Who else saw Coming out of Shells tour on stage along time ago?

[Egon1982]

I remembered when i was 8 going on 9 28 years ago when my mom bought me a ticket to Tingley coliseum in Albuquerque to take me to see this concert live.

I also remembered getting the soundtrack on cassette with a program as a kid and i had a blast seeing the turtles live on stage.

[Original TMNT Cartoon Fan]

Did you see Getting Down in Your Town too?

[Egon1982]

Did you see Getting Down in Your Town too.

Nope, i had not but i had fond memories of seeing Coming out of their shell live on stage.

[Leo656]

I seen it at Six Flags. It was glorious.

I mean, it was cheesy as f*ck but it was what it was supposed to be. I dug it.

I maintain that there's about four songs on that record that are actually pretty spiffy.

[Original TMNT Cartoon Fan]

I mean, it was cheesy as f*ck but it was what it was supposed to be. I dug it.

Some people act it as if it was a comic, cartoon or film, and judge it as a TMNT universe. It isn't. It's just the Ninja Turtles on stage.

[Egon1982]

I seen it at Six Flags. It was glorious.

I mean, it was cheesy as f*ck but it was what it was supposed to be. I dug it.

I maintain that there's about four songs on that record that are actually pretty spiffy.

I agree with that, love that Skipping Stones song.

[IndigoErth]

Nah, I wasn't lucky enough to get to do those sort of things. At nearest it probably went to Philly, about a 45 min drive, and I have at best maybe a vague memory of being aware of the shows existence back then.

I seen it at Six Flags. It was glorious.
Aw, assuming you mean Great Adventure, the same one we always went to on the rare occasion... lucky.

As corny as it is, I don't really feel any loss for missing out, but back then I'd have been all over that.

[Leo656]

Indeed. Front row, too!

My best friend was a few years older than me - we were 7 and 10, I think - and the whole time beforehand, he was "too cool" for it. Then once it started he was into it like everyone else. :lol:

There's a few songs that are better than they deserve. The title track, "No Treaties", and "Count On Us" probably hold up better than anything else.

Also, can admitting all this do something to erase that "Grinch" label that follows me around all'a time? :lol: I like lots of things, just selectively. And if I was trying to engineer a reputation or setting myself up as an Arbiter Of Taste, I damn sure wouldn't be publicly copping to EVER liking This Sh*t, nah'mean?

[Prowler]

I seen it at Six Flags. It was glorious.

I mean, it was cheesy as f*ck but it was what it was supposed to be. I dug it.

I maintain that there's about four songs on that record that are actually pretty spiffy.

I kinda like Pizza Power.

[pferreira]

Guys I live in the UK. I didn't even know Coming Out of Shells was a thing until the early 2000s when I started to get back into TMNT properly via the Internet. Maybe ignorance was bliss? :ohwell: :lol:

[Prowler]

Guys I live in the UK. I didn't even know Coming Out of Shells was a thing until the early 2000s when I started to get back into TMNT properly via the Internet. Maybe ignorance was bliss? :ohwell: :lol:

Neither did I. I don't think they ever toured outside of USA.

[Shortfuse]

I'm not sure if they toured the UK, but I remember seeing features in UK newspapers and magazines with the Turtles in their stage outfits in the early 90s.

[MsMarvelDuckie]

Indeed. Front row, too!

My best friend was a few years older than me - we were 7 and 10, I think - and the whole time beforehand, he was "too cool" for it. Then once it started he was into it like everyone else. :lol:

There's a few songs that are better than they deserve. The title track, "No Treaties", and "Count On Us" probably hold up better than anything else.

Also, can admitting all this do something to erase that "Grinch" label that follows me around all'a time? :lol: I like lots of things, just selectively. And if I was trying to engineer a reputation or setting myself up as an Arbiter Of Taste, I damn sure wouldn't be publicly copping to EVER liking This Sh*t, nah'mean?


I will agree with that list. Skipping Stones and No Treaties are hands down the two best. But Count on Us and Coming Out of Our Shells are both good too. (I prefer the slow version).

Don't get me wrong, Cowabunga and Pizza Power are fun, but cheesy as f***. Though I DO really like Tubin, too.!

[Leo656]

Yeah, "Tubin'" isn't bad.

"Cowabunga" is... something. :lol:

I still have my program from Pizza Hut. I still remember when my Dad brought home that and the cassette tape. Good times.

