Theatre Gossip #358: The "Toot-Toot, We Hate Tootsie, Good-Bye" Edition

Tony’s are coming

Nice title thread!

What's not coming is West Side Story

Wow the thread titles keep getting worse. You should let someone else try, OP, instead of rushing in to create the titles yourself. You have no talent for it.

If you can find a copy of it, Jeremy Northam played a bisexual college student early in his career in a terrific British miniseries based on the Ruth Rendell book (writing under her pseudonym Barbara Vine) A FATAL INVERSION.

Actually, he plays the characters at two ages, as an adult and several years earlier as a college student. It's about a group of students living on a commune who are reunited years later when the bones of a dead body turn up on the property.

Tell us more, R3! It's strangely quiet on that front, isn't it? No casting, no website, no theatre announced, no social media.

All of those suggestions for HIGH SPIRITS are great, but how many would deign to do an Encores! production? Of late, the casting has been B- and C-list. I'm excepting Mark Evans, who's not a name, but who would be a terrific Charles.

Why is the thread grayed out? Last one was like that too.

The last one was started by Matt the Loon. I presume this one was, too, since he likes to spam the last several posts on the previous thread so that someone dare not create a new one that he didn't. People hate him, so his various IP addresses get FF'd a lot.

R8 I don't know about this one, but in the last one people discussed hot topics such as non-traditional casting and current SJW fate of Broadway and off-Broadway (which feels more like a lecture) which several posters don't like. They constantly bitch about it and possibly mark threads down for it. Typical far left (or right) tactic. Pretend the problem doesn't exist and try to suppress those who talk about it.

Perhaps it's because a lot of the "discussions" about non-traditional casting devolve into stupid racist jokes. I'm guessing it's the same one or two posters doing it, but those discussions often become toxic.

Yes, those "discussions" are never illuminating, with a fixation on "the blacks." No one ever says grouses about "The King and I" failing to cast all Asians in the Asian roles. It's only the "white" roles they care about.

So, here we go again?

R12 I believe the last Lincoln Center "King & I" did cast only Asians in the appropriate roles, did they not?

The b-side to "Downtown" is a High Spirits tune. I bet Martin and Gray were ecstatic.

Jesus -- what is with letting this damned TROLL spam out the theatre thread and then start a new one?

No wonder Muriel is having trouble with the search function.

OP please take a fucking moment to figure out WHY people are blocking you and get some therapy or something.

There' some major cast hate going on backstage at Circle-In-The-Square.

[quote]There' some major cast hate going on backstage at Circle-In-The-Square.

Interesting, but I would say whatever hate exists there should be directed towards the director.

Everyone that I have talked to about High Spirits says the trouble with a revival is that the musical is firmly set in the 1960s. It is not as if one can simply change the orchestrations and move it back to the 1940s. The sort of lounge-y, bongos and bassanova tone is at odds with the Coward material.

Especially Faster Than Sound. Some airline used it at the time in their commercial.

It doesn't diminish enjoying the material. It's a very good score and lots of fun. Everything doesn't need to be upgraded.

#358 came up on the search function, btw.

[quote] There' some major cast hate going on backstage at Circle-In-The-Square.

Well it can't possibly involve Mary Testa because despite years of hearing what a cunt she is someone a few threads ago told me I was wrong and that she was lovely.

Can't think of a single performer today who could outdo Grimes in that song.

The Loon ruins everything he touches. I notice that he finally admits he hates Tootsie without ever having seen it. (That’s because, in addition to being a Trumper, he’s very anti-trans, so that fuels his Tootsie hatred). What a loser.

[quote]The sort of lounge-y, bongos and bassanova tone is at odds with the Coward material.

I disagree. I think it was clever to give Mme. Arcati a coterie of beatnik types for her followers. So much of Coward is tied to 1930s settings, that I find it refreshing that High Spirits was made contemporary (at the time) and given a 60s vibe. I saw s production several years ago and didn’t fine the 60s tone at odds with Coward at all.

Ugh enough with the discussion of another poster.

No one cares.

I've seen two productions of High Spirits. The cast recording is a lot of fun, but I think in performance, the score kind of just sits there, adding very little to the proceedings. It just slows everything down.

Why the hate backstage at Wokelahoma? We know why there is hate in the audience.

Chili + cornbread = an unpleasant backstage experience

No, really, what's going on backstage?

A first look at a song from The Flamingo Kid. OMG.

Yes, I think that High Spirits (and its music) is set firmly in the 1960s is great fun! We've seen enough Coward in the 1920s and 30s, and 40s.

I like that song from The Flamingo Kid. It’s cute, and better than most of what we hear in the current Broadway hits. I hope it’s good and does well.

I know I saw the movie, but other than Matt Dillon running around in a bathing suit, I remember nothing. Which is good. It’s not an overplayed classic for once.

Expect a 'indefinite delay' of West Side Story 'Ivo' production shortly

Maybe after Spielberg’s remake is released?

