Sunset Boulevard

[FrontroverPaul]

We got my preferred two seats in the centre of row A stalls for a weekday matinee. I wanted to book Colour Purple too but sadly no matinee performances.

Incidentally the summer musicals at nearby Kilworth House also went on public sale today, that's Carousel and Half A Sixpence both postponed from 2020. It's a glorious open air venue for a summer evening but probably not accessible by public transport.

[HereForTheatre]

Oct 21, 2020 13:19:10 GMT fiyero said:

Just looked up how far away Leicester is and not sure I can justify a £100 train journey for this. Good luck to everyone trying for tickets, it looks well organised.

How about bus for one leg to get the cost down a bit? I know national express go to Leicester from most major cities.  Depending on where you are though the journey might be very long so not an otion.

[Deleted]

I know it's not comparing like for like, but compared to most of the London stuff I am quite surprised by how slowly this is selling.

Having seen the scrum for JCS, Les Mis etc etc, I decided to cough up 40 quid for Curve membership to get access to the pre sale as wanted to go on the only Saturday where there is a matinee and an evening so could do both. I really didn't need to. The Saturday night in question has just a handful of seats sold. This is an ALW show in a theatre with a tremendously loyal audience where things sell out pretty quickly. In the Xmas period.

(Btw, don't resent the 40 quid at all. Curve are a fantastic theatre who have in recent years become the go to place for launching the biggest UK tours. Miss Saigon, Les Mis and Sunset I saw multiple times; sadly I didn't get the chance for the ill fated Phantom).

So I wonder why this is. Although the Sunset tour had pretty mediocre sales once on the road, it DID do very well in Leicester and was sold out the coupe of times I went. So I don't think it's choice of show that is the problem.

Do people think it's the thing of the regional theatres having an older audience who are nervous about getting to the theatre again? As could spell trouble for the touring circuit in general. I have felt a lot of optimism re the rush to get tickets for the small amount of available London stuff. But perhaps that is just the super fans. And sustaining long sold out runs selling to the GBP is going to be problematic, even when it is fully allowed. I hope not!

(Sales also seem to be so low for this at the moment, that I pray it doesn't get pulled!)

[BurlyBeaR]

I think people will be looking at the poster and thinking “seen that already”.

[Deleted]

Oct 24, 2020 10:50:32 GMT BurlyBeaR said:

I think people will be looking at the poster and thinking “seen that already”.

Perhaps! 

Also in the Joe Public theatre going masses, perhaps there isn't the same desperation to see stuff that I know I have, having been deprived for so long.

[HereForTheatre]

I'm sure it will pick up and do well enough to go ahead.  London things always sell better than regional things like this and for some reason I feel like Curve things don't generate the same buzz or interest as even some other regional theatres, which has always bugged and surprised me because I just don't know why when they do such great work. If this exact same programme was announced for the RX or Sheffield or somewhere it would have been sold out, so there seems a bit of a strange disparity.
 

[ruby]

Has anyone transferred their booking? I was originally booked for Mon 14 Dec but it's not starting until the 18th. Used their form on Wed to request a transfer to Sat 19th but haven't had email confirmation yet (and I've checked my junk folder).

[hitmewithurbethshot]

I got a phone call from them asking if I wanted to transfer (I booked for 17th December)

[CG on the loose]

I'd booked for the 18th, so inadvertently for the first show! Fingers crossed.

[musicalmarge]

Oct 24, 2020 10:50:32 GMT BurlyBeaR said:

I think people will be looking at the poster and thinking “seen that already”.

THIS! Didn’t we all all just see Sunset with Glen Close and then the screechy Ria on the UK tour (in my case Wimbledon).

We’ve SEEN IT. A different and more exciting Norma and I would have gone - Jane Macdonalds, the Nolan’s, Lyn Paul, Lulu, one of the Murray Sisters (who was doing it at Alexander Palace), ANYONE ELSE!!!

[HereForTheatre]

Well it might not happen anyway now with Leicester fairly sure to be placed into the highest tier on Thursday. Hopefully it can still be rescheduled for next year like The Color Purple.

I think the point of this season was to bring back some Curve favourites complete with original casts where possible. I understand that people would like to see some new face but that wasn't the point of the season.

Of course a lot of us have seen these shows but we won't have seen them like they are going to presented this time. I think that we should applaud any theatres trying to put shows on and especially when they have put as much effort in as Curve to do it.

[BurlyBeaR]

Agreed we should be applauding theatres but given the trouble they’re going to you'd imagine that they’d want to fill every possible seat. If people aren’t booking because the poster and the face on the poster is exactly the same as the show they saw quite recently then that’s an error of judgment on the theatre’s part, regardless of how well intentioned it is. Given that this is a staged concert there was really no reason to keep the same cast apart from making it fit the “favourites” theme.

