Going to Colony was never a positive experience for me. The staff always treated me as if I were an

Colony , which is part of the footprint of The Brill Building (which has more history than Wikipedia) is a cultural landmark in this city.  Sure, their prices were a bit high, which is why so many of its shoppers in recent years turned to eBay and other online retailers.  But still, going to that store with its somewhat cranky yet incredibly knowledgeable los angeles county government jobs staff and buying a song or two (like I did when I was at Tisch), made you feel like part of the scene.
Both of these stores advertised our brand.  Millions of people walked by them every year, and thousands los angeles county government jobs went in because they saw something that intrigued them.  The web doesn t work like that.  You rarely just run into something online without having received direction from somewhere.
This is incredibly sad for many reasons. Colony was always one of my go-to stops whenever I visited NYC. I would also suspect that internet piracy has become a large part of stores like this closing. Many Broadway fans would rather download sheet music, cast albums, los angeles county government jobs etc. illegally for free rather than go to a store like Colony and pay for it. An unfortunate sign of our times.
Going to Colony was never a positive experience for me. The staff always treated me as if I were an idiot, or was trying to steal something. I d say part of why they are closing is that no one wants to buy from mean, accusatory staff!
Two thoughts. Yes, the staff at Colony was downright obnoxious, and that s from many visits over the last two decades. But, I agree with the sense of joy and discovery standing elbow-to-elbow with other performing arts aficionados in a physical store. I still mourn the loss of Footlight Records, where I would never leave empty handed. I also purchased on more than one occasion, items recommended by fellow shoppers. For that experience to go by the wayside, that is indeed a tragedy.
My other thought is on the comment, when stores selling Broadway los angeles county government jobs memorabilia can't sell enough Broadway memorabilia to warrant having a store, it means that Broadway memorabilia ain't in the same demand as it used to be. Well, that is certainly true, and here s another reason: it s poorly los angeles county government jobs designed and executed. When I first started my pilgrimages to NYC from the midwest, in the late 1980 s, I d return with scads of window cards, souvenir programs, t-shirts, etc. On my last visit this spring, I saw 8 shows in 5 days and came home with nothing. Show graphics are no longer clever or artistic enough to warrant the display of a windowcard on my wall as an example, please see the monstrosity that is currently representing the soon-to-open Chaplin. Souvenir programs have minimal written los angeles county government jobs content and lousy, grainy pictures that do no justice to the visuals of a show; and the shirts are outrageously priced and of poor quality (I m in that industry, and I know what I m talking about).
The owners of Colony have been pirates from the get go. Overpricing everything to tourists who didn t know any better. Thank God New Yorkers knew better not to buy there! I m thrilled Colony los angeles county government jobs will be gone. Screw em! Good riddance! los angeles county government jobs Goodbye!
This is so saddening though inevitable. Unfortunately, buying things online, streaming, downloading legal or not is the thing that the majority does. Yes it was overpriced, but a true landmark, and was my favorite place to hit up before/after seeing a show, or even to get musically inspired. Why can t these things stay the same?
Same thing with Tower, Patelson s, etc. usually went in for 1 item and wound up buying several things more because you would browse the whole store and pick up many more items can t do that online can t browse you have to know what you re looking for or want and other items just don t appear. Took most of the fun out of shopping for sheet music, scores, discs, vinyls, and new items. Sad indeed!
Taking it back a step Broadway used to market its music to radio and TV where you heard more standard music being sung by popular artists. What songs are being covered by today s singers? If she s smart, maybe Cindy Lauper might get a song out of KINKY BOOTS that makes it to the radio but did anything come from SPRING AWAKENING or BRING IT ON? So if you don t have the material *coming* from Broadway, you can t *sell* it at Colony (high-priced or rude sales people not withstanding)
I started making los angeles county government jobs trips to NYC in 1997 and every trip involved stopping in Colony to peruse the stacks of music and albums los angeles county government jobs and show librettos. There s something about being able to flip through music to get inspired. I always left with a very big bill.
Yes, everything was overpriced and you definitely tried to avoid the very crabby, eccentric staff. But that staff was a bit of the uniqueness of the store. And I never would have made all those purchases at an online retailer. There was just something about buying from THE Broadway Music Store, right in the midst of it all. I will definitely los angeles county government jobs miss it ..
