Celebrity is revamping its entertainment

[oneputt18]

Came across this article, it says Celebrity is introducing 18 new shows in the coming 18 months:

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/business/tourism/fl-royal-cruises-entertainers-studio-20150320-story.html

[CHEZMARYLOU]

We'll be glad to see some new shows since we have 3 cruises booked in the next 2 years. We've avoided many nights entertainment because we've seen the production shows.

[shipshape sam]

Always glad to see collaboration and hope it works for both Royal/Celebrity and FIU.

[Ma Bell]

Oh goody another show with a dreamlike quality. I bet they'll find a use for those rags they took off the ceiling. I guess they are going from Cirque to Le Reve. It's really time for some NEW ideas.

[warmwinds]

We don't care for those Cirque-type shows, either. Best show on our last cruise was the Billy Joel impersonator.

 

I wonder if Elyria (sp) is that thing where they blocked off half of deck 5 - I recall that being described as "dreamlike" or some-such. You had to pay extra for that one - we took a big pass.

[MicCanberra]

Great news, :D

[TLCOhio]

Came across this article, it says Celebrity is introducing 18 new shows in the coming 18 months:

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/business/tourism/fl-royal-cruises-entertainers-studio-20150320-story.html

 

Appreciate this interesting article. The story notes: "unveiled a new 130,000-square-foot rehearsal and production studio that will serve entertainers from three of its cruise brands: Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Azamara Club Cruises."

 

In my mind, it raises questions for how much will the shows for RCI, Celebrity and Azamara ALL become just more and more of the "same" thing in quality, creativity, etc.? Will that be good or bad for the higher quality we might seek and hope from Celebrity?

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Enjoyed a 14-day, Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Sydney to Auckland adventure, getting a big sampling for the wonders of "down under” before and after this cruise. Go to:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1974139

for more info and many pictures of these amazing sights in this great part of the world. Now at 103,131 views for this posting.

[shipshape sam]

Appreciate this interesting article. The story notes: "unveiled a new 130,000-square-foot rehearsal and production studio that will serve entertainers from three of its cruise brands: Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Azamara Club Cruises."

 

In my mind, it raises questions for how much will the shows for RCI, Celebrity and Azamara ALL become just more and more of the "same" thing in quality, creativity, etc.? Will that be good or bad for the higher quality we might seek and hope from Celebrity?

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Enjoyed a 14-day, Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Sydney to Auckland adventure, getting a big sampling for the wonders of "down under” before and after this cruise. Go to:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1974139

for more info and many pictures of these amazing sights in this great part of the world. Now at 103,131 views for this posting.

 

Only time will tell. They do have an opportunity to have some more polished productions with a land based facility close by to corporate offices.

 

As far as musical productions go, i would prefer a musical play vs musical production, but that is me. And my first choice is comedy entertainment.

[MicCanberra]

You may be right Terry, while I enjoy the productions, I tend to enjoy the guest entertainment better. Maybe not all of them as some can be hit or miss with the target audience, but generally good quality acts no matter what the act.:D

[chamima]

You may be right Terry, while I enjoy the productions, I tend to enjoy the guest entertainment better. Maybe not all of them as some can be hit or miss with the target audience, but generally good quality acts no matter what the act.:D

 

We also enjoy the guest entertainers much more than the production shows.

I hope they'll continue to have a good variety of those on board! (With lots of comedians. :D )

[MicCanberra]

We also enjoy the guest entertainers much more than the production shows.

I hope they'll continue to have a good variety of those on board! (With lots of comedians. :D )

 

I think comedians are more hit and miss due to the audience however, some of the singers and dancers or instrumentalists are really great.:D

[richsea]

Oh goody another show with a dreamlike quality. I bet they'll find a use for those rags they took off the ceiling. I guess they are going from Cirque to Le Reve. It's really time for some NEW ideas.

 

You brought a smile to my face reminding me of that debacle:eek:. We are just off Summit, & I noticed a small clear plastic sign on the wall outside Revelations, announcing "Bar at the Edge", with the braille writing on the bottom.

Thank goodness it has come & gone!

 

Seriously, we have seen the I-sirens show 4 times; it is definetely time to retire it. It was old the first time saw it!

Edited March 21, 2015 by richsea

[C-Dragons]

Oh goody another show with a dreamlike quality. I bet they'll find a use for those rags they took off the ceiling. I guess they are going from Cirque to Le Reve. It's really time for some NEW ideas.

Lol, Elyria sounds like a revamped version of Indulgence.

Yes, it is time for something totally NEW and different.

[neverbeenhere]

iThink that any change has to be good.

[hcat]

Oh goody another show with a dreamlike quality. I bet they'll find a use for those rags they took off the ceiling. I guess they are going from Cirque to Le Reve. It's really time for some NEW ideas.

 

I thought the same thing.....why not just improved talent with better shows..skipping the wierd out there ideas! Not one has been very good over the years. With a new facility, hope they will turn out a good entertainment product. Time will tell.

 

Was hoping to hear the Miami DJ and bongo would be eliminated......replaced by a good Latin band, jazz, authentic island band, classical and Buffet style guitarists.....things have improved except the DJ choices...

Edited March 21, 2015 by hcat

[TeaBag]

We don't go to the shows much any more either. We love the guest entertainers particularly the instrumentalists.

[Andy]

I thought the same thing.....why not just improved talent with better shows..skipping the wierd out there ideas! Not one has been very good over the years. With a new facility, hope they will turn out a good entertainment product. Time will tell.

 

Was hoping to hear the Miami DJ and bongo would be eliminated......replaced by a good Latin band, jazz, authentic island band, classical and Buffet style guitarists.....things have improved except the DJ choices...

