In the ever growing list of reality television shows, we can now add one more - The Play's the Thing.
The Play's the Thing is in search of the newest writing talent. They are searching for submissions of plays by new writers with a big pay off for the winning submission. What is the carrot at the end of the stick you ask? Your play being staged in the West End.
The show will track Sonia Friedman (famed West End producer) as she selects the winning script... then taking the viewer on a season long adventure on how a play really comes to be put on in the West End including finding investors (which Friedman sees as the most worrying part of the production process according to The Guardian, which is easily understandable as we all undestand the "the power of the purse" is the key to everything.
The real question on our minds is - will they show Friedman slashing some of the scripts she receives in the first episode? We all know the funniest parts of any reality television show are the first few episodes when the most talentless individuals make a bid for Pop Idol, or the rhythmless dancers who want to be part of Musiciality etc. That is when reality television is at its best.
Our main concerns for this show: (1) The play is not going to be able to find funders so it will never open. (2) IF it does manage to secure funding will any performances besides the premiere be well attended? (Although I suppose this is a fear for many West End plays) (3) Does this mean that they will also be casting only new talent or will another American television actor come over to fill the void? (Think of David Schwimmer aka Ross from Friends in Some Girls or Joshua Jackson aka Pacey Witter from Dawson's Creek in A Life in the Theatre or Brooke Shields aka "Nothing comes between me and my Calvins" in Chicago.)
Regardless, we are looking forward to it.
