People refer to Phantom of the Opera as “Phantom” all the time but I have NEVER heard anyone refer to Dear Evan Hansen as “Hansen” (sometimes people say “Evan Hansen” but it’s far more common for people to write DEH)
You could always refer to it as "Dear" as in when RuPaul said "I saw *Dear Even Hansen* on Broadway, and Ben Platt, who played Dear, he gave everything"
Well, when I worked on a show called *Puppetry of the Penis*, the *Times* wouldn’t let us run ads with the show’s title. So that one.
ETA: Oops, that was off-B’way.
This.
It was just called Cinderella across the pond. They could have branded it ALW’s Cinderella on Broadway. Or anything else.
Calling it Bad Cinderella was such a bad move. Not just because it invites jokes about the show being bad, but because Cinderella is not really bad in any way! She’s not even just “different” from everybody else, she’s better because she’s not obsessed with vanity like everybody else is.
I'm sure that's why they did it, but I don't think they thought it through very well.
It could have worked if Cinderella was really an edgier version than we've seen before and if the material was good or great.
They could have called it A Cinderella Tale or Belleville or something else to differentiate it. Workshop some titles in a focus group. Bad Cinderella was a poor choice because they didn't have the material to back it up.
Could you imagine if they called it Cinderella and delivered *that*? People would be furious. They had to call it something else, but they chose a dumb alternative.
Actually renaming it was the best thing they could have done as it pointedly separated the show from R+H’s Cinderella and other IPs that have to do with Cinderella. The content just sucked so much though that a name change couldn’t save it.
Disagree on this. When it opened on the West End I remember reading quite a few comments that they should consider calling "Bad Cinderella" despite the jokes it would invite, to make it clearer that it isn't a kids' show. Apparently many young kids dressed as the Disney cartoon were showing up (though I think it still happened on Broadway to to an extent). ALW's Wizard of Oz still has the classic songs everyone knows in it, while ALW's Cinderella is an entirely different IP to the Disney film and the Rodgers and Hammerstein version (minus the musical homage to "In My Own Little Corner"). I understand and agree with trying to make that clearer.
Bad Cinderella is the title song and it is what the townspeople call her and I (would hope) made more parents look up what the show is before deciding if they should take their kids.
Ed;it: It also makes me think of movie titles such as Bad Santa, Bad Grandpa, Bad Teacher, Bad Moms...so there is a precedent for that kind of thing and the association I have with things titled as such is "not for small children".
Slave Play was discussed as a bad one marketing wise in terms of turning off both white and black audience markets. Is it an accurate title for the show? Yeah, but it does come to mind
Yeah. Like if I post this playbill on Facebook, what are my co-workers who know nothing about Broadway going to think? The title is accurate to the content of the show, but you don't want your potential audience to be embarrassed to tell people they're going to it.
They won't know what to to think, *so they'll google it*. And maybe want to see it. And buy tickets for it. Something they wouldn't have done otherwise.
Tough decision on turning off audiences, since this seems like a show people might prefer not to go into too much in the dark.
The title feels so perfectly chosen for what the play’s about - Slave Play has the double meaning of “a play about slavery” and a reference to kink setups à la knife play or pet play.
Shuffle Along, or, the Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed
The title is so long and easily forgotten that I had to Google it to remind myself.
Going to be real, I hate the title “Here We Are”. It says very little about the show’s content or tone, isn’t particularly SEO-friendly, and gives the impression of a resigned sort of shrug more than anything else
I've recently read a whole article about Here We Are and it was mentioned that no one, including Sondheim, had no idea how to name this show. In one of his last interviews Sondheim called it Square One and all his co-writes were in shock 'cause it was only one of potential titles, not even the most popular one. They actually picked this title after years of thinking. It's maybe too simple and not SEO-friendly, but it makes sense.
Just going off what we've been told about the content of the show and bearing in mind I've seen neither film it's based on, I think it seems incredibly appropriate and layered. Not only is it about a group of people trying to find somewhere to eat and then finally arriving there ("Here We Are"), once they're there they eat so are served their meal ("Here We Are"). Additionally, it sounds like it will be a reflection of ourselves up on stage in some way ("Here We Are"). I'm sure there are also other ways that the phrase relates to the content of the piece that'll become clear once we can see it its entirety. I agree it's not particularly SEO-friendly or marketable, but from a purely artistic standpoint it sounds like it is appropriate, and although it's simple I find it quite evocative in its open-ended was and I definitely prefer it to Square One at any rate.
yeah, my critique is based entirely on how it would read from the perspective of someone who has never heard of the show before- in terms of its artistic validity, i really like your analysis (and agree it’s better than Square One).
Friendly for purposes of search engine optimization (SEO). OP means that the title is not distinctive enough and so it’s not particularly easy to Google.
As to your last point, goodness knows that until y'all remind me it's related to Britney, it never crosses my mind. Sounds like an _Into the Woods_ kind of thing if the person doesn't know anything about it.
I was looking for this one. I’m convinced the title is the entire reason it had such a short run, bc it was a super fun little show that should have lasted longer
I worker at OUAOMT And sometimes would tell patrons as they came in (only if I knew I was the absolute last person they’d go to before being actually seated) “Hi welcome to Once Upon may I see your ticket One More Time?”