In a critical review, Frank Rich of The New York Times wrote "The only thing that Jerry's Girls has in common with a bona fide Jerry Herman musical is that it occupies the St. James, the theater where Dolly once promised she'd never go away again... Whatever the point of the all-female cast, one must still wonder why the show's particular female stars were chosen. None of them have been associated with Mr. Herman's musicals. Only one (Miss Uggams) is primarily a singer. All three have strident mannerisms that the director, Larry Alford, takes sadistic glee in calling to our attention."

Larry Alford got the Jerry’s Girls gig because Jerry was fucking him. It led to tension when the show was on the road, because Alford started really ragging on Carol Channing. Jerry sided with Alford, and that’s why Channing elected not to do the show in NY. (I don’t know why Andrea McArdle didn’t do it).

The show played best back when it was a cabaret show, with the likes of Alix Korey, Randy Graff, and Evelyn Baron In it.

How did William Ivey Long survive his #metoo moment? Because the victims were men?

R42 Only one victim came forward and he was a mess.

Also in spite of the complaint, he really isn't in position to ruin any careers or do lasting harm - so if he does regularly grope hotties and make them feel uncomfortable, he isn't in position to ruin their careers if they tell him to stop.

William Ivey Long always has that big shit-eating grin on his face.

Within his world, William Ivey Long has wielded a lot of power and control for 40+ years over young and vulnerable people.

I haven't followed this closely - have there been more complaints about William Ivy Long?

DVR alert:

For anyone interested, Theater Talk's Tony predictions special with Susan Haskins and Jesse Green (co-hosts), Ben Brantley, Michael Musto, Adam Feldman, and others is airing on Monday, June 3rd, at 10 p.m. on Channel 13 here in NYC. (Not sure if it'll air at the same time in other markets around the country, so check your local listings.)

Saw "Tootsie" tonight. Why does Scott Ellis continue to get directing gigs? ANYBODY, including George C. Wolfe, could have done a better job with what little they were given here. His direction of some of the scenes, and many of the actors, is abysmal. Send him to LaJolla for a few years and bring Christopher Ashley back. I was appalled at how bad he made this musical.

[quote]Why does Scott Ellis continue to get directing gigs?

My only guess is that he must be very "nice" and drama-free in rehearsal, and maybe he has a talent for dealing well with various personality types, because he sure doesn't have any directing talent to speak of.

I saw a bootleg of Kiss Me Kate. I had never seen any version of it before. It was slight but still delightful, and some of the songs -- especially "So In Love With You Am I"-- are glorious. Kelly O'Hara was fantastic. I don't know why she gets so much hate on here. True, she doesn't project much of her own personality on her roles, but she acts well and sings beautifully. I think Will Chase is sex on a stick, but I think the role called for more of a ham actor. I could imagine Kevin Kline doing it in his prime, or Andy Karl doing it 10 years. There was color blind casting, and it did not bother me one bit. Two of the lead couples were interracial, and you it didn't make a bit of difference. That kind of color blind casting is fine, but it would have bothered me if a white actress' sister were played by a black women. Although color blind casting might violate the norms of the time the play is set, it should violate logic.

[quote]or Andy Karl doing it 10 years.

If you mean Andy Karl doing it IN ten years, he’s 45 now, which is ten years older than Alfred Drake was when he originated the role.

Sara Ramirez is doing a Lea Delaria impression on Madame Secretary

The William Ivey Long "Me Too" moment fizzled because it wasn't plausible. Even his greatest detractors could tell it was BS.

R60 Years should, there was a proposed production of KMK with Kline and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantontio

Years ago, that is:

Actually, there was talk of a Kevin Kline/Patti LuPone version of KMK that would have been amazing, considering they WERE those characters, and had such a volatile relationship years before. Art imitating life... Sadly, it fell through.

Patti could never have sung Lilli Vanessi, and I wouldn’t want to hear the songs rescored intoan alto or mezzo range.

Lilli Vanessi is a mezzo-soprano role.

"I hate HONK HONK"

r50 it didn't bother you that a black actor (the general engaged to Lilli Vanessi) had to say he was going to be running for president after Harry Truman ? It took me out of the story completely knowing how racist that time period was. Plus he was supposed to be a villain of sorts and they made the villain a black man?! Corbin Bleu however it was fine.

The original Jerry's Girls—done in a tiny cabaret space—also included Denzel Washington's wife Pauletta Pearson. That's where I heard from the cast that he was a philanderer and misogynist.

I don’t think the general is a villain per se, just an egomaniac. He’s more of a foil than a villain. It was a bit risky for them to cast the role with a POC, since the PC police only want POC in sympathetic roles. But the show is cartoony, and Corbin Bleu is a romantic lead, so I guess the PC police are giving the show a pass.

Lilli Vanessi is never sung by mezzos. It’s almost always cast with lyric sopranos, dramatic sopranos, or spintos.

