Dead Horses: When to Quit

For those of us who are driven to succeed - especially with our creative projects, there is always the question of when to quit. When do we know that a project clearly a bad idea and how do we know when to move on?

There are many examples of projects that failed, whose makers should have seen it coming but who didn't. And Spider-Man:Turn off the Dark was just one such example.

Failing on a Grand Scale

At first, the Broadway musical, based on the Toby Maguire films of one Marvel s most iconic superheroes, seemed destined for success. Backed by Marvel, with music by Bono, and The Edge, and directed by The Lion King's director, Julie Taymor, it seemed like a start studded line up for a sure fire hit.

But instead, Spider-Man: Turn off the Dark, proved to be one of the most expensive musicals in Broadway s history, and also arguably one of the most disastrous, costing a staggering $75 million dollars and closing with a massive loss, and many injuries to its performers. And far from earning acclaim, the whole concept was seen as a bad joke: being mocked by everyone; from the cast of Saturday Night Live; to Marvel's own Deadpool.

So how could such a juggernaut of a project, have gone so spectacularly wrong? As many critics have said, there were many ways the project was set up to fail. The warning signs were there with the previews. Having 182 previews for one show, really should have flagged up that something was very wrong with this concept.

Then there was the choice of venue. Broadway theatres can allow for some spectacular performances. For example the dancers of Blast achieved some awe inspiring choreography when my family and I went to see their show. From 16 people catching flags in the dark, to a drummer able to make a drumstick levetate and play itself, through sheer skill,  their performances were superb and world class. But as specactacular as these feats were, they were achieved on tera firma. For high wire stunts you need an arena: as the many injuries to Turn off the Dark's stunt peformers went on to prove. Pity the proposed Las Vegas one wasn't used the first time round.

And then there was the storyline. Julie Taymor may have been an award winning costume designer and director for The Lion King, but as many have said; her decision to make the character of Arachne central to the plot of Spider-Man:Turn off the Dark, totally missed the appeal of Spiderman as a character. What Spiderman is really about, is the story of a young man finding his way in a tough world. All of us can relate to that. But by changing the emphasis of the story, she lost us the emotional attachment to the plot.

And the rewrites only made things worse. Like Martin Guerre, when you have an original concept you shouldn't mess with the formula. For example, the plot to kill off the Green Goblin at the end of Act 1, and then introduce not one but six Marvel supervillians in Act 2; was a complete overkill: and did not make sense, to audiences of the Tobey Maguire films. While im sure fans of the comic books would love to see Spiderman s enemies on stage, the fact remains that a comic book is not a musical. Getting all 6 supervillians into one act proved a logistical nightmare for all involved.

In the end, not even the appeal of Spiderman himself would make audiences come back, and the musical finally closed in 2014. In many ways, the flop of Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark, stands as an example; that bigger is not always better; that throwing more money at a problem is not the way to fix it; and that even the experts can get it wrong sometimes.

'Dead Horses'

Such a spectacular failure begs the obvious question: why on earth, would the show s producers keep on pumping millions of dollars, into something that was clearly a bad idea? Strange though this may seem, I know why they did it. Because when we think about it, what have we been taught our whole lives, when we take on to do something? Never quit, keep pushing on, don't take no for answer: and when you start a project, you finish it. We've become so used to critics and naysayers trying to tear our projects down, that when something really is a bad idea, we don't listen to them.

As motivational guru Paul McGee explains:

"Focus can lead to you being blinkered in your approach. Determination can result in a stubbornness to change, despite what the facts are telling us. Confidence could lead to a dangerous cocktail of arrogance and complacency."

And he gives the example of the Dakota Indians' proverb: "When you're riding a dead horse, dismount."

But of course, for reasons aforementioned, we don't do this. Certainly not for projects in showbusiness. I have not worked as a full time performer, but having watched my parents put together musical productions for 30 years, I know the emotional and personal commitments involved, to keep a musical running. No doubt the producers and backers of Spiderman Turn off the Dark felt this way too. As the saying goes: the show must go on. And we all do it. I once made the same mistake, letting one failed event turn into an obsession that wrecked everything for me and many others.

The Show That Was Not

It began as an idea I had, for my old student society to have a reunion. Our society was the university's musical theatre group, and one of the most successful groups on campus. Over the 30 years of its existence, talented students from all over the university had come to perform at our Deb Hall. And from hundreds of auditionees, an intense rehearsal schedule, and a meticulous backstage operation, we made sure that the standard of our shows stayed high.

Alumni of our society went on to have amazing careers, working everywhere from the RSC to London's West End. And so, one day while looking at the Alumni fb page, the idea came to me: why not get everyone together, and do a massive joint showcase, for a reunion? With over 30 generations of Alumni and a never ending number of talented students, it seemed like a match made in heaven. People always talk about opportunities, and yet one was staring us right in the face! I was brimming with excitement. What an event it could be - we had to do this!

It took 2 years of steady lobbying, before the student committee finally agreed to a showcase. But it was worth the wait. I was ecstatic, and sent invites to everyone. We had  Facebook group set up, and auditions that I attended. 600 people were notified. Official invites were sent through our Alumni magazine, and we even had a high standing member of the BBC on the guest list. The momentum was awesome, as we waited for the big event. And then it didn't happen.

Due to a double booking of the venue, the reunion had to be cancelled. We were all devastated. All that brilliant momentum and excitement went straight into a wall. After all the years trying to follow in my producer/director parents' footsteps, this could have been my chance. But with a heavy heart, I had to accept that the reunion was not going to happen.

And that would have been the end of it. Except that every time my parents did a show, it reminded me of what might have been.  To have come so close to putting on something that could have been spectacular, kept tearing away at me. We could have made a great event! Again and again, the idea of a joint showcase between the students and Alumni haunted me; and with the same message: it can be done. It can be done.

And so every year, I went back to try it again. But as with Spider-Man's producers, I kept trying to ride a dead horse. Time and again i would be told that neither the students, nor the Alumni wanted the event to happen anymore. But I ignored such comments as naysaying, and tried again and again to lobby both the society s student committee and my fellow Alumni, without success. My desire for a joint showcase had become an obsession. And my persistence only made it worse.

By the end of this sorry saga, my friends and I had fallen out big time, and a lot of students and Alumni were disappointed, frustrated, and disillusioned. My one last attempt came as a video blog, inviting all to take part. Thinking that enough time had gone by to try again, i posted my Vlog to the society s Facebook page, to see who was interested. And then all hell broke loose. The student committee were furious that I had overstepped the mark by trying to push something that hadnt been approved. They quickly blocked me from the society s Facebook page. Some of my fellow Alumni was also very annoyed, and threatened to block me on the Alumni page as well. It was painfully clear that no one wanted the event to haplem, and my persistence in pushing for it, made people want it less and less. And so I finally gave up as the last few fragements of the project s train hit the wall. It was a painful lesson to learn, but in many ways, and in the face of the need to succeed against all odds, it could happen again.

Conclusion

So the lesson to take away from all of this is: when do we actually know when to quit? In a world where we are taught never say never, and not to take 'no' for an answer: when should we realise that our project is not going to work?

I would say the best judgment to make, would be when trusted friends start saying an idea is wrong, and give detailed accounts as to why. If their facts check out, then it's probably time to change the plan. And if it still doesn't work, then it s time to call it quits.

'Dead horses' are everywhere. Let's not ride them anytime soon.

SOURCES:

McGee, Paul: How to Succeed With People, pgs 100, 103 Capstone 2013