Very upset about Colony los angeles county government jobs s closing, the color, flavor of the Broadway los angeles county government jobs theater district goes with it. With the closing of so many stores selling sheet music in NYC, where do we go? It was delicious los angeles county government jobs to be able, after a show, to step into Colony and find sheet music for the show you just caught they had EVERYTHING in every key it seemed!
You can t really browse online, check out the arrangement,view what else is in a song collection, etc .do you really want to print music out on flimsy 8 x11 paper? You use your own ink,paper and then PAY for the arrangement? Makes no sense and buying online always involve costly shipping charges.
A few weeks ago, the NYTimes reported that people are dumping their family pianos,they take up too much room! You can t give them away they are actually being smashed to bits. Many apartment houses in NYC will not welcome pianos, no one plays anymore, it s all electronic etc. Very upsetting. Larger issues at play here, the casual musician, like myself that loves American Musical Theater and enjoys playing the great American songbook with control of the dynamics, tempo, style can no longer do so. There is no vendor for the sheet music and no home for the piano. It s considered a disturbance!!
I never like to see landmarks go away. I think it is very wise that in your past couple of blogs you are concerned with a growing indicator los angeles county government jobs on Broadway that I already experience at the community/regional theater level. When I started acting in the 80 s it was an unbelievable moment to be selected for shows. I was like a sponge soaking in direction from all sources available. Twenty-eight years later, now as a director and producer, I still enter every project like it is the first one always starting over, filled with excited anticipation of where the production will go. But it is different now. At auditions, part of the process for me is handing out the rehearsal schedule, los angeles county government jobs asking potential cast members if they can commit to the schedule as I want the cast to be as passionate for the production as I am. Should I even have to ask this question? As an executive board member with only one more year to serve in a six year term, we can t get board members, we can t fill the committees. It seems that volunteerism is declining rapidly, so it is hard to run the administrative end of a theater. We have a core of a few who keep this all together, running the executive, los angeles county government jobs administrative end. We are also the actors, los angeles county government jobs directors/producers/set desgin/build/lighting/sound whatever it takes to get a season up and running only to find audiences continue to decline. Walk-ins are getting to be greater numbers than reservations? I could write a book on the reasons los angeles county government jobs why I feel this is the direction we are heading in in fact the title will be If This Is The American Dream WAKE UP Because the key for me whether it be in business, theater, los angeles county government jobs etc you have to have the core, the heart, the passion to commit los angeles county government jobs and that is a growing concern for me.
**** yep, yep it is shame. I almost always go to Colony after a show to do a quick broadway karaoke impulse los angeles county government jobs buy or at least try to (where oh where is Abz karaoke?) Nothing better than belting out a show on the ride home after you just saw it.
**** Broadway s biggest fan base problem from my POV is the ticket price. I was a weekly regular at Cabaret at $100 and fairly regular at Chicago but now the prices have just gotten crazy. My front row center seat at newsies los angeles county government jobs costs more than my flight to NY ($165+ I moved NYC to FLA last year). I did it twice on my last trip in town last month but am trying to hold it to one for my next trip in Sept due to the price.
**** And the box office games the shows (producers?) play are annoying as well. It used to be that scapling was illegal or at least unethical. Now it s simply done by the box office los angeles county government jobs with premium seating. And holding back seats drives me crazy. If I m willing to commit 6 months in advance I shouldn t have to buy 12 rows back and on the side. Now I know these are all business tactics which maximize short term profits (and may very well be a necessity) los angeles county government jobs but they work against los angeles county government jobs building a fan base and selling tickets los angeles county government jobs beyond the business, tourist, and one-timer trade.
**** And make no mistake about it, having regulars in an audience goes a long way in loosening up the rest of the crowd. When cheers start before the curtain goes up it def ratchets up the anticipation for first timers and regulars will clap when appropriate unlike some other unappreciative or just unaware viewers.
**** I know that Altarboyz was off-broadway so the math is way different, but the combination of an excellent show, that $35-$50 price point, and the early cheers from the back of the house made it a once a week(+) event for many holics like me.
**** Broadway should have more rewards for regular/frequent buyers. Maybe I m unaware about any fan community sites like the Altarholics had but I don t see any special rewards to encourage repeat or bring a friend visits.
**** that all said thanks for all the great work you and your peers do. the number of projects you manage and th