As much as you might complain … it’s only you that’s really bothered

(from the world of New Jersey Community theater)

Have been seeing and hearing a lot of “why are there so many productions of XXX this year?” For example, this year there are several community theaters producing Sweeney Todd. Last year saw a plethora of Hairspray productions. And this isn’t just a musical phenomenon … awhile ago there seemed to be several productions of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest or Steel Magnolias.

And I keep hearing people ask – or read their rants – why these theaters don’t all work together? Why can’t they understand that so many repeat or duplicate productions is unnecessary (perhaps counterproductive)? Why why why why why? … blah blah blah.

My question is: why do you even care? … Frankly the only people who are in fact complaining are “theater people” – us folks who participate in theater as performers, staff, directors, etc.

I’ve not heard one single audience member say, “Oh dear. There are just too many Sweeney Todd’s being done this year.”

Here’s the kicker … it doesn’t matter how many different productions of the same material there are. Each theater is going to sell tickets and there is little to no overlap in the audience base for these theaters.

Let me say that again … there is little to no overlap in the audience base for all these different theaters. The only traveling audience is we who are the theater people … I mean I’ll go to different theaters throughout the area because friends are doing a show or a family member is in a show. But I’m not the norm … and nor are those theater people complaining so much … when it comes to an audience base for any community theater.

Perhaps … and this is only a small issue to my mind … there can be an effect in a “talent pool” of actors when there are multiple versions of a show being produced. Some actors may choose not to audition for a show because they’ve already just finished the same show at a different theater and they want to move on to something new or different. Yet there may be others who will audition precisely because it is something they want to do again. Yet, that’s their decision … whether to audition or not. And no amount of complaining by other theater people is going to change that.

“I can’t imagine that all these theaters can find an audience for all these different productions of Sweeney Todd (or whatever musical or play that’s being done many times in a year).” … Well, then you don’t have much insight as to how community theater organizations really and truly work. It’s not all about the theater people as the actors and such … it’s about the audience whom the theater serves. And they aren’t complaining.