The Last Ship Lasting

[bdn223]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 10:06am

So I was at the Last Ship last night, and let me say I didn't fall head over heals in love the show, but there something about production that got to me. I was speechless afterword, which is rare.
Now as to why I am creating this thread. Last night the theater was basically empty. I originally had seats for the rear mezzanine and was moved into the front mezzanine. Talking to the usher she told me they had sold less than 800 tickets which is a little over half of the total capacity. She also said that has been the norm. Now I did not realize how truly empty the auditorium was until the show was over and their was no traffic jam to leave the theater.

Then at the stage door, the cast just seemed depressed while exiting. I am used to casts begging you to tell your friends at a show that isn't selling, but they just seemed defeated while saying that message, like there was no hope. It seemed as if they were given the "If advance for the holidays doesn't pick up, we aren't even going to be around for them"
speech.
I honestly feel as bad for the cast as they playing to empty houses. Now shows play to empty houses all the time, but The Last Ship actually opened to decent reviews and has a marketing team that is actually doing their jobs. Sting is everywhere promoting the show, and its not helping, which amazes me.

[JBroadway]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 10:18am

I find that sad as well. I know everyone on this board really hated the show, but I personally found it to be really wonderful. Definitely not perfect, but I thought it was extraordinarily well done. Too bad it's not doing well. I hope they at least manage to make a cast album.

[evic]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 12:17pm

Consider this ship sunk. If On The Town, a joyous classic that received all around raves can't sell tickets, how can Sting expect his dreary, boring musical to be a hit. He is delusional if he thinks theater going audiences care about him. Who will take the Simon in the Spring?

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 12:29pm

I think it will be a January casualty. Will Sting be stung by this and abandon Broadway in the future?

[eperkins]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 12:29pm

I am one of the people on this board that liked The Last Ship. Yes, there are book problems, but I still managed to like it for the virtues it has. I've seen shows that are far worse than this that have had long runs.

[haterobics]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 12:30pm

"I've seen shows that are far worse than this that have had long runs."

They sold tickets.

[EponineThenardier]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 12:31pm

Is there any word on a cast recording? The bits of music I've heard are right up my alley. I'm on of those Billy Elliot/Once type fans. Sadly, I'm too far away to see this in person.

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 12:37pm

Maybe people are tired of seeing the same shows revived and want a different show revived or a totally new show.

OTT had 2 previous revivals that flopped. Why did the producers think another would succeed in that barn of a theater?

[JayG 2]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 12:53pm

For my money The Last Ship is the best new musical to arrive on Broadway in who knows how long. It has a great score, an affective, moving story,a terrific cast, strong choreography and staging, and great choral singing.
Why would it fail? I guess it's a case of pearls before swine.
Feed the public enough smelly garbage, and they will soon believe that garbage doesn't stink. (Disney and jukebox musicals, specifically.)

[neonlightsxo]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 12:55pm

Eponine, there should be a recording in the new year sometime. They were going to record it "after opening".

The reason this show isn't selling is because of bad marketing and advertising. The key art is terrible, I can't tell you how many people have told me they didn't know it was supposed to be a ship and a wave.

Updated On: 10/31/14 at 12:55 PM

[adam.peterson44]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 12:56pm

Their pricing structure can't be helping sales. I looked into getting a ticket for The Last Ship a while back, and found no discount code available for the date that i wanted, no good seats available, and exorbitant prices for the poor seats that were available. Now maybe they were planning to release good seats later on in the process, but to shaft people who want to buy tickets early isn't really a good strategy, if those people are driven away by the prices and don't come back. I ended up getting a ticket to a different show because The Last Ship seemed too expensive for one that i am not that excited about based on its composer.

Knowing that Sting wrote the music makes it less appealing to me based on his music that i have listened to on the radio. The only reason that i decided to look into getting a ticket at all was because i read that Brian Yorkey was involved as a book writer. I still want to see it because of Mr. Yorkey even if Mr. Sting doesn't inspire any particular excitement for the show on my part. But i might wait to catch it on tour. Maybe having Mr. Yorkey do some of their publicity rather than Sting might make it appeal more to people who are musical theatre fans (and therefore most likely to be buying tickets).

