The State of Entertainment

[Party Rocker]

Recently the park has been going up and down with Entertainment in my opinion. However, I want to know your opinion! Yes, a thread dedicated to listening to others thoughts without harsh or rude comments. Where can this go wrong?

These definitions are mostly based on your opinion of do you think it works well or not.

In my eyes:

Flop: A sad performance/attraction that everyone constantly complains about. (Ex: Entwined, Wunderbarn)

Hit: A show that will have people asking for it once it is removed. (Ex: Imaginique, Monster Stomp Revamped)

 

[Ben]

I will be happy when these 3 things are accomplished

1: A real live show is put in the globe theater, which apparently is on the way
2: A nighttime, summer only show is put in the rpt,
3: that entwined crap gets pulled out for a REAL German show

of course all these shows must be good for them to qualify

 

[chickenking]

What determines a hit or a flop? If the majority of people on this forum don't like a show does that mean it is a flop? Empty house? Replay value, etc. etc.

To use the good old Star Wars example, The Phantom Menace was critically panned and generally disliked by long-time fans of the Trilogy (the original one & only). I don't think it won any awards, and people wondered what the hell George Lucas was thinking (Jar Jar). However, it generated a ton of revenue and was considered a box office smash playing to packed theaters and many repeat viewers. This success was repeated when it was released to home video & DVD, and then again on BluRay, and then yet again re-released in 3D (I think). The point is, TPM made a whole lot of money, yet listening to the general public you would think the movie was a disaster of "Water World" proportions. I payed to see it twice and bought it on DVD (I did not go for the BluRay). I like it enough to watch it, but still dislike some elements of it very much. Is it a hit or a flop?

Back to BGW shows. I dislike Enchanted very much. I much preferred the previous show for the feel of the country in its location (but also did not think it was a great show). I have heard many adults say that they didn't like Enchanted either. However, in all of the times that I saw it I never saw the Festhaus less than half full during the show. More often than not, it seemed packed. The kids love it. My daughter loves it. Generally I think that parents will suffer through things they do not like for the sake of the kids. So again, is it a hit or a flop?

 

[CoolDrMoney]

To me, when I'm talking hit/flop, I'm looking for three things:

1 - Do people like it, generally? This is probably the most basic function. But then there are higher ones, like...

2 - Does this show have real, connecting appeal? It's one thing to have a show that's a toe-tapper, or a show that's good enough to get people to come inside an air-conditioned or shaded venue on a hot summer day. That's not all that hard (unsurprisingly). But it's another thing altogether to produce a show that adds something of value to the park experience. When I'm talking about these shows, I'm talking the difference between American Jukebox and Emerald Beat.

3 - Does this show make sense in this environment? Listen, there are shows that would satisfy req's 1 and 2 while still failing as shows, in my opinion. Why? Because we're talking about branding. Jay-Z has millions of fans around the world, and he ought to, because he's a phenomenal rapper. But the fact that people like Jay-Z (1), and the fact that people feel a real connection to his performances (2), does not mean that Jay-Z should be headlining at the Grand Ole Opry. It's the wrong venue for that program, and it will damage the Opry brand and create a noisy image of the Opry in the minds of the public.

In a way, I guess you could look at those three criteria as sort of judging in three time scales. Is it a success today? Is it going to be a success next week? Will it help the park's image three seasons from now?

That's my grading criteria.

 

[CastleOSullivan]

I think what the park has confused, is the difference between "family friendly" and "kid friendly". If the kids like a show, that's great! However, if everyone else feels like they're going through misery, that is not good. With a former accountant as the current general manager, you would think he would realize that 99% of the time the parents, or adults are the ones who pay for admission (a.k.a. bring in the money). So, if they aren't happy, they don't return. That's the parks own loss. I think one of the things that sets the park apart from other parks, is the fact that you can visit over and over and not get tired of it. Sadly, they're slowly losing that charm. I just hope they get it back before it's too late.