Both the program and the liner notes of the cassette case have some pretty terrible misprinted lyrics, however. Including some lines completely not existing in their respective songs at all and the word "Don't" replaced with "Donatello" several times. Perhaps most egregiously, the line, "The word 'gourmet' just don't exist" being replaced in the notes with, "...just Donatello's exit", which... well, you see it. WTF?!

It's extremely likely that nobody proofread these things before they shipped, because otherwise it was a choice. The program's printed lyrics don't even match the ones in the liner notes half the time! Very bizarre.

[IndigoErth]

Yeah, "Tubin'" isn't bad.

"Cowabunga" is... something. :lol:

I still have my program from Pizza Hut. I still remember when my Dad brought home that and the cassette tape. Good times.

Both the program and the liner notes of the cassette case have some pretty terrible misprinted lyrics, however. Including some lines completely not existing in their respective songs at all and the word "Don't" replaced with "Donatello" several times. Perhaps most egregiously, the line, "The word 'gourmet' just don't exist" being replaced in the notes with, "...just Donatello's exit", which... well, you see it. WTF?!

It's extremely likely that nobody proofread these things before they shipped, because otherwise it was a choice. The program's printed lyrics don't even match the ones in the liner notes half the time! Very bizarre.
:lol: Wow, if anyone ever got an image of that to share I would not mind seeing that...

Sounds like they paid someone $10 to listen to the audio and write down what they heard, never mind if it made sense or not. :tlol:

[Original TMNT Cartoon Fan]

Neither did I. I don't think they ever toured outside of USA.

They toured Sweden in 1993

http://www.popkorn.nu/topplistor/topp-10_ttt.html

[Leo656]

:lol: Wow, if anyone ever got an image of that to share I would not mind seeing that...

Sounds like they paid someone $10 to listen to the audio and write down what they heard, never mind if it made sense or not. :tlol:

I still have everything. I recently cleaned out my storage unit, so it's all here, I just don't know where it is. In a box in the screenhouse, almost certainly. Remind me when the weather's warmer and I'll dig around.

The program came with a spiffy fold-out poster in the middle. The artwork was pretty nice. The funniest thing is that this whole thing actually takes place in the 1990 film universe. The two-page cartoon story that explains the whole deal at the beginning of the program book loosely references the movie's events as their jumping-off point, and the artwork on the poster is more directly modeled on the characters as they appeared in the film, rather than the... "questionable" character models that actually appeared onstage.

When I find it, I'll take some pics. But yeah, the lyrics don't match the songs on EITHER the program or the liner notes, but those lyrics don't match each other, either. If you put the program and the liner notes side-by-side, you'll see words missing or misspelled, entire lines or verses either put in the wrong order or missing completely, or words on paper that don't appear in the songs at all, with specific errors unique to either source. I think "Cowabunga" had the worst lyrics misprinting, with a little bit of ALL of those errors in one song. Just a giant casserole of nonsense.

I'd love to know what happened, but I'm guessing it's really just an elaborate version of "Nobody really gave a sh*t."

[MsMarvelDuckie]

My guess is traslated by someone for whom English is a second- or maybe even third- language. It sounds suspiciously like translation errors or someone trying to read it in a foriegn language (and failing epically...).

[Original TMNT Cartoon Fan]

The funniest thing is that this whole thing actually takes place in the 1990 film universe.

But still they refered to Baxter Stockman, Dimension X and Krang.

[MsMarvelDuckie]

I think it was more likely a combined universe, since it had elements of both.

[Original TMNT Cartoon Fan]

I think it was more likely a combined universe, since it had elements of both.

Also, it was still unknown when Coming out of Shells debuted what direction the second film would take.

[Leo656]

Well, I was strictly speaking to what the program booklet had established, which I assume was put together at an altogether different point in time than the actual stage show. Nobody but the Turtles, Splinter, April, and Shredder are ever mentioned in the program booklet at all, so I can believe that the book was put together fairly early on when things were still being nailed down.

The cartoon in the book mentions "Shredder being finally defeated once and for all" as their impetus to learn music, which hadn't ever come close to happening, by that point, in any media other than the first film (although the cartoon itself is done in FW-style). That combined with the movie-centric poster artwork is what I was going by. My memories of the actual show's content are gauzy at best, so I can't speak to any of that.

As for the lyrics, a mistranslation is definitely a possibility, but that still wouldn't explain the extra "deleted" lines or verses that appear in print but not the actual songs. Seriously, there's gotta be some kinda crazy story about the making of these promotional materials. It's not even "Left Hand-Right Hand" kinda thing, I'm not sure WHAT it is, exactly. :lol:

But it stood out strongly enough for me to remember it, so here we are. :)

[Original TMNT Cartoon Fan]

I think it was more likely a combined universe, since it had elements of both.