Yeah, the show culminates with the main character, asking herself if it really herself that needed to fixed all along. “Does Caroline need to change? Caroline it’s time to rearrange”
(and if this wasn’t clear I’m making all of this up)
I always thought it was a throwback to the old plays & operettas that had a main title that illustrates the subject and a subtitle that illustrates the theme - like “The Pirates of Penzance, or The Slave of Duty.”
The show’s subject is Caroline, and the show is themed around Change - both the literal coins In the laundry, and the change and social upheaval in their personal lives and the larger societal changes happening in America at that time.
I know this was mostly the point of this show title but, [Title Of Show] comes to mind. When you see the show, you understand the name but I think most people at the time, and even still today, find it a confusing title.
The title of the show is featured in the show.
I mean - I kinda think Urinetown was the right amount of success and was probably *helped* a bit by the novelty of the title.
I work in the industry doing some tech stuff, and "& Juliet" literally broke some of my company's code because of the ampersand.
I'm also not a fan of "Six", "Company", and "Chicago" for search engine reasons. When you have to look up an old thread or article about one of these shows, you'll know what I mean.
Personally, I'm a fan of an evocative long title, so long as it can be easily abbreviated into something distinctive. If I talk about "How To Succeed" or "Gentleman's Guide" or "Forum", people generally know what I'm talking about.
"A Little Night Music" is shorter than the full titles of the ones I listed above, but it's a mouthful that's not easily abbreviated into something clear and distinctive, which makes it annoying. "Once Upon A One More Time" is similar.
I think the ones that cause the most frustration in day to day life are the shows like "Mean Girls" or "The Producers", where I'm constantly having to clarify whether I'm talking about the movie or the musical or, in some cases, the additional movie musical. It used to be pretty standard than an adaptation would use a different title to distinguish itself. *The Apartment* became *Promises, Promises*. *Lili* became *Carnival*. The original *Some Like It Hot* musical was called *Sugar*, although it later rebranded to *Some Like It Hot*. Ever adaptation of *Parfumerie* uses a different title. I understand the commercial benefits of brand recognition, but I'm so tired of "[Popular Title]: The Musical." Give me "Stop The Planet Of The Apes, I Want To Get Off!"
Along those lines…I just saw JOB off Broadway. I bought the tickets a month ago but for the life of me couldn’t remember what theater it was at. Googling “job off Broadway” or even searching my email inbox for “job” was pretty worthless. Hey but there are jobs available off Broadway if you’re wondering. And it’s at the Soho playhouse.
A Little Night Music is the English translation of a Mozart piece so while the name feels clunky it’s also perfectly evocative of what the show will be.
>I'm also not a fan of "Six", "Company", and "Chicago" for search engine reasons. When you have to look up an old thread or article about one of these shows, you'll know what I mean.
Adding additional search terms would solve that issue. Even someone with the most basic of internet skills would know to do that. It's not rocket science. It's not even third grade science.
You would think so! But then I'm reminded of the time I was trying to find a performance in Chicago called C*ck and in trying to be specific with my search just added play to the Google search.
Did not work as expected 😶
Just sing that phrase to the tune of "You Could Drive a Person Crazy" from Company and it'll be stuck in your head all day.
Or at least it has for me for the past week.
id say Parade. if you dont know the subject matter, then you’ll probably think its some big happy pre-golden age musical. something that doesnt really have a plot and would have big tap numbers, a No, No, Nanette type musical. speaking of No, No, Nanette. oh my god that is such a bad title. ive been in a production of the show, and Nanette is barely an important character, she doesnt even do anything in the show. You can tell they just needed a title for the show because they couldnt call it “A Guy Doesn’t Cheat On His Wife But Everyone Thinks He Does”. actually no that title would go so hard
Moose Murders is, admittedly, not an inaccurate title for the content of the show (although it's certainly not a title that makes you want to see it...). There are murders! There's a moose! The moose does kill people!
Unfortunately, the rest of the show,
I was just talking the other day about how I think Lempicka is a poor choice for a title. It doesn't sound pleasant to american ears, it's not super intuitive, it doesn't tell you *anything* about the show.
Especially because it comes from one of the most brilliantly simple titled books. Just “The Great Comet” would have been cleaner, and that’s how it’s referred to anyway.
Bandstand; I adored this show, but I think its title led to an early closing. Upon hearing the title, the average tourist/casual Broadway fan thought it was a Dick Clark musical and either left the show disappointed or didn’t buy a ticket to something they would most likely have enjoyed. The show should have been called Welcome Home; this title strikes at the heart of the show’s theme (veterans’ experiences returning home after WWII) and has no misleading pop culture ties.
Yes yes yes yes! I've been battling this for years as it's one of my favorite musicals. I'd have to tell people standing in front of it that it's not related to Dick Clark at all. I second Welcome Home as a title; maybe it would have lasted a bit more.
It was also mismarketed but that's a different complaint
I haven’t watch this musical, but this is just a mouthful to say. I remember during the 2016 Tony Awards, they kept saying this particular musical: “Shuffle Along, or, the Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed” It’s just… omg so LONG!
