History TroubledProduction / Theatre

* Even if it was the biggest money loser up to that point, 1965's one-performance Broadway musical ''Kelly'' might have been forgotten had producer David Susskind not invited a journalist to tag along for the out-of-town tryouts. Lewis H. Lapham's subsequent [[https://www.google.com/books/edition/Second_Act_Trouble/H8mb_JMx4u0C?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22lewis+h.+lapham%22+AND+%22has+anybody+here+seen+kelly%22&pg=PA330&printsec=frontcover write-up]] captured the blow-by-blow in excruciating detail.

* ''Theatre/FunnyGirl'':
** While the musical itself went on to be a hit, its pre-Broadway tryout in 1964 suffered serious troubles. The opening performance in Boston was practically a fiasco. Feuds arose between Music/BarbraStreisand and Sydney Chaplin, and between everyone and the notoriously temperamental Jerome Robbins when he took over from credited director Garson Kanin. Ghostwriters struggled to keep up with rewrites demanded by Streisand and the Arnstein family (the show's producer was Nick Arnstein's son-in-law). Chaplin's part became equal to Streisand's in billing only; a secondary female role played by Allyn Ann [=McLerie=] was written out entirely. Dozens of {{Cut Song}}s were thrown out ("People" almost becoming one of them), and dance routines were in a constant state of flux. The final scene was rewritten 42 times, and its final version was being rehearsed immediately prior to the Broadway opening, which had been repeatedly postponed.
** The 2022 revival has devolved into a mess as well, as recapped [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhCmNCAxw8c here]] by Wait in the Wings. The casting of Creator/BeanieFeldstein was controversial from the start, as she quickly became the target of a venomous online hate campaign on account of her weight. Then came the reviews, which, while more civil than the online comments, still pointed to Feldstein as the weak link in the production. After the revival was given an AwardSnub treatment at the 2022 Tonys, and Julie Benko won acclaim when she took over Feldstein's role after she was temporarily benched for COVID, the decision was made (reportedly by Feldstein) to end her contract six months early in late September. Things ''really'' hit the fan when news leaked that Creator/LeaMichele had been cast as Feldstein's replacement. Feldstein announced that she would leave the production even earlier than announced, leading to speculation that [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere she bailed]] as a reaction to being backstabbed by Michele and the producers. Michele's casting turned out to be just as polarizing as Feldstein's had been, if not more so, due to past allegations by multiple costars of Michele's abusive behavior as well as the producers' decision to drastically jack up admission prices following her casting. Still, audiences were enthusiastic upon her debut...and then just ''days'' into her tenure, [[https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Official-Lea-Michele-Out-of-FUNNY-GIRL-for-10-Days-After-Positive-Covid-Test-20220911 she had to drop out for 10 days due to contracting COVID]] and Benko, again, had to fill in.

** It was then revealed that Marc Thibodeau, ''Rebecca'''s publicist, had been warding off potential investors by implicating Sprecher in Hotton's fraud. Sprecher sued Thibodeau for $10 million, both to recover some of the production costs (Sprecher had also by then lost the rights to ''Rebecca'') and to mitigate the damage to his reputation (such as it was). He was ultimately only awarded $90,000.

* The Met Opera’s 2017-18 production of ''Theatre/{{Tosca}}'', directed by Sir David [=McVicar=], was particularly troubled, even by the standards of other troubled ''Tosca'' productions, with all three leads replaced, and the conductor himself being replaced three times by the time it premiered. When the production was first announced, the starry premiere cast consisted of Kristine Opolais in the title role, Jonas Kaufmann as Cavaradossi, and Sir Bryn Terfel as Scarpia, with the performance to be conducted by Andris Nelsons, Opolais' then-husband. But from there, the troubles started.
** First, Kaufmann withdrew from the production first, claiming that he didn't want to be abroad and away from his family for too long, and he was subsequently replaced by Vittorio Grigòlo.
** Then, Kristine Opolais withdrew a few months later, citing personal reasons, and she was replaced by Sonya Yoncheva.

** Lastly, Sir Bryn Terfel withdrew from the production, citing vocal fatigue, leading him to be replaced with Zeljko Lucic.

