Don’t blow your budget on just a single feature

When allocating budget for any creative endeavor there is always a tension between what the creative team wants and want the audience needs.  Do you really need to blow the majority of your budget on just one effect, one feature or one gimmick?

Last night I saw  Michael Weller’s BEAST, produced by New York Theater Workshop – the folks who brought you “RENT.” It’s told as a “fever in six acts” and arcs from Iraq to Germany to Crawford, Texas.  From a creative perspective it leaves you warm; from a budget perspective it gets you hot under the collar.

Set on a minimalist stage the props consist of a coffin draped in the American flag and a simple aluminum chair.  It forces your attention on the actors: the heavy lifting is to be done by their words you think to yourself. But then we get to “the big scene” set against the backdrop of Mr. Rushmore.

The set is gorgeous, perfectly lit and highly dimensional. “Hmm I think, that’s a lot of money right there.  Wonder why?” Because it turns out the mountains talk.  Or more accurately, their mouth’s move like the masks from “Planet of The Apes” which is to say not very well.  The audience groans.   And all I can think of is what an old timer from Hollywood told me once: “don’t blow your wad on one shot.”

I can imagine how this idea might was sold internally: from inspiration to group-think to mass hypnosis.  But the fact of the matter is a set piece this high tech is out of place against the perfectly executed minimalist sets from the other five acts.   The same concept of talking presidents could have been communicated with a mural and sound design for 1/10th the price.

When you’re budgeting for almost anything creative you’ve got to avoid feature-creep and self-indulgence.  It takes self-discipline and a willingness to focus on results over form.  New York Theater Workshop does in fact have a new Managing Director William Russo with just that mandate. No doubt he’s going to balance business with creativity, risk to reward.

But it’s too late for “BEAST” which closes this week.  Seats have not been filled to capacity and the reviews have been tepid.  Lessons learned:

1. Don’t mix minimalism with over-the-top techno wizardy
2. Match form to function
3. Don’t include talking presidents in your next corporate presentation

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