Messages

46

General Silver Dollar City Talk / Re: Bringing Something Back from SDC's Past

« on: January 18, 2020, 11:46:59 AM »

I would bring back the ORIGINAL shows... Like the Hatfield Haint and shows like that that. Those were staples of my childhood.

47

General Silver Dollar City Talk / Re: 2019 Daily Attendance

« on: January 01, 2020, 10:47:56 AM »

Happy new year everyone!  This may not be allowed to be answered but how far in advance do they "budget" a day's attendance?   They seem to estimate way low on some days that I would have thought would be budgeted higher.  The week after Christmas seems an extremely popular time to visit.  I know they can't guess the weather accurately far in advance (for that matter neither can the National Weather Service) but it looks like they could guess a best case scenario as far as the weather is concerned (ie larger crowds).

I have posed this question a few times and the best answer I could get is that they do it based off the previous year(s) and that weather is not taken into account. This seems like a VERY poor way to budget and it seems to burn them more than not as it seems that they are often understaffed on the outrageous days...

I've brought up that they should look at things from an engineered or scientific standpoint as this sort of problem is an ideal fit for an industrial or manufacturing engineering standpoint. Just like scheduling shows and placing rides/food stands/etc. should be analyzed. I know this is how the larger parks such as Disney do things... SDC just seems behind on the times on this and I believe their refusal to look at it from this standpoint leads to most of the complaints about the infrastructure problems both with vehicle traffic and parking as well as just general moving through the park issues... I mean, for example, the twisted potato stand near the entrance to Echo Hollow is a clusterf#% as the line blocks egress in all directions. Just putting in a small line queue that forces people into rather than let them line up in a straight line would solve so many issues... It is things like this that SDC is just REALLY bad at... But I don't see them "getting" it although I have seen improvements in some areas where they are enforcing crowd traffic to one side so that it just isn't a mess... But yet they refuse to address the trainwreck that is just past the gates to get in where the stroller and cart area is... people walk in and stop to gather their group and it is just one of the most frustrating sections of the park for me... An industrial engineer would open that area up and move the carts... that area would make more sense near the group relations part...

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General Silver Dollar City Talk / Re: 2019 Daily Attendance

« on: December 23, 2019, 11:06:01 AM »

Sounds like a lot of pardon me, excuse me and a few I beg your pardons 
[/quote]

Or for those of us who are not as patient or nice: Get the F*@% out of the way or F*@% this I am out of here

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General Silver Dollar City Talk / Re: 2019 Daily Attendance

« on: November 25, 2019, 09:28:54 AM »

Busy, Busy Day today...  Reports of Lots of traffic backups and problems..  super nice day outside.

extended hours until 10 tonight.

as of 8pm, 21,500 people

Yeah I turned around on 465. I was about 1 mile from 76 on 465 when traffic stopped. I limped along in left lane until I could cross the median and turn around - which took about 20 minutes. Wasn't worth it... I just get frustrated when there is that many people there and not worth it when I have a season pass

50

General Silver Dollar City Talk / Re: 2019 Trip Reports

« on: November 04, 2019, 06:48:17 AM »

I went yesterday as well. Got there before opening.The new treee is very large. You really have to tilt your head up to see the top if you are anywhere near it. Overall the park looked nice.

I went to Dickens show... Oddly enough, the Marley character was not hanging... Scrooge was talking to him as if he was there, but he wasn't. Unsure what the issue was but was a little weird. Also, they got a new audio mixer in the sound booth area. It has 2 very large screens and is now turned such that during the dark times, it illuminates about 6 rows in front of it. It is very distracting if you are sitting anywhere near the booth (which I usually do for the best sound). I saw the first show on Sunday so like the 4th performance in front of a crowd. Oddly, the musicians were a bit off at times. Not sure if it was a replacement crew or what there... But definitely off. The show was excellent even with these few things though...

I also went to see It's a Wonderful life... I guess I miss the original cast. Another new "George" this year... has a beautiful singing voice but the acting seemed a bit wooden and not very likable. And as with last year, he just can't get the laughs out of most of the funny lines because he doesn't know how to deliver them. This was my complaint last year as well... there are a lot of funny lines in that if they are delivered properly... and I've not seen anyone do that since the original cast that was there for the first 2-3 years. But the songs were great as usual

Neither theater was packed which according to attendance made sense.

