Time to check in with poor bedraggled Al Pacino, star of David Mamet’s “China Doll.”
The play was supposed to have opened Nov. 19, but, after I reported on the disastrous previews, the premiere was pushed back to Dec. 4, a Friday.
No Broadway show ever opens on a Friday. Newspapers generally have lower circulation on Saturday, so the reviews will be, in showbiz lingo, “buried.”
That’s probably an antiquated way of thinking these days, but the producers of “China Doll” aren’t exactly Silicon Valley whiz kids. I suspect they want to bury the inevitably terrible reviews.
Despite the stampede of walkouts at intermission, patrons demanding refunds from ushers, and Pacino’s extensive use of teleprompters, “China Doll” is grossing more than $1 million a week, with tickets going for over $300.
The actor is an icon, and his legions of fans don’t pay much attention to Broadway gossip. They want to see the Al “Just when I thought I was out . . . they pull me back in!” Pacino of “Godfather” fame.
But an onslaught of negative reviews might dent sales, so why not keep the critics away as long as possible? In fact, I’ve heard rumors this week of yet another postponement.
But producer Jeffrey Richards says that’s not the case. “We’ve sent out invitations to the critics,” he says. “And the only reason we are opening on a Friday is because the day we wanted — Dec. 6 — is the opening night of ‘School of Rock,’ and we thought it would be unfair to them.
“And why would we postpone again? It would only give you more fodder for your column.” As of Thursday, he said he was still planning an “opening night celebration” on what would have been the original opening night. Which was just fine with the production team. As one said, “The only thing you can do with this show is drink.”
Sources say the play hasn’t changed much in the last couple of weeks. “Nothing they’ve done justifies a two-week delay,” one person says.
Mamet, who disappeared before previews started, popped in for a couple of days, changed a few lines and then — poof! — disappeared again.
But Richards says Mamet continues to work on the play, with new rewrites going in this weekend.
Pacino is “hit or miss” with the lines, a source says. The seven teleprompters embedded in the set are fired up every night, and the Bluetooth earpiece through which his lines are fed is still in use.
And he’s exhausted. The two-a-day shows on Saturday are “killing him,” a source says. I’ve heard he wants to knock off Saturday nights and, to make up for the loss at the box office, extend the limited run by two weeks.
“We have no plans to do that at this time,” says Richards.
Pacino’s stage career is a checkered one. He electrified off-Broadway in 1968 in “The Indian Wants the Bronx,” and won a Tony for 1969’s “Does a Tiger Wear a Necktie?” and again for “The Basic Training of Pavlo Hummel” (1977). But he was dreadful in a recent revival of “Glengarry Glen Ross” and unspeakable in a 2003 production of “Salome.”
“China Doll” isn’t helping matters.
At least one production change is working — the airplane with which Pacino pummels co-star Christopher Denham. The old model crumpled like a Styrofoam cup, causing the audience to burst out laughing. The new model remains intact.
“Why don’t you come and see the new ending for yourself, and we’ll use the plane on you, Michael?” Richards says.
I’m not a huge fan of “Finding Neverland.” But I do like Kelsey Grammer, and am happy to report that he’s returning to the show as Charles Frohman/Captain Hook for seven weeks starting Jan. 19. Grammer was terrific as Georges in the 2010 revival of “La Cage aux Folles.” I’ll make a point of seeing him again in “Finding Neverland.”