HAL to Disband HAL Dancers and Singers

[oaktreerb]

In response to comment by BUU

 

The fact that one random person on the Internet saw one entertainer that did the same routine on both cruise lines does not mean that entertainment on Holland America is as good as on Seabourn. When people are talking about the entertainment on Holland America, they are referring to the overall. It should be expected that, overall, the entertainment on Seabourn will be superior to that on Holland America, along with the food, service, etc. There should be no expectation that Holland America will offer entertainment, overall, as good as on Seabourn.[/quote from BUU above

 

 

???Internet??? Who was the one random person on the internet? Not me. I saw the same entertainer when I was aboard a Seabourn ship and aboard a Holland ship. If you have not sailed both cruise lines you can not possibly compare the two lines.

 

Someone had asked about dancing aboard a Seabourn ship as compared to HAL and I gave a response based on my cruise on a Seabourn ship. Not many cruisers were dancing on Seabourn either and the dance floor was small. The ship’s entertainers were very good; the comedians, etc that they brought onboard were not.

[Homosassa]

Now if someone gets around to have a performance of Mozart's Cost Fan Tutte I am all in. But as a realist, that will never happen.

 

Try MSC. Opera pieces show up in some of their production shows and on cruises longer than seven days, an abridged version of an opera will be performed on a sea day.

 

No Mozart, however. It will be an Italian composer.

[bUU]

Of course they, like all honest managers, operate in a fashion to achieve what they believe is the best interests of their owners

Period.

 

 

 

This message may have been drafted using voice recognition. Please forgive any typos.

[Harry1954]

My impression is that the World cruise is not a good example of what is happening. Most cruise lines have a fairly small set of shows that the cast does. I was on the Crystal World Cruise this year and they handled things a bit differently, putting on pretty much the same 5 or so shows on every segment, perhaps 5 or 6 times each. My HAL segment was in 2014 and the cast put on only 1 it 2 shows and my guess is that over the 120 days of the full cruise they do each cruise once or twice, making their appearances fairly rare. On a 2-week cruise they would probably do pretty much the same shows they do in 4 months of a world cruise.

 

Roy

Yes, that is Crystal .. we did about 20 cruises some years ago with Crystal and we saw the same shows over and over - but they were 1st class, so we didn't mind it so much.

harry

[alwaysfrantic]

The DIY talent show makes me think of the man who wanted to play his 4th gradecplastic flute on the deck and couldn’t understand why others didn’t embrace the idea

[navybankerteacher]

Period.

 

 

 

This message may have been drafted using voice recognition. Please forgive any typos.

 

Pathetic evasion.

[bcummin]

The singers and dancers on our recent Trans Pacific were collectively (and individually) a very talented group of young people. Yes, sometimes the shows can be a bit cheesy, but we still go and enjoy most of them.

 

Agreed. Jack and I were onboard ms Volendam March 14 to May 9. The entertainment was great, probably thanks to Cruise Director Bruce Alan Scudder. Standing ovations were reserved for the finest performances. The Singers and Dancers helped out in different parts of the ship. Thank goodness I praised them in my survey after the cruise.

 

I wish the In Depth version of entertainment all the best. However, I do hope that the entertainment that we love continues on the other cruises.

 

Barbaara

[MajMom96]

Highlight and Underline is mine:

 

 

 

The person who stated the above is incorrect. The Singers and Dancers are also used in Passenger Safety Drills (Muster Drills) n various capacities. I do not think I've seen them do anything else onboard. So I'd believe that their contracts at least have that codicil (for lack of a better word) included.

 

 

Joanie

 

 

 

The dancers also conducted dance lessons during the days when I was on the Koningsdam and the Nieuw Amsterdam. But I must add, that was a little intimidating! I liked it better on Princess when the CD staff conducted the dance lessons. LOL.

[MajMom96]

Interesting thread. I actually don’t get too worried about the onboard entertainment since I cruise more for the itineraries and the convenience of not having to pack and unpack during my vacation. The shows just fill the time until the next port. And if the shows aren’t very good, there’s always the casino waiting to take my money! LOL. But throughout this entire thread, I’m surprised no one suggested they bring back the HALcats! Now that was some cheesy entertainment! I think HAL has definitely upgraded in that regard with B.B. Kings, Billboard on Board and Lincoln Center Stage!

[Ashdale]

On Oosterdam earlier this year - thought HAL singers and dancers were excellent but choice of music/songs poor.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[KirkNC]

Please, anything but the HAL Cats

[bUU]

Pathetic evasion.