** The 2022 revival has devolved into a mess as well, as recapped [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhCmNCAxw8c here]] by Wait in the Wings. The casting of Creator/BeanieFeldstein was controversial from the start, as she quickly became the target of a venomous online hate campaign on account of her weight. Then came the reviews, which, while more civil than the online comments, still pointed to Feldstein as the weak link in the production. After the revival was given an AwardSnub treatment at the 2022 Tonys, and Julie Benko won acclaim when she took over Feldstein's role after she was temporarily benched for COVID, the decision was made (reportedly by Feldstein) to end her contract six months early in late September. Things ''really'' hit the fan when news leaked that Creator/LeaMichele had been cast as Feldstein's replacement. Feldstein announced that she would leave the production even earlier than announced, leading to speculation that [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere she bailed]] as a reaction to being backstabbed by Michele and the producers. Michele's casting turned out to be just as polarizing as Feldstein's had been, if not more so, due to past allegations by multiple costars of Michele's abusive behavior as well as the producers' decision to drastically jack up admission prices following her casting.

** The 2022 revival has devolved into a mess as well, as recapped [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhCmNCAxw8c here]] by Wait in the Wings. The casting of Creator/BeanieFeldstein was controversial from the start, as she quickly became the target of a venomous online hate campaign on account of her weight. Then came the reviews, which, while more civil than the online comments, still pointed to Feldstein as the weak link in the production. After the revival was given an AwardSnub treatment at the 2022 Tonys, and Julie Benko won acclaim when she took over Feldstein's role after she was temporarily benched for COVID, the decision was made (reportedly by Feldstein) to end her contract six months early in late September. Things ''really'' hit the fan when news leaked that Creator/LeaMichele had been cast as Feldstein's replacement. Feldstein announced that she would leave the production even earlier than previously announced, leading to speculation that [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere she bailed]] as a reaction to being backstabbed by Michele and the producers. Michele's casting turned out to be just as polarizing as Feldstein's had been, if not more so, due to past allegations by multiple costars of Michele's abusive behavior as well as the producers' decision to drastically jack up admission prices following her casting.

* Following their groundbreaking smash hit, ''Theatre/{{Hair}}'', Galt [=McDermont=] and Gerome Ragni began work on their follow-up ''Dude'', but it was plagued with problems ranging from the lead actor quitting to real dirt and butterflies being part of the show! While the show quickly closed, the extensive environmental modifications to the Broadway Theatre were not all for naught, since they helped inspire the staging of the successful revival of ''Theatre/{{Candide}}'' there a couple of years later.

* ''Theatre/FunnyGirl'' went on to be a hit, but its pre-Broadway tryout suffered serious troubles. The opening performance in Boston was practically a fiasco. Feuds arose between Music/BarbraStreisand and Sydney Chaplin, and between everyone and the notoriously temperamental Jerome Robbins when he took over from credited director Garson Kanin. Ghostwriters struggled to keep up with rewrites demanded by Streisand and the Arnstein family (the show's producer was Nick Arnstein's son-in-law). Chaplin's part became equal to Streisand's in billing only; a secondary female role played by Allyn Ann [=McLerie=] was written out entirely. Dozens of {{Cut Song}}s were thrown out ("People" almost becoming one of them), and dance routines were in a constant state of flux. The final scene was rewritten 42 times, and its final version was being rehearsed immediately prior to the Broadway opening, which had been repeatedly postponed.

** For starters, [[AudienceAlienatingPremise the play itself was a hard sell]]: a fantasy parable about an office worker who visits his boss's estate in the countryside, then encounters a Nature God who offers the protagonist his powers [[FaustianBargain if he'll agree to murder one of his friends]]. It also featured LotsAndLotsOfCharacters with their own subplots that deviated from the main storyline, along with elaborate set design and stage direction that ensured an expensive production. Many of Bolt's colleagues found the play baffling and tried warning him away from the project; Peter Hall, director of the Royal Shakespeare Company, even offered Bolt a chance to write a history play on the English Civil War if he abandoned ''Jack''. Bolt, however, considered the play an extremely personal project and refused to reconsider.

** Kate O'Mara, playing Madame Gerda, was hanging from a ladder on the helicopter prop when it broke, causing her to fall centre stage. Luckily, she was only bruised, but she insisted on wearing a harness for all future performances.

** Its protracted preview phase was plagued with a few accidents [[note]]To the point that Creator/StephenColbert referred to it on ''Series/TheColbertReport'' as "Spider-Man: Notify Next of Kin"[[/note]]. On the first preview, Natalie Mendoza (Arachne) suffered a concussion from a falling piece of equipment; her replacement TV Carpio (who opened the show on its official debut) was injured in March, forcing understudy America Olivo to take over. Spidey stuntman Chris Tierney fell into the pit due to a mishap with his harness, while two other stuntmen suffered minor injuries in separate incidents. This got the show from such organizations as unwanted attention from OSHA, Actor's Equity Association ... and parodies and mockery from ''Series/{{Conan}}'', ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'', Website/TheOnion, Website/AVClub, ''Magazine/{{MAD}}'', even ''Series/SesameStreet'', and a RippedFromTheHeadlines episode of ''Series/LawAndOrderCriminalIntent''.