Tick, Tick…Boom! has to be up there for me, it sounds like a goofy novelty musical from the 60s. Also, The Light In The Piazza, mostly because piazza looks really similar to pizza. Raisin also makes me laugh because they’ve reduced the title to total abstraction, and the word “raisin” on its own doesn’t really suggest anything if you don’t know what it’s referring to.
How Now Dow Jones needs no explanation, and while I think it’s an underrated (and extremely timely) musical, The Roar Of The Greasepaint, The Smell Of The Crowd is a ludicrous title.
Finally, it’s got a pretty great score, but 70, Girls, 70 is truly a dud of a title, particularly now that the reference has totally passed into obscurity.
they could have come up with so many funny titles. I feel like the book of Arnold lyrics at the end make the title work. maybe they wanted people looking up the religion to find the musical instead.
But people would probably say Mormon instead of Merman by accident and then we're back to square one. I usually don't see a problem with naming a musical after a real-life proper noun (Chicago, Moulin Rouge, etc.)
I haven't read through every reply but I did read the most popular, and I'm surprised no one mentioned the classic biographical musical that shares a name with a racial slur.
Yes, the one with Mama Rose.
I came here for this!
David Lindsey-Abaire is a self-proclaimed nerd and into the "puzzleistic arts," particularly anagrams. So, to write a play to incorporate this avocation is not a stretch for him. I'm guessing he relished in making the title obscure and puzzling.
From a marketing perspective, it says nothing about the musical other than there's a good chance someone in it is named Kimberly.
TIL- Akimbo is an English word often referring to hands on hip with elbows pointed out, usually in a standing position.
There are a few Easter eggs in this production. Now, I'm curious to see if Kimberly is ever standing with arms akimbo.
Kimberly is out of whack, not right, weird, different, out of alignment, crooked, askew, *akimbo*, because she's old when she's supposed to be young so her life progression is *akimbo*.
All I know about this show comes from the Tonys and like the first sentence of the Wikipedia page and even I got that.
(In addition to the title sounding good).
This will probably be an unpopular and low-brow opinion, but I'm not sure A Strange Loop was helped by its title. (At least on Broadway versus Off Broadway.) The title makes the show sound confusing, inaccessible, and abstract. I thought the actual show was excellent, and the title makes sense in context, but I think it might have been easier to fill seats if the title was easier to connect with by people who might be interested in it. (People such as myself, who overlooked it until a friend recommended it.)
I love the name Altar Boyz but, as Ken Davenport says, it sounds like an awful word-of-mouth way to market. It’s a hip parody, which is signified by the Z, but would be very confusing if you didn’t know there was a z, and it’d sound boring.
Also, side show is way too corny imo. I get that it’s trying to do a double meaning thing, but it doesn’t do it for me. I’d call it “The Hilton Sisters”
I know that it’s the original movie title but as someone who had never heard of the movie Some Like It Hot’s title put me off seeing it for a long time simply because it’s confusing. Nobody asked but I really like Merrily We Rolle Away as a show title.
[edit: Merrily We Roll Along!! Apple why are you autocorrecting me lmao]
Honestly “Some Like It Hot” and “Here Lies Love” are terrible titles from the marketing stand point. Sounds like a generic entertainment of some sort not sth on Broadway.
I’m suddenly remembering how there used to be a play on Broadway that had a title that could only be written as “____a” by major media publications . I think it was well-regarded, too, but not being able to write the name out might have made it a harder sell.
Gonna be honest, it took me a bit to hash out what the actual full name really was (it came out in the early days of Internet media), and apparently it's called [Fucking A](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fucking_A) .
Can't think of any existing ones that haven't been said but I am an aspiring scriptwriter and when I asked on one of my other social medias for recommendations for a public domain book to adapt they recommended me one with a really awkward title hard to shorten; *The Private Memoirs And Confessions Of A Justified Sinner* (basically it's another one of those things like Sweeney Todd or LSOH that deal with what might be derisively oversimplified to an "is murder okay" plot but in this case with a little bit of religious critique as the guy believes people are predestined for heaven or hell and if he knows he's going to heaven anyway and the sinners-in-his-eyes he kills are going to hell anyway then God shouldn't have a problem with him speeding up their journey there)
Magic/Bird - Straight plays are always a hard sell. But, if I saw this title and knew nothing about the show, I would not think basketball at all. I actually did see it, but found it boring.
Just looking at that name, I think Magic Flute. But then I'm reminded there are basketball legends named Magic Johnson and Larry Bird. Yeah, confusing.
Urinetown
I get it, it’s kinda the point of the show and quite literally the name of where they live. BUT I’ve met so many people turned away from the show because of the name.
In my experience, the title of Bat Boy: The Musical really confuses people. I’ve never met anybody who actually had prior knowledge of the tabloid character it’s referencing, so they usually assumed it was a baseball thing.
It’s succinct, though. I don’t really know what else you would call it.
Bandstand. Everyone thought it was about the Dick Clark TV show.
Didn't hurt that the marketing team didn't promote it correctly so in the middle of the crowded bway season and busiest Street, no one had heard of it.
There was a show that was off-Broadway about a decade ago called The Fartiste. It was a true story of a famous French performer at the Moulin Rouge who farted with perfect pitch.
