Musical Theatre

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For lovers, performers and creators of musical theatre (or theater). Broadway, off-Broadway, the West End, other parts of the US and UK, and musicals around the world and on film/TV. Discussion encouraged. Welcome post: https://tinyurl.com/kbinMusicals See all/older posts here: https://kbin.social/m/Musicals

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How Often Do Broadway Flops Return as a Hit? (www.broadwayworld.com)

submitted 1 year ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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With Merrily We Roll Along back on Broadway as a hit, how many musicals are flops in their original Broadway production and then return as smashes?

The article goes into the history of Merrily We Roll Along in some detail, with the original production flopping badly and the current revival being a smash hit. It also talks about Parade, She Loves Me, Candide, Cabaret, Chicago, The Rocky Horror Show and Oh! Calcutta!

It's an interesting article though the headline is a bit of a misnomer, as some of these shows were actually hits in their original runs (ie shows which recouped their investments), which went on to become bigger hits when revived, or flops (ie shows which lost money for their investors) which went on to become smaller flops.

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[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

It's an interesting article though the headline is a bit of a misnomer, as some of these shows were actually hits in their original runs (ie shows which recouped their investments), which went on to become bigger hits when revived, or flops (ie shows which lost money for their investors) which went on to become smaller flops.

Thank you for pointing this out!

Also,

(“Flop” is a technical term for a show with a relatively short run that doesn’t make its investment back—and not necessarily meant as a reflection of the artistry of a given work.)

I honestly had no idea, I thought it also got used as "shows that were bad" at least colloquially.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

I suppose it gets used in both the colloquial and technical sense of the word. You also get references to a show being a "critical hit" - critics liked it even if it lost money. :-)