I don't think the writers had much thoughts of different universes when writing this. It was just meant to be fun.

[sdp]

Was it an actual tour that went to major cities in selected states in the US or just very few shows here and there and mostly played on six flags?

[IndigoErth]

I think it did go to various cities, too. I found an old article posted online from Dec. 1990 that included info about their tour being in Philly. Apparently they played there News Years Eve.

http://articles.mcall.com/1990-12-23/entertainment/2765163_1_turtle-fan-bob-bejan-pizza-power

Ninja Turtles, Disney Characters To Rock Into Philadelphia
December 23, 1990|by KATHERINE REINHARD, The Morning Call

As the story goes, Michaelangelo and Raphael, as in ninja turtles not Renaissance artists, were in the sewers waiting for a pizza to be delivered when Raphael started banging on some pipes. Picking up on the bodacious beat, Michaelangelo began writing lyrics about their all-time favorite food. Then -- cowabunga! -- they had a song: "Pizza Power."

So, it was only natural that the totally awesome dudes along with brothers Donatello and Leonardo would form a rock band, cut an album and go on a no-expense-spared, 40-city national tour.

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles will bring the musical production, "Coming Out of Their Shell," to Philadelphia's Civic Center Thursday through Dec. 31. Splinter, the turtles' ninja master, arch enemy Shredder and TV reporter April O'Neil also will be part of the two-hour show.

Also appearing in Philadelphia during the Christmas holidays is Walt Disney's World on Ice. The ice show, which features Mickey, Minnie, Chip 'n' Dale and Disney newcomers, the Little Mermaid and Roger Rabbit, will be performed Wednesday through Jan. 6 at the Spectrum.

Actually it was Bob Bejan, a 30-year-old turtle fan from the days when the karate-chopping crusaders for justice were obscure comic-book characters, who created the tale of turtles turned rock stars.

Bejan, who lists New York shows "Strides," "Snap Against the Beat" and "Prison Camp" among his credits as a composer and lyricist, is co-producer of "Coming Out of Their Shells." Steve Leber, the producer of the Moscow Circus who once managed rock acts Aerosmith, AC/DC and Ted Nugent, is the other co-producer.

Bejan, who also wrote the show's book and lyrics and co-wrote the show's original story, says a rock musical seemed like a good vehicle to bring the turtles live to the public without relying on the violence that has drawn criticism.

In fact, Bejan says the message behind the show is that the turtles "can do more good with music than they can with violence." While the choreography includes movements of martial arts, it does so without violence.

"Coming Out of Their Shells" is a $4 million production that is being promoted by Pizza Hut to the tune of $20 million. Pizza Hut also initially distributed the accompanying "Coming Out of Their Shells" album, which has sold 2.5 million copies since its September release.

"With the turtles being so television based, we felt strongly that we had to give a high quality product. We really felt if we spent the money and really did it the right way, then the whole family would enjoy the show," Bejan said in a recent telephone interview.

To ensure a full two hours of quality entertainment, Bejan enlisted the help of Eugene Lee, a two-time Tony award-winning set designer, and Jules Fisher, who won three Tony awards for lighting. Casting calls went out in New York and Los Angeles with parts being awarded to actors with strong theatrical backgrounds.

The show is geared to the 4- to 12-year-old set. Bejan says he incorporated a story line into the show because he felt it would be too difficult for the young audience to sit through two hours of songs.

"It's really a cross between a full-blown rock concert and a Broadway show. It's really cool," says Bejan.

Even before the show starts, April O'Neil, TV reporter and friend of the turtles, can be seen on large-screen TVs interviewing audience members. A camera then follows her throughout the show as she updates events involving a plot by the evil Shredder.

"Shredder has been following the whole show around trying to stop the music," says Bejan, adding that audience members are called upon to help stop Shredder's plans.

Bejan, a one-time dancer who has directed commercials and music and comedy specials for MTV and HBO, says he found it easy to write a show geared for the younger set.

Bejan says the appeal of the turtles is that they never talk down to the children, so he incorporated that philosophy into the show.

The "Coming Out of Their Shells" tour is booked through the summer. While the show has enjoyed good reviews, Bejan concedes that the sagging economy has definitely hurt ticket sales. He says it doesn't help matters that Walt Disney's World on Ice is appearing in Philadelphia at the same time.

In addition to the show, Bejan is planning a second turtles album. Bejan and the turtles also are involved in campaigning against the use of drugs and alcohol. The state of New York has adopted the turtles' motto of "Walk Straight" as its new anti-drug slogan.