I took off after that show which was right as the tree was starting. The square was packed and hard to navigate to get out. Just too many people in one place. I can't imagine how it is going to be on the square with a real crowd.

51

General Silver Dollar City Talk / Re: 2019 Daily Attendance

« on: October 26, 2019, 09:03:46 AM »

While I understand what you are saying about the 3 extra hours... think about it this way:

Let's say it the festival is pulling in 50-60% locals (2 hour drive or less) - which I believe it probably is because there have been higher than normal numbers not just on weekends. Local kids get out of school about 3PM... if they drive to SDC, that puts then there near closing... so why even go for an hour or less? When staying open until 9 or 10, it makes going much more palatable to parents. Or for that matter... local people who work until 5 and then drive... no point when closing at 6. But it makes it a bit more worth it if oen until 9 or 10.

The big question is are the hotels and the like seeing big spikes in people staying there? Or is it truly locals? I have been going to Bucket List and the Paddlewheel at Branson Landing a lot lately and I have not seen a huge spike in the number of people there or in Branson Landing that you would expect from vacationers. I mean, yes, weekend days at Branson Landing are generally nuts, but not as high as I would expect for people specifically vacationing for this festival.

My guess is that there has been a huge bump in attendance this year, but on same days I expect it to drop next year. As I struggle to believe that people are specifically going to plan vacations just for this festival. I believe the bump has been locals... I wish I had a way to prove that, though, other than what I have seen

52

General Silver Dollar City Talk / Re: 2019 Daily Attendance

« on: October 25, 2019, 02:00:22 PM »

I think the driving force here is later hours... I think they could have about anything in the evening and it be a success. Kids are mostly in school and most adults have jobs so that left most of the daytime SDC crowd for crafts festival older, retired people. I am neither older, nor retired but, prior to living in Springfield, would take a 3-4 days vacation just for the crafts every year. I bought many pieces including a couple of Buck Taylor's pieces. I loved the cowboy part of it as well... But then again, I like that genre (which looking at me is hard to believe as I've piercings and tattoos and bright red hair). But staying open until 9 or 10 lets the average adult go and often with families. I honestly believe if they did the cowboy part properly AND stayed open until 9 or 10, the attendance would also have gone up. Yes, the pumpkin thing is a draw... but I think it is honestly the later hours that are making the real difference

53

General Silver Dollar City Talk / Re: 2019 Daily Attendance

« on: October 19, 2019, 08:34:30 AM »

I went yesterday for about an hour and a half about 3PM and it was miserably crowded. I normally go on Fridays during the day as it is usually empty. I left before I yelled at someone because it was just filled with idiots... The drive from Springfield was just as bad with cars in the fast lane that had no business being in the fast lane and long lines of cars not close enough to pass in a group so I was passing a single car at a time on the right... Sadly, SDC does not sell liquor because I needed a drink by the time I got there and several more for dealing with the crowd...

54

General Silver Dollar City Talk / Re: 2019 Trip Reports

« on: September 28, 2019, 11:44:36 AM »

I went yesterday 9/27 from opening until about 5:30 (had a date so had to leave earlier than I would have otherwise).

As sirwillow said, there are far fewer crafts people and the ones that were there didn't interest me much. I realize now that I did not go towards time traveler at all so unsure what crafters were down there but the square and other areas did seem sparse. This kind of fits as on the show schedule on the app or website there is no mention of them even being there. I wasn't sure they would be when I went.

I mostly spent time bouncing between shows. The Paperdolls show was absolutely amazing. It was fairly sparse crowd for the 11Am show and the crowd picked up through the other 2 shows. They were not what I expected but I absolutely loved the show. They played song from Pink and others with different arrangements. I was amazed how many people were older in the crowd and stayed the whole show. I saw all 3 sets and could go back for more (and might... I think they leave Sunday)

I was in the lumberjack show and had to leave before it started as I got a phone call from London I needed to take. As I was on the phone the show let out after about 22 min which surprised me. I came back for another show later. I really did not enjoy it until the very end. It was very slow starting and the lack of ANY real dialogue did not help it in my opinion and I still have no clue what they were going for. But by the end I did enjoy it more. Can't say I would go back

The decorations were nice... I wish I could have stayed to see them lit up. It was starting to get crowded as I was leaving with traffic coming in clogging the road for my leaving from the motorcycle area.

