'Urban Cowboy' continues

NEW YORK -- "Urban Cowboy" is back in the saddle again.\nIn a dramatic, on-stage announcement Saturday night, at what was to have been the new musical's fourth and final performance, director Lonny Price announced the show would continue its Broadway run.\n"We had planned to do a medley of all the songs we cut from the show during previews," Price told the audience. "But the producers just informed me that we are not closing tonight."\nPrice's statement was met with cheers from theatergoers and astonished cast members, several of whom wept at the unexpected news.\nThe director said Sunday he found out only minutes before the final curtain that producer Chase Mishkin had decided to keep the musical going despite mostly negative reviews, including a particularly harsh notice in The New York Times. The paper's reviews are extremely important in the Broadway community because the Times carries the most clout with theatergoers, especially in the New York area.\n"To go from the high of Thursday night -- which had been a great opening -- to the disappointment of Friday's reviews to Saturday packing up our stuff to leave the theater to Saturday night saying, 'We're going to run' -- it's been quite a roller coaster," Price said.\nIt was uncertain how long the run would continue.\n"We are going to do this week by week and see how we do," Mishkin said Sunday. The producer and her investors already have spent an estimated $4.5 million on the show, but she declined to say how much more would be committed to the production.\n"We had hundreds of phone calls from people who urged us to keep it playing because it's entertaining and just a good time," Mishkin said. "We got knocked around pretty good by the critical establishment but the fact is, we get a great audience reaction.\n"Urban Cowboy," based on the 1980 film that starred John Travolta and Debra Winger, had trouble even before opening last Thursday at the Broadhurst Theatre.\nThe musical's original director and the co-author of the book, Phillip Oesterman, died before rehearsals began last fall for the out-of-town tryout. During the show's Florida engagement, new songwriters were brought in to beef up the score.\nThe production's preview period in New York was hurt by the four-day musicians strike earlier this month and valuable rehearsal time was lost when the performers had to rehearse with tapes in the event there was a walkout. Advance sales were weak, and the show, which features newcomers Matt Cavenaugh and Jenn Colella, had no star power to sell.\nMishkin said she would meet Monday with her advertising team to determine how to proceed with a television and radio campaign to attract theatergoers.\n"It's probably a dumb decision from a financial standpoint -- we're apt not to crawl from behind this eight ball," she said. "But it's just too good (a show) to let go"