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Post by terrylondon79 on Nov 5, 2022 14:32:02 GMT
Noticed in the 'the band visits' thread that the donmar are now doing digital programmes..
Salisbury playhouse were trying to charge for o download of the mischief plays program.
In Chichester now and the famous 5 musical, are trying to charge for a download link.
Does anyone else feel that charging for a link to download a PDF, is a bit of a ripoff. PDFs aren't meant to be a end product? Most likely not formatted for reading on a mobile screen, which is these days how most people access the web.
I refuse to buy a link. As don't want to squint at mobile screen to view something that has been produced as a printed product.
Im hoping it isn't the future, as purchasing a programme, was a memento for the show as well.
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Post by andrew on Nov 5, 2022 14:41:48 GMT
Very rarely bought programmes, only for extremely special shows and really only in the days I might go to the stage door, I would never in a million years pay for a PDF programme. Get stuffed.
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Post by alece10 on Nov 5, 2022 14:47:33 GMT
I got a free one for Marvelous but that was because the printed one wasn't ready so was a nice gesture but, to be honest, I haven't rven read it.
Certainly wouldn't pay for a PDF.
I buy programmes for all musicals I see the first time, not for repeat visits and have quite a collection. Lord knows what I will eventually do with them.
I enjoy reading them on the train home after seeing a show which I wouldn't do if it was digital.
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Post by longinthetooth on Nov 5, 2022 15:29:20 GMT
I certainly won't be buying a digital programme. Like others, I like a printed one, to browse through on the way home. I find I can't read them in the theatre (as the light isn't bright enough or the print is pale writing on a paler page, for example), but I love to have a record of the show, and to occasional get them signed.
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Post by marob on Nov 5, 2022 15:46:41 GMT
I hate digital programmes. I’ll buy a programme for pretty much every show I see, but I won’t be paying for a digital one.
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3,576 posts
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Post by Rory on Nov 5, 2022 16:45:55 GMT
No, no, no! You absolutely need a physical programme. They've already all but done away with flyers and folio posters, much to my bitter disappointment, leave the programmes alone!
I *hate* the fact you can't get flyers anymore for most West End shows. I had collected them for years!
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Post by Dawnstar on Nov 5, 2022 18:50:57 GMT
The ROH has had digital-only cast sheets for the last 2 seasons. Most people I've seen/heard comment on them don't seem that keen, including myself. They still have printed programmes but for ballet performances the programmes don't give the full cast lists, so they're not much help if what you want primarily is the casting details.
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Post by scarpia on Nov 5, 2022 19:35:33 GMT
No, no, no! You absolutely need a physical programme. They've already all but done away with flyers and folio posters, much to my bitter disappointment, leave the programmes alone! I *hate* the fact you can't get flyers anymore for most West End shows. I had collected them for years! Agreed! |
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Post by mkb on Nov 5, 2022 22:23:56 GMT
Clearly in a minority here, but the transition to digital programmes can't come soon enough for me.
I love to have a souvenir and record of the cast, but it's getting out of hand. I must have 2,000+ of the things, and they just end up stored away in boxes never to be perused again. What is the point?
As with photographs, the switch to digital means they're instantly retrievable and take up no physical space. It would be lovely, on the way to a theatre, to browse old programmes and remind myself of previous shows that share some connection with the latest.
I am more than happy to pay a fee for a pdf that reflects the costs of putting it together, and which I'd expect to be considerably less than the crazy prices we currently see for some very basic A5 affairs. A £5 paper programme ought to be no more than a £1 pdf for the typical West End offering with just one or two articles, and maybe £2 for something more extensive like the National Theatre ones.
Of course, the biggest argument of all is the environmental one. I don't see the point of chopping down trees for something I could quite happily consume electronically. (And, yes, I know that's at a carbon cost too.)
