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Mousetrap on Broadway

Jordan Catalano Profile Photo
Jordan Catalano
#25Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 11/25/22 at 6:33pm

My first thought was how much I’d love to see Dana Ivey in this. 

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joevitus
#26Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 11/25/22 at 6:50pm

ErmengardeStopSniveling said: "I just think, generally speaking, recreation is the lowest form of artistry, and the play + audiences will be served much better by a more organic production. Sort of like how OKLAHOMA and A CHORUS LINE can feel so stale and lifeless when you try to reproduce the original years later without the original creators in the room."

I could not disagree more. 

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darquegk
#27Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 11/25/22 at 6:56pm

Am I correct in thinking Mousetrap is one of the many classic mysteries directly parodies/paid homage in Clue, with Mr. Green being based on one of these characters? Or is that a different Christie mystery?

Jarethan
#28Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 11/25/22 at 7:32pm

I saw this 40 years ago and was surprised at how mediocre it was.  I cannot imagine this succeeding on Broadway.  What big box office attraction is going to sign up for 5 or 6 months?

Better they should revive 39 Steps with a name in the head role, and some seasoned actors in the other 3 roles.  Now that was a delightful show.

blaxx Profile Photo
blaxx
#29Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 11/25/22 at 7:38pm

Jarethan said: "I saw this 40 years ago and was surprised at how mediocre it was. I cannot imagine this succeeding on Broadway. What big box office attraction is going to sign up for 5 or 6 months?

Better they should revive 39 Steps with a name in the head role, and some seasoned actors in the other 3 roles. Now that was a delightful show.
"

Well if you thought it was mediocre 40 years ago and it's still running, at least they have a spectacular marketing team!


Listen, I don't take my clothes off for anyone, even if it is "artistic". - JANICE

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songanddanceman2
#30Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 11/25/22 at 8:01pm

Seen this a couple of times here in the UK. It's a very meh play that is largely still running due to school trips, OAPs and super cheap tickets. I'm shocked that this would open on Broadway, clearly the team hope the name, author and legacy will get bums in seats, I just don't think it will. 


Namo i love u but we get it already....you don't like Madonna

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uncageg
#31Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 11/25/22 at 10:36pm

ErmengardeStopSniveling said: "Assuming there are some good star roles in this?

Who is directing it? It doesn’t list a director, just the below alluding to it (design-wise) being a recreation of the London production.



I cannot stress enough how little audiences will care about this part. This play’s iconography is nonexistent to American audiences. Just make it good and fresh and not stale, with stars who will sell tickets!

New York audiences will be able to see and hear some of the original sights and sounds from the production as it has appeared in London since 1952. The set will be a loving recreation of Anthony Holland’s design, and for a truly authentic touch, the only surviving piece of the original set — the mantelpiece clock — will be loaned from the London production for the Broadway run. The unique backstage wind machine, imprinted with the original producer’s name and still used today, will also be shipped across the Atlantic.

While many elements of the show will be indistinguishable from the London production, the unique ensemble of actors assembled for Broadway will bring this classic whodunnit to life in a new way, as every cast has done in London for a staggering 70 years.
"

 

Just watched a piece on the Anniversary and the Broadway production announcement on BBC World News. They did a backstage tour and showed the wind machine. Very cool that is is coming over for the NY Production.

Thet feel that since a lot of Americans see the show, especially in the summer months, why not bring it over to the U.S. I won't care who is in it, I just want to see it.

 

Also, and I think I heard this before, there are film rights with a clause. No film can be made until the London production closes.

 


Just give the world Love.

BoringBoredBoard40
#32Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 11/25/22 at 11:45pm

something kind of weird about this is Kevin McCullum is lead producing....he also lead produced The Play That Goes Wrong which is kind of a sendup of The Mousetrap type of plays 

uncageg Profile Photo
uncageg
#33Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 11/26/22 at 12:55am

BoringBoredBoard40 said: "something kind of weird about this is Kevin McCullum is lead producing....he also lead produced The Play That Goes Wrong which is kind of a sendup of The Mousetrap type of plays"

Why is that weird? The Play That Goes Wrong has done pretty well for itself. It is still running off-Broadway.

 


Just give the world Love.

