Breaking the mold of professional entertainment comes the new musical 13. Music and Lyrics by one of my favorite composers, Jason Robert Brown (Parade, Songs for a New World, The Last 5 Years).
What makes this show remarkable is that the entire cast and band is composed of teenagers.
Visit Jason Robert Brown's website to hear samples of the music and see pictures from its premier production which took place at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angels, CA in January 2007.
The show is currently running at the Goodspeed Opera House in Connecticut and is slated to open on Broadway before the end of the year.
If the show is successful (Which I bet it will be), It will be interesting to see what Trends this show will generate within the entertainment industry. More of the same kind? New audiences? Will it effect the touring industry? Will it steal from the Disney/Nickelodeon live performances (concerts and stage shows?), Will it increase numbers in drama clubs around the nation?
Hummmm…. My last blog entry was about the book & upcoming movie of He’s Just Not That Into You…. Interestingly enough, The book is influenced by an episode of Sex and the City called "Pick-A-Little, Talk-A-Little".
Here we have evidence of... TrendErtainment Law# 1: Entertainment breeds Entertainment.
This is truer than ever since the movie companies now gobble up rights to anything and everything that they think could possibly make money, somewhere and somehow at anytime in the possible future. (Other movies, books, live shows…)
Now for evidence of... TrendErtainment Law #2: Entertainment builds awareness.
That’s right, we spend thousands, sometimes millions of dollars promoting our products, which in turn are often promoting or building awareness of other ideas, products, actors, writers, locations, etc.
Rushing through the subway a free newspaper called AM New York was thrust into my hands. On the front cover “DON’T BLAME US – Sex and the City stars: NYCs ritzy transformation not our fault”. The article comments on how people point fingers at the show for inaccurately glorifying single life in the city. Though we can’t blame the show itself for an increase of young, single women moving to the city, I am sure it helped with a tipping point. There is not doubt about it, the show branded the city in a new light to a new demographic of people. The show inadvertently became a marketing tool for the big apple.
We see evidence that crime investigation is becoming a popular major at schools. Does it have anything to do with all the Law and Orders, CSIs, SVUs? No, its not directly linked, but I’m sure it certainly contributes a lot of momentum.
Heck, I wanted to be a doctor after watching the first two seasons of Greys Anatomy (Then came the third season and it changed my mind).
I can only hope that the Broadway musical The Heights sells out and builds a positive awareness of the section of Manhattan it is titled after since my wife and I just bought a co-op in the neighborhood. If the show does well, hopefully my real-estate value will too !
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Through the power of TrendErtaiment we have control to bring awareness to any cause, demographic, neighborhood, or idea. In a time where our audiences feel lost, we should use our powers to help enhance our society, not break it down.
If we can build the awareness of cake baking and make it a phenomenon, then surely we can build the awareness of anything we set our minds too….And make it entertaining and inspiring at the same time.
I first heard about this self-improvement-dating book when one of my (now ex) girlfriend’s mother gave it to her to prove that I wasn’t the right match (Which she was absolutely right). From that point on I heard about the book almost daily from my other friends.
Now it is becoming a movie. Yup, a movie based on a self-help book. It is slated to open late this year. Clearly Hollywood thinks the movie will be just as appealing as the book itself. Take a look at the cast: Drew Barrymore, Jennifer Aniston, Jennifer Connelly, Kevin Connolly, Bradley Cooper, Ginnifer Goodwin, Scarlett Johansson, Justin Long, Ginnifer Goodwin, and Ben Affleck.
I predict that if this movie is successful, then we will see more entertainment based on personal growth. There have also been other signs that this genre is making its way into the entertainment world (More on this in another blog). So…Will we see self-help creep its way into the live-entertainment field? It has already started to spread through the development and popularity of EduTainment. With people looking for personal growth more in this day than ever before it is very likely a new branch of entertainment will begin to reveal itself.
He is the Greek guy you read about in history class who is tagged to be the first person to step out of the chorus and onto the stage as a individual actor.
Whether it be truth or legend, it is clear that his contribution has created a tsunami of influence in the entertainment world.
It is good to reach back to our roots and get back to the basics. Once we do that we can take the basics and stretch them as far as they can go to make something remarkable. This goes for all areas of our business.
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According to The Cassell Companion to Theatre, “It is generally supposed that Thespis, who managed a traveling
company, transported his actors in wagons, which also served as their
stage,”. Bus and Truck Tours anyone ?
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And if you have not yet figured it out, this is where the word "Thespian" comes from.
n. (- derived from the words “Trend” and
“Entertainment”) The art of understanding how trends influence the development and management of live entertainment production.
Breaking the mold of professional entertainment comes the new musical 13. Music and Lyrics by one of my favorite composers, Jason Robert Brown (Parade, Songs for a New World, The Last 5 Years).
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