Friday, April 27, 2007

Say Cheese... NOT!!!

Yes, we have seen all manners of bootlegging going on at the Broadhurst... and who are the usual snitches?  Us onstage.

We have the perfect vantage point to spot would-be video and still picture takers, down to your section and even the seat location.  The ushers move so quickly because we move quickly, to report cameras in the audience.  Those flashing red lights are a dead giveaway.

And yes, we are not pleased.

To be honest, the flashing red lights are incredibly distracting, especially in scenes that require our full focus.  It's not easy doing our jobs out there, and we try as much as we can to minimize anything that would take away from what we are required to do to maintain a strong emotional connection, as well as to keep from falling on the turntable when it goes at a faster clip, or when climbing up and down the barricades.  I find myself zapped back to reality in a harsh way once I spot one of those incriminating lights and become very frustrated and angry.  And I know I'm not the only one that feels this same way.

We do appreciate that you want to take home a memory of your night at the theater, and we don't want to take away from an otherwise wonderful experience.  We do our best on stage to give you a night you won't soon forget.  However, we need your cooperation as well to do just that.

But at the end of every performance, we're only way too happy to see you at the stage door.  Be as camera happy as you like then!  We'll have only our best smiles for you.

Thanks for your understanding.


54 comments:

mm ruth said...

i couldn't agree more

XXXX YYYY said...

wui,, NA kokonsenya naman ako..
gawain ko kasi yun....

Pasensya ka na ha.

Hayaan mo, soon, pagpunta ko dyan, malapit na yun! I'll make sure na OFF yung Flash ng cam ko.. (Pasensya ka na ule, kasi parang hindi ko kayang hindi ka kunan.."MOMENT MO NA KASI YUN"

Wag ka agagalit ha..

Soleil NYC said...

I remember in this one scene, I was dying and someone took a pic, it flashed and I heard them say, "Oh my god that's a great shot!!"
Really?? :)
-- soleilnyc, rat-snitch-stoolpigeon

Clarice P said...

It's not just the performers who get frustrated. As a member of the audience, nothing is more distracting than when the person a few seats away starts sloooowly unzipping his or her camera bag in the middle of an intense scene. Sometimes the camera bag is velcro sealed, and the peeling sound...oy!

I find my focus shifting away from the stage and into the stealth happening nearby. Can't be helped, especially when I hear the camera going through its whirring motions when first powered. The stage-audience connection gets interrupted, and takes some time to re-establish.

Thanks for, uh, looking out.

carol w v said...

UN NA!!

Jeff Hawkins said...

I think Javert should come out and make this announcement verbatim before every show

arkitekfhc . said...

Were you playing Kim or Eponine?

augustine73 . said...

amen!

Linnor Rapes said...

oops... i should remember that. sometimes i do sneak in a shot or two when i think nobody is looking. thanks for the eye-opener. it's not going to happen anymore, at least not from this fan. :)

Vince Vicentuan said...

Cyndi Lauper, while doing "Three Penny Opera" last year, once stopped a show for she couldn't concentrate because two young girls were unabashedly taking photos. Not content with that, when the two girls, both fans of Cyndi's, approached her after the show backstage, she gave them further scolding. I've seen this, as Theater Manager and Director myself, happen locally (what with these cellfones with cams!) that's why at Assumpta Theater, literally no camera's are allowed. Once, I had to come out onstage in the middle of a ballet show to stop parents from taking photos because it was too dangerous for ballet dancers. Flash photography can cause temporary blindness and accidents (even deaths, Noords Jumalon of Ballet Phils. can attest to this) have happened onstage because of this. Thanks for verbalizing that yourself. Now we know even Broadway audiences can be that stubborn too. But that is no relief really.

Chino Hernandez said...

Very well said Ms. Lea. I remember Patti LuPone having the same dilemma with audiences, during Sweeney Todd. Not only did she have experiences with cameras but she had horrible ones with mobile phones! Kaloka. She even stopped once and told the person to answer the phone since it won't stop ringing. Hay... people talaga.

John L said...

The composers of Les Miz are the KINGS of RHYMES. But I've always wondered why the song "Castle On a cloud" had this line (which I think should have been reversed):
"There is a room that's full of toys. There are a hundred boys and girls".
Why didn't they make it... "There is a room that's full of TOYS. There are a hundred girls and BOYS", instead?
Not that it really matters now, because that whole stanza has been removed in the new production.

XXXX YYYY said...

ay naku ay naku yung mga post dito super nakaka affect sa konsensya ko.
ok then. Am not going to take that snap anymore.
Promise po yan Ms. Lea!

Me and my lil sis will patiently wait for you at the stage door.
By the way, MAY GUSTO PO BA KAYONG PASALUBONG???