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ErmengardeStopSniveling
#34Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 11/26/22 at 9:05am

JanMaxwellsBag said: "Could this be related to the blind item about Christine Baranski and Cynthia Nixon a few weeks ago?"

If that blind item is correct, it said the producer of the TV show is producing the stage production. These producers aren’t involved with Gilded Age.

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JoeW4
#35Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 11/26/22 at 4:41pm

BoringBoredBoard40 said: "something kind of weird about this is Kevin McCullum is lead producing....he also lead produced The Play That Goes Wrong which is kind of a sendup of The Mousetrap type of plays"


I'd argue TPTGW is less of a send-up of The Mousetrap as much as it's just using plays like The Mousetrap to send up crappy theatre companies.

But even if there is some element of parody toward The Mousetrap: conventional wisdom says that the best parody comes from a love for the thing being parodied.

The Distinctive Baritone Profile Photo
The Distinctive Baritone
#36Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 11/26/22 at 5:53pm

darquegk said: "Am I correct in thinking Mousetrap is one of the many classic mysteries directly parodies/paid homage in Clue, with Mr. Green being based on one of these characters? Or is that a different Christie mystery?"

Yes, the film/play of Clue is a parody of Agatha Christie plays in general, although the strangers invited to a mansion scenario is specifically drawn from And Then There Were None.

RippedMan Profile Photo
RippedMan
#37Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 11/26/22 at 6:14pm

I could see this running for a bit then transferring off-Broadway and have an open-ended run. 

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Call_me_jorge
#38Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 11/26/22 at 6:29pm

Whatever makes this show cheap to run in London will make it incredibly expensive to run on broadway.


In our millions, in our billions, we are most powerful when we stand together. TW4C unwaveringly joins the worldwide masses, for we know our liberation is inseparably bound. Signed, Theater Workers for a Ceasefire https://theaterworkersforaceasefire.com/statement
Updated On: 11/26/22 at 06:29 PM

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RippedMan
#39Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 11/26/22 at 7:28pm

There's just not really a theater I see this lasting a long time on Broadway at. Maybe the Golden but that seems tied up for awhile. London has better, smaller playhouses. 

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ggersten
#40Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 11/26/22 at 9:10pm

The Distinctive Baritone said: "darquegk said: "Am I correct in thinking Mousetrap is one of the many classic mysteries directly parodies/paid homage in Clue, with Mr. Green being based on one of these characters? Or is that a different Christie mystery?"

Yes, the film/play of Clue is a parody of Agatha Christie plays in general, although the strangers invited to a mansion scenario is specifically drawn from And Then There Were None.
"

Neil Simon’s Murder By Death is quite the parody too!

 

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ErmengardeStopSniveling
#41Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 11/27/22 at 11:15am

RippedMan said: "There's just not really a theater I see this lasting a long time on Broadway at. Maybe the Golden but that seems tied up for awhile. London has better, smaller playhouses."

As with any play:

A producer does not simply choose a theatre. They work with the theatre owners –– in this case, most likely the Shubert Org because they have the most playhouses –– and the Shuberts will slot them in as they see fit, in consultation with the producers. The production having bona fide stars attached with limited timeframes will bump it to the front of the list.

Nearly any play that could go into the Golden could also play about 15 other houses with minimal modifications to budget & design.

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everythingtaboo
#42Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 11/27/22 at 11:46am

RippedMan said: "I could see this running for a bit then transferring off-Broadway and have an open-ended run."

Exactly. I don't think anyone is expecting this to last past the summer, but it'll be nice to see it hopefully represented at the Tonys and then move Off-Broadway, or maybe even an "official" touring production.




"Hey little girls, look at all the men in shiny shirts and no wives!" - Jackie Hoffman, Xanadu, 19 Feb 2008

Jarethan
#43Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 11/27/22 at 12:22pm

blaxx said: "Jarethan said: "I saw this 40 years ago and was surprised at how mediocre it was. I cannot imagine this succeeding on Broadway. What big box office attraction is going to sign up for 5 or 6 months?