Nonsense. I'm simply not willing to let your ridiculous nonsense dominate the thread. I've made the point. You don't like it, so you tried to misconstrue it into absurdity and I didn't play your game. It is time to get over it and move on.

[bUU]

Interesting thread. I actually don’t get too worried about the onboard entertainment since I cruise more for the itineraries and the convenience of not having to pack and unpack during my vacation. The shows just fill the time until the next port. And if the shows aren’t very good, there’s always the casino waiting to take my money! LOL.

You've really underscored my point here: You're not alone. As a matter of fact, we can very safely reverse engineer what Princess, Celebrity and Holland America have been doing to know that what you've expressed here is becoming the dominant perspective (if it is not already) and getting even more pervasive. And it leads these cruise lines to precisely the kinds of decisions that many people in this thread and in this forum don't *like*. However, it makes business sense. If passengers are going to go to the casino in response to entertainment that doesn't meet their rarefied specifications (instead of going to Sandals or Beaches resorts, for example), then that's a big win for the cruise lines. The entire industry, at this price point, is doing the same thing, so they all win - lower costs, higher revenues, and consistent load levels.

[RedneckBob]

Actually what you are "saying" is simply a regurgitation of partially digested, clearly challengable, business school textbook cliches.

 

Would you repeat that in english :eek:

[Aruba]

The operative word there is “RUMOR”

 

There’s a separate thread about the RUMOR.

 

Roy

Ah, I understand. Thank you -- I have been away from CruiseCritic for a long time and was not aware of this other thread.

[MajMom96]

You've really underscored my point here: You're not alone. As a matter of fact, we can very safely reverse engineer what Princess, Celebrity and Holland America have been doing to know that what you've expressed here is becoming the dominant perspective (if it is not already) and getting even more pervasive. And it leads these cruise lines to precisely the kinds of decisions that many people in this thread and in this forum don't *like*. However, it makes business sense. If passengers are going to go to the casino in response to entertainment that doesn't meet their rarefied specifications (instead of going to Sandals or Beaches resorts, for example), then that's a big win for the cruise lines. The entire industry, at this price point, is doing the same thing, so they all win - lower costs, higher revenues, and consistent load levels.

 

 

 

Sorry, but I think I missed your point several pages ago! Mine was just a simple statement on why I personally choose cruises over other vacation venues and I don’t really care whether my preferences are driving business decisions for the cruise line. If I want a broadway quality show, I’ll simply go to Broadway. I don’t have high expectations for onboard entertainment and therefore am rarely disappointed and often pleasantly surprised. Happy cruising! [emoji41]

[iancal]

I have no doubt that at this very moment someone at HAL is working on developing a juke box that will be able to swipe your card and charge you appropriately for your music selection.

 

This will eliminate the need for, and cost of, onboard music and change it from an expense center to a revenue center. Neptune Suite guests will get 10 free plays per stateroom (not per person). Five star Mariners will get five free plays per person. Yet another incentive to reward customer loyalty.

 

You will be able to purchase a package of plays, 25, 50, etc at discounts ranging from 5 percent to a whopping 15 percent based on the package. Unused plays will of course not be able to be transferred or saved for future cruises.

 

This will be billed as an on board entertainment enhancement.

Edited May 26, 2018 by iancal

[Sir PMP]

You've really underscored my point here: You're not alone. As a matter of fact, we can very safely reverse engineer what Princess, Celebrity and Holland America have been doing to know that what you've expressed here is becoming the dominant perspective (if it is not already) and getting even more pervasive. And it leads these cruise lines to precisely the kinds of decisions that many people in this thread and in this forum don't *like*. However, it makes business sense. If passengers are going to go to the casino in response to entertainment that doesn't meet their rarefied specifications (instead of going to Sandals or Beaches resorts, for example), then that's a big win for the cruise lines. The entire industry, at this price point, is doing the same thing, so they all win - lower costs, higher revenues, and consistent load levels.

 

Sorry, another empty statement...

[taxmantoo]

Sorry, another empty statement...

^^^^ That ... (again...)

[bUU]

Sorry, but I think I missed your point several pages ago! Mine was just a simple statement on why I personally choose cruises over other vacation venues and I don’t really care whether my preferences are driving business decisions for the cruise line.

Most people don't, but some people do - and more to the point, some people have very strong animosity toward the business decisions driven by preferences such as those you expressed. That's their problem, though, not yours nor mine.

