Producer sees big things for China’s musical market
Print Edition
THE 1990 film “Ghost” has a new lease on life thanks to a smash musical adaptation, which just wrapped up a two-week run in Shanghai.
The show is produced by stage veteran Colin Ingram, who came through the ranks of the musical world under Cameron Mackintosh, a man once widely considered one of the UK’s most successful and influential musical producers. After starting off as a production administrator for Cameron, Ingram worked on a slew of high-profile shows, including “Les Miserable,” “Phantom of the Opera,” “Oklahoma” and “Witches of Eastwick.”
While in collaboration with Disney, Ingram helped bring stage productions of “The Lion King” and “Beauty and the Beast” to London’s West End.
In 2005, he founded his own theater company — Colin Ingram Limited — which produced adaptations of “Gone with the Wind,” “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” and “Ghost.”
The acclaimed producer recently sat down with Shanghai Daily to discuss his latest project and musical theater in China.
Q: How do you see the market for musicals in China?
A: Obviously, it is new. There have been a number of musicals from London and New York staged in cities like Shanghai in the past 15 years. We are still facing challenges though, like how to cultivate the new market and properly increase ticket prices so that we can afford to bring more productions over.
It will be a slow process, but I think things may develop quite quickly in China. In the next 10 years, we are going to see a rising middle class in China, who may become major customers for musicals.
One of our big goals is to achieve longer stagings in one city so as to reduce the cost of bringing productions here. Of course, a well-educated market will be essential for such goals.
Statistics shows that Hollywood movies may make more money in China in the next few years than in North America. That is amazing. But I think musicals can go the same way. China could become the third- or fourth-largest market after New York and London.
Q: How would you rank the Chinese market at the moment?
A: It’s hard to say. Germany and South Korea are very strong markets at the moment. As for China, though the market is growing quickly in Beijing and Shanghai, there is still much to do when it comes to expanding the market in second-tier cities.
I was surprised that “Ghost” was so well-received in Shenzhen before coming to Shanghai. It is one of the second-tier markets that we aim to develop.
Q: Is bringing “Ghost” to China a move to test the local market?
A: Yes, to test and to educate and to create the market. Cities with populations in the millions are right there, waiting for the market to be created. We want to come back and play more — and in more cities.
What works in Shanghai will probably work in other cities as well. If we manage to establish about 10 mature markets here, we will be able to bring more shows.
And bringing more shows to China will also benefit the market back in our country as well. If people like the musicals staged here, many of them may want to see the original productions when visiting London or Broadway.
Q: What is your next plan for China?
A: We would love to come back and visit some new markets. We may work on some additional language versions — like Mandarin.
We are also considering producing musicals with Chinese elements, but we have to make sure they appeal to people in North America and Europe in the first place.
At the moment, people all over the world are still more attracted to productions that are popular at the West End and Broadway. Therefore, succeeding in those two markets is quite essential.
Of course, there are exceptions. The musical “Elisabeth,” which had never been staged in New York or London, was quite successful in Shanghai last year. But generally a musical has to appeal to one of those markets to achieve worldwide recognition.
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