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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2017 12:17:12 GMT
Not sure where this really belongs because I'm using this as a jumping off point but.... So this show was brought to my attention via Facebook (someone from my Masters is in it) www.laweekly.com/arts/edward-tuckers-play-you-is-an-experience-beyond-its-5000-tickets-8671041$5, 000 a ticket, a 1 on 1 Immersive experience....I'm actually not sure. I mean on one hand, it's 'very LA' I guess. But the article tries to explain it away with cost of Hamilton tickets etc etc. But really where is the line now? and what are we paying for? I guess ultimately it's how much it's worth to YOU the consumer/audience member. And the fact this company is doing this suggests they at least believe the work/experience is worth it to their audiences. We talk a lot about accessibility but it seems the extremes are getting more and more extreme in terms of 'experiences' and the cost of them, never mind the average theatre cost itself going up and up.... I guess I don't have a question more a general wondering about the state of things. |
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Post by TallPaul on Sept 27, 2017 12:23:27 GMT
Not quite one-on-one, unless you happened to be the only person who booked, but at the other end of the price range was this 'performance' as part of Hull 2017. www.hull2017.co.uk/whatson/events/nowthen/And no, I wouldn't, even in the unlikely event that I ever have a spare 5k. |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2017 12:29:00 GMT
And there we have the difference between LA and Hull...I know where I'd rather go!!
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Post by kathryn on Sept 27, 2017 12:50:10 GMT
Oh, yuck.
”One of the really interesting themes that runs through 20th-century literature is this notion [that], freed from all constraints, human beings turn into monsters or angels. What we're doing is giving people an environment, safe and respectful to our actors, to be freed from all constraints. And everything about the evening is designed to give them that one moment: Who do you become? This isn't about us. This is about you. That's the promise of [You]."
Yes, I can see this going down very well with recording artists and TV stars (want to bet that one of the Kardashians turns up?). It's a narcissist's dream!
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2017 12:55:09 GMT
The Hull show genuinely sounds much nicer than the LA one. I honestly wouldn't want a whole evening with me as the sole audience member at any price though. Brief scenes as per more-traditional Punchdrunk shows is one thing, but the reason I'm in the audience is because I *don't* want to be the focus of the evening for a show. Even You Me Bum Bum Train was too much for me really, I wouldn't go back to that in a hurry either!
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2017 12:56:28 GMT
Yes, I can see this going down very well with recording artists and TV stars (want to bet that one of the Kardashians turns up?). It's a narcissist's dream! Funny you should say that but the person I know who is in it has connections to the Jonas Brothers and the associated 'set' that runs with them....so I can bet one or two of that entourage will be in attendance. And quite right. Also if Hull, and indeed Punchdrunk can do a show like that for a much more affordable (relatively speaking I know Punchdrunk aren't cheap cheap) well... Also you're quite right about the narcissism, the appeal of Punchdrunk say, for me is that you may get a fleeting 'one on one' experience but it isn't all about you, and that's a lucky elusive element. And immersive for me is about losing an audience in a world not making them the centre of the world too. |
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Post by hulmeman on Sept 27, 2017 12:59:39 GMT
Hmm an interesting read, but I am not sure about the fact that "you" are the focal point. In a previous discussion on here, quite a lot of us agreed we don't enjoy audience participation. Now clearly Hall and Mirrors is taking the participation concept to a different level entirely, but I'm not sure I would be comfortable with being the focus of so much attention as a viewer (and in this case, as the payer!)
For me immersive theatre is that wonderful state where the presentation and the presenters are so at one and, so convincing that one is happy to succumb to their will. That is very different to having the presentation and presenters set out to take you over and to immerse you in their work. This would apply to the Hull offering to.
I love to be part of an audience, that collective experience which can sometimes, as I have tried to indicate, totally envelope you. Even if it doesn't, you still need somebody else to bitch with don't you!
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2017 13:03:25 GMT
I agree- it's well known my aversion to audience interaction. I never had a 'proper' 1:1 in Punchdrunk but the short moments of interaction there outside those are fun, and enough for me. These also stray into the other discussions about where 'theatre' ends and it's more like one of those 'find your own adventure' games in real life or whatever.
But personally I find theatre more satisfying collectively. And not just for safety in numbers haha!
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2017 13:12:13 GMT
The thing that gets me most about that article is the bar they've made for the audience member to sit in between bits. Like... what's the point though? If you're not chatting to anyone, or at least people-watching, then... what's the point? Sitting in a bar alone sounds like a low-level hell to me.