 

If I want a broadway quality show, I’ll simply go to Broadway.

Us too.

 

I have no doubt that at this very moment someone at HAL is working on developing a juke box that will be able to swipe your card and charge you appropriately for your music selection.

It may be a good idea to think about what the next few changes will be, since there are some people who clearly are shocked and dismayed by the changes that have been happening. Perhaps giving them warning about what is to come will help them more calmly deal with things.

 

So the real question is whether live entertainment has a future aboard cruise ships. Let's say right from the start that when we look at Carnival, for example, there's been even more movement away from live entertainment. Many of the deck parties employ DJs in addition to live bands (rather than just live bands). I know some cruise lines (I don't recall which) and even some live theaters on land (I don't recall which) have replaced live music with recorded music, for musical stage presentations with live actors on stage. I think it is a reasonable guess that Holland America will increasingly employ recorded music when it fits, as entertainment being live, being something that only certain people care about a lot, is more expensive than what could replace it.

 

How far will it go? That's up to passengers, as demonstrated not by their complaints but rather their actions. The cruise lines will keep making changes until indications are that the next change will start eating away at their revenue more than it will enhance their profitability. It's frustrating for some, because they are ready (or say they're ready) to take such action, or already have, but so many others didn't, and won't, so that the message to the cruise line from the customer-base as a whole is "ratified!"

 

Regardless, I wouldn't be surprised to see practically no live entertainment on Carnival, eventually, and only a couple more live entertainers on Holland America. I'm not sure it'll happen in our lifetimes, but there is no reasonable basis on which to say it could never happen.

 

 

Sorry, another empty statement...

From you, another pointlessly off-topic and self-indulgently rude post, saying nothing with regard to the cruise line whatsoever but rather just to try to distract attention away from a point you don't like but for which you don't have a legitimate counter.

[Tinknock50]

Not on all, for example there is not a Lincoln Center on Amsterdam. Larger ships yes, smaller ships maybe not.

Ah I see. I forgot about the ships that did not get the remake.

 

Lincoln center was so awesome , I did not miss Adagio or Rosario at all and I really enjoyed them too.

 

There was a period a few years back where they had some middle eastern ones that were pretty awful. Each piece had the same lilt (sing songy) to it so they all pieces sounded the same. HAL did fix that and I recall some from Russia and mid Europe who were excellent.

Edited May 26, 2018 by Tinknock50

[jakkojakko]

Highlight and Underline is mine:

 

The person who stated the above is incorrect. The Singers and Dancers are also used in Passenger Safety Drills (Muster Drills) n various capacities. I do not think I've seen them do anything else onboard. So I'd believe that their contracts at least have that codicil (for lack of a better word) included.

 

Joanie

 

That is right Joanie. They als are also assigned to a shipstour, one per bus, to make sure everybody returns and then report back to the shore-ex staff. I have seen them making out excursion reports. Who knows what they do behind the scene out of our view.

[sail7seas]

The dancers also conducted dance lessons during the days when I was on the Koningsdam and the Nieuw Amsterdam. But I must add, that was a little intimidating! I liked it better on Princess when the CD staff conducted the dance lessons. LOL.

 

 

There was a time when all HAL ships had libraries and the cast members were often seen working in the libarary.

[RDC1]

Not quite correct. HAL was unwilling to match the singers and dancers salaries paid by competing lines. Instead, they reduced the duties required of them. On other lines, singers and dancers often are assigned to assist other departments, like shops, photo, and Shorex. They even assist in the restaurants on busy nights on some lines.

 

On HAL, they only perform their contracted entertainment duties and assist with the pax safety drill. Most of them are quite unhappy about working the safety drill.

 

If you see one of the singers or dancers doing anything else onboard, they have made a deal with one of the managers to work for extra pay.

If you see a singer or dancer - or any other Crewmember - escorting pax on a tour, they are doing it only to get a free tour. Their only duty on the tour is to complete a short report on the quality when the tour is finished.

 

To which other lines are you referring. Their duties are the same on Princess as they are on HAL, with the sole exception of Pacific Princess where they are also members of the CD staff due to limited crew space. That assignment is considered a choice one because the dual role gives them higher rank, which stays with them the rest of their career with Princess.

[Cruising-along]

That is right Joanie. They als are also assigned to a shipstour, one per bus, to make sure everybody returns and then report back to the shore-ex staff. I have seen them making out excursion reports. Who knows what they do behind the scene out of our view.

 

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