Robert DuSold

It’s Tony time! The celebrash is always around my birthday, or even on that very day some years. I would huddle around the console tv …with well, some of my family, in Waukesha Wisconsin ..when I was a kid and feed my dreams with every moment.

The only way I could experience Broadway from Waukesha was to tune in.

I’m oldish. And I did make my Broadway dreams come true.

This year’s Tony Awards haven’t been lacking in the drama department.. they were almost cancelled amidst a writer’s strike.

Will they go on?

What if they don’t?

We’re not back.

We’re struggling.

The pandemic. There’s too much at stake. Save theater and let the Tonys happen. We need a concession.

Prominent theater writers heard the call and came to the rescue…

This article in the Times reads like a theater industry version of “Oslo”.. nail biting meetings and negotiations and late night phone calls and grateful Broadway newbie writers praising the quite wealthy prominent scribes who now actually make way more money in TV and film than they ever did on Broadway.

“Theater is having a very hard time coming back from the devastating effects of the pandemic — shows are struggling and nonprofit theaters are struggling terribly,” said Tony Kushner, who is widely regarded as one of America’s greatest living playwrights, and is, like many of his peers, also a screenwriter. “Ethically and morally, this felt like a recognition of the particular vulnerability of the theater industry. It’s the right thing to do, and costs us nothing.”

He’s right about regional theater… that’s another story.

“Majok, who is a first-time Tony nominee herself this year for “Cost of Living,” said, “I approached them with respect and gratitude for all they have done for me,” she said, “but this decision was impacting so many of my colleagues and friends deeply, in an industry that is still financially struggling.”

After reading much of the hype… this is the premise as to why the Tonys are so crucial to the theater industry:

“Broadway attendance and overall grosses remain well below prepandemic levels, and new musicals are struggling — four of the five nominated shows are losing money most weeks.”

The other hype is the Tony Awards are the only way for the hinterlands..like Waukesha where I grew up.. to see and experience the new shows and run to the box office to support a devastated industry and create a future for theater.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/broadway-theater-attendance-recovers-pre-pandemic-levels/

CBS, the network that’s hosting the Tonys… published this article.

Broadway and theater attendance recovers to pre-pandemic levels

Broadway is nearly back to pre-pandemic levels.. not completely but very close. Broadway is doing just fine. Biz is doing great for the most part. The moolah is definitely rolling in.

So why the drama?

What the truth reveals is an industry struggling with itself really, and an audience that isn’t buying the shiny new stuff they’re trying desperately to sell.

First of all, the viewership for the Tony Awards has continually declined to the point where “Bob Hearts Abishola” would draw more viewers. People are just not watching the Tonys like they used to.

It’s doubtful that a huge bump in box office would result from watching the Tonys on the evening of June 11. Last year’s Best Musical closed not long after that telecast. Or stream thing.

If you’re reading this, you’re doing it on the interwebs… where you can basically see any number from any new show over and over again if ya want to. You can bask in “New York, New York” up close and personal.

It’s just an old adage that the only way for the flyovers to experience theater is through watching TV at a certain moment.

The Tonys are just about… the Tonys.

Ok. That’s cool, but somewhat off putting I think.

The thing that really caught my eye in the Times article was “four of the five nominated musicals are losing money most weeks”.

That’s not a surprise to me.. because I read the box office grosses every week…but what is a surprise is the Times actually said that out loud.

The new musicals … and plays.. are really struggling and losing money.

Many have already closed.

So, if Broadway is back, why is the new stuff losing money?

The truth is, revivals and the old stalwart musicals are doing great business.. some breaking box office records this season.

That brings us back to why are new works tanking for the most part?

Because, the amorphous star of the show.. and the show itself… is:

Identity.

And I just don’t think that’s causing a box office bonanza.

In fact, it may be the opposite it seems to me.

Identity .. and grievance … has risen from the ashes of the pandemic and the killing of George Floyd to create marketing nearly every new musical and play with identity and grievance.

It’s more important than plot, craft and the skit itself.

It seems to me, most of these shows are not in search of an audience. They’re shows that are preoccupied with identity to the point where the very process of theater doesn’t really matter.

But, it is a business.. and it does matter.

The self titled reformation in theater was borne of fury and rage and blame.

It’s still here.

The new dawn in theater isn’t a game of making more room.. it’s strategically a zero sum game of making less room.

It’s blaming white dudes mostly.. gay straight cis.. labels themselves that are off- putting.. for the woes of, um, everybody else I suppose.

I just don’t think that’s productive.

The ill feelings have lingered, and the preachiness and classroom atmosphere in theater really hasn’t been entertaining for the most part.

The fear and desperation that’s fueled the alarm that the Tonys will save new shows is palpable.

And audiences are noticing.

They’re noticing.

The culture wars aren’t specific to theater.. they’re playing out in politics and corporations.

Film isn’t immune.

This review sums up the impossible position the arts have created for themselves…

“The brown skin and placeable accents don’t make the movie more fun, just utopic and therefore less arguable. Now, what you’ve got is something closer to the colorblind wish fulfillment of the Shonda Rhimes streaming universe, minus the wink-wink, side-eye and carnality. This “Little Mermaid” is a byproduct. The colorization hasn’t led to a racialized, radicalized adventure. It’s not a Black adaptation, an interpretation that imbues white material with Black culture until it’s something completely new; it’s not “The Wiz.” It’s still a Disney movie, one whose heroine now, sigh, happens to be Black. There is some audacity in that. Purists and trolls have complained. They don’t want the original tampered with, even superficially. They don’t want it “woke.” The blowback is, in part, Bailey’s to shoulder. And her simply being here confers upon her a kind of heroism, because it does still feels dangerous to have cast her. Sadly, the haters don’t have much to worry about.”

Last year’s Tony Awards were hosted by Ariana DeBose, who said this:

“I am so proud that the theater is becoming more reflective of the community who adores it, and in doing so, has gained new performers, new creatives, new fans. It has shown us stories that have broadened our world and opened our hearts and our minds. And while we have not solved all of our problems, I feel like the phrase ‘Great White Way’ is becoming more of a nickname as opposed to a how-to guide.”

She went on to list with fervor the identity soup of pretty much every marginalized group under the sun… as if it was a surprise.

This year’s hype is quite similar.. with the same hostess and these articles listed as the relevant addendums to the Tonys:

This reads like a blank menu at a fancy restaurant with none of the dishes and food listed… just the particular make-up of the chef, sous chef, wait staff and dishwashers.

You don’t know what you’re eating.

You just know who made it.

The meal is secondary, but you’re still gonna pay a shitload of money to eat there.

I’m not sure if it was the best call to support writers and a strike to allow the Tony Awards to proceed, but I do know that the sky ain’t falling on Broadway.

I’m not sure the Tonys will make much of difference honestly to the box office.. of course the peeps and shows who win should be honored.

I just wish we knew what was on the menu……