due to seemingly endless injuries to its performers [, inspiring parodies on ''Series/{{Conan}}'', constant mockery on ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'', snarky coverage by Website/TheOnion Website/AVClub, endless snark in general from ''Magazine/{{MAD}}'', and a RippedFromTheHeadlines episode of ''Series/LawAndOrderCriminalIntent''. Even ''Series/SesameStreet'' got in on making fun of it. A few highlights include:

** The producers weren't keen on the initially dark and serious book. They wanted a fun and fancy musical as counterprogramming to the mega musicals at the time. Director Robert Allan Ackerman was also concerned about Allen's ability to play [[VillainProtagonist the brutal Diamond]]. They brought along Harvey Fierstein to revise the book. Fierstein was in agreement with their assessments and he rewrote the story into one about Diamond trying to make it into showbusiness. The end result was given the full title of ''The Almost Totally Fictitious Musical [[RougeAnglesOfSatin Hystery]] of Legs Diamond.''

** An early sign of trouble came during the design phase. Fran Weissler suggested to Hands to "think ''Film/{{Grease}}''" in terms of the artistic design. The concepts Hands presented to the producers were of minimal sets with [[WTHCostumingDepartment high-school students dressed in togas]]; apparently, Hands thought they meant "think Greek Tragedy." [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere Zollo and the Weisslers promptly left the production]] and producer Friedrich Kurz stepped in.

* ''Theatre/SpiderManTurnOffTheDark'', TheMusical take on [[ComicBook/SpiderMan the comic book]] and the Creator/SamRaimi movie adaptations, had a [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spider-Man:_Turn_Off_the_Dark#History hard time just getting to its preview period]] on Broadway... whereupon things went FromBadToWorse due to seemingly endless injuries to its performers [[note]]To the point that Creator/StephenColbert referred to it on ''Series/TheColbertReport'' as "Spider-Man: Notify Next of Kin"[[/note]], inspiring parodies on ''Series/{{Conan}}'', constant mockery on ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'', snarky coverage by Website/TheOnion Website/AVClub, endless snark in general from ''Magazine/{{MAD}}'', and a RippedFromTheHeadlines episode of ''Series/LawAndOrderCriminalIntent''. Even ''Series/SesameStreet'' got in on making fun of it. A few highlights include:

** Over the next few years, delays upon delays pushed the budget up significantly. By November 2010, the budget was projected at $65 million, meaning it would have to sell out for three years to break even. The preview period kept getting extended, and finally theater critics had enough and wrote/ran reviews of the February 7, 2011 performance (which, had it not been pushed back ''again'', was supposed to be the official opening date)... most of which were [[http://www.avclub.com/articles/spiderman-turn-off-the-dark-terrible-or-make-it-st,51518/ scathing]].

** It was greenlit shortly after [[Film/SpiderMan1 the first Raimi film]] hit theaters in 2002. Producer Tony Adams brought [[Music/{{U2}} Bono and The Edge]] to compose the music and they brought along director (and famous {{Prima Donna|Director}}) Julie Taymor. In 2005, Adams [[AuthorExistenceFailure suffered a fatal stroke]] just as the creative team were assembled to sign their contracts. Adams's producing partner, David Garfinkle, replaced him. Realizing his inexperience, Garfinkle left all artistic decisions to Taymor.

** After a successful run in continental Europe, producer Ben Sprecher canceled the London production as too costly. Even so, he decided it was ready for ''Broadway''. A mysterious British investor, supposedly named "Paul Abrams", then put $4.5 million into the play... more than 10 times what the biggest-rolling investors usually throw into a Broadway musical, even one that's been wildly successful in London. But no one had ever heard of Abrams, and the producers later claimed they never met him in person.

** While Bolt landed [[AllStarCast a murderer's row of acting talent]] -- Creator/KennethWilliams, Dame Edith Evans, Sian Phillips and Michael Bryant -- they were either dubious about the material themselves, or else miscast. Evans was the worst offender in all regards: at age 75, she was simply too old for her character, conceived by Bolt as a fortysomething businesswoman. She forgot or else refused to learn her lines, asked Bolt for rewrites to make her character more sympathetic, occasionally refused costuming beyond the clothes she wore to the theater (once showing up literally in her pajamas), and clashed with her costars. In particular, she irritated Kenneth Williams by asking director Noel Willman if Williams should be replaced, within earshot of the actor. Years later, Williams would make his impression of Evans' prima donna behavior a recurring joke in interviews and talk show appearances.