In the latest Walt Disney's World on Ice, Huey, Dewey and Louie disappear in a time machine. Mickey and the rest of the Disney gang travel through time, stopping in ancient Egypt, the jungle, outer space, the 1950s and the undersea world of The Little Mermaid, trying to find the boys.

Throughout the show, the time machine pumps out rock'nroll hits, Disney classics and numbers from "The Little Mermaid." In one scene, Ursula the Witch glides on the ice and expands her tentacles until she is 35 feet wide.

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles will appear at the Philadelphia Civic Center Thursday through Dec. 31. Show times are 7 p.m. Thursday; 2 and 7 p.m. Friday, Saturday and next Sunday and 2 p.m. Dec. 31. Tickets are available at the Civic Center box office, Valley Forge Music Fair and all area Ticketmaster outlets. For information, call the Civic Center, 1-823-7400.

Walt Disney's World on Ice will be performed at the Spectrum in Philadelphia Wednesday through Jan. 6. Show times are 1:30 and 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday; 11 a.m., 3:30 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday; 1 and 5 p.m. next Sunday; 11 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. Dec. 31; 1:30 p.m. Jan. 1; 7:30 p.m. Jan. 3; 11 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. Jan. 4; 11 a.m., 3:30 and 7:30 p.m. Jan 5, and 1 and 5 p.m. Jan. 6. There are no performances Jan. 2. Tickets are on sale at the Spectrum box office, Civic Center box office and all Ticketmaster outlets.


Speaking of the tour... Anyone want some hands? (https://www.ebay.com/itm/Teenage-Mutant-Ninja-Turtles-Coming-Out-Of-Their-Shells-Tour-Used-Costume-Hands/392230217274?hash=item5b52be263a:g:hRAAAOSw0YVcVze U:rk:4:pf:0)

[Leo656]

I really gotta find that program book. It has the entire original list of places that the Tour was scheduled to go to.

I do think that it was predominantly staged at Six Flags locations. It might have been exclusive but I can't remember.

[oldmanwinters]

I really gotta find that program book. It has the entire original list of places that the Tour was scheduled to go to.

I do think that it was predominantly staged at Six Flags locations. It might have been exclusive but I can't remember.

Is this what you mean?
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1FAGK8KI6zMGrACATEoq1qMeNgZaVxRwk

[Leo656]

Not at all, but thanks for sharing! I've never seen that before.

The book I'm speaking of was specifically part of the in-store Pizza Hut Promotion. With certain purchases, you would get the cassette tape of the album and a full-color booklet that contained lyrics for a couple of the songs, a two-page cartoon explaining why the TMNT were switching gears from fighting to playing music, a pull-out poster, "Character Bios" explaining why each Turtle chose their respective instrument (Ex: "Leo's 'deep', so of course he plays bass!", which for some reason sticks out in my mind to this day :lol:), and on the back, a cut-out full-face mask of Raphael that you were supposed to wear on your head with a piece of string. However, the mask was of Raph's face looking away at a quarter-turn, rather than straight-ahead (as is normal), so... seems like it would look very stupid to actually try and wear.

It's a slick piece of work, I'll try and find it. Again, interestingly enough, aside from the 2-page cartoon which is FW-inspired (imagine every bit of "unofficial/official" TMNT artwork you've ever seen from that era), all other artwork of the TMNT is clearly based on their appearances in the first film. I can't recall any images of them "in costume" as they appeared in the actual stage production, which leads me to think that they hadn't gotten that far, yet.

The list of cities and dates was rather small, as I recall, written in small type in either the side or bottom margins on the same page as the character bios. I'm 100% certain that it was originally a fairly small production that they added a lot more dates to once it turned out to be more popular than expected.

The book itself is, dimension-wise, about the same size as an "oversized" magazine, but it's also very thin, only a few pages altogether; more than half of them are part of the pull-out poster.

Trivia: Not everyone who purchased these items in-store at Pizza Hut got the same cassette tape, or rather, the same case. You either got the tape in a standard case with a full-color cover with a picture of Mikey holding a guitar, with the lyrics included (along with a list of all the studio musicians who REALLY played each instrument, which... kind of kills the illusion :lol:), OR, a cheaper, soft-plastic case that was kind of semi-opaque, with no sheet whatsoever, just the tape in a cheap case.

I have no idea what the specifics of that were, whether it be a regional thing or what. Perhaps at the start of the promotion, they hadn't finished printing the lyrics and artwork but didn't want to delay the start of everything, so they shipped the first few tapes in whatever cases they had lying around, sans paperwork? That's all I can figure.