"Octet" has extended again. Malloy - you either love his work or hate it, but the crowds seem to love this one.

[quote]There was color blind casting, and it did not bother me one bit. Two of the lead couples were interracial, and you it didn't make a bit of difference. That kind of color blind casting is fine, but it would have bothered me if a white actress' sister were played by a black women. Although color blind casting might violate t

Maybe you might want to try that again? But I guess we know what you meant. So, it didn't bother you that one of the two gangsters was black, or that the actor in question had no remote concept of the type of humor required for the part, so he didn't get a single laugh -- and he single-handedly ruined "Brush Up Your Shakespeare," even though the actor playing the other gangster (John Pankow) was perfect for the part and did understand the comedy? That didn't "bother" you?

[quote]It didn't bother you that a black actor (the general engaged to Lilli Vanessi) had to say he was going to be running for president after Harry Truman ? It took me out of the story completely knowing how racist that time period was.

Yeah, that too.

[quote]Actually, there was talk of a Kevin Kline/Patti LuPone version of KMK that would have been amazing, considering they WERE those characters, and had such a volatile relationship years before. Art imitating life...

I remember when there was talk of that casting. Agreed, it would have been AMAZING.

[quote]Patti could never have sung Lilli Vanessi, and I wouldn’t want to hear the songs rescored intoan alto or mezzo range.

Actually, as somebody else posted above, Lilli is more of a mezzo role, not high soprano. And Patti has sung effectively in her soprano register in several roles, most notably SWEENEY TODD.

[quote]Lilli Vanessi is never sung by mezzos. It’s almost always cast with lyric sopranos, dramatic sopranos, or spintos.

I think Patricia Morison considered herself a mezzo. Look at the keys of Lilli's songs in the original score -- not very high at all. Some of those keys may have been brought up for revivals, I'm not sure.

Kevin Kline singing an Alfred Drak role?

R52-For about 10 more episodes and then it's done.

The Adam Rapp play, "The Sound Inside", which got raves up in Williamstown in 2018 is coming to Studio 54 and according the Lincoln Center Theatre website, it will be offered to LCT subscribers as of June 10th. Does this mean "The Lehmann Trilogy" will play its limited engagement this Fall at the Beaumont? If so, LCT's profile will soar.

Lehmann Trilogy is going to a Shubert House.

Who wants to listen to those idiots predict Tony's? They all just talk to each other and come up with the same stupid "people say" bullshit. Last year they all screamed there's 'NO DOUBT' Tina Fay was going to win for Best Book of a musical. And, well...The year before there was NO DOUBT "American in Paris" was going to win.

In the words of Arthur Laurents: "No one knows anything."

In the words of Arthur Laurents, "For the millionth time, there's no fucking apostrophe in Tonys."

There's never been much evidence that Kevin Kline could sing Fred Graham's music in "Kiss Me, Kate" or that he has that great of a singing voice. Only recorded evidence are his numbers in "On the 20th Century", mostly the duet "Mine" with him singing the lower voice part opposite gorgeous-voiced John Cullum. Kline also sings a little bit in the big "Sextette", and while his performance in the theater was hilarious, mainly for his physical comedy, his just sounds like a serviceable voice. He may not have gone higher than a D or Eb. Plus in "Pirates of Penzance", the Pirate King doesn't have that many solo vocal parts, and what there are aren't very showy or high. I think he would have acted Fred Graham well, but I don't think he would have sung it that impressively.

Just mention Mary Elizabeth Mastroantonio and you'll get that professor from upstage NY rhapsodizing about her being in high school musicals with him. She's impressive on the recording of "Oh, Brother!" but her voice had some serious vocal break problems by the times she did "Man of La Mancha". She probably would have pulled off a good Lilli Vanessi though.

"upstate" not "upstage", that is

Now John Cullum when he was younger -- man, what a Fred Graham he could have done!

Do you think Cullum had the humor, r74?

"Ursula Eileen Patricia Augusta Fraser Morison (March 19, 1915[1] – May 20, 2018) was an American stage, television and film actress of the Golden Age of Hollywood and mezzo-soprano singer."

Ursula Morison!

Cullum was very funny in "On the 20th Century" played just-as-over-the-top Oscar Jaffe, so he'd have bee fine as Fred Graham, I think.

been

Interesting. I've only seen him in more serious roles.

R78 I concur. Cullum in On the Twentieth Century gave one of the funniest performances I'd ever seen.

John Cullum seems like he would be a really nice guy offstage. Has anyone here interacted with him in real life?

Cullum posted lovely tribute videos to Madeline Kahn and Barbara Harris.

R60 — No, it didn’t bother me that the “bad guy” general was played by a black man. What bothered was that the actor was obviously gay, and playing a straight playboy. I kept thinking, no way would they have elected a gay president back then. (I had the same problem with the actor who played the husband in The Light in the Piazza. He was clearly gay, so it added an unwelcome and distracting reason for the disintegration of the marriage. )

And R65, it bothered me that the black gangster didn’t have the right comedic chops for his role, but that was because of bad casting, not colorblind casting. A black actor who could play farce would have been just fine. I don’t think it matters what ethnicity or race the actor is for that role.