[macnyc]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 12:57pm

If Last Ship has so many empty seats, I wonder why I haven't seen this offered on the seat-filling club I belong to.

[neonlightsxo]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 12:58pm

Yorkey wasn't involved in the recent development of the show-- he wrote the early drafts and then left to do If/Then, when Logan took over. There's no way he'll be doing any publicity for it now.

Updated On: 10/31/14 at 12:58 PM

[JayG 2]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 12:58pm

"Maybe having Mr. Yorkey do some of their publicity rather than Sting might make it appeal more to people who are musical theatre fans "

This is a joke, right?

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 1:01pm

Tourists are really going to plunk down $ 140 a ticket based on what Mr Yorkey has to say? If Sting does not bring you in, nothing will.

Hey, does anyone want to buy the Brooklyn Bridge?

[massofmen]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 1:03pm

the reason why its not selling is because people don't like it. It has nothing to do with marketing.
if people and reviewers were racing out of the theater telling their friends "you have to see it its amazing" it would be selling..a better poster doesn't help a average show.

[adam.peterson44]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 1:05pm

I specifically said "among musical theatre fans", not "among tourists", although those two groups are not mutually exclusive, as some seem to enjoy implying.

Quick poll - how many people here (presumably all musical theatre fans, or at least theatre fans) have either the Next to Normal or If/Then cast recordings, and how many have Sting or The Police recordings? Even with the latter having many more titles, i would not be surprised if more theatre fans listen to recordings with Yorkey lyrics than with Sting music.

I'll start - I have and listen to both Yorkey recordings and zero Sting recordings.

[dreaming]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 1:08pm

I have next to normal and Sting/Police albums.

[haterobics]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 1:09pm

I have both Yorkey recordings, 10+ Sting records, every Police album, saw Sting 5+ times live, saw the Police once live, so I'm not sure what that proves?!

Also, emphasizing the book writer in a show with a lousy book seems a bad strategy. The best thing about this show is the Sting music.

[HogansHero]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 1:24pm

hate-totally agree and I'd be willing to bet the new ads have a front and center Sting.

[Phillypinto]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 1:29pm

ouch tough season. I wonder if Side Show will last

[brucebossa]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 1:32pm

Adam: a lovely thought you have but it is not sensible. 1) as others stated, it's not even Yorkey's book anymore - he did first drafts and it was rewritten. 2) it's a terrible book but that is just my opinion, along with a few others, I think; 3) word of mouth among theater lovers is not good - you probably have a better chance of getting a tourist to buy a ticket if they see Sting's name; and

Finally - I have a dozen Sting and Police albums; I've seen Sting maybe 3 or 4 times in concert; I have NEXT TO NORMAL and IF/THEN - I play NEXT TO NORMAL but i cannot get through that shrieking that is IF/THEN.

The reviews gave the show many pull quotes - they need to advertise the good comments, get a different TV commercial that doesn't have all those men stomping in it and put out Sting's face even more. And I bet that still might not work.

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 1:36pm

I'm on of those Billy Elliot/Once type fans.

Me too, but I still didn't like The Last Ship. I was bored to pieces by the Chicago tryout.

[haterobics]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 1:39pm

"I wonder if Side Show will last"

One step at a time, let's see if it opens...

But seriously, that preview thread has not inspired me to buy a ticket, and there was a $77 fourth row orchestra aisle seat available for tonight when I looked earlier. I figure I should let them get the show fixed more before I go, assuming they can fix it.

[adam.peterson44]

Posted: 10/31/14 at 1:44pm

I didn't know that Brian Yorkey only wrote the first draft and it was then re-written - i only saw that it was co-written. Thank you for the update; i feel better now about picking another show.