Anonymous Showbiz Confessions Post #8

All of this week’s posts are written by my fellow Green Room Bloggers (not myself…or are they?), but I have published them all under my username to protect their identities. Hope you enjoy their confessions!

Something that really bugs me is the amount of Disney shows on Broadway right now. No offense to the actors who are in those shows- you have to take work where you can get it. I mean, if I was offered a role in a Disney production tomorrow, I would be lying if I said I wouldn’t take it! I just feel Broadway has changed over the years, and not in a good way. I don’t know about you guys, but I grew up listening to “Into The Woods”, “Fiddler On The Roof”, “Oklahoma!”, “Carousel”, “Phantom of the Opera”, “Les Miserables”, etc. The kids of today are being exposed to “Mary Poppins”, “The Lion King”, “The Little Mermaid”, “Beauty and the Beast”, “Tarzan”, and “101 Dalmatians”. I understand the point of trying to get the younger generations interested in theater, but do we really have to do it by degrading ourselves in giant, plushy costumes? I also understand the fact that parents are just trying to get their kids interested in theater at an early age, and these shows are “safe”. I mean, shows like “Avenue Q” or “Chicago” are clearly not shows that are kid appropriate. However, why don’t we have more shows like “Annie”, “Rogers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella”, and “Peter and the Starcatcher”? I think children need to be exposed to traditional-style theater, rather than these Disney-movie-reenactments. My parents took me to see classics such as the ones listed at the beginning of this post. I loved the experience, and felt inspired watching the actors! I can’t help but wonder what kind of etiquette these shows are teaching the younger generation. I think parents assume that because they are taking their child to see a children’s show, it’s okay for them to talk, scream, cry, kick the seat in front of them, etc. during the performance. The problem is, what happens when the children grow up and begin to attend adult-based theater? Will they be the rude person that talks on their phone/texts during the show, puts their feet on the seats, or arrives late and disrupts everyone around them? I feel like there are more and more people lately who don’t know how to appropriately conduct themselves when going to the theater. Would they know better if they had been raised on tradition shows and taught from the beginning how to behave when in a theater? In the end, I feel parents need to educate their children by showing them the classics, and teaching them how to behave when in a theater. Instead of taking their child to see “Mary Poppins”, why don’t they consider one of the classic shows, such as “Peter and the Starcatcher” or “Rogers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella”? I’m sure the younger generation would still enjoy seeing these shows just as much. Plus, it would show them a new take on theater!