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Fans' anger over 'fraud' of Tape Face stand-in

Started by Timothy, July 17, 2019, 06:28:32 PM

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Timothy

Posted this in the Edinburgh forum but decided to make a topic for it since it's an interesting question.

Here the original article: https://www.chortle.co.uk/news/2019/07/17/43610/fans_anger_over_fraud_of_tape_face_stand-in

Summary:
The Boy With Tape on his Face (now named Tape Face) has performed on America's Got Talent and is now doing a Vegas show. At the same time he's doing a show in the UK.
He trained someone else to perform his Tape Face routine to do it in Vegas and wants to expand his Tape Face shows all over the world with different Tape Faces.
Unfortunately he hasn't told the people who booked tickets for his show who the Tape Face on stage is gonna be. Lots of fans are angry and annoyed because they paid over 80 dollars to see someone else do the Tape Face routines while it's advertised as AGT's Tape Face, but the Boy himself (and his producers) disagree and say that fans come to see Tape Face, not The Boy With.

I'm not sure. On one hand I understand the whole ''It's like Blue Man Group, it's the show that matters and not the performer.''
On the other hand: It's not really ATG's Tape Face if it's someone else is it?


Curious what your thoughts are. Do you understand the Boy With Tape on his Face?
Or would you be annoyed if you bought tickets only to find out someone else is doing the show.

Wet Blanket

QuoteHowever, no explicit mention of this fact is made on Hannah's website, Ticketmaster or the official Tape Face website, all of which use a picture of Wills.

This is the crux of it. He knows that if he advertised the show as UNDERSTUDY as Tape Face the punters will either stay away or refuse to pay as much brass. It's deliberately misleading.

Timothy

He also reacted to disappointed fans on Facebook:

One fan wrote:

QuoteIt's not right... I'm coming back 8/20 to see SAM...that's truly one reason for the trip!

The Boy wrote

Quoteyou are not seeing Sam and in fact nobody who follows Tape Face knows anything about Sam. You are seeing a show that has a character that lives in the venue and performs his act.

Fan:

Quoteso...the "character" on AGT was NOT Sam?

The Boy:

Quoteyes the 'character' on AGT was just that. Thanks to social media I also know that you have been to England, Italy and Scotland. That doesn't change the fact that I didn't present my personal self on the show. I only wanted to present the character of Tape Face which is what I did.

Fan:

QuoteI've just decided I'm not coming to see a fake Tape Face. I already seen a fake Gallagher! It's a sham and a rip off to sell someone else off as you

The Boy:

Quoteok

Etc. Etc.

If he indeed just announced that there are multiple Tape Face actors then people would have no right to complain. Now it's indeed misleading.

PlanktonSideburns


Captain Z

Home taping is killing music whatever it is this guy does.

DrGreggles


madhair60

If I had to go to a Tape Face show and Tape Face wasn't there, I'd be elated. An empty stage for two hours would be more fulfilling.

Icehaven

Quote from: Timothy on July 17, 2019, 06:36:02 PM
He also reacted to disappointed fans on Facebook:...

What arsey responses. If he'd just named his act 'A Boy With Tape On His Face' instead of ''The....'' in the first place he could have avoided all this

up_the_hampipe

Quote from: Timothy on July 17, 2019, 06:28:32 PM
Lots of fans are angry and annoyed because they paid over 80 dollars to see someone else do the Tape Face routines while it's advertised as AGT's Tape Face, but the Boy himself (and his producers) disagree and say that fans come to see Tape Face, not The Boy With.

How can they disagree about what the fans want when the fans are telling them what they want?

If he wants to have multiple Tape Face performers, that's fine. But the audience clearly needs to know what the deal is.


Sebastian Cobb

The original idea looked wank so I couldn't give a fuck really.

Icehaven

He's setting an interesting precedent though, it could catch on, teach a routine to someone vaguely similar to you and off you go, double your money, just hope most of the audience are either too pissed or too far away to notice. Could spread across other fields too, The Rolling Stones could train up some apprentices and really never end. Actually authors have sort of been doing this for ages, James Patterson rarely writes his own books anymore and several dead ones have their ideas carried on with their names featuring far more prominently on the covers than whoever actually wrote it.

Bad Ambassador

Quote from: icehaven on July 18, 2019, 11:09:44 AM
He's setting an interesting precedent though, it could catch on, teach a routine to someone vaguely similar to you and off you go, double your money, just hope most of the audience are either too pissed or too far away to notice. Could spread across other fields too, The Rolling Stones could train up some apprentices and really never end.

Isn't this an idea the Beatles once had - that someone else could go on tour for them? Hence Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.


checkoutgirl

Quote from: Timothy on July 17, 2019, 06:28:32 PM
Curious what your thoughts are.

It's hard to say. I've never gone to a show where I could not identify the performer. If I did go to see a fella whose act included his face being obscured by tape then I'm not sure I could really get that pissy about it not being the original guy, if I was duly entertained on the night. It just raises the fact that anyone with the right training can do that act. But you could say that about a million things.