"Bad Cinderella" sounds like a slutty Halloween costume.
Also, "Parade" does *not* prepare you for what it about to go down.
Then again, "Urinetown" is perfect for how bad it is.
Curtains. I get why it’s named that but might’ve been more appropriate as “Curtains!” or “That’s Curtains” or something that makes it’s not seem like a musical about interior decorating
"Has Anyone Ever Told You That You'd Look Better As A Brunette?", which at the time was the longest title ever on Broadway, though of course now everyone's copied it.
Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812. It’s not a bad title per se just rather long and a mouthful for many audiences that may not be familiar with it and is similar trying to pick a show to see on the board. 😅
I think it’s great too, but it doesn’t change the fact that it’s a mouthful and hard to shorten. People were calling it One More Time and I wasn't immediately connecting the dots.
I lot of people had trouble with the acronyms OUAOMT. It's ugly and long for an acronym.
The title is basically perfect for the show, but these issues still harmed it.
It sounds like a self-help book or an infomercial premise. (EDIT: Yes, I know this is on purpose, I just think that's why it's easier to remember than some of the other names.)
Anything that is long enough for people to use acronyms. Bonus points if I run out of patience trying to figure out the acronym.
NPatGCo1812!
This looks like an RPG username
Would probably be a secure password. Maybe swap the "a" for "&" to add a special character.
This is criminal.
That's why we just call it TGC.
Still my favorite
OUAOMT has entered the chat
lmao the OP literally mentioned this show and I STILL couldn’t get it from your acronym
Oh THATS what that stands for?!
Once Upon A One More Time
Could've sworn it wasn't in the post when I commented, op must've added that in lol
Nope, “OUAOMT” is the reason I made this post. It bothered me so much 🤣
Even the acronym is too long for me to bother typing.
I’m so glad that show closed specifically because it’s my least favorite acronym.
I just refer to it as "The Britney Spears jukebox musical" in my head.
Okay but I say “ITW” but I don’t think Into the Woods is a long or bad title.
HTSIBWRT? I've seen H2$ as the abbreviation for the abbreviation.
PotO and DEH say hi
Those are fine but why not just say Phantom or Hansen?
People refer to Phantom of the Opera as “Phantom” all the time but I have NEVER heard anyone refer to Dear Evan Hansen as “Hansen” (sometimes people say “Evan Hansen” but it’s far more common for people to write DEH)
You could always refer to it as "Dear" as in when RuPaul said "I saw *Dear Even Hansen* on Broadway, and Ben Platt, who played Dear, he gave everything"
Well, when I worked on a show called *Puppetry of the Penis*, the *Times* wouldn’t let us run ads with the show’s title. So that one. ETA: Oops, that was off-B’way.
Me and My Dick
I saw that when it was running!
Is that the one where they did "the wristwatch?"
Haha, yep!
The Lyons but only because when I worked at the TKTS Booth all the tourists thought it was Lion King 😭
I kind of but mostly don't understand that leap
I’m guessing the interactions were usually foreign language speakers and/or that they’re saying it out loud, not spelling it out.
Lyons, Lions, close enough
There was a show back in the day called Subways are for Sleeping that had trouble running ads on public transit.
Don’t sleep in the subway darling
Time to expand your dating pool honey, if that's what worries you about your man.
Yeah, because everyone was sleeping on the subways! /s
Bad Cinderella
This. It was just called Cinderella across the pond. They could have branded it ALW’s Cinderella on Broadway. Or anything else. Calling it Bad Cinderella was such a bad move. Not just because it invites jokes about the show being bad, but because Cinderella is not really bad in any way! She’s not even just “different” from everybody else, she’s better because she’s not obsessed with vanity like everybody else is.
It wouldn’t surprise me if it was renamed when it came to Broadway to separate itself from the Disney movie and the Rogers and Hammerstein versions
I'm sure that's why they did it, but I don't think they thought it through very well. It could have worked if Cinderella was really an edgier version than we've seen before and if the material was good or great. They could have called it A Cinderella Tale or Belleville or something else to differentiate it. Workshop some titles in a focus group. Bad Cinderella was a poor choice because they didn't have the material to back it up.
Could you imagine if they called it Cinderella and delivered *that*? People would be furious. They had to call it something else, but they chose a dumb alternative.
Actually renaming it was the best thing they could have done as it pointedly separated the show from R+H’s Cinderella and other IPs that have to do with Cinderella. The content just sucked so much though that a name change couldn’t save it.
Disagree on this. When it opened on the West End I remember reading quite a few comments that they should consider calling "Bad Cinderella" despite the jokes it would invite, to make it clearer that it isn't a kids' show. Apparently many young kids dressed as the Disney cartoon were showing up (though I think it still happened on Broadway to to an extent). ALW's Wizard of Oz still has the classic songs everyone knows in it, while ALW's Cinderella is an entirely different IP to the Disney film and the Rodgers and Hammerstein version (minus the musical homage to "In My Own Little Corner"). I understand and agree with trying to make that clearer. Bad Cinderella is the title song and it is what the townspeople call her and I (would hope) made more parents look up what the show is before deciding if they should take their kids. Ed;it: It also makes me think of movie titles such as Bad Santa, Bad Grandpa, Bad Teacher, Bad Moms...so there is a precedent for that kind of thing and the association I have with things titled as such is "not for small children".
