Abbott stated that there were two reasons for what he considered to be the show's failure. The first was Rodgers and Hammerstein's overconfidence; they thought of themselves as Broadway's "Golden Boys" who could do no wrong. The other was the play-within-the-play, which had not been thoroughly thought out by anyone. According to Abbott, Hammerstein remained "positively Sphinx-like" on the subject. At a loss to understand the characters of the play-within-the play, Alton came up with nothing more than routine song-and-dance numbers. During the run, the duo approached choreographer Jerome Robbins and asked him if he could fix the dances. Robbins said that he could, but he would not, as "it would kill Bob Alton". According to Hammerstein biographer Hugh Fordin, " intended contrast between onstage and backstage life was never achieved because the onstage show was so tepid and confusing."