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Post by Marwood on Sept 27, 2017 13:16:32 GMT
Could understand if it was a one off performance with a proper, A-List superstar but it isn't, it looks like a load of unknown chancers winging it with the promises of 'the experience of your life'. I wouldn't pay 5K for a holiday, let alone a show.
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Post by infofreako on Sept 27, 2017 13:24:51 GMT
5k a ticket. No chance even if it was affordable.
On the wider discussion I do some writing and direction work on immersive horror experiences. Some of them very much one on one and intense. I would never put myself in the shoes of the participants though there seem to be many willing to pay upwards of £100 for a very intense 3 hour nightmare
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Post by viserys on Sept 27, 2017 13:30:04 GMT
The thing that gets me most about that article is the bar they've made for the audience member to sit in between bits. Like... what's the point though? If you're not chatting to anyone, or at least people-watching, then... what's the point? Sitting in a bar alone sounds like a low-level hell to me. I think as there is a cast of seven, you will not be alone at the bar but a few of the cast members will be loitering. Even if not talking to you, they might create the idea of a busy bar. Personally (if this is anything like what I think it would be) I can see the appeal of it. I'm a RL bore who is in bed with hot cocoa and a book by 10pm the latest. The real nightlife holds no appeal to me. But what if I could be "another person" for a night, acting out scenarios (from the play) with the performers? Say, I wouldn't be frumpy boring me, but could consider myself a a sexy vamp for once, with nobody watching me (since there is no other audience), I could "let it go", dance with a cast member or alone, launch into an angry speech or rant which I would be far too shy to do in real life, and so on? Basically, I have the idea that this thing allows you to leave yourself behind, immerse yourself in the scenarios, act like you would normally not behave and so on. Be the star of your own show. Would I pay $5000 for that? Hell no. But I am sure that there are quite a lot of well-off people who enjoy the idea of leaving themselves behind - the businesswoman tired of keeping up a tough facade all the time, the rich housewife tired of forever being little more than her husband's shadow, the successful guy who always has to be appear chirpy and upbeat in meetings and presentations, the minor LA celebrity who always has to keep up appearances for the cameras and paps lurking in the bushes. With running costs and a cast of seven, a small theatre of 200 seats would be selling tickets at $25 each, so if the whole show is put on solely for one person, the $5000 make sense somewhat. |
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Post by kathryn on Sept 27, 2017 14:03:48 GMT
The thing is, it doesn't sound to me like it's leaving yourself behind at all.
It sounds more like that self-help style 'finding yourself' bollocks. Which is why it's called 'You'.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2017 14:19:08 GMT
The thing that gets me most about that article is the bar they've made for the audience member to sit in between bits. Like... what's the point though? Booze. |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2017 14:23:14 GMT
I'm not quite sure exactly how wealthy I'd have to be to consider spending $5k on an evening's theatre a good idea. Not sure it could ever be a rational thing to do, this show especially - even if I had a swimming pool full of gold coins, there would always be something better to spend the money on than an evening of mortal embarrassment as an audience of one.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2017 14:29:36 GMT
$5, 000 a ticket, a 1 on 1 Immersive experience....I'm actually not sure. On an entirely unrelated note, have the ticket prices for Angels on Broadway been made public yet? |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2017 14:44:32 GMT
$5, 000 a ticket, a 1 on 1 Immersive experience....I'm actually not sure. On an entirely unrelated note, have the ticket prices for Angels on Broadway been made public yet? haha nope. Though I did hear that there is an attempt at an affordable ticket scheme with it...whether it will come to fruition is another thing obviously. As Amex presale is a week away we'll know one way or another soon I guess. |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2017 14:47:13 GMT
It's not actually "theatre" anyway, and $5000 seems to cover transport, food as well as a show. Basically pretty expensive "dinner theatre" - and you could probably go a few hours along the freeway to Vegas and pay the same for something similar. For many years I've played a game with a friend "who would you pay £500 to see perform on stage" - and there has been nobody on the list. At £250, Midler and Streisand are in there, £150 for Madonna. All in concerts where that would get you a seat from which you could actually see the person, not watch on a screen. Theatrically, I guess I'd go to £150 if "Hello Dolly" came over with its Broadway cast, but that'd take consideration. £5k, though. As Marwood said, not even for a holiday let alone a single night... sorry ***********, but it's true! Ah Monkey but no this is 'art' it's real high art and EVERYONE should come and 'experience' it, because it's 'art' (can you tell my FB feed has been spammed with this for weeks, did I mention we should all come and see the art?) I have, I'll admit spent stupid amounts of time and money getting to theatre. And see above post, will no doubt be doing the same next year, but it's always been a good deal less than 5k including the holiday that goes with it. But this whole thread has given me a thought, you know how we were talking about Pretty Woman....well in that 5k got you the whole week. Just saying.... |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2017 15:01:07 GMT