And before I get flamed -- which I will, anyway -- I am in no way saying that gay men can't play straight roles. Of course they can. But when the character is PLAYED as a gay man, it adds unwanted subtext. You wouldn't cast a small thin guy as a quarterback, so why cast an effeminate man as a ladies man?

R82

I have.

Yes. He was extremely nice. Kind, generous and patient.

r84, I'm wondering when you saw Light in the Piazza. When I saw it Margaret's husband was played by Beau Gravitte.

R86. I did not see him in "Light..." I could not tell you who played the husband, but Kelly O'Hara was no longer in it, if that helps. The song that the wife sings about the disintegration of the marriage -- "Dividing Day" - is one of the most beautiful I've heard in a theater.

Colorblind casting is great when you have a great talent in a role (Audra in Carousel is a prime example). But now that NYC has imposed diversity quotas for city-funded institutions like museums and performing arts institutions, you get bad casting choices like that last Encores production with a bland nobody playing Betsy Wolfe’s husband. Was he really the best they could find?

No matter, r86. I was reacting to your statement that the husband clearly was gay--to my mind, Gravitte doesn't read gay.

And I agree with you about Dividing Day. It's stunning.

Does Gravitte Jr. read as gay?

R69-Not with that set it isn't. There's no unoccupied Shubert house big enough.

R86 According to ibdb, Beau Gravitte played the role for the show's entire run. Maybe R84 went to that special Gay Roy Johnson Night.

Beau Gravitte always seemed straight to me.

What is the difference between miscasting and lack of talent?

It seems to me miscasting is often used as an excuse for an actor who simply doesn't have the talent to properly play a role.

Betsy Wolfe was kind of bland too. They should have used Kate Baldwin who has some of the star quality Nanette Fabray had.

If they had interpolated "Run and Tell That" in "High Button Shows" he would have been fine, seeing that he originated the role of Seaweed in "Hairspray", but otherwise he was, until the dance break, kind of pallid in the role.

"Shoes" not "Shows"

[quote]I think Patricia Morison considered herself a mezzo.

No she didn’t. She considered herself a dramatic soprano, which is what she was. Just as soprano has different categories (lyric, dramatic, spinto, coloratura, lyric coloratura, dramatic coloratura), mezzo-soprano is its own category, with several variations (lyric mezzo, dramatic mezzo, coloratura mezzo). Mezzo soprano literally means “half soprano,” and having notes in the contralto range is key to being able to sing mezzo roles.

Patti is a mezzo (her role as the Old Woman in Candide is an example of her doing a mezzo role and doing it well), but she tends to live more comfortably in her contralto range. (And Mrs. Lovett is not a mezzo role).

When voices in musicals (or operas) are “typed,” it has less to do with the range of notes and more to do with the voice type required. Parts have been revoiced (usually in movie versions) but it’s not usually successful (an example of it being done successfully is Lalume in Kismet, a dramatic or dramatic coloratura in the play that was revoiced as a contralto for Dolores Gray in the movie).

Hadestown is a perfect show for color blind casting. Any role could be played be a man, woman or anyone in between of any color or ethnicity. I love that about the show.

It’s a lock for Best Musical.

A lovely Anna.....

A 1964 BBC production of "Kiss Me, Kate" starring Patricia Morison and Howard Keel.

[quote]The Adam Rapp play, "The Sound Inside", which got raves up in Williamstown in 2018

An Adam Rapp play got raves?

Feinberg Forecast: First Read of the 2019 Tonys Race:

Interesting that the listing at r104 has Mary Testa dead last in the Featured Actress in a Musical race.

When Carol Lawrence and Robert Goulet did "Kiss Me Kate" on ABC in 1968, Carol took the key to "I Hate Men" down and did a sort of a soda-pop rock version of the song.

It's "ken", not "kin", Carol.

Don't forget about MY warbling!

No one is giving Mary Testa an award for anything, especially Oklahoma.

But she isn't asking for that, R109

Why do I always think Mary Testa is a former opera singer?

Is there some Testa who was famous in opera?

Perhaps not r111 but there have been the occasional Marias.

I think I'm mixing her up with Teresa Stratas, for whatever reason

R111: You might be thinking of Mary Costa.

A former opera soprano. She was also in the movie The Great Waltz (the remake, with Horst Buchholz).

I can't imagine attending a Mary Testa concert. Her sound is so... relentless.

Mary Costa was also the voice of Princess Aurora in Disney’s Sleeping Beauty.

Her voice creeps me out in the tv commercials for Oklahoma. Yes, that's her.

Mary Testical?

Vinny Testaverde?

Mary Cost Plus?

Luisa Tetrazzini (who the chicken recipe is named after)

Mary" I Don't Care the Cost" of Teck?

