There’s a familiar slogan in our business that literally everyone knows and almost everyone subscribes to. “The show must go on!” This slogan is helpful when a performer or technician is feeling under the weather and needs an extra boost to rally the energy needed to perform. It also serves well when there is great sadness in the company or the world, and we need an injection of commitment and good will to fortify our hearts before we can bare them before an audience.But there are instances, in my opinion, when the show must not go on if the more responsible decision is to delay an opening or cancel a particular performance.
Ticket holders, understandably, hate it when a performance is cancelled. They’ve gone to a lot of trouble to set up their schedules around a particular evening in the theatre, and then they’re asked to go back to their calendars to select a different date and plan their lives all over again. The decision to cancel a performance should always be a last resort.
So when is cancellation the best policy? I believe that a performance should be cancelled when the producer believes that:
A. doing the performance under existing circumstances would create an unsafe environment for either performer or audience member, and/or
B. the performance that could be mustered under existing circumstances falls significantly short of the artistic standards that the theatre has led the audience to expect.
This past weekend I made the tough decision to cancel the Friday student matinee and the Friday Opening Night of The Wizard of Oz at Theatre IV. As much as I am aware of and sorry for the inconvenience that the cancellation caused valued members of our audience, I still believe I made the right call.
Wizard is a huge show, and despite everyone’s best efforts, we simply weren’t ready. We faced technical difficulties that posed a significant threat to the physical safety of our cast and crew of approximately 70 theatre artists. We desperately needed several hours of additional rehearsal time to operate a show of this size safely, and the only way to get that rehearsal time was to postpone opening by one day.
Within 24 hours of my decision, our wonderful box office staff worked its hardest to personally contact every one of the 800 or so audience members affected. Most audience members were understanding; a few were furious.
The request I make of audience members is this. When informed by a reputable theatre that a particular performance has been cancelled, please know that the decision was not made lightly. And consider that being offered the opportunity to switch dates or accept a refund will always be preferable to seeing someone seriously injured on stage, or seeing a show that is simply no good because it isn’t ready to open.
When facing these difficult decisions (which I have to do once every 15 or so productions), I will always err on the side of safety and artistic quality. I think that’s the best way to serve our audience responsibly. Only when I know that the workplace is safe and that artistic standards are being respected and maintained will I insist that the show must go on.The good news is that the extra rehearsals we had this morning and this evening for The Wizard of Oz made all the difference in the world. I'm now confident that we'll have a terrific show. And in the end, that's what everyone wants the most.
5 comments:
Bruce, as an actor who enjoys some dear friendships with some of the cast of "Wizard of Oz", I can say that I'm sure while some ticket holders may have been upset, I'm sure no one was more disappointed than the cast and crew of the production. Audiences know that tremendous amounts of effort and hours go into each production, though I'm not sure everyone fully appreciates how personally committed our local artists are to delivering a quality performance each time. Even when an actor or cast member has had a bad day or is not feeling well, they almost ALWAYS muster the energy and enthusiasm to make their personal issues invisible to the audience.
I'm sorry to hear the production was postponed a day. But I know it was a wrenching decision, and I'm glad you are committed to the safety of the cast and crew as your first priority.
I saw Wizard of Oz last weekend. It was such a big show, I can imagine how hard it was to make it all work. But my entire family loved it, loved it, loved it. Thanks for all the hard work. You guys are great.
your play was great i didn't notice any mistakes whatever you did to fix things must have worked my favorite parts were the scarecrow's dance, anything iwth toto, and the lion's king of the forest song i loved the part whten the flying monkey flew in and grabbed the ax and flew away again i loved dorothy too she has an awesome voice
I went to see Wizard last night and it was great. After the Merry Old Land of Oz number, when Jan Guarino, who plays the Wicked Witch, flew across the sky on her broom, writing "Surrender Dorothy," I gasped with the rest of the audience in horror as Jan suddenly fell out of the sky and onto the stage floor. I guess it was a drop of about 12 feet. She got up and did the rest of the show and received a huge ovation at curtain call. But is she OK? I know she has another show this morning. I noticed that after the accident they cut all the flying from the show. Did the flying apparatus break? We're all worried about Jan. Please let us know.
Thank you for your concern. I'm pleased and relieved to say that I visited with Jan this morning and she's fine. In fact, she's performing our 10 a.m. matinee right now.
I always remind our casts, particularly young cast members, that theatres can be dangerous places. We hired one of the nation's top flying companies to come in from Las Vegas to fly the Wicked Witch, Glenda, the Flying Monkies and the Wizard's balloon in our show. All of the flying is handled professionally. I've been assured that there was no "pilot error" last night.
After the show last night, our amazing Tech Director, Bruce Rennie joined our equally amazing stage manager (Bo Wilson), Production Manager (Richard Koch), and flying crew to go over the rigging inch by inch to determine what happened. The rigging all tested out fine. Their best guess, I'm told, is that a couterweight may have gotten caught on the pinrail, and then become uncaught, causing the sudden drop in altitude. All steps have been taken to prevent something like this from happening in the future.
The good news is that Jan is fine, and as of 9 a.m. this morning, she was back in her flight harness for a full flight check, something we do an hour prior to every performance.
Again, thanks for your concern. We all appreciate it. And thanks to Jan and all our hard working crew for taking care of things so quickly and professionally.
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