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Doug Higley 1942 - 2022 7152 Posts |
Pretty disapointed in the Carnival production shows that were no more than MARATHON Dance Sessions with a couple of good female singers and a 'Noodle' (who looked like Huntz Hall) that purported to be the male singer. (ugh) They really work those dancers!!! We even saw dancers working in uniforms to help disembark the crowd at the end of the cruise!...but alas no Magician or Variety Act that would have added fun to the shows and broke up that feeling of sameness and energetic dance steps that frankly wear you out 1/2 way through. There was a 'Welcome Aboard' show that had a politically correct "Comedian" (not very funny) more of those dancers and an ENDLESS pitch from 'Happy Danny' the ultimate cliche Cruise Director. No Magician.
No Juggler...no Dog Act. There was another show that featured a female Hypnotist act and a different comedian...but I didn't go. (Sorry Hypnos...nothing personal...I was eating.) Add to that 2 so called Adults Only R rated comedian shows, which I usually find tedious and anything but Adult...so passed on those. The food was fantastic of course...but Carnival which does a terrific job at everything else needs to hit the phones of the Variety Agents...the two major shows both being All Singing All Dancing did not elicit much crowd reaction at all...the biggest (nearly the ONLY) crowd reaction came from the use of a simple Lazer beam effect...that says a lot. I was looking forward to Bobby Borgia who was supposed to be on this boat but was not... oh well...maybe next time.
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icentertainment Inner circle 1429 Posts |
Dances are cheap they are a dime a dozen
it's like the Sydney show boats They have a Magician for about 10 minutes on stage and about 1.5 hours of dancers mind you the magicians don't get paid much |
RandyStewart Inner circle Texas (USA) 1989 Posts |
Sorry to hear that Doug. Did you fill out the comment sheet at the end of cruise? I would of needed two or three of them. They really read those to gauge who goes and who stays when it comes to the entertainment. If enough people say the magician sucks then he's gone. Likewise, they do the same for any act.
Your above post would of been great on a comment sheet for staff to read. I too would of been very dissapointed to find no magic act. Hell I would of demanded a visit with the captain. Is it that hard to find a decent act for their ship? I personally can't stand to watch more than a minute of dancing. I would of expressed my dissatisfaction on the comment card for sure! Last few Vegas hotels I stayed at and cruises I called ahead and made sure they had magic acts. I might be getting old and cranky but don't care - I tell them they need to have magic acts or jugglers or freak show or something along those lines - plate spinners...anything. I tell them I could care less about the dancing and singing, size of their pool, recent million dollar renovation (thats their problem)or celebreties who've stayed there. Incidentally, I went to a restaurant with my mother and father and was surprised at the great treatment by the waitress. She apparently knew mom and dad as they are regulars. While joking with my parents, she reached for a sugar packet and proceeded to open, pour the sugar into her closed fist, and vanish the sugar. Waitress knows nothing about my inolvement in magic, had never met me, and thought it to be a good opportunity to entertain. How many waiters have you seen carry and use a TT to break the ice with the table they are waiting on? Not all that common. We applauded her and thanked her for that great trick. Of course, I didn't steal her thunder but instead thanked her for that amazing trick and entertaining ways. By the way, it nearly doubled her tip as well! I would think the cruise ship could do the same for those of us who enjoy the magic. |
Doug Higley 1942 - 2022 7152 Posts |
Yep...I filled out the card. Wasn't able top go into full detail though. And yes there were 2 shows, 1 hour each of Dance and Song...one (Shout) dealt with the gamut of American music (with the Beach Boys section very well done)...the worst part was this high voice 'Noodle' in a Blond Wig doing early rock...arrrrg....wait not 'arrrrg'...more like...hahahahahaha. (Not to mention his Motown...arrrrg AND hahahaha.) The girl singers were terrific though especially in the Country section. But again...it needed a break of something else to be truely ENTERTAINING. Especially to replace the weaker and repetitive numbers.