Luise Rainer?

What I found interesting is that Brooks is listed as third by Feinberg behind Santino and Alex. All this time I've been thinking that category was going to be a two-man race between Santino and Brooks.

Looks like "Camp Morning Wood" has changed theaters, plus it looks like some guys as well. It sees they've postponed performances by a week as well.

seems, that is

Costa was the tour and London Cunegonde.....

She did Cunegonde for the LA Civic Light Opera around 1970 as well.

Mary Testa singing "Out of My Dreams" in that Times clip (whose bright idea was that?) is exactly how I have always experienced her in a show - over the top, inappropriate, gross.

Costa & Calhoun!

I watched that clip, r129. You’re a fucking sexist troll. Inappropriate? Gross? What is your problem?

[quote]If they had interpolated "Run and Tell That" in "High Button Shows" he would have been fine, seeing that he originated the role of Seaweed in "Hairspray", but otherwise he was, until the dance break, kind of pallid in the role.

Please explain. Corey Reynolds was the original Seaweed ... what are you referring to?

[quote]For about 10 more episodes and then it's done.

Why? Is Sara leaving the show?

[quote]Kelly O'Hara was fantastic. I don't know why she gets so much hate on here

Well, she hates YOU because you can't spell her name.

LOVED Megan Hilty at the Lincoln Center, finally actual showtunes. She is neat

Her lack of Kit Andree training showed, r135.

If you find that interpretation of “Out of My Dreams” appropriate to the song, and not at all over the top or grossly distorting, bully for you, r131. It’s there on YouTube for you to enjoy to your heart’s delight.

Just because someone doesn’t buy Mary Testa’s usual routine (and that performance is quite typical for her) doesn’t make them sexist. Astute, shrewd, and discriminating perhaps, or misguided to someone who likes it. But not sexist.

Wow! Never saw Rory Calhoun having so much fun onscreen. He usually played the strong silent type in Westerns.

Wasn't that song Mutual Admiration Society in Merman's one flop musical Happy Hunting as a duet between her and her character's daughter? Seems odd with some of the lyrics, unless they rewrote it for Rory and Mary.

Along with the bombastic....

Mary Costa is quite impressive in that duet clip. She definitely knew how to sing in musical theatre style. Not a lot of opera singers know how to do that.

Can someone link to the Mary Testa "Out of My Dreams" clip. I cannot find it.

"Happy Hunting' wasn't considered a flop. Ethel still sold tickets. She just wasn't talking to the composer, lyricist and her co-star Fernando Lamas off-stage.

What's the story with DEH closing early in Toronto? Are ticket sales that radically bad that it couldn't even finish out its initially scheduled run?

Just saw an interview with Brandon Uranowitz. Very cute and seems like a sweet person. Anyone know him?

Wesley Taylor is ENGAGED!!

Really, R146? So Isaac put a ring on it?

Mary Testa warbling “Out of My Dreams” is in the NY Times. They did a Tonys article, and had people perform a song from their musical in a cabaret setting. Brooks A did “Barry’s Going to the Prom” etc, and for some reason Testa, rather than Rebecca Naomi Jones, does “Out of My Dreams” for the Oklahoma number.

After Leslie Odom Jr and Cynthia Erivo physically embodying the epitome of smug, pretentious and arrogant recently, as well as Annaleigh Ashford’s well-intentioned but strident and shrill show, Megan Hilty showed them all how it’s done. What an excellent show with a fantastic song selection and sparkling vocals, endearing repartee and electric energy. The best LFLC since Patina Miller. A+.

Leslie Scrotum Jr.?

What songs did Megan Hilty do?

Weren't you listening? She did showtunes.

No shit, Sherlock at r152. WHICH show tunes?

Has anyone seen the current tour of Miss Saigon? It is coming to my town in a week or so, and I am debating going. I saw it when it first opened in NYC, and the only thing that impressed me was helicopter! I imagine the new tour cuts back on the scenery and effects, but is what's left worth seeing? Thanks.

Christ, I am one of Mary Testa's biggest defenders here, and I have to admit that she was just awful- the definition of strident. I really am appalled. It sounds as if her voice is shot.

Brooks looked great. He seems to have lost a lot of weight.

[quote]Has anyone seen the current tour of Miss Saigon? It is coming to my town in a week or so, and I am debating going. I saw it when it first opened in NYC, and the only thing that impressed me was helicopter! I imagine the new tour cuts back on the scenery and effects, but is what's left worth seeing? Thanks.

No, unless you like that treacly score.

[quote]Has anyone seen the current tour of Miss Saigon? It is coming to my town in a week or so, and I am debating going. I saw it when it first opened in NYC, and the only thing that impressed me was helicopter!

I saw "Miss Saigon" at the Drury Lane in London in 1991, but from where I was sitting in the "stalls" (orchestra), I couldn't even see the helicopter because it was blocked by the balcony above me. And I only saw the giant statue of Ho Chi Minh from the waist down.

