2001) 111 19. Aida (Jan. 5-Dec. 28, 2003) 118 20. Aida (Jan. 4-Sept. 5,2004) 119 vi 21. Hairspray (Jan. 8-Dec. 31, 2006) 133 22. Hairspray (Jan. 7-Dec. 30, 2007) 134 23. Hairspray (Jan. 6, 2008-Jan. 4, 2009) 135 24. Monty Python's Spamalot (Jan. 6, 2008-Jan. 11,2009) 143 25. The Color Purple (Jan. 7, 2007-Feb. 24, 2008) 149 vn 1 Chapter I Introduction The presence of celebrities from outside the theater community has been a part of Broadway's history for decades. In June 1980, musician David Bowie performed the title role of John Merrick on Broadway in The Elephant Man with impressive box office results. Importing Bowie into an established Broadway show that had been running for over a year, replacing a theatrically trained, Tony Award winner and original cast member Phillip Anglim was something that had not been seen before. Although Bowie had no theatre experience, producers took the chance that he could pull off the physically demanding role of Merrick while giving The Elephant Man a needed boost at the box office. Their gamble, according to the New York Times, paid off financially. "The play has been selling out ever since Mr. Bowie's glittering name went up on the marquee" (Lawson C2). Bowie's six month run proved to be the foundation for a celebrity-casting trend that would be used again in the world of musical theatre in 1981 by Joseph Papp and the New York Shakespeare Festival on the Broadway transfer of The Pirates of Penzance. A wide list of celebrities who made their names in other entertainment media appeared in this production. These included vocalists Maureen McGovern and Peter Noone, film actor Treat Williams, and television star Pam Dawber. In 1983, The Partridge Family television star David Cassidy took over the title role in Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat for 26 weeks from March 7, 1983, to September

Description:
joining the cast was socialite and tabloid celebrity Mrs. Donald Trump (Maria. Maples) in the role of .. script change that has a character drink the tequila instead of scotch. Gran Box office results like this, combined with the fact that Disney A sexy marketing photo of Shields standing in cost
See more

The list of books you might like

Most books are stored in the elastic cloud where traffic is expensive. For this reason, we have a limit on daily download.