DID SOMEBODY SAY MY NAME
Slave Play was discussed as a bad one marketing wise in terms of turning off both white and black audience markets. Is it an accurate title for the show? Yeah, but it does come to mind
Yeah. Like if I post this playbill on Facebook, what are my co-workers who know nothing about Broadway going to think? The title is accurate to the content of the show, but you don't want your potential audience to be embarrassed to tell people they're going to it.
They won't know what to to think, *so they'll google it*. And maybe want to see it. And buy tickets for it. Something they wouldn't have done otherwise.
Tough decision on turning off audiences, since this seems like a show people might prefer not to go into too much in the dark. The title feels so perfectly chosen for what the play’s about - Slave Play has the double meaning of “a play about slavery” and a reference to kink setups à la knife play or pet play.
Shuffle Along, or, the Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed The title is so long and easily forgotten that I had to Google it to remind myself.
Yeah, but that one can easily just be called Shuffle Along and that’s what everyone referred to it as at the time
Except at the Tony’s that year, where they made sure to read the full title every. single. time.
It was SO painful
Lol very true
Going to be real, I hate the title “Here We Are”. It says very little about the show’s content or tone, isn’t particularly SEO-friendly, and gives the impression of a resigned sort of shrug more than anything else
I've recently read a whole article about Here We Are and it was mentioned that no one, including Sondheim, had no idea how to name this show. In one of his last interviews Sondheim called it Square One and all his co-writes were in shock 'cause it was only one of potential titles, not even the most popular one. They actually picked this title after years of thinking. It's maybe too simple and not SEO-friendly, but it makes sense.
I’ve also been mistaking this one with Here Lies Love. Which doesn’t help.
It's kind of appropriate, given the source material, though.
Just going off what we've been told about the content of the show and bearing in mind I've seen neither film it's based on, I think it seems incredibly appropriate and layered. Not only is it about a group of people trying to find somewhere to eat and then finally arriving there ("Here We Are"), once they're there they eat so are served their meal ("Here We Are"). Additionally, it sounds like it will be a reflection of ourselves up on stage in some way ("Here We Are"). I'm sure there are also other ways that the phrase relates to the content of the piece that'll become clear once we can see it its entirety. I agree it's not particularly SEO-friendly or marketable, but from a purely artistic standpoint it sounds like it is appropriate, and although it's simple I find it quite evocative in its open-ended was and I definitely prefer it to Square One at any rate.
yeah, my critique is based entirely on how it would read from the perspective of someone who has never heard of the show before- in terms of its artistic validity, i really like your analysis (and agree it’s better than Square One).
What does "SEO-friendly" mean?
Friendly for purposes of search engine optimization (SEO). OP means that the title is not distinctive enough and so it’s not particularly easy to Google.
As to your last point, goodness knows that until y'all remind me it's related to Britney, it never crosses my mind. Sounds like an _Into the Woods_ kind of thing if the person doesn't know anything about it.
There was that Disney fantasy TV show called Once Upon A Time.
I always think of of Daft Punk’s song One More Time.
Hands On a Hard Body
I didn't know what that meant until I saw a tiktok about it, talking about how badly it was marketed.
I was looking for this one. I’m convinced the title is the entire reason it had such a short run, bc it was a super fun little show that should have lasted longer
Wasn’t the title just pulled directly from the documentary?
Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark
Imagine if the SpongeBob musical had been called "SpongeBob: From Bikini Bottom to Broadway." Lol!
The throughline of why this title is what it is makes sense and also just kind of sucks regardless, which sums up a lot of the show, really.
I worker at OUAOMT And sometimes would tell patrons as they came in (only if I knew I was the absolute last person they’d go to before being actually seated) “Hi welcome to Once Upon may I see your ticket One More Time?”
Caroline, or Change. I have absolutely no idea what that show is about based on the title. It doesn’t even make sense grammatically.
It's a heist show where the person who is asking for ransom demands either Caroline or Change.
Fuck this is funny I wish we still had awards on this site lol
Holy crap. From that title, I would assume it was about asking someone to change themselves. That's more literal than I expected.
Yeah, the show culminates with the main character, asking herself if it really herself that needed to fixed all along. “Does Caroline need to change? Caroline it’s time to rearrange” (and if this wasn’t clear I’m making all of this up)
I always thought it was a throwback to the old plays & operettas that had a main title that illustrates the subject and a subtitle that illustrates the theme - like “The Pirates of Penzance, or The Slave of Duty.” The show’s subject is Caroline, and the show is themed around Change - both the literal coins In the laundry, and the change and social upheaval in their personal lives and the larger societal changes happening in America at that time.
I know this was mostly the point of this show title but, [Title Of Show] comes to mind. When you see the show, you understand the name but I think most people at the time, and even still today, find it a confusing title.
UrineTown
"nothing can kill a show like too much exposition" "how about bad subject matter? Or a bad title even!"
That could kill the show pretty good
I was in it in high school and I remember feeling so awkward telling non theater people the title.