The current production of Saigon is awful. The show was never great, but the original production was at least proficient. The new one is cheap and flat. And the lyric rewrites are actually worse than the originals.

Dear god, what was Mary Testa thinking? I don't remember her being that awful in the show.

Agreed, Brooks has lost weight. When I saw Prom in February he looked like he needed his costumes taken in. Looks like he's lost even more since then. He's one of the good ones, it's nice to see him looking healthy and enjoying himself.

Thanks for the thoughts re Miss Saigon. There are no videos on the tour website, which made me think it was a cheap, flat bus and truck version.

[quote]And the lyric rewrites are actually worse than the originals.

Why do they keep tinkering with the show? It was never great, but the original Broadway production was fine. It was slightly different from the London production, but it was an improvement. However, all the changes post-1991 have been atrocious and just makes the show even worse.

The new song for Ellen "Maybe" is not only inferior melodically to "Now That I've Seen Her" but it makes no sense. Kim had just revealed that Chris was married to her and that she still loves him. Why would Ellen suddenly be sympathetic toward Kim, someone she just met and had considered to be no more than a one-night stand to Chris, and be willing to step aside? A normal reaction from a wife is "Hell no! I'm gonna do what I can to keep my husband and save this marriage!" which is basically what "Now That I've Seen Her" is about. I guess they were trying to make Ellen more sympathetic to an audience who has always despised her, but it makes no sense!

Agree that the new lyric changes add nothing. And Ellen is always going to be a problematic character because her husband is a dick. He’s not honest to her about his past until Kim shows up, and when Kim returns, Chris treats Kim like garbage and throws her away. And Ellen is supposed to go along with all of that.

I think Chris is even more of an ass in the current staging than before. It cheapens the character of Kim a bit. Why does her heroine like this guy so much when he is an asshole?

This isn't gossip but I was recently listening to the original Sweet Charity, inspired by Fosse-Verdon. The original orchestrations have more invention humor and delight than anything we've heard in decades. It seems orchestrators now have two jobs - making a puny pit sound bigger or executing some pastiche sound or style that the composer is imitating, with irony passing for wit or originality.

Maybe Chris in Miss Saigon is unappealing because his model, Pinkerton (In Madama Butterfly) is, too. Never gives a thought to how Butterfly will feel when he casts her off. Three years later, when he has married an American and it's too late, he feels guilty.

Chris really follows the same arc, doesn't he?

[quote]And I only saw the giant statue of Ho Chi Minh from the waist down.

Verificatia of commie-meat?

Signature Theater's Sondheim newsletter has reported that he is no longer working with David Ives on the Bunuel project. My guess is he's having too much fun with projects like the West End Company and the Fiasco Merrily, but who knows.

R164 Chris' situation is different, though. I think he truly believed he loved Kim, because she was suddenly a light in his dark world. Also, their separation was beyond his control. The Fall of Saigon literally happened overnight and the embassy walls (where Chris worked) were locked. Then he was forced onto the last remaining helicopter.

Afterward, it is implied that Chris suffered from PTSD or survivor's guilt. I think they say he was depressed for a year and spoke to no one. Then came Ellen and helped him heal. During that time, he couldn't return to Vietnam because the US and Vietnam had hostile relations until 1995 (when Tam would've been around 20).

R133-"Madam Secretary" has only been renewed for 10 more episodes.

When Miss Saigon opened on Broadway in 1991, I think most adults watching would've been aware of the Vietnam/US situation and why Chris couldn't simply return. Modern audiences have no idea and think that Chris just didn't care to return and left her there to rot.

"It seems orchestrators now have two jobs"

There's a third: making a silk purse out of a sow's ear.

I actually think for the final 10 episodes Bebe Neuwirth will return to Madam Secretary, perhaps as part of Elizabeth’s election campaign. So bye bye Sara.

I prefer the London Cast recording of Sweet Charity for the music. I think it was produced by Norman Newell who was an actual producer of top 40 pop chart hits. "The Rich Man's Frug" really sounds like a pop instrumental hit on that album. OBR fans would probably miss the "room ambience".

r132 here --- still waiting for an answer to my question (and still confused.)

Without a few major upsets, the Tonys will be incredibly boring this year.

Is Madam Secretary’s Star Eric gay?

Does the lead woman of "Madam Secretary" still speak every line in a monotone?

R175-You'd have to ask Jim Caruso.

DL fave Scott Nevan used to refer to Erich Bergen as his "str8 husband". I doubt he'd go to the trouble of in-ing Bergen.

Lol Erich Bergen straight OK that's a good one

I did the 1st national tour of Jersey Boys with Erich Bergen and he had a long, long affair with a sexy girl in the show. Granted, he was very young back then, maybe even 19 or so, and people change, but still.....

Erich Bergen is bisexual. He does men and women, with a leaning toward women.

