Fame, Fads and False Followings

The Harry Potter craziness continues with the foretold opening of a brand new show...which has already totally sold out.

Now, first and foremosy I must make it clear that besides any personal opinion of her work, one thing I have always credited with is being a powerhouse of passion in reading for a whole generation...two perhaps...of children. Her books have inspired many children to read more and for that I will always afford her the great credit she deserves. I also afford her with a cunning nod of a bloody good business move when she original signed the franchise contracts for the films...which is why she main such a deserved fortune from the film adaptations.

But when it comes to a brand new play, set in the future, about Harry and his Parents - a straight Drama....selling out completely...one cannot help be cynical and think that its sales figures are more just a fad, cult following than it is a sign of any quality of the show. It's like that with the films and the books. That last few were...meh...ok at best, but nothing at all special. And this play...well...it would be more interesting to know how good it actually is, and that means asking people who are able to look at it without Harry's Tinted glasses on.

I think my resistance to it comes from the fact that we tend towards mediocre ambition, creating wholly unremarable work on the back of a fad and affording it over-zealous praise based on a fashionable attitude than actuality quality. Think of the following for Doctor Who on the BBC. The actual programme is DREADFUL in writing, production, acting, comedy...it isn't even funny for being so bad...but it has a fad following. Talentless, braindead morons from programmes like "The Only Way is Essex" and "Big Brother" are referred to as "celebrity" and "stars" just because they have appeared being a moron on TV. I don't mind admitting that I can be a "talent-snob". But the last time I got a real, real buzz was when I went to see a concert in Birmingham. The CBSO - a world class Orchestra, conducted by a world-class conductor, performing my favourite symphony by Beethoven, one of the world's greatest ever musicians. I was in awe of their talent - earnt more so from many, many years' practise and hard work, every day.

So it just makes me wonder if we are too quick to follow things for the same of following. I'm not concerned by the fact that it might indeed be mediocre tripe, but more so that even if it is that bad, its cult status might prevent people from offering an honest appraisal. Meanwhile, lots of amazing theatre will remain unseen for no other reason than it doesn't have the fame, fad and falso following.