* Before ''Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark'' hit Broadway, 1983's ''Merlin'' was a fantasy musical (presenting the famous Arthurian character in his younger days) that had its own overlong preview period. Its official opening was postponed three times to the annoyance of critics -- so much like what happened with the Spidey show, ''The New York Times'' formally reviewed it before it formally opened. The spectacle wasn't the problem, as leading man Doug Henning was a StageMagician legend who'd previously had a hit with ''The Magic Show'' in TheSeventies and his tricks for this show were equally impressive. But he didn't have to do much singing in the older show (Creator/StephenSchwartz gave the tunes to his supporting cast), and in this one he did... at least initially, as by the end of previews all his singing was cut. The original director was cut too, replaced by co-producer Creator/IvanReitman, and a second choreographer was added. Making matters worse, the Broadway production of ''Theatre/{{Cats}}'' had opened just months before and was monopolizing the attention of theatergoers -- particularly the families ''Merlin'' hoped to court. The producers pressed on ("It was the musical that wouldn't disappear" according to Creator/NathanLane, who played a bumbling villain), and it managed five Tony nominations in a weak season for musicals, but it won none and closed after 199 regular performances.

** Creator/AlPacino reportedly had difficulty remembering his lines and as a result, three teleprompters had to be hidden in the set; he also [[EarpieceConversation got lines fed to him via Bluetooth on the headset he wore as a billionaire]]. This had a detrimental effect on the play's blocking, since he often faced away from other characters whom he would be more realistically facing so he could read his lines. One incident involved Pacino's headset going out and getting co-star Christopher Denham to replace it. ''[[EpicFail In the middle of a performance.]]''

** While Bolt landed a murderer's row of acting talent -- Creator/KennethWilliams, Dame Edith Evans, Sian Phillips and Michael Bryant -- they were either dubious about the material themselves, or else miscast. Evans was the worst offender in all regards: at age 75, she was simply too old for her character, conceived by Bolt as a fortysomething businesswoman. She forgot or else refused to learn her lines, asked Bolt for rewrites to make her character more sympathetic, occasionally refused costuming beyond the clothes she wore to the theater (once showing up literally in her pajamas), and clashed with her costars. In particular, she irritated Kenneth Williams by asking director Noel Willman if Williams should be replaced, within earshot of the actor. Years later, Williams would make his impression of Evans' prima donna behavior a recurring joke in interviews and talk show appearances.

** When the show finally opened, it was shredded by a negative critical and audience reception. Allen's lack of acting ability and his [[WTHCastingAgency unconvincing attempt at]] PlayingAgainstType bore the brunt of the critics' reviews. They also took umbridge with its style over substance approach. The show attracted an audience as a morbid curiosity. But it ended up closing on February 19, 1989, after 64 performances. The Nederlanders sold the Mark Hellinger Theatre to the Times Square Church, which turned it into its headquarters.

** The idea was originally thought up by Billy Aronson. He teamed up with 29-year-old composer Jonathan Larson and started writing the songs in 1989.

* ''Theatre/SpiderManTurnOffTheDark'', TheMusical take on [[ComicBook/SpiderMan the comic book]] and the Creator/SamRaimi movie adaptations, had a [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spider-Man:_Turn_Off_the_Dark#History hard time just getting to its preview period]] on Broadway... whereupon things went FromBadToWorse due to seemingly endless injuries to its performers [[note]]To the point that Creator/StephenColbert referred to it on ''Series/TheColbertReport'' as "Spider-Man: Notify Next of Kin"[[/note]], inspiring parodies on ''Series/{{Conan}}'', constant mockery from ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'', snarky coverage by Website/TheOnion Website/AVClub, endless snark in general from ''Magazine/{{MAD}}'', and a RippedFromTheHeadlines episode of ''Series/LawAndOrderCriminalIntent'' -- even ''Series/SesameStreet'' got in on making fun of it. A few highlights include:

** In response, the producers (finally!) panicked and brought in script doctors, along with having Bono and The Edge write new music. Among the revisions included eliminating the "[[GreekChorus Geek Chorus]]", demoting Taymor's CreatorsPet CanonForeigner Arachne from the BigBad to a supporting character and promoting Green Goblin (who was supposed to die at the end of act 1) in her place. Taymor refused to go along with the changes and was either fired or quit. It finally opened in June 2011.

