I'm having one of those I'll-never-drink-again days. We all say it, but no one really means it. It always seems like a good idea when you're at the bar, enjoying a few beers, to throw some happy shots in there. Well, not so much.
Moby Dick's opening went really well. We had great audiences on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights. Sunday's house was all of 25 people. I really hate Sunday matinees and having a small house like that makes it worse. The reviews have started to pour out. So far, all good. The Scene was not great... I can't remember the last time Christine Howey gave a raving praise to any show. I understand that critics are just stating their opinion, but she has a tendency to bite.
She was on NPR's Around Noon last week and she stated that she never tries to hurt, but she is trying to put a fun spin on the review. Really? Is that what you're telling yourself? When I did Discordia at CPT, she referred to my friend Perren as (this is from memory.... not at all verbatim) botox faced. And that if you heard the faint sound of sucking, it was him acting. Now, how is that supposed to be fun? I know Discordia had it's problems, but she had to personally attack rather than review.
I think that the movie Finding Neverland puts it in perspective very well. Frohman tells Barrie that the critics made it important, but it's called a play.
Wow. I didn't mean to rant on about that... I know there is the school of thought that says no review is to be believed. If you believe the good ones, you believe the bad ones. Very true. However, if a show has a bad review, driving the audience to see it is going to be quite a task. Moby Dick is not high brow theater. It's a fun way to spend a couple of hours. Nothing more, nothing less.
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