MaihJongs . said...

everyone should follow the rules and regulations inside the theater. hmmmm, still people are stubborn.

John Watkins said...

I agree completely...I saw the show at the end of march (you were FANTASTIC!)...and I got to sit in the front row and it was so amazing..but on to my point...flashes and stuff like that are so distracting...I saw Phantom the day after I saw Les Mis and I felt like I was at a rock concert or something. So many flashes!! It was really annoying! I am glad you are sharing your thoughts on this, Lea.

And FYI...your performance of Fantine was one of the single best performances I have ever seen. I was just in awe of you. Your an incredible performer and I hope I get the honor of getting to see you perform again.

Gary Gutierrez said...

They should make it a protocol from now on to check all video cameras and cameras at the entrance door before even going into the theater because you always get those people who do not listen to the announcement before the show starts and/or those people who are plain ignorant and stubborn assess!!!

dianneLouise ♥ said...

"Onstage. the only time Lea can get distracted is when a photographer's flashbulb pops. When this happens, she says, "I focus again."

-this was an excerpt of an article entitled "Lea Salonga with a little help from mom"
in the August 2002 issue of YES magazine. i just thought of it when i read this. and i totally agree =)

Click here and comment... What u like... said...

Could anyone please post the show's schedule to the final while Lea is in it, so we could book in advance, flight and show.

Thank you.

http://jloohio.bebo.com

aleisej g said...

ooooooohhhhh...that's right!!!i understand you ms.lea,,, but i don't know(if ever i get the chance to watch you perform)if i could held myself to not to take your pictures,,,hahaha (Lol)

Reena Tabita said...

Hi Lea!

Heh --- I think people forget that those red lights ARE a dead giveaway. And they're pretty distracting to other audience members too!

Anyway, I met you at the stage door after the April 28 (Saturday) 2 pm performance and it was so gracious of you to oblige us with autographs and pictures! It was a great experience and I'd like to thank you so much for it!

Best of wishes to the rest of the cast and you for the rest of the run!

Urane laderas-cabantog said...

the best way is to capture moments without flashes.... thre's some lights on naman diba....
we need to help and cooperate with the actores on stage... their work is not that easy...

Vince Vicentuan said...

Flash or no flash photography is definitely a no-no in theaters. I just don't know how some could sneak in cameras. That would be very clever of you guys since gate security is tight on this. The fact is, cameras are contrabands in the theater.

Michelle S said...

Busted! i apologize for taking some (no flash) photography during FDS. I promise not to pull the same stunt in future shows. Thanks for bringing this up to our attention ;)

lorna Beardwell said...

hi lea,
I think you have a point there about flashing camera.Pero sometimes di namin mapigil mag take ng picture. Anyway next we won't do it. We know it's not a good manner.

Gerry Nepomuceno said...

I can't believe people have the audacity to do such a thing. But you know what? That only proves that there is a market for recordings of live performances, particularly for those who cannot travel to New York to see the show. For example, I know that the Lincoln Archives recorded a performance of "Flower Drum Song" 4 years ago so I hope they would someday release that on DVD. I would pay to own that piece of musical history.

Marty Jacinto said...

Hi Ms Lea! I just got back from Carnegie Hall. Oh my God! You were AMAZING and FANTASTIC! I had goosebumps while you were singing. GREAT GREAT performance! And you looked very pretty,as usual....! More power and God bless!

Nicole Jimenez said...

i watched that movie too..
i like it... NOT

Gina MS said...

As difficult as it was to not take at least one picture inside the theater last Friday, I'm proud to say that I did not participate in this kind of shenanigan. 'Guess I'm just afraid of having my camera confiscated and ruin my chances of getting better pictures WITH the stars back stage AFTER the show.

justin lanata said...

I totally agree. If you want pictures from the show, buy a SOUVENIR BROCHURE!! And after the show, the cast would be happy to sign it for you. What better memory of the show to take home? The pics in the brochures are gorgeous.

Alexander Cohen said...

Anyone who can't believe this happens should just be glad he or she wasn't sitting next to the individual next to whom I was sitting one night at Flower Drum Song: He was making noises at the ladies onstage as if he were at a strip club--and not a nice one, either. And we were only a few rows from the stage.

I tried to get him to stop, but he only got angry and created even more disturbance. I turned him in at intermission. He wasn't there for the second act. I don't know whether they allowed him to watch from elsewhere in the theater.

faye juezan said...

you probably are the most normal, most humble, most down-to-earth STAR i have ever known. And yet you got every right to live like the star that you really are =]
"The World According to Manang" -- haha i like that!

Nicole Jimenez said...

very pretty ..Lea

Ann Goff said...

Hi Lea!