There's a DJ called DVS1 who did a 40 minute interview, one of the subjects he touched on was the nights he puts on where the DJ booth is completely obscured. The point of which is so the attendees have no visual focal point, which forces them to focus on what they are hearing, the most important thing, the music. One punter gave him some stick on the internet for not being there. But I was there said DVS1, I was there, you just couldn't see me.

Recently I went to see a DJ with a mate, while I hung back or danced about my mate was right up in the DJ booth watching the DJ like a hawk. At the same time if I went into that room that night and could see no evidence of a DJ I'd be wondering if it was just an I-Pod playing.

There's no real answer to it but I think the Tape Face people haven't a leg to stand on. I might be being influenced by the fact that I can't respect the taste or wishes of anyone who watches Whoever's Got Talent.

checkoutgirl

Quote from: Captain Z on July 17, 2019, 08:46:06 PM
Home taping is killing music whatever it is this guy does.

That's a good question, what in the Sam Hill does this guy do?

checkoutgirl

Quote from: icehaven on July 18, 2019, 10:45:43 AM
What arsey responses. If he'd just named his act 'A Boy With Tape On His Face' instead of ''The....'' in the first place he could have avoided all this

"A Boy" doesn't have the same ring to it as "The Boy".

Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome to the stage "Some Lad With Some Tape on His Face or Summink"

checkoutgirl

Quote from: madhair60 on July 18, 2019, 10:38:26 AM
If I had to go to a Tape Face show and Tape Face wasn't there, I'd be elated. An empty stage for two hours would be more fulfilling.

But it wouldn't be an empty stage, it would be some bloke trained to do the tape face act. Whatever that is.

Petey Pate

MF Doom has been sending imposters to do his live shows for years. This is the first time I'm aware of a comedian doing it though unless you count Peter Kay tribute acts.

madhair60

Quote from: checkoutgirl on July 18, 2019, 11:54:44 AM
But it wouldn't be an empty stage, it would be some bloke trained to do the tape face act. Whatever that is.

I said if he wasn't there, I never specified any kind of stand-in.

checkoutgirl

Quote from: up_the_hampipe on July 18, 2019, 10:57:36 AM
How can they disagree about what the fans want when the fans are telling them what they want?

Because if they agree with the pissed off fans they'll be admitting they ripped them off and will then probably have to refund them. And the tape face lad is obviously highly motivated by money if he's training clones left right and centre.

It's tricky because we're living in an age where things on the internet can backfire very quickly and suddenly you can have no act, no profile, no fans and no money.

checkoutgirl

Quote from: madhair60 on July 18, 2019, 11:58:27 AM
I said if he wasn't there, I never specified any kind of stand-in.

But why would you be there? Marched down at gunpoint? Your post makes no sense. At all.

madhair60



NoSleep

Quote from: icehaven on July 18, 2019, 11:09:44 AM
He's setting an interesting precedent though, it could catch on, teach a routine to someone vaguely similar to you and off you go, double your money, just hope most of the audience are either too pissed or too far away to notice. Could spread across other fields too, The Rolling Stones could train up some apprentices and really never end.

The Abba tribute band Bjorn Again had several versions touring the world, hence their advertising only showing rear views of the group, which you would have first assumed was because it wasn't the real Bjorn et al.

checkoutgirl

Quote from: icehaven on July 18, 2019, 11:09:44 AM
He's setting an interesting precedent though

It's not a precedent though. There are five Boney Ms operating as we speak and anyone familiar with Buck's Fizz will know that multiple acts doing the same cheesy schtick with the exact same name are nothing new.

Timothy

Imagine buying tickets for Monty Python and there are a few unknown actors on stage doing the sketches, but you can't complain because according to the producers you're still in the Monty Python Universe.

Icehaven

Quote from: Bad Ambassador on July 18, 2019, 11:23:38 AM
Isn't this an idea the Beatles once had - that someone else could go on tour for them? Hence Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.

Quite. And there's that New Order video The Killers got their name from where a younger sexier band are apparently playing the song.

Sebastian Cobb

Quote from: icehaven on July 18, 2019, 11:09:44 AM
He's setting an interesting precedent though, it could catch on, teach a routine to someone vaguely similar to you and off you go, double your money, just hope most of the audience are either too pissed or too far away to notice. Could spread across other fields too, The Rolling Stones could train up some apprentices and really never end. Actually authors have sort of been doing this for ages, James Patterson rarely writes his own books anymore and several dead ones have their ideas carried on with their names featuring far more prominently on the covers than whoever actually wrote it.

Might as well just use holograms, at least it's a bit futuristic.

Icehaven

Quote from: checkoutgirl on July 18, 2019, 12:03:07 PM
It's not a precedent though. There are five Boney Ms operating as we speak and anyone familiar with Buck's Fizz will know that multiple acts doing the same cheesy schtick with the exact same name are nothing new.

It is in comedy though.

Quote from: Petey Pate on July 18, 2019, 11:57:35 AM
MF Doom has been sending imposters to do his live shows for years. This is the first time I'm aware of a comedian doing it though unless you count Peter Kay tribute acts.

Unless it isn't.