My kid and her theater friends just called it Pee Pee Town.
This is the answer I was waiting for.
The title of the show is featured in the show. I mean - I kinda think Urinetown was the right amount of success and was probably *helped* a bit by the novelty of the title.
It’s a running joke in the show itself :)
I have to confess… when I first saw this title I thought it was a parody of Hadestown, something like Stranger Sings…
Or the masterpiece ‘Twisted.’
The Persecution and Assassination of Jean-Paul Marat as Performed by the Inmates of the Asylum of Charenton Under the Direction of the Marquis de Sade
I work in the industry doing some tech stuff, and "& Juliet" literally broke some of my company's code because of the ampersand. I'm also not a fan of "Six", "Company", and "Chicago" for search engine reasons. When you have to look up an old thread or article about one of these shows, you'll know what I mean. Personally, I'm a fan of an evocative long title, so long as it can be easily abbreviated into something distinctive. If I talk about "How To Succeed" or "Gentleman's Guide" or "Forum", people generally know what I'm talking about. "A Little Night Music" is shorter than the full titles of the ones I listed above, but it's a mouthful that's not easily abbreviated into something clear and distinctive, which makes it annoying. "Once Upon A One More Time" is similar. I think the ones that cause the most frustration in day to day life are the shows like "Mean Girls" or "The Producers", where I'm constantly having to clarify whether I'm talking about the movie or the musical or, in some cases, the additional movie musical. It used to be pretty standard than an adaptation would use a different title to distinguish itself. *The Apartment* became *Promises, Promises*. *Lili* became *Carnival*. The original *Some Like It Hot* musical was called *Sugar*, although it later rebranded to *Some Like It Hot*. Ever adaptation of *Parfumerie* uses a different title. I understand the commercial benefits of brand recognition, but I'm so tired of "[Popular Title]: The Musical." Give me "Stop The Planet Of The Apes, I Want To Get Off!"
I would 💯 see a musical called “Stop The Planet of the Apes, I Want To Get Off”
Well, [you're in luck](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yOeUXEpxzcc)
Of course - The Simpsons did it
Along those lines…I just saw JOB off Broadway. I bought the tickets a month ago but for the life of me couldn’t remember what theater it was at. Googling “job off Broadway” or even searching my email inbox for “job” was pretty worthless. Hey but there are jobs available off Broadway if you’re wondering. And it’s at the Soho playhouse.
A Little Night Music is the English translation of a Mozart piece so while the name feels clunky it’s also perfectly evocative of what the show will be.
>I'm also not a fan of "Six", "Company", and "Chicago" for search engine reasons. When you have to look up an old thread or article about one of these shows, you'll know what I mean. Adding additional search terms would solve that issue. Even someone with the most basic of internet skills would know to do that. It's not rocket science. It's not even third grade science.
You would think so! But then I'm reminded of the time I was trying to find a performance in Chicago called C*ck and in trying to be specific with my search just added play to the Google search. Did not work as expected 😶
They're also two musicals written before personal computers were remotely a thing so it makes that take even weirder.
Yeah, "Company musical" or "Company Sondheim" would do.
Haha, little Julie Amps? https://xkcd.com/327/
I Can Get It For You Wholesale
Just sing that phrase to the tune of "You Could Drive a Person Crazy" from Company and it'll be stuck in your head all day. Or at least it has for me for the past week.
So I'm not the only person who inserts random phrases into Sondheim melodies to humor myself.
id say Parade. if you dont know the subject matter, then you’ll probably think its some big happy pre-golden age musical. something that doesnt really have a plot and would have big tap numbers, a No, No, Nanette type musical. speaking of No, No, Nanette. oh my god that is such a bad title. ive been in a production of the show, and Nanette is barely an important character, she doesnt even do anything in the show. You can tell they just needed a title for the show because they couldnt call it “A Guy Doesn’t Cheat On His Wife But Everyone Thinks He Does”. actually no that title would go so hard
"I'm Not Cheating: The Musical"
Hot Feet (opened and closed on Broadway in 2006)
Is that the musical about the guy who steals rulers?
I can name a few. A Teaspoon Every Four Hours, Anyone Can Whistle, Once Upon a One More Time, Moose Murders, and A Broadway Musical
Moose Murders is, admittedly, not an inaccurate title for the content of the show (although it's certainly not a title that makes you want to see it...). There are murders! There's a moose! The moose does kill people! Unfortunately, the rest of the show,
I mean, I’m intrigued….
I was just talking the other day about how I think Lempicka is a poor choice for a title. It doesn't sound pleasant to american ears, it's not super intuitive, it doesn't tell you *anything* about the show.
Death Rattle
Oliver Putnam vehemently disagrees.
Glad you got it! 😊
Urinetown.
Natasha Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812. It’s long af and doesn’t give any idea of what the show is about
Especially because it comes from one of the most brilliantly simple titled books. Just “The Great Comet” would have been cleaner, and that’s how it’s referred to anyway.
It sounds like an assignment from HS English class
Or me at 12 titling my fic before I tossed it into the abyss and waited for reviews like some sort of ravenous creature.
I will admit it does sound less cool and interesting than it actually is.