Better they should revive 39 Steps with a name in the head role, and some seasoned actors in the other 3 roles. Now that was a delightful show.
"

Well if you thought it was mediocre 40 years ago and it's still running, at least they have a spectacular marketing team!
"

Everyone I know who has seen it feels the same way.  If has basically become a tourist attraction, with MANY tour groups offering it as a night at the theatre.  It is truly mediocre or maybe it was good 70 years ago, and has become increasingly dated.

lilpunkin
#44Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 11/27/22 at 9:17pm

I work in theatre in London and the reason it does so well here is due to tourism, plain and simple, and that’s due to its iconic status as part of London’s history. If you glance at the London trip advisor forum, the one show that’s mentioned absolutely constantly is the bloody Mousetrap. People who’ve never been to the theatre go see it because it’s just kind of on the standard Tourist Attractions of London List: Buckingham Palace, Tower of London, Big Ben (which is really the bell), Tower Bridge (which half of them think is named London Bridge), High Tea (which is really Afternoon Tea), fish and chips in a pub (sacrilege!), and the Mousetrap.

Another big part of the appeal is the theatre itself, which is living history and has such a big collection of paintings and old documents and things on display it’s essentially a museum as well.

I actually went to see the Mousetrap this year and I liked it a lot in a faintly soporific way, but I have a weird penchant for dusty old murder mysteries. I enjoyed the tradition and ritual of it. But I honestly don’t know one person in the theatre industry who’s ever seen it. It’s almost like not part of the industry at all, but parallel to it. I don’t mean that in a snobbish way, just that it’s considered a museum piece/tourist attraction, not a piece of theatre.

The news that it’s going to New York has boggled quite a lot of minds, and I can’t imagine it’ll do well unless they cast and market it very cleverly. I don’t know what kind of audience there is in NY for London history, because the whole reason it’s successful in London won’t be there.

 

(Re the blind item. Of the three female parts, two are in their 20s. It’s a key plot point that one of them is young, and the other - a newlywed - could maybe be played a little older but is very young in personality. I don’t think the BI can be about this show.)

perfectpenguin
#45Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 3/15/23 at 5:05pm

So… is this still happening?? 

blaxx Profile Photo
blaxx
#46Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 3/15/23 at 6:54pm

Jarethan said: "blaxx said: "Jarethan said: "I saw this 40 years ago and was surprised at how mediocre it was. I cannot imagine this succeeding on Broadway. What big box office attraction is going to sign up for 5 or 6 months?

Better they should revive 39 Steps with a name in the head role, and some seasoned actors in the other 3 roles. Now that was a delightful show.
"

Well if you thought it was mediocre 40 years ago and it's still running, at least they have a spectacular marketing team!
"

Everyone I know who has seen it feels the same way. If has basically become a tourist attraction, with MANY tour groups offering it as a night at the theatre. It is truly mediocre or maybe it was good 70 years ago, and has become increasingly dated.
"

How many people do you know?


Listen, I don't take my clothes off for anyone, even if it is "artistic". - JANICE

Robbie516
#47Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 4/6/23 at 11:42pm

Any update on this? Cast? Theatre?

Danasi
#48Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 6/15/23 at 8:40am

Has anyone heard any updates on this?  I saw it years ago in London when I had an open evening but wouldn't mind catching it again here if it actually does transfer 

Jarethan
#49Mousetrap on Broadway
Posted: 6/15/23 at 1:17pm

Jarethan said: "blaxx said: "Jarethan said: "I saw this 40 years ago and was surprised at how mediocre it was. I cannot imagine this succeeding on Broadway. What big box office attraction is going to sign up for 5 or 6 months?

Better they should revive 39 Steps with a name in the head role, and some seasoned actors in the other 3 roles. Now that was a delightful show.
"

Well if you thought it was mediocre 40 years ago and it's still running, at least they have a spectacular marketing team!
"

Everyone I know who has seen it feels the same way. If has basically become a tourist attraction, with MANY tour groups offering it as a night at the theatre. It is truly mediocre or maybe it was good 70 years ago, and has become increasingly dated.
"

Six months later, I am going to contradict myself here.  I just returned from London, where the only Tuesday matinee was The Mousetrap.  Tired from morning activities, we decided to purchase tickets for…The Mousetrap, which my wife had never seen.  We enjoyed it immensely, much to our surprise.

it was more enjoyable than a recent production of Deathtrap that I saw…just more fun.  I don’t know if it would run long on Broadway without a name cast, but more people will enjoy it than would expect to enjoy it.


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