The 2nd show was a tribute to Hollywood with some rather strange choices for the tunes...again though, girl singers pulled it off and the 'Noodle' limped along. To watch/hear this person do the Elvis songs was gut wrenching. The Hollywood show was a BIT better than the first but all in all was actually just Part 2 of the first. Now as to the 'Noodle'...he worked his butt off and might have been good in a broadway type show as a character lead...but not pushed to the limit without the range to do all they required him to do and it was alot. He really did 'put out' his best and really doesn't deserve my harsh opinion without qualification. (It is my opinion though.) The dancers must be Olympic athletes from all they required of them. The MANY Costume changes were beyond anything I'd ever seen before and at warp speed so that there were no lulls. And there lies the rub...no lulls or breaks in the action of any sort. Since when is exhausting the Audience AND the performers a goal? Other than that though the cruise was terrific (my first) and I can't wait to do another one. (Once I lose all the weight from this one!)
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rtgreen Inner circle Portland, Oregon 1322 Posts |
How long was your cruise Doug? It seems to be standard on ships now to have these "ship's cast" musical production shows, but usually they don't do more than two a week. I was just on the ms Oosterdam and they had two ship's production shows (very similar to what you saw), but they also had a good comedian, singer, a piano player (Comedy and music - he was very good), and a magician. There were no small venue shows other than bands. The comedian, pianist and magician were all guest entertainers working for good money and performed on the main stage. The ship's production cast are crew members and work other duties in addition to their shows. It's hard work, but a good way to get experience.
Thanks, Richard |
Doug Higley 1942 - 2022 7152 Posts |
It was aboard the beautiful Paradise...board on Monday...dis-emboard on Friday.
The real sad part was right next to the dock in Ensenada there was this huge Blue Circus Tent! Playing was 'New York On Ice' one of those fantastico Mexican Ice/Circus combinations that play the country mostly performed by Russians. I was stoked...till I found out the only show would be at 7:30 and we'd miss the boat. I was tempted!!!! We could see some of the menagerie walking around the cages...even a baby Giraffe. What a tease to see the tent. Got some nice pictures though. That night (Wednesday) they were having a $3 admission special and the parking lot was packed...by showtime they were turning crowds away from the entrance...obviously a very succesful show. Our bus driver told us he had gone the night before and it was a great show. Would love to have seen it.
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The Village Idiots Elite user Orlando 464 Posts |
The Paradise was my ladies first ship. She has been a dancer with Carnival for seven years and is about to retire. Stress fractures in her feet from dancing since the age of three. Yes Doug they work the slippers off the dancers but they all love it. It's what they do.
Next time, before you book your cruise, write me. I know the Glory has a large scale illusion show as a matinee. The magicians name is Justin Illusion, real nice english fella. T.C. Tahoe is on this board and works on ships as well. I don't know if he works a regular ship or jumps around. There is also a sword swallower/magician named Dai Andrews. Not sure what ship he is on. At any rate next time bark up my tree and I'll try to find out where the magic acts are. Some ships have a close up magician that comes around to your table in the main dinning room. My ship, the Legend, has a cruise director that is a magician. He won "florida magician of the year" a few times. Does a lot of classic magic. We have cut most of the magic out of our act, cept in our opening number. Mostly we just juggle and get laughs. Not in that order. Will
Some are born idiots.
Some are made idiots. Some have idiocy thrust upon them. |
Doug Higley 1942 - 2022 7152 Posts |
Thanks Will...I was very impressed with the Carnival operation not to mention the friendliness and over the top customer service from the crew...we wound up having some great coversations with folks from Samoa, Jamaca, Transylvania and Bulgaria...not guests but crew members...(we were able to successfully avoid the other passengers)...so we'll stick with carnival for the next cruise if only because the staterooms are big and roomy....being slightly claustrophobic, that's a plus. Besides...I don't get out of SoCal (don't fly anymore)...so whatever boat we hop on will have to be from here.
Probably this particular sailing lost its Magician for whatever reason...they did sign on a Hypnotist act for one night ('Victoria' Arlene Wayne) which as I mentioned I didn't get to see. ( http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN......-2386830 ) She has Weight Loss and No Smoking programs for sale on Amazon...so I don't know if that was an Entertainment or Agenda show. Either way, I passed for food. Just seems to me that a ship would be a perfect spot for Vaudville type entertainment. I'll write the boss.
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