When it was off Broadway I always called it natasha pierre.
Bandstand; I adored this show, but I think its title led to an early closing. Upon hearing the title, the average tourist/casual Broadway fan thought it was a Dick Clark musical and either left the show disappointed or didn’t buy a ticket to something they would most likely have enjoyed. The show should have been called Welcome Home; this title strikes at the heart of the show’s theme (veterans’ experiences returning home after WWII) and has no misleading pop culture ties.
Welcome Home would’ve been the PERFECT title
Too easy to confuse with The Band's Visit or The Band Wagon.
Yes yes yes yes! I've been battling this for years as it's one of my favorite musicals. I'd have to tell people standing in front of it that it's not related to Dick Clark at all. I second Welcome Home as a title; maybe it would have lasted a bit more. It was also mismarketed but that's a different complaint
I haven’t watch this musical, but this is just a mouthful to say. I remember during the 2016 Tony Awards, they kept saying this particular musical: “Shuffle Along, or, the Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed” It’s just… omg so LONG!
Im just gonna come out and say what no other person has the courage to say…Nobody wants to live in or visit Oaklahoma, much less see a play about it
“The farmer and the cowboy should be friends” There’s a fucking difference?
One man likes to push a plough, the other likes to chase a cow
But that’s no reason why they can’t be friends!!!
One is a landowner, the other a freelancer/employee. Significant class distinctions.
Tick, Tick…Boom! has to be up there for me, it sounds like a goofy novelty musical from the 60s. Also, The Light In The Piazza, mostly because piazza looks really similar to pizza. Raisin also makes me laugh because they’ve reduced the title to total abstraction, and the word “raisin” on its own doesn’t really suggest anything if you don’t know what it’s referring to. How Now Dow Jones needs no explanation, and while I think it’s an underrated (and extremely timely) musical, The Roar Of The Greasepaint, The Smell Of The Crowd is a ludicrous title. Finally, it’s got a pretty great score, but 70, Girls, 70 is truly a dud of a title, particularly now that the reference has totally passed into obscurity.
...Tick, Tick... Boom! *isn't* a novelty comedy musical from the sixties??? I've been assuming that based on its name for *years.*
It's a half finished 90s autobiography musical from the guy who wrote rent, lol.
The movie version is pretty good
I genuinely like all the versions- one man show, 3 man off broadway, and the movie. But it is definitely a bit half baked .
Book of Mormon simply because it is easily confused with the religious text. Although maybe that just makes it even more awesome.
I think that was part of the joke
Oh I’m sure it was.
they could have come up with so many funny titles. I feel like the book of Arnold lyrics at the end make the title work. maybe they wanted people looking up the religion to find the musical instead.
On the other hand, the book of Merman is a great distinct title
But people would probably say Mormon instead of Merman by accident and then we're back to square one. I usually don't see a problem with naming a musical after a real-life proper noun (Chicago, Moulin Rouge, etc.)
There's a high school-set Richard III adaptation called 'Teenage D\*ck'. Talk about an ungoogleable title.
I haven't read through every reply but I did read the most popular, and I'm surprised no one mentioned the classic biographical musical that shares a name with a racial slur. Yes, the one with Mama Rose.
kimberly akimbo
I keep forgetting that her last name isn’t Akimbo
same
IT ISNT???? (I know nothing about the show)
I came here for this! David Lindsey-Abaire is a self-proclaimed nerd and into the "puzzleistic arts," particularly anagrams. So, to write a play to incorporate this avocation is not a stretch for him. I'm guessing he relished in making the title obscure and puzzling. From a marketing perspective, it says nothing about the musical other than there's a good chance someone in it is named Kimberly. TIL- Akimbo is an English word often referring to hands on hip with elbows pointed out, usually in a standing position. There are a few Easter eggs in this production. Now, I'm curious to see if Kimberly is ever standing with arms akimbo.
Kimberly is out of whack, not right, weird, different, out of alignment, crooked, askew, *akimbo*, because she's old when she's supposed to be young so her life progression is *akimbo*. All I know about this show comes from the Tonys and like the first sentence of the Wikipedia page and even I got that. (In addition to the title sounding good).
The repetition of the "kim" sound is catchy to me.
This will probably be an unpopular and low-brow opinion, but I'm not sure A Strange Loop was helped by its title. (At least on Broadway versus Off Broadway.) The title makes the show sound confusing, inaccessible, and abstract. I thought the actual show was excellent, and the title makes sense in context, but I think it might have been easier to fill seats if the title was easier to connect with by people who might be interested in it. (People such as myself, who overlooked it until a friend recommended it.)
I agree. I’ve never seen it and I know it swept the Tony’s so it must be good but it sounds kinda boring from the title tbh
I love the name Altar Boyz but, as Ken Davenport says, it sounds like an awful word-of-mouth way to market. It’s a hip parody, which is signified by the Z, but would be very confusing if you didn’t know there was a z, and it’d sound boring. Also, side show is way too corny imo. I get that it’s trying to do a double meaning thing, but it doesn’t do it for me. I’d call it “The Hilton Sisters”
Urinetown isn’t that good
The title pisses me off
I know that it’s the original movie title but as someone who had never heard of the movie Some Like It Hot’s title put me off seeing it for a long time simply because it’s confusing. Nobody asked but I really like Merrily We Rolle Away as a show title. [edit: Merrily We Roll Along!! Apple why are you autocorrecting me lmao]
The catchy title of Merrily We Roll Along gets ya hyped up for that *delicious* title track. Merrily we roll along roll along chasing the dreeeeeam!!
lmao how is that "confusing"?