* ''Theatre/SpiderManTurnOffTheDark'', TheMusical take on [[ComicBook/SpiderMan the comic book]] and the Creator/SamRaimi movie adaptations, had a [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spider-Man:_Turn_Off_the_Dark#History hard time just getting to its preview period]] on Broadway... whereupon things went FromBadToWorse due to seemingly endless injuries to its performers [[note]]To the point that Creator/StephenColbert referred to it on ''Series/TheColbertReport'' as "Spider-Man: Notify Next of Kin"[[/note]], inspiring parodies on ''Series/{{Conan}}'',constant mockery from ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'', snarky coverage by Website/TheOnion Website/AVClub, endless snark in general from ''Magazine/{{MAD}}'', and a RippedFromTheHeadlines episode of ''Series/LawAndOrderCriminalIntent'' -- even ''Series/SesameStreet'' got in on making fun of it. A few highlights include:

* ''Theatre/SpiderManTurnOffTheDark'', TheMusical take on [[ComicBook/SpiderMan the comic book]] and the Creator/SamRaimi movie adaptations, had a [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spider-Man:_Turn_Off_the_Dark#History hard time just getting to its preview period]] on Broadway... whereupon things went FromBadToWorse due to seemingly endless injuries to its performers [[note]]To the point that Creator/StephenColbert referred to it on ''Series/TheColbertReport'' as "Spider-Man: Notify Next of Kin"[[/note]], inspiring parodies on ''Series/{{Conan}}'', snarky coverage by Website/TheOnion Website/AVClub, endless snark in general from ''Magazine/{{MAD}}'', and a RippedFromTheHeadlines episode of ''Series/LawAndOrderCriminalIntent'' -- even ''Series/SesameStreet'' got in on making fun of it. A few highlights include:

** It was then revealed that Marc Thibodeau, ''Rebecca'''s publicist, had been warding off potential investors by implicating Sprecher in Hotton's fraud. Sprecher sued Thibodeau for $10 million in damages, but was ultimately only awarded $90,000.

* The now-cancelled Broadway production of the musical adaption of ''Film/{{Rebecca}}'', as detailed [[http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/25/theater/rebecca-the-musical-and-the-vanishing-act-of-its-investor.html here]].

** In September 2012, Abrams supposedly died of malaria. Yet there had been no obituaries for a wealthy man who died of malaria in the British newspapers, and no death certificates listed malaria as a cause. A spokesman for the estate refused to take phone calls, and used an email address that had been created a month earlier. Sprecher (who had never been lead producer on a Broadway musical) had already built the sets, so he lost millions when the production was canceled the following month. The FBI arrested a stockbroker on Long Island for his attempt to defraud the producers by fabricating the foreign investors who were prepared to put the $4.5 million in.

** In response, the producers (finally!) panicked and brought in script doctors, along with having Bono and The Edge write new music. Among the revisions included eliminating the "[[Greenhouse Greek Chorus]]", demoting Taymor's CreatorsPet CanonForeigner Arachne from the BigBad to a supporting character and promoting Green Goblin (who was supposed to die at the end of act 1) in her place. Taymor refused to go along with the changes and was either fired or quit. It finally opened in June 2011.

** In response, the producers (finally!) panicked and brought in script doctors, along with having Bono and The Edge write new music. Taymor refused to go along with the changes and was either fired or quit. It finally opened in June 2011.

** Under Hands' direction, the production grew bigger and bigger. There were elaborate pyrotechnics, lasers, automated scenery and a gigantic "Staircase to Heaven" for the show's finale. But the crew was unable to douse Linzi Hateley, as Carrie herself, with fake blood without shorting out her microphone. Their solution was for Gene Anthony Ray and Charlotte d'Amboise, playing bullies Billy and Chris, to run on stage and dump a small bit of fake blood on Hateley. Hands also took a hatchet to the libretto, cutting much of the spoken dialogue to get to the songs faster. This unfortunately left things like, any explanation for Carrie's powers, completely absent.
** The show was first staged in February 1988 at Stratford-upon-Avon, with Broadway legend Barbara Cook headlining the cast as Carrie's mother, Margaret. Cook quit the show when she was [[FatalMethodActing nearly decapitated on stage by a malfunctioning set piece]] on opening night, but agreed to stay on until her replacement could be found. That ended up lasting her the whole Stratford run. She was eventually replaced by the producers' first choice, Betty Buckley, [[CastingGag who played Gym teacher Ms. Collins in the DePalma film]].

** Then Creator/JudiDench snapped her Achilles tendon within days of the premiere and had to be replaced on short notice. This led Webber and producer Cameron Mackintosh to tell director Trevor Nunn that the show was over; Nunn ignored them and went ahead with the premiere despite the theater getting a bomb threat on opening night.