 

Good points Hcat, but for inexplicable reasons, Celebrity seems to have a huge crush on the Miami DJ's, so I suspect they will be around for some time to come. They were on Equinox in January, and they could clear out the pool area and atrium like nobody else could ! Why Celebrity would put them on a ship that was carrying an older crowd, is beyond any comprehension. I'm sure they could have a welcome place at Celebrity, but common sense would schedule them on Connie, or 7 night sailings, where the crowd generally skews younger than the 10+ night sailings.

 

While I believe the idea of a larger state of the art facility should be of great benefit to the respective brands and their guests... what's going to ultimately make or break it, is the folks who are in charge of creating the show concepts. I'm trying my best to be optimistic here, but if Celebrity thinks that offering "entertainment" such as the DJ's, and a few other odd concepts in recent years... I'm keeping my expectations at reasonable levels.

 

The funny thing is, Celebrity's entertainment team is relatively new (so I've heard), yet they continue with these fantasy concepts. Who knows ? Maybe it will be a huge success... I hope so. I suppose a great deal will be riding on the guest reviews for Elyria.

 

On a final note, my entertainment concerns do not surround around the production shows. While they've been around for a while, and we've enjoyed the shows very much... we no longer attend them, as we've been there, done that. I'm more worried about the Guest entertainers, and the future of a live orchestra. I'm hearing that several Celebrity favorites are not getting bookings - which deeply concerns me. Perhaps it's simply an oversight, or, perhaps it's something more significant. I believe it's the latter. Maybe we were unlucky on our last Equinox sailing... but most of the Guest entertainers on our sailing weren't that good. While we had an absolutely wonderful cruise, the entertainment was one of the very few disappointments. I'm hoping it will be more enjoyable, when we return to Equinox in a few weeks. Can't wait !

[awhfy]

We just came off s great 14 night on Eclipse. Best entertainment we've enjoyed in years! All the shows were packed. Sue Denning seems to get better entrainment

[Andy]

We just came off s great 14 night on Eclipse. Best entertainment we've enjoyed in years! All the shows were packed. Sue Denning seems to get better entrainment

 

Hi Awhfy,

 

I wouldnt doubt that. Sue is a fantastic Cruise director, and Eclipse does seem to have better entertainment than other X ships. Maybe it's due to Eclipse being on 14 night sailings.

 

Glad you had a wonderful cruise, and thanks for the update !

[Shake]

Good news on the upcoming shows in the works, since my preference are the production shows.

[Andy]

Hi Everyone,

 

According to information elsewhere on the 'net, Elyria is one of two late night shows in the works, featuring risque content and choreography.

[steamboats]

The stage manager onboard the Eclipse told us in January that X is buying out the production companies which are currently responsible for the production shows. X did that with the Millennium class ships last year already and is doing it with the Solstice class ships this year. So the future is to do the prodoction shown on their own (not using an external company as before). The stage manager also said the Eclipse will have one of the new productions shows in October.

 

steamboats

[chamima]

We just came off s great 14 night on Eclipse. Best entertainment we've enjoyed in years! All the shows were packed. Sue Denning seems to get better entrainment

 

Hi Awhfy,

 

I wouldnt doubt that. Sue is a fantastic Cruise director, and Eclipse does seem to have better entertainment than other X ships. Maybe it's due to Eclipse being on 14 night sailings.

 

Glad you had a wonderful cruise, and thanks for the update !

 

Hi Andy

This last February we did a B2B, 11 nights on the Equinox and then 14 on the Eclipse.

The Equinox was wonderful but the entertainment (and the scheduling of it) was abysmal ! In contrast, as awhfy said, the entertainment on the Eclipse was top-notch (best we've seen in years!) and the scheduling non-stop!

The Equinox was dead at night (even WITH the Miami DJs) and the Eclipse was buzzing everywhere until well after midnight.

I've repeatedly said Celebrity should hire Sue to train all of their CDs! THAT would be a good use of entertainment budget.

Edited March 22, 2015 by chamima

[TLCOhio]

Hi Everyone, According to information elsewhere on the 'net, Elyria is one of two late night shows in the works, featuring risque content and choreography.

 

steamboats: The stage manager onboard the Eclipse told us in January that X is buying out the production companies which are currently responsible for the production shows.

 

MicCanberra: I think comedians are more hit and miss due to the audience however' date=' some of the singers and dancers or instrumentalists are really great [/quote']

 

Yes, the word "risqué" will get people's attention and stir debates. Clearly many people, as illustrated on this thread, have varied opinions for what "best" (or NOT) to be used as ship entertainment.

 

On a recent cruise, the cruise director noted that comedians can be challenging as the tastes between different audiences (such as those from the USA versus those from the UK) are so totally different. A joke that works for the Brits can be totally confused and mis-understood by the Yankees, etc.

 

With certain Broadway/West End programs, there is a more "universal" understanding, interest and following with those types of music/show programs. Certain Baby Boomer music involving the Beatles, BeeGees, Motown, etc., can have wide appeal.

 

Not easy making all of the varied audiences happy.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Enjoyed a 14-day, Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Sydney to Auckland adventure, getting a big sampling for the wonders of "down under” before and after this cruise. Go to:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1974139

for more info and many pictures of these amazing sights in this great part of the world. Now at 103,464 views for this posting.

[keesar]

The stage manager onboard the Eclipse told us in January that X is buying out the production companies which are currently responsible for the production shows. X did that with the Millennium class ships last year already and is doing it with the Solstice class ships this year. So the future is to do the prodoction shown on their own (not using an external company as before). The stage manager also said the Eclipse will have one of the new productions shows in October.

 

We were told something similar that Celebrity would be producing the theater shows on their own in the future. The current singers and dancers would have to re-apply for positions when their contracts expire. I hope this is not related to a $$$ saving move on the part of Celebrity. We have enjoyed the current productions.