80% of Broadway runs lose money. 

While commercial success isn’t a meritocracy, I’d say it’d be accurate to describe 80% of these flops — especially when it comes to new musicals — as mediocrity.

Which, despite how it sounds, isn’t intended as shade! I remain convinced that a new Broadway musical is the hardest art form to pull off. 

But, for those of us who keep coming back for more — despite knowing most will be mediocre — this mediocrity must be a part of the appeal.

And the new musical Smash is an ode to this new-musical mediocrity…from inside the mediocre-new-musical house, all while celebrating the talented artists who fail to find a way to make it all sufficiently work.

That’s a bedrock Broadway experience, because it’s what most musicals end up being.

And seeing Smash during its last week only emphasized these traits. How Broadway audiences respond to a musical’s final performances is proof positive of what makes the community so special. 

Our love is not defined by the best, but by the usual.