An article of interest that I have found is an interview with Cameron Mackintosh for the Financial Times from January this year. The main bulk of the article is about the monetary success of his business. However I have found it useful in relation to my inquiry as he talks about the aspects a production must have in order to be successful.
“When I did Les Mis I said, ‘I’m not going to take this on the road unless it’s as good as what people have read about, with the same lighting and the same sound.’ I think that’s my biggest bequest — that I imposed my standards. It’s sensible, actually, because the real thing will last longer than something shoddy.”
When looking at the rehearsal process of Musical Theatre work I must look at all elements that make the show - the repertoire, the sound, the lighting, the costuming.
A link to the article is below:
https://www.ft.com/content/af6b04f6-ba34-11e5-bf7e-8a339b6f2164
Another article of interest is that with Broadway and film producer, Marc Platt, for the London Theatre guide website londontheatre.co.uk. During his interview a range of subjects where covered including target audiences and time scale. In the interview Marc talks about the time scale of an upcoming film adaptation of the Musical 'Wicked'. He mentions that they do not have a release date yet as they do not want to rush the material and want to make the film the best it can be. This made me think about productions that might not have the luxury of a large budget or the flexibility of choosing when to open. An obstacle that the rehearsal process can face is time constraints. For example a choreographer or director may want to spend one more week rehearsing a piece, but if you have a set performance date and tickets sold this would not be possible. How does a creative team work to a time constraint whilst still producing the work needed?
Please find the link to the article below:
https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/theatre-news/west-end-features/an-interview-with-marc-platt
Whilst reading an article with Theatre Producer of Happy Days the Musical, Amy Anzel, for website 'We are the city' I considered other possible elements and obstacles of the rehearsal process of Musical Theatre work. Amy, when discussing the different between producing work in the UK to the US, mentions the regulations that you must follow when producing work. She says that it is a lot less regualated in the UK,
'You don’t actually officially need to abide by the rules of SOLT (Society of London Theatre) or Equity for tours or Off-West End productions, only when you’re producing on the West End – so you can just literally do things however you’d like. This has its pros and cons of course and as a new producer you have a lot of freedom but you are also a lot less educated. I think this is might be why so many productions here suddenly close or run into difficulty. It’s a case of more opportunity…but also more opportunity to fail. In the US there are many more regulations in place and more unionization.'
In my inquiry I must consider the ethical implications on rehearsals in terms of structure and obstacles. What bodies are there that regulate rehearsals in terms of workers rights? Does this effect the structure and protocol in rehearsals? How do companies work to produce work but also follow the guidelines?
A link to the article is below:
http://www.wearethecity.com/an-interview-with-amy-anzel-theatre-producer-of-happy-days-the-musical/
Looking at the opinions of successful practitioners in the Musical Theatre industry has proved helpful in providing thinking points for my inquiry. I will continue to look at these for document reviews within my inquiry.
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