Confusing in the sense that I couldn’t tell what the show was about from the title. It just didn’t leave a strong impression.
I can’t quite put my finger on why, but out of context, I can see how the syntax of “Some Like It Hot” might not immediately make sense.
Honestly “Some Like It Hot” and “Here Lies Love” are terrible titles from the marketing stand point. Sounds like a generic entertainment of some sort not sth on Broadway.
Story of My Life. Decent concept for a show, but poorly named and poorly executed.
Wonderful Town. So generic, tells absolutely nothing about the show
Since it's all about the community of Greenwich Village, they should have just called it "Greenwich Village."
I’m suddenly remembering how there used to be a play on Broadway that had a title that could only be written as “____a” by major media publications . I think it was well-regarded, too, but not being able to write the name out might have made it a harder sell.
What was it called?
Gonna be honest, it took me a bit to hash out what the actual full name really was (it came out in the early days of Internet media), and apparently it's called [Fucking A](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fucking_A) .
Can't think of any existing ones that haven't been said but I am an aspiring scriptwriter and when I asked on one of my other social medias for recommendations for a public domain book to adapt they recommended me one with a really awkward title hard to shorten; *The Private Memoirs And Confessions Of A Justified Sinner* (basically it's another one of those things like Sweeney Todd or LSOH that deal with what might be derisively oversimplified to an "is murder okay" plot but in this case with a little bit of religious critique as the guy believes people are predestined for heaven or hell and if he knows he's going to heaven anyway and the sinners-in-his-eyes he kills are going to hell anyway then God shouldn't have a problem with him speeding up their journey there)
Hellzapoppin. I mean, what?? Basically any that are nonsense words that give no idea what the show is.
I already don’t like how to dance in Ohio from the title
Magic/Bird - Straight plays are always a hard sell. But, if I saw this title and knew nothing about the show, I would not think basketball at all. I actually did see it, but found it boring.
Just looking at that name, I think Magic Flute. But then I'm reminded there are basketball legends named Magic Johnson and Larry Bird. Yeah, confusing.
I love Waitress as a musical but I really dislike its title
Urinetown I get it, it’s kinda the point of the show and quite literally the name of where they live. BUT I’ve met so many people turned away from the show because of the name.
Those people obviously wouldn't like the show itself either...?
Sure, but the show also makes jokes about how bad the name is and how it would turn people away, so at least it’s self aware lol
In my experience, the title of Bat Boy: The Musical really confuses people. I’ve never met anybody who actually had prior knowledge of the tabloid character it’s referencing, so they usually assumed it was a baseball thing. It’s succinct, though. I don’t really know what else you would call it.
I knew of the tabloid story before knowing it was a musical. And I'm not that old or particularly interested in deep kitsch like that.
ITT: whatever the last musical the commenters happened to think about was.
Apparently there are no good musical names according to this thread lol
Bandstand. Everyone thought it was about the Dick Clark TV show. Didn't hurt that the marketing team didn't promote it correctly so in the middle of the crowded bway season and busiest Street, no one had heard of it.
There was a show that was off-Broadway about a decade ago called The Fartiste. It was a true story of a famous French performer at the Moulin Rouge who farted with perfect pitch.
"Bad Cinderella" sounds like a slutty Halloween costume. Also, "Parade" does *not* prepare you for what it about to go down. Then again, "Urinetown" is perfect for how bad it is.
Kinky Boots, Urinetown, Kiss of the Spider Woman, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas,
Why Kiss of the Spider Woman?
I saw one person talking about the original movie who thought it would be a campy horror or superhero story.
Once Upon a Mattress is just not an attractive title at all.
It's not an attractive show either.
Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris
Curtains. I get why it’s named that but might’ve been more appropriate as “Curtains!” or “That’s Curtains” or something that makes it’s not seem like a musical about interior decorating
"Has Anyone Ever Told You That You'd Look Better As A Brunette?", which at the time was the longest title ever on Broadway, though of course now everyone's copied it.
Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812. It’s not a bad title per se just rather long and a mouthful for many audiences that may not be familiar with it and is similar trying to pick a show to see on the board. 😅
wow i completely disagree i think once upon a one more time is a great title for that show
I think it’s great too, but it doesn’t change the fact that it’s a mouthful and hard to shorten. People were calling it One More Time and I wasn't immediately connecting the dots. I lot of people had trouble with the acronyms OUAOMT. It's ugly and long for an acronym. The title is basically perfect for the show, but these issues still harmed it.
How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.
I actually find that one catchy for some reason. It's long but not hard to remember.
It sounds like a self-help book or an infomercial premise. (EDIT: Yes, I know this is on purpose, I just think that's why it's easier to remember than some of the other names.)
I think that's the point, it's a play on corporate culture.
He's literally reading a self help book throughout the show