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Mar 7, 2018
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I could've sworn there was a festhaus show where the orchestra was suspended in the air above the stage. Did this not happen? I was talking to some friends and they couldn't place it.
 
Heard someone say that they didn't originally want to replace the stage but they couldn't find any more parts for the lift system as it was custom made by a company that no longer exists.

And when it was torn down, they found there were some kind of structural flaws that could have resulted in some serious issues - something that wouldn't have been seen during regular inspections.

Of course, it was a brother of an aquaintance sort of thing so there's no way for me to verify any of that.
 
I'm a kid of the 90's and even I remember that beautiful band stage. Oh well, at least OktoberZest is an enjoyable show on it's own terms. ?
 
Interesting that the vid shows construction of the stage with a round “hole” in its initial floor structure, exactly as claimed. Cool.

Of course the hole is then immediately filled in with more structure... but the bones are there if ever the decision were made to alter that circular center portion of the stage...

I honestly wish the stage hadn’t been built quite so wide. Having the edge of the stage somewhat close to the food service exits makes the whole place feel like two separate half-Festhauses, instead of one big and fully impressive place.
 
I honestly wish the stage hadn’t been built quite so wide. Having the edge of the stage somewhat close to the food service exits makes the whole place feel like two separate half-Festhauses, instead of one big and fully impressive place.
YES. This is what I dislike most about the stage.
 
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I hate shows. Sorry. Let me rephrase that, I hate bad acting, singing, storytelling and dancing. Therefore, I usually can't stand theme park "entertainment."

That being said, the one show I kind of liked was TIO and I'll never forgive BGW for ripping out the elevating stage and replacing it with... well, everything that has come since. If nothing else, the rising stage was a neat effect that never got tired. Also, TIO required real musicians to play real music.

Anyways, what were we talking about? Oh yeah, Scott Gasparich can suck it.
 
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I hate shows. Sorry. Let me rephrase that, I hate bad acting, singing, storytelling and dancing. Therefore, I usually can't stand theme park "entertainment."

That being said, the one show I kind of liked was TIO and I'll never forgive BGW for ripping out the elevating stage and replacing it with... well, everything that has come since. If nothing else, the rising stage was a neat effect that never got tired. Also, TIO required real musicians to play real music.

Anyways, what were we talking about? Oh yeah, Scott Gasparich can suck it.
I'm not a big fan of theme park entertainment either, but I do feel many of the actors, singers and dancers are actually pretty talented. I believe the problem lies more in the mediocre-at-best material they're given to work with, and the tired old songs they're forced to sing (likely because they're the only songs the park is able to license - or at least license at a price they can afford/are willing to pay). One of the reasons I miss Enchanted Lab so much is because the content was original (a clear rip-off of the Sorcerer's Apprentice, yes, but presented in an original way) and it was obvious every detail about the show was designed by a talented team. Although many of the actors who played Northrup may never have made it as Broadway stars, the audience could clearly see they had talent because they weren't hampered by mediocre material.

To tie this post back to the current thread, I thought the Festhaus stage design where the orchestra was lifted was a great way to keep the stage small and allow the Festhaus to feel cohesive, which they completely ruined with the wider stage. On the other hand, the content of the show itself was ruined for me by the simple fact that they sang Edelweiss. Edelweiss is a Rogers & Hammerstein song, not a German song, and not even an Austrian song, where the movie the song came from takes place. I think most Americans are able to recognize Austria as "not Germany," so adding Edelweiss to the lineup was inauthentic on several levels. As an audience member, I found this rather insulting. However, I also realize BGW authenticity is an entire discussion in itself, so I'll just drop that subject now.
 
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I just liked the old stage because as a kid it gave me a sense of wonder - how did it know when to go up or down - it was magical.

This new stage doesn't do it for me (obviously at this point of my life I have a better grasp of what influence a control panel and/or a tech team had to make the magic happen).
 
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I just liked the old stage because as a kid it gave me a sense of wonder - how did it know when to go up or down - it was magical.
Thank you for expressing that so well. It really did seem magical through a kid's eyes.

"It's not just a stage -- it's a transformer!"
Spaceballs_John_Candy_Barf.jpg
 
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