NYC Time Square New Year Eve

[+ Lance_Navarro]

I did NYE at Times Square in 2005 I believe it was. We headed to get a place around 7, thinking that would be early enough. Well, at that point the crowd was already 6 blocks back from the main stage. We were let into the barricades and found a spot where we had to stay for the next 5 hours. As has been stated, there are no bathrooms, no food or drink vendors and if you walk outside of the barricades, you can't get back in. We were so far away we couldn't even see the screens showing the performances.

 

People were pissing in bottles and on the ground, so needless to say, one didn't want to sit on the ground. By the time midnight hit most everyone around us was annoyed and wanted to get out as quick as possible, which created an uncomfortable exiting as people were pushing and shoving to get out quicker.

 

I'm glad that I can say that I've done it, but DEFINITELY never again!

[bostonman]

In Boston, it's the annual tradition of July 4 on the Esplanade, with the big Boston Pops concert including celebs, ending with the 1812 Overture with real cannon fire, and then the fireworks. Same kinds of issues - you have to get there too early if you want a decent spot, there's lots of hanging around with not much really to do - no alcohol allowed (which is sensible but less fun lol)...and for those years that I've had no major plans, watching the big concert on TV is really just as good (and even better because you can choose NOT to watch segments of it, lol). It IS fun to be there for the fireworks. But especially as I've gotten older, I've reconciled myself with the fact that I really don't like being in the middle of big anonymous crowds. (In a more controlled situation, like a theatre audience, it's a totally different story, of course.) For the big holiday things, I'd much rather be somewhere a bit quieter and much less hectic with a few friends at most.

 

(That said, there are concerts on the Esplanade all summer, and it's definitely fun to be there on a nice summer night when it's not so crazy. But I haven't done the July 4th thing there since I was in my 20's, and that's just fine.)

 

I'm sure that last minute countdown at Times Square is quite exciting being in the middle of the crowd - but I wouldn't want to waste my whole day for that one minute. That moment is also fun to watch onscreen.

[+ deej]

Not to defend Ms Carey, but networks routinely utilize prerecorded vocal tracks during major live broadcasts. Whoever sings the National Anthem at this year's Super Bowl will sing live, while a taped version of the song plays simultaneously. Too much is riding on the performance to chance a human or technical snafu.

 

This is very true, particularly for outdoor events and ESPECIALLY outdoor events in the winter. Cold weather can make performing difficult at best. Much of the music to be performed at the upcoming inauguration will have been recorded up to a week before the event, for example.

 

But from the little I've read, Ms. Carey apparently skipped the rehearsal/sound check where the fuckup with the wrong track queued up would have been discovered and fixed. She may have been in a snit because they wouldn't put her in the hotel she wanted. Instead, they put her in the hotel right next to the stage because they knew she's always late and didn't want the logistics nightmare of trying to get her in/out of the area last minute.

 

It's funny. When Ashleigh(?) Simpson had the same sort of thing happen on SNL it all but ended her career. Mariah keeps having crap like this happen, over and over, and keeps getting invited to do these events. Event producers have only themselves to blame.

[rvwnsd]

...Mariah keeps having crap like this happen, over and over, and keeps getting invited to do these events. Event producers have only themselves to blame.

 

But-but-but she's Mariah Carey!

[+ glutes]

Lip sync? I could never imagine The Rolling Stones, Metallica, the Kinks, Tony Bennett, etc. Lip syncing. What a wussy performer.

[bigvalboy]

Lots of finger pointing, but I stand with Mariah.

[bostonman]

Lip synching does happen a lot. I know from experience that it's preferred at many ballparks/stadiums, simply because the echo of the sound coming back at the singer may throw them off. Most if not all of the pre-Macy's Parade performances (the Broadway excerpts, etc) are lip-synched. For all that NBC likes to hype their "LIVE" TV musicals, some of last year's The Wiz was lip synched (it was most obvious in "Everybody Rejoice"), and I would not be surprised if at least some of the extensive backup vocal work in this year's Hairspray weren't prerecorded. There IS occasional lipsynching in live Broadway shows, and much more often there is what they call "sweetening" (the use of a prerecorded vocal track to add to the sound of the onstage vocals, giving an illusion of more voices or a smoother sound).

 

But in all of those cases, the performers in question would also be prepared to go without the tracks if need be.

 

Mariah SHOULD have been ready for that possibility. She wasn't.

[+ deej]

and I would not be surprised if at least some of the extensive backup vocal work in this year's Hairspray weren't prerecorded

 

Hairspray had several oddities. There were gaffes in the east coast broadcast (still available on Hulu) so they dropped in footage from dress rehearsal for the west coast broadcast. Even then, audio quality is far superior in the promo videos still available on YouTube than what was broadcast (at least on the west coast). They had balance problems bad enough it was hard to hear the singers at times.

 

Mariah SHOULD have been ready for that possibility. She wasn't.

 

That would be the professional thing to do. But SO not the diva thing to do.

[bostonman]

Hairspray had several oddities. There were gaffes in the east coast broadcast (still available on Hulu)

 

There were certainly some problems with Tracy's (Maddie Baillio's) mic in the opening number. And it did throw her, just a little. But she just kept going, and recovered from that to give what I thought was a very good performance. And don't forget this was her first onscreen role. It really takes someone with the "cojones" of a pro to not let a rocky start like that affect the performance in general.

[+ WmClarke]

But-but-but she's Mariah Carey!

http://i1305.photobucket.com/albums/s545/WmClarke/IMG_0252_zpsuaxxe8he.jpg

[rvwnsd]

http://i1305.photobucket.com/albums/s545/WmClarke/IMG_0252_zpsuaxxe8he.jpg

Proving that NO ONE does it like Mariah!

[kewtex]

But from the little I've read, Ms. Carey apparently skipped the rehearsal/sound check where the fuckup with the wrong track queued up would have been discovered and fixed.

 

What you read is true.

 

 

She may have been in a snit because they wouldn't put her in the hotel she wanted. Instead, they put her in the hotel right next to the stage because they knew she's always late and didn't want the logistics nightmare of trying to get her in/out of the area last minute.

 

Poor baby.

 

 

Mariah keeps having crap like this happen, over and over, and keeps getting invited to do these events. Event producers have only themselves to blame.

 

Perhaps the producers are obsessed with breasts.

[rvwnsd]

...Perhaps the producers are obsessed with breasts.

 

What's that line from "Blinded By The Light?" Oh, yeah, "...some silicone sister with her manager mister..."