The first time it happened, I thought nothing of it. The second time, I wondered if I might be a bit of an old curmudgeon. (Silence, you in the Peanut Gallery!) By the third and fourth time, well, I could no longer ignore what clearly is some sort of awful trend. And in my opinion blogpost-worthy.
Here's how it goes.
You get an invite to a new play or musical. The come-on is smart, sexy, innovative. You're impressed with the wit and inventiveness. Maybe the graphics are super cool, too.
So you buy a ticket to this new show which has been branded as super smart, groundbreaking and possibly kind of life-altering. And then...
Well then, you see the show.
Several times over the past couple years I've been burned in this way. Duped into dropping my dollars for work that is ill-conceived, poorly executed and just plain lacking in originality. But then I return to the postcard or the email that enticed me to buy in the first place and I find myself scratching my head wondering what the f*ck is up. What's going on with all these cleverly marketed nothings?
Here's a theory.
Could it be that we are witnessing the fruits of the first-ever branded generation? A generation of artists who have been so thoroughly schooled in the ins and outs of branding that they focus 95% of their creative energy on the packaging of their work and only about 5% on the actual work.
I think I'm onto something. How 'bout you?