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Post by marob on Nov 5, 2022 22:50:18 GMT
Problem though is how they are made available digitally. The NT had an app with programmes on, then they closed it down so any bought on there were lost. The Donmar Warehouse published a programme on an app to tie in with The Vote being broadcast on TV, but I can’t find any trace if that now. The two theatres near me have made some programmes available on their websites as issuu-style digital booklets, but again, the minute they redesign their website, that stuff will be gone.
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Post by NeilVHughes on Nov 5, 2022 23:09:48 GMT
Never really invested in programmes, the back story to the play is unnecessary as long as executed well and the cast is always available on line.
Whenever I visit Hampstead downstairs which usually have a free programme I always just glance through and leave on my chair when I leave as why bring it home to just put in the bin sometime in the future.
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Post by n1david on Nov 6, 2022 0:02:29 GMT
The Almeida did a tryout a few years ago where they would email a link to a digital programme a few days after you'd seen a show, obviously trying to preserve the income from programme sales on the night but still making the content available. Didn't last long as I suspect regulars learned and stopped buying the physical programme.
I do buy programmes if it's at a theatre where there are likely to be interesting essays about the production (so that's places like the NT, Donmar, Bridge) as it sometimes enhances my appreciation of the show afterwards (e.g. Stoppard's essay in the Leopoldstadt programme which was about how he had done his research and how much was known and how much was imagined). Won't buy a programme for some revival with a familiar cast.
Not happy about paying for a digital programme. In days of yore, one of the main reasons for buying a programme was to work out "what did I see so-and-so in before" and now the Internet serves that purpose....
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Post by FairyGodmother on Nov 6, 2022 0:05:16 GMT
I like programmes. I was a bit upset at South Pacific that they didn't have any. They gave me a free photocopy of the page with the cast list and song list, but it isn't quite the same!
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Post by kate8 on Nov 6, 2022 9:21:25 GMT
I rarely buy programmes, because I don’t want to pay £5 for headshots, lists of donors, adverts for other plays, etc. It’s hard to tell if there will be any useful info included. My favourites are the free Hampstead Downstairs programmes, which are exactly what I’d be prepared to pay a couple of pounds for - artistic director’s intro, playwright interview, cast/creatives list, and usually another short piece about the play, no unnecessary waffle or padding. That kind of thing would be useful to download, but I think it should be available as part of the marketing, not paid-for info.
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Post by theatrefan62 on Nov 6, 2022 10:57:12 GMT
Buying programmes has become a necessity now when going to the theatre as its like collecting now after so many years. However if they move to digital I'd stop buying then, no interest in digital copies of things. I may also end up going to theatre a bit less as without the collecting maybe theatre would become a little bit less part of my life and end up like cinema etc 🤷♂️
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Post by og on Nov 6, 2022 16:37:24 GMT
Remember that thread where people bemoaned e-tickets?
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Post by theatrefan62 on Nov 6, 2022 16:51:19 GMT
Not really the same thing.
Tickets you get when you purchase your seat and dont technically pay for, you need one to get in. You can also easily print them (as I do) and just takes one sheet of paper so you can still have a hard copy, and still keep it if you wish after the event.
Programmes are very much an optional purchase
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594 posts
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Post by og on Nov 6, 2022 17:59:06 GMT
Not really the same thing. Tickets you get when you purchase your seat and dont technically pay for, you need one to get in. You can also easily print them (as I do) and just takes one sheet of paper so you can still have a hard copy, and still keep it if you wish after the event. Programmes are very much an optional purchase Still, it was a physical item going (gone) digital that a lot of people collected/scrapbooked as a record of attendance, as people do with programmes. There are parallels imo. |
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Post by mkb on Nov 6, 2022 19:05:48 GMT
Another comparison would be CDs vs streaming.
Despite being in favour of digital programmes, I've always stuck with CDs for music. That's because I want to have a digital copy, but I want to host it or hold a copy on locally stored media. If I've paid for something that is hosted remotely, I don't trust the hosting company to make that available for my lifetime.
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