I chanced upon Meredith Viera's entry on her blog and thought you'd find it interesting...
http://meredithtoday.ivillage.com/entertainment/

Alexander Cohen said...

Readers of this blog are likely to find that blog entry interesting as well, even if they don't know who Meredith Viera is.

Ann Goff said...

The comments on Meredith's blog are interesting as well. Nice words said about Lea...

meg arcilla said...

hahaha..this image of you getting up and asking to take a look at the camera screen just flashed in my head! :)) "pengengcopyha!"

Lea Salonga said...

And the red light will appear, whether or not the flash is used. It signals that a photo is going to be taken. Period.

Lea Salonga said...

Every single show, 8 times a week, until October 21 (barring illness or injury). I may also take a vacation after I've been in the show 6 months.

XXXX YYYY said...

Lea,

I just read today that you are one of the nominees for Nickelodeon's 2007 Kids' Choice
Pinoy Wannabe Award...

Hope you'll win.

Vince Vicentuan said...

I'm just curious. How could cameras slip past gate security when I know this is Broadway and they are very strict regarding this one? Surely, this is Theater Management responsibility and must be solved right away. If there is one to be blamed for this, it must be the Front-of-House management. Usherettes have no control over cameras once they are inside the theater. Why allow in the first place? This one really puzzles me. Enlighten me please?

dessa nola said...

hi lea, i read about your blog from smile magazine when you were featured early this year. i added you to my link (http://dessagirl.blogspot.com).. hope you dont mind

nways, i know this post would be an eye opener for a lot of people.. looking forward to visiting your blog regularly! God bless you! ~dessagirl

charo valmores said...

hi ms, lea. can u pls add me in your official myspace account? my surname is valmores.. i've been trying to add u but could't... thanks...
lab you... god bless..
-charo-

Rico del Rosario said...

Hi Lea! I just switched to hapee Toothpaste.

faye juezan said...

hi Lea, just curious, do you also listen to Joey Ayala's music?

CJ Jimenez said...

Not all bags are checked. Come to think of it, most theaters on Broadway don't check your bag as you enter. Although, I once had my things checked when I went to the Broadhurst but I was carrying some shopping bags with me that day. Ordinarily, you just have to show your ticket and you're in.

Chinky Fuentes said...

Guilty as charged! Sorry! I will not do it again, promise! And I will tell my friends about this, too. They might steal a shot or two whenever they watch a show.

ryan dimayuga said...

Hi Ms. Lea. I cant want to watch you on June 1-Friday! i will definitely have your picture - after the play of course. Where do I see you for authograph and picture after the play?

Gina MS said...

Hi! The stage door is on the left side of the main entrance to the theater. Just stay out front after the play and the actors will be coming out through that door about 15 minutes later. There will be a lot of people waiting anyway, so just follow the crowd. Have fun!

XXXX YYYY said...

bwahahahahhahah nice one :D

Vince Vicentuan said...

I have been using Hapee toothpaste since I came to know about the history of the family behind the successful Pinoy toothpaste. They used to supply packaging materials to some big American toothpaste company before and decided to put up their own after knowing the trade. OFW remittances amount to 10 billion pesos a year but most of it goes out of the "kaban ng bayan" because when OFW's shop for pasalubong and everything, they buy foreign-made products. Colgate and Close Up no longer have manufacturing plants in the Philippines and instead found their homes in Indonesia and other Asian countries thereby making their products (which are very popular in the Philippines) siphon some of the dollar reserve of the country. This also happens when you buy other expensive items that are not Pinoy-made. So, think of that dollar the next time you buy something that is not Pinoy-made. Hope there will be more entrepreneurs like the ones behind Hapee toothpaste and more Pinoys to patronize them. Lei, you are the perfect image model for Hapee toothpaste!

Janet Carter said...

One of the main reasons bootlegging happens is because there's a demand for it. People want to see their favorite performers, even if they can't afford to travel across the country or around the world to do so. If it became standard practice to release filmed DVDs of shows (something that seems to be more common with European productions than American and British ones), that would help sate the demand for it.

Mark Runion said...

A lot of people seeing Broadway shows are tourists who have just come from the Empire State Building or the Statue of Liberty. They have cameras on them. There simply isn't room in New York theatres to confiscate every camera that comes in. Add to that the fact that a lot of cameras these days are smaller than the palm of your hand. You can't expect the manager to strip search every person who enters the theatre--after all, they only have 30 minutes to seat almost 1200 people.

roobster lamb said...

ill have to agree with that. It would be Absolutely amazing if the final performance of every original Broadway cast and show be recorded and available for purchase once the show closes or goes on tour.

Lea Salonga said...

Actually, all Broadway shows are recorded for the Lincoln Center archives. The shows are normally recorded within the first year of the run.