For many years I've played a game with a friend "who would you pay £500 to see perform on stage" - and there has been nobody on the list. At £250, Midler and Streisand are in there, £150 for Madonna. All in concerts where that would get you a seat from which you could actually see the person, not watch on a screen. I doubt there's anyone I'd pay £500 for. I've only gone over £100 twice - for The Police reunion a decade ago (a genuinely once-in-a-lifetime tour for anyone with a little youth remaining), and for the last Springsteen tour (which as good as it was, wasn't, and left a slghtly bitter taste). It's certainly not been the case that the most memorable experiences have been the most expensive. I went as far as about £90 for my only Madonna show a couple of tours back, and she was utterly sterile. It's rarely a necessity to allow yourself to get bled dry. I wouldn't get £45 extra enjoyment from sitting in Row F at Wicked, rather than row E. From memory, Streisand was charging up to about £500 when she last played the UK and ended up papering the hall (see also Bon Jovi asking £200 for o2 floor seats then giving them away at a fiver). There are however a lot of "once a year" types who seem to have little idea about how much good art and entertainment should cost, and their willingness to pay over the odds just pushes the prices up for the rest of us. |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2017 15:06:04 GMT
As a general point on prices, I find myself more forgiving of expensive premiums when they're genuinely used to finance affordable access for other seats in the hall.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2017 15:18:08 GMT
As a general point on prices, I find myself more forgiving of expensive premiums when they're genuinely used to finance affordable access for other seats in the hall. Same, I figure if the £90 tickets that are 'affordable' for some, and that some are happy to pay for the privilege of but they subsidize a bunch of £10 tickets then crack on I say. In the same way I have no issue with 'perks' of high-end theatre membership for a few if they mean the rest of us get our £10 tickets or whatever. |
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Post by kathryn on Sept 27, 2017 15:26:25 GMT
It's not actually "theatre" anyway, and $5000 seems to cover transport, food as well as a show. Basically pretty expensive "dinner theatre" - and you could probably go a few hours along the freeway to Vegas and pay the same for something similar. For many years I've played a game with a friend "who would you pay £500 to see perform on stage" - and there has been nobody on the list. At £250, Midler and Streisand are in there, £150 for Madonna. All in concerts where that would get you a seat from which you could actually see the person, not watch on a screen. Theatrically, I guess I'd go to £150 if "Hello Dolly" came over with its Broadway cast, but that'd take consideration. £5k, though. As Marwood said, not even for a holiday let alone a single night... sorry ***********, but it's true! Ah Monkey but no this is 'art' it's real high art and EVERYONE should come and 'experience' it, because it's 'art' (can you tell my FB feed has been spammed with this for weeks, did I mention we should all come and see the art?) I have, I'll admit spent stupid amounts of time and money getting to theatre. And see above post, will no doubt be doing the same next year, but it's always been a good deal less than 5k including the holiday that goes with it. But this whole thread has given me a thought, you know how we were talking about Pretty Woman....well in that 5k got you the whole week. Just saying....I did wonder what might be happening that they felt the need to throw in that comment about the comfort and safety of the performers! I hear that $5k can buy you some very specialist personal services... Even including flights/accommodation/theatre tickets/food/spending money I don't think my last trip to NY came to more than £1200, and as you say, that was an actual holiday. |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2017 15:30:17 GMT
Even including flights/accommodation/theatre tickets/food/spending money I don't think my last trip to NY came to more than £1200, and as you say, that was an actual holiday. Right? My total NY ticket prices would barely break $500 most years, let alone $5000, and as you say depending on how long for/time of year, I'd say I spend £1000-1500 on the whole trip and that's the whole holiday. Jesus my CAR isn't even worth 5K haha. |
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Post by loureviews on Sept 27, 2017 15:31:23 GMT
It sounds absolutely dreadful ...
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2017 16:14:48 GMT
haha I couldn't make this up, but I swear on the dogs just entrusted to my care, the woman dropping her dogs off with us just told us about her 'bargain' holiday to New York that they're going on, First Class (natch) for...you've guess it ....£5000!
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