Is Erich Bergen the one who was fired from Jersey Boys in, I think, Las Vegas (?) because he would party all the time and skip shows?

Then he was hired for the movie!

Yes.

So after all the talk here I had to go and watch Mary Testa sing Out of My Dreams on the NY Times site.

OMG, the caterwauling!!! What were they thinking? They should have featured Damon Daunno here. He's not gaining any traction in the Tony race and I really thought he could've been the frontrunner.

Anyone seen the terrible “tinfoil” Sweet Charity at the Donmar?

Josie Rourke has apparently turned into a gigantic diva since she started making movies.

I can understand if the LA thread were career focused but that's not really the case. The references to Kitchard - they ship Madden with a married man in the throes of addiction (?!) who's been "papped" passed out by a Russian hooker in the recent past (?!)... Their attitude is not consistent.

It's true that nobody has been outright rude about Brandon but... well, no one was threatening to go private when Ellie was still in the picture (and she didn't seem that popular on the thread).

Oh, and the thread starter teased the private thread with promise of a blow by blow analysis of the sex scene in "Rocketman"... Yes, all very career focused.

R187 what?

Did you post in the wrong thread, r187? I don't understand what that has to do with theatre gossip.

Yes, wrong thread.

How 'bout that Mary Testa?

[quote]r162 Ellen is always going to be a problematic character

Ellens gonna Ellen.

How 'bout that Jeanne Eagels?

My favourite DL reference to Mary Testa is when someone named her as #3 in a thread dedicated to "Broadway Bubble Butts".

I believe #2 position went to Nathan Lane, with Cheyenne Jackson at #1. (The latter's harness pics say otherwise.)

[italic]r185 So after all the talk here I had to go and watch Mary Testa sing 'Out of My Dreams' on the NY Times site. OMG, the caterwauling!!!

It makes me want to see her in[/italic] LINDA! The Linda Lavin Story!

[quote]Does this mean "The Lehmann Trilogy" will play its limited engagement this Fall at the Beaumont? If so, LCT's profile will soar.

What an odd way to phrase it. I would say LCT's "profile" is already very high. And it's Lehman with one n.

[quote]John Cullum seems like he would be a really nice guy offstage. Has anyone here interacted with him in real life?

Yes, he is a prince of a guy. Very nice and down to earth, not an ounce of pretension.

[quote]No, it didn’t bother me that the “bad guy” general was played by a black man. What bothered was that the actor was obviously gay, and playing a straight playboy. I kept thinking, no way would they have elected a gay president back then. (I had the same problem with the actor who played the husband in The Light in the Piazza. He was clearly gay, so it added an unwelcome and distracting reason for the disintegration of the marriage. )

First of all, that actor didn't come across as gay to me at all, but anyway -- when you say "no way they would have elected a gay President back then," are you saying they WOULD have elected a black President? If that's not what you're saying, then what are you talking about?

[quote]No she didn’t. She considered herself a dramatic soprano,

First of all, as I'm sure you know, classifications like "mezzo soprano" and "dramatic soprano" are used for opera but rarely for musical theater. But anyway, I'm sticking with my statement that Patricia Morison would have been classified as a mezzo, and for what it's worth, that's how she's listed in the Wikipedia entry that someone quoted above. And also, my main point is that most of the role of Kate in KISS ME, KATE is not written very high at all, at least not in the original score. Some sections of it may have been taken up for people who subsequently played the role, including Kelli O'Hara.

R163, I think MISS SAIGON is an abomination, but I do agree that Chris is a far more sympathetic character than Pinkerton in MADAMA BUTTERFLY.

Less than 24 hours before the series finale of Fosse/Verdon. I’m fairly giddy with anticipation.

Giddy that it will finally be over?

I was just checking out the credits for Spielberg's West Side Story on IMDB. At this early date they're not complete but I recognized many of the Sharks and Jets as former Newsies on Broadway and tour. I guess that's not surprising.

Also noticed the credit Special Thanks: Lin Manuel Miranda. WTF?

Did they add back his Spanish translation lyrics to the Sharks' songs?

If so, r199, why couldn't LMM's credit read as such?

Who is this Lynne Trans-smell Esmeralda anyway?

Until I read the Chita interview in today’s NY Times, i hadn’t realized that the Jerome Robbins West Side Story choreography is being replaced by Justin Peck in the upcoming movie. I wonder why.

R202, because nobody in the all important 18-25 age range will go see the movie with the Robbins choreography.

is the fosse/verdon mess on tv sposed to be a black comedy????

arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Or maybe nobody's capable of replicating the Robbins choreography, r203

Re LMM's "special thanks," maybe it's for the Spanish translation, but more likely it's because he's insinuated himself into the production as an expert on the WSS score.

[quote]Or maybe nobody's capable of replicating the Robbins choreography,

The Robbins choreography is probably the best preserved choreography of any Broadway musical. Not only is it recreated numerous times each year for productions around the world, it is part of the repertoire of numerous ballet companies.