[HereForTheatre]

I dont know if the poster is the problem reajjy, I think you have to remember that Leicester never actually came out of a form of lockdown and so I think the issue might have been locals being too wary to buy tickets, which it turns out they were right to be.

[Deleted]

So Leicester is tier 3?!
Sad times :-(

[HereForTheatre]

Yes it is. Curve haven't actually said anything about the production being cancelled yet though but I imagine it is. It isn't due to start until after the review date but I can't see them risking going ahead with it just on the off chance.

[mrbarnaby]

This is really sad.

These venues are working their asses off to reopen in any form and this is their thanks.

With the precautions they take it’s safer to be sat watching a show than going shopping to Sainsbury’s.

[princeton]

I feel particularly sad for everyone at Curve.

Leicester has been in pretty much been in one form or lockdown or another since mid-March. So clearly whatever strategies are or aren't in place musn't be working given that they remain a tier three city.

I doubt attending an Andrew Lloyd Webber show in a socially-distanced modern theatre is going to make much of an impact. And looking at the pictures the newly configured Curve auditorium seems a heck of a lot safer than doing Christmas shopping, using public transport, or collecting your kids from school (and that's before the three household Christmas bubbles - or should that be baubles).

[saral]

Has anyone heard anything about this production? I know Leicester is in tier 3, but would have thought they would have said something by now, even if it is just we are considering what to do

[princeton]

This is what they team said (in The Stage) when the new tier allocation was announced: Curve’s artistic director, Nikolai Foster, and its chief executive Chris Stafford, said they were devastated that Leicester had been placed into the highest tier. “We are devastated by the news Leicester has been placed into Tier 3. This news is once again a huge blow for Curve and our city, which has been in a constant form of lockdown since March. We will make further announcements as soon as we are in a position to do so.

"Across our sector, theatres like Curve have worked tirelessly to ensure buildings are safe for productions to be staged and audience members to return. Our heartfelt thoughts go to all of the other theatres who have been placed in Tier 3 and therefore forced to close.”

Sunset Boulevard isn't due to open until 18 December which is after the first 'tier review' takes place. I suspect that they won't make a decision until there's an indication about the likelihood of any restrictions being lifted. All three Leicester MPs are lobbying for some sort of clear exit plan - given the almost unique position the city has found itself in since March.

[HereForTheatre]

The Chief Executive Chris Stafford was on Front Row the other day, he said there will be an a statement about their plans early this week, so guess tomorrow given nothing was said today.

By what he said they will be waiting and seeing if the tier is changed on the 16th before cancelling it alltogether.

[saral]

Thanks for the update, I shall keep an eye out

[CG on the loose]

The Curve have cancelled the live run, but are bringing the cast in to film the show which will then be streamed for 3 performances a day from 22 December to 9 January 2021.

Tickets £20 - on sale now.

Not heard from them yet, but current ticket holders will be eligible for either a full refund or an exchange for an ‘at home’ ticket.

www.curveonline.co.uk/news/sunset-boulevard-in-concert-to-be-streamed-online/

[Deleted]

Dec 3, 2020 12:05:09 GMT CG on the loose said:

The Curve have cancelled the live run, but are bringing the cast in to film the show which will then be streamed for 3 performances a day from 22 December to 9 January 2021.

Tickets £20 - on sale now.

Not heard from them yet, but current ticket holders will be eligible for either a full refund or an exchange for an ‘at home’ ticket.

www.curveonline.co.uk/news/sunset-boulevard-in-concert-to-be-streamed-online/

YES! Brilliant news, not for the cancellation but to have a filmed concert version of Blvd is stellar news.
I thought Danny Mac v Ria Jones was a great combo that worked well together so happy this will be immortalized. 

[HereForTheatre]

What a massive shame. The effort and expense they have gone to to put shows on, completely reconfiguring the whole theatre(s) and stage, only for none of it to actually come off must be devastating. Still, at least they have managed to salvage something and do this stream, which sounds like it will be fantastic I'm sure. A little pricey and I doubt I'd spend that on a stream if it wasn't my local and I wanted to support, but they of course need to make some money from it somehow.

Hopefully the other productions planned for early next year can still go ahead because it looks like it would be stunning to catch an (in person) show there with how the auditorium is now and the revolving stage.

[Dr Tom]

That is a shame for everyone involved. It's good they found a way to salvage this. I presume it is a single performance filmed and broadcast, rather than live every time?

At least we'll have a record of the production (possibly a permanent one if they do a deal to put it one of the streaming theatre services afterwards).

I had this booked to see twice, so will swap one of those for the stream.