As I said, the highlight for me was Paperdolls and I hope they make a return. I guess they used to have a show in town at the Dutton's theater and they were named Redhead Express then. Regardless, they were really good

As most people, change is tough. I miss the crafters and I did buy some of their wares every year. I also miss the crafts that came along with worldfest and other things... But I also saw how the crowd through this festival was younger than typical crafts festivals... and like it or not, that is the next generation of paying customers... if people don't come to the park, it doesn't stay open. And when your primary demographic ages out, you have to plan and move on...

55

General Silver Dollar City Talk / Saloon musicians

« on: September 07, 2019, 04:12:31 PM »

So I am a guitar player in SGF/Bransonand looking to put a band together with all girl musicians. Does anyone know who plays the character of Cymbalina? I need a good girl drummer and would like to get in touch with her about a gig

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General Silver Dollar City Talk / Re: The Toby Show - absolutely amazing and SDC performers in it

« on: August 10, 2019, 08:44:08 AM »

And Saturday... 4PM dinner... 5PM show

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General Silver Dollar City Talk / The Toby Show - absolutely amazing and SDC performers in it

« on: July 27, 2019, 08:48:39 PM »

I went to the new Toby Show today. I had seen the original as a kid and was actually at one of the last shows with my family when it was recorded for a public television special that never came out in about 1985. I had loved the show then... Wasn't sure what to expect with the new version...

First off, it was a dinner show and reasonably priced - was like $42 after tax for dinner and the show. And the dinner was very good. The performers were taking care of the tables which seemed a bit odd. Not sure if that was just for today or is an all the time thing. About 35 people in the audience but there should have been so many more.

The show itself deviates some from the original. Shad and Mollie's parts were not acted. They had some pictures and all as an homage to them. The jokes are corny but hilarious. Dana and Dan Embree are in at as well as one of the street troupe girls (I think her name is Sadie). And the piano player who was there at the last performance I saw of the original (Rick Medlin) was playing the piano at this one. I always liked him. He has a catchy personality.

Anyway, the show was great. The small crowd was very into the show. Laughingand being into it. This show deserves much larger audiences. They improvised some and just were having a good time

Dan Embree took over the role of Zenus that seemed tailored to Wayne Milnes. I was unsure how he would do with that as I just remembered Wayne's zaniness and I had never seen Dan do to that. While he wasn't Wayne (no one could be), he was really funny. And did the role justice.

Everyone should go see this... It is Shad and Mollie's legacy really... And reminds me of the old shows SDC used to do. Unlike the abomination that is Reuben's Swashbuckling adventure

58

General Silver Dollar City Talk / Re: 2019 Trip Reports

« on: July 26, 2019, 09:28:13 AM »

I went this past wednesday to give the musical another shot as I saw it like the 8th performance and was disappointed. Thought maybe with time it all would gel. Nope. As someone else said, the second viewing made me hate it more

They touted a million dollar production but for the life of me I cannot tell what that money was spent on. Scenery was 2 dimensional and rather bland. And the story... just not good. I also wonder who signed off on this

Maybe I am biased as I still long for some of the old shows that they wrote and performed 30+ years ago. And then For the Glory and Heading west or whatever... those were amazing. This was just not

The cast do the best with what they are given but wow it just isn’t good

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General Silver Dollar City Talk / Re: Inclement weather plan for echo hollow bluegrass shows?

« on: May 09, 2019, 05:33:23 PM »

Ok. So i just got here and even though it was not supposed to rain it has poured. They said that if weather forecast says rain they make a call early and move to red gold. If like today that said 0% chance of rain and it started pouring around 4, they cannot move it and the show will go on in echo hollow. Rain has stopped for the moment. But I guess that is the plan

So I guess look at forecast and if it is definitely forecast to rain during showtime it will be in the red gold hall. Otherwise it is gonna be in echo hollow no matter if raining or not. Probably would cancel if lightning

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General Silver Dollar City Talk / Re: Inclement weather plan for echo hollow bluegrass shows?

« on: May 09, 2019, 10:50:56 AM »

Ok so does anyone know where the shirts are this year? I looked in hospitality house and didn’t see them