HERE’S an unexpected partnership: MTV, whose core audience attends high school, and Broadway, whose core audience attends high-school reunions.
MTV has struck a deal with the producers of “Legally Blonde” to broadcast an entire performance of the $10 million musical, The Post has learned.
The performance will be taped at the Palace Theatre later this month and will be aired on MTV in October.
Though MTV doesn’t pay that much attention to Broadway (unless Usher‘s doing a gig for the Weisslers), several network bigwigs, including veteran on-air host Kurt Loder, are fans of “Legally Blonde.”
Loder, in fact, gave the show a ringing endorsement, and his quote is featured prominently in the production’s advertising.
The MTV deal could be a boon for the musical, which is a favorite with
females between ages 15 and 25.
“Their target audience and our target audience are exactly the same,” says a production source. “It’s a complete overlap.”
The deal comes just as “Blonde,” which has had a robust summer, is beginning to weaken at the box office. Weekly grosses will dip in September and October, and advance ticket sales into next year are starting to slip as well, sources say.
Not everybody’s thrilled with the MTV deal. Some of the actors are grumbling that they’re not getting paid all that much to take part in the taping. And there’s been talk among agents about banding together to hold out for money.
But the truth is, nobody involved in the show is going to get rich right off the bat by being on MTV.
“This is all about promoting the show for the long term,” a source says. “Actors are always complaining that they don’t make enough money for this or that. But the longer the show runs, the more money everybody makes.”
The MTV broadcast is a nice consolation prize to the producers of “Legally Blonde,” who are still reeling from the Tony Awards snub. Because the show failed to snag a nomination for Best Musical in June, it was barred from appearing on the Tony broadcast.
Crows a Blondie: ” ‘Spring Awakening’ got four minutes on CBS. We’re getting almost three hours on MTV.”
Not all the producers were convinced that they should take the MTV deal. Some worried that, if you give it away for free on TV, people won’t pay to see it in the theater.
But shrewder Blondies realized that when teenage girls like something, they can’t get enough of it.
“Look at ‘High School Musical,’ ” a source says, referring to the popular Disney cable-TV show, which, as a stage musical, is selling out all over the country.
“The TV show is fueling the stage show.”
Take note, Disney. If “The Little Mermaid” doesn’t improve, why not scrap it and put “High School Musical” into the Lunt-Fontanne instead?
Or how about sticking a mermaid tail on Hannah Montana, running her for a week at the Lunt and calling it a day?