Monday, June 4, 2012

Broadway on You Tube: the 2012 Tony Nominees: Peter and the Starcatcher and Venus in Fur

And now a look at the last two Tony nominees for Best Play and how their commercials have (or haven't) taken advantage of their nominations to draw audiences.  These two, like the others (Clybourne Park and Other Desert Cities, analysis HERE), have been around for awhile, seen in previous incarnations Off-Broadway.  So it could be that this awards push could determine their immediate and long-term futures.

For the first show, becoming the most nominated new American play ever certainly bodes well for its future on Broadway.  Its subject matter and creative flexibility make it a shoo-in for productions by theatre companies and schools with huge and little budgets.  Here's their 16 second stab at Tony Award capitalization:

Peter and the Starcatcher



It turns out that 16 seconds is all it takes!  Visually, the ad captures the creativity of the staging and the zany, madcap pace of the piece, which is no small task since all you see are cut outs of some of the set pieces and drops, and not even a glimpse of the actual show, save for the brilliant proscenium which frames this commercial, just as it frames the stage.  The voice-over reads the words that are flying across the screen, helping you keep up with the pace and giving you what you REALLY need to know: it is a prequel to Peter Pan, it is the most nominated play, and most importantly, it is a well-written, FUNNY play!  The 9 Tony nominations are the icing on the cake!  A


The last play is actually the one that has taken the longest route and is coming to an end.  It started off-Broadway, then moved to a limited run with the Manhattan Theatre Club, and, finally, to its current limited engagement.  Tony nods or not, this play will play its scheduled run through June 17.


Venus in Fur



In my opinion, here is another 16 seconds well spent.  The visuals capture the intensity and high energy of the play, and, amazingly, captures the unbelievable (and very sexy) chemistry between Nina Arianda and Hugh Dancy.  And the voice-over has a speed and urgency that makes the June 17th date all the imminent, what with announcing its Best Play nod, a quote about nominee Arianda and, finally, about the play itself. A



Jeff
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