They must have ended up manufacturing WAY more than necessary, however, because eventually they ended up selling the cassette tapes in certain stores. I saw them turning up at K-Marts and such as late as 1996, never for more than $5.

[oldmanwinters]

Not at all, but thanks for sharing! I've never seen that before.

The book I'm speaking of was specifically part of the in-store Pizza Hut Promotion. With certain purchases, you would get the cassette tape of the album and a full-color booklet that contained lyrics for a couple of the songs, a two-page cartoon explaining why the TMNT were switching gears from fighting to playing music, a pull-out poster, "Character Bios" explaining why each Turtle chose their respective instrument (Ex: "Leo's 'deep', so of course he plays bass!", which for some reason sticks out in my mind to this day :lol:), and on the back, a cut-out full-face mask of Raphael that you were supposed to wear on your head with a piece of string. However, the mask was of Raph's face looking away at a quarter-turn, rather than straight-ahead (as is normal), so... seems like it would look very stupid to actually try and wear.

It's a slick piece of work, I'll try and find it. Again, interestingly enough, aside from the 2-page cartoon which is FW-inspired (imagine every bit of "unofficial/official" TMNT artwork you've ever seen from that era), all other artwork of the TMNT is clearly based on their appearances in the first film. I can't recall any images of them "in costume" as they appeared in the actual stage production, which leads me to think that they hadn't gotten that far, yet.

The list of cities and dates was rather small, as I recall, written in small type in either the side or bottom margins on the same page as the character bios. I'm 100% certain that it was originally a fairly small production that they added a lot more dates to once it turned out to be more popular than expected.

The book itself is, dimension-wise, about the same size as an "oversized" magazine, but it's also very thin, only a few pages altogether; more than half of them are part of the pull-out poster.

Trivia: Not everyone who purchased these items in-store at Pizza Hut got the same cassette tape, or rather, the same case. You either got the tape in a standard case with a full-color cover with a picture of Mikey holding a guitar, with the lyrics included (along with a list of all the studio musicians who REALLY played each instrument, which... kind of kills the illusion :lol:), OR, a cheaper, soft-plastic case that was kind of semi-opaque, with no sheet whatsoever, just the tape in a cheap case.

I have no idea what the specifics of that were, whether it be a regional thing or what. Perhaps at the start of the promotion, they hadn't finished printing the lyrics and artwork but didn't want to delay the start of everything, so they shipped the first few tapes in whatever cases they had lying around, sans paperwork? That's all I can figure.

They must have ended up manufacturing WAY more than necessary, however, because eventually they ended up selling the cassette tapes in certain stores. I saw them turning up at K-Marts and such as late as 1996, never for more than $5.

Sounds like this is what you need. Enscripture scanned a copy a while back:
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1-WiqXJLoljOB_slyjTZjPczmY-KL4L5t

[Leo656]

Won't open. Everything I try says "Unsupported".

Also, it's a good thing I trust you. I generally never click anything anyone tells me to download, but I made an exception in this case. Sucks it didn't work.

Any other way I could see it?

[frank_one]

It works for me. It's a .cbz file, if you can't open it just try to rename it as a .zip file.

[Leo656]

Any solution that doesn't involve me doing so much homework? I promise you, I'm the laziest guy you know.

[oldmanwinters]

Easiest thing would probably be downloading an up-to-date version of CDisplay for opening those .cbr and .cbz files:
http://www.cdisplayex.com/

[Egon1982]

I kinda like Pizza Power.

I like You can Count on Us and Skipping Stones.

[Krutch]

If there was ever a “dark, gritty” reboot I’d pay good money to see, this’d be it.

[MsMarvelDuckie]

I can say that Dallas was one of the major show locations, at least. I wanted to go see it when it came to our area, byt sadly never got to.

Leo, do you think the "extra" lyrics not in the songs as recorded were from earlier versions of the music sheets? Or perhaps were from the concert versions of those songs? Many bands will altar their songs from the original recordings when they play live, and change lyrics in those performances, even ad-libbing or adding extra verses if they want to try new material out. I know the cassette had the "slow" version of Coming Out of Our Shells, which is different from the faster concert version. Could be there were multiple versions written or performed of some songs, and the lyrics in the liner were from those.

[Leo656]

Anything is possible. :) It may even be a little bit of all of that.

[Vintage]

I saw it at Radio City Music Hall. I was a child and was in heaven seeing it at that time. Nothing could of been more exciting for me at that time