I understand this. I meant the dancers.

There are more and better trained dancers doing musicals today than were available in the 50s and 60s.

yay tammy grimes !!!!

kiss me kate::::: ugh

I know nothing about Peck’s talents. Does he seem like a good fit for this project?

r195 how about one topic at a time since you're such an encyclopedia

Peck had to submit a very detailed DVD of his choreography to the Robbins estate. He wouldn’t have gotten the green light without their blessing.

R212, he is also with ABT; so, he would have been very familiar with the original choreography.

I'm pretty certain that the WSS PR is saying that some of the Robbins choreography will be retained. And I'll bet that in the end, it'll be more Robbins than Peck.

R214, yes, it will probably be "choreography by Peck based on the original choreography be Robbins."

I gotta agree about the Jerome Robbins WSS choreography on film, especially "The Prologue." They need to butch up the dances for the Jets and Sharks somehow. They look ridiculous pirouetting and prancing around NYC. These are supposed to be dangerous gangs? I haven't seen WSS on stage, but I can see how the original choreography may work on stage where t's easier to suspend disbelief.

Be careful what you wish for

R217 LOL!

That reminds me of when I had to give an oral presentation in middle school. It had to be on a foreign country and I was assigned Mexico. We also had to include some kind of visual aid. I waited till the last minute to do the report and couldn't come up with a visual aid, so I bought some tortilla chips and made some guacamole and brought that in to share. It got me the best grade in the class and the approval of my classmates!

Justin Peck picked a prick of pickled peckers.

Does Justin prefer throbbing man meat? Or is he a ladies’ man?

r219 and a Tony Award?

Did you steal the idea from Maria Gonzales, r219?

Honestly, if you think the Jets/Sharks Robbins choreography is too balletic you may as well just give up on the idea of West Side Story.

R2 Thank you!

R4 First of all, fuck you. Second of all, the prior post was at the VERY end and since the search tool sucks, I jumped in to create a new thread so we can have a link at the end of the previous thread so people can find the new one. If you don't like the thread title...so? I don't care. You're obviously a stupid cunt.

R8 It's not grayed out for me.

R9 I'm not Matt the Loon. The only people more annoying than Mr. Matt the Loon are the fucking loons who constantly suspect anyone they don't like of being that person. It's tiresome.

R25 It didn't for me. And, since the previous thread was still active (although almost done) they would have had to have created their thread about the same time I created mine.

I didn't "spam" out any thread. I started a new thread...well, see above. Too boring to restate.

I haven't seen Tootsie, though I'm not a fan of musicals based on popular movies. The header refers to the people who really hate it and won't shut up about it. The goal with headers is to either comment on something topical, either in the news or discussions going on in the previous thread. Since the previous thread was tediously dull, I came up with what I could on the spur of the moment.

Not sure why people are fixated on the thread titles. Lack of better things to do? I also suspect they are themselves incapable of coming with anything creative or original on their own. Guessing your cat is named "Kitty".

Judging by the tedious nature of this thread (Mary Testa vs Mary Costa...how refreshing!) don't expect a brilliant header for 359.

I hate when we just insult each other on here.

r226 get a life, loser.

R225 the original "Prologue" choreography does't work in a real-life setting! It's laughable.

Better late than never... Our Miss Brooks got his Sardi's portrait.

Why are the Sardi’s portraits always so ugly? They look like they were done by those sketch artists that draw tourist portraits in Times Square.

At least Brooks' somewhat resembles him. It's not bad. I always wondered if actors get to preview the portraits before the "reveal." I'm guessing not, because some have been so awful there's no way an actor with any amount of ego or self-respect would sign off on them.

Peck is the new thing. Straight choreographer that is ultimately known just for being such.

R230 because people today think caricatures are insensitive and just exaggerate someone's flaws.

[quote]don't expect a brilliant header for 359.

Oh we won’t. Just promise us you’ll let someone else try.

The glory days, long gone, of the theatre threads were when they had clever titles and an “opener” with questions that got things off to a good start. But it wasn’t just the titles. The threads themselves were full of truly hot gossip, chorus boy flip-flop sightings, tales of Broadway pickpockets, rehearsal room explosions.

Now we get OPs who can’t do better than “you’re obviously a stupid cunt,” and can dish it out but can’t take it at all.

Pity.

[quote]Not sure why people are fixated on the thread titles.

Me neither. Nor do I understand why some people here insult others (like me) who sometimes comment on more than one subject per post, like the pea-brained R211. I mean, seriously?

If you want hot gossip, someone should find out what the hell happened over at this new Off-Broadway musical called (I did you not) CAMP MORNING WOOD, which changed theaters and at least some cast members over the past couple of weeks, before it even opened. I wonder if the copious on-stage nudity they're promising had something to do with either or both changes. At least it will no longer be playing in that disaster area now known as "The Theater Center" at 50th and Broadway.

The new African-American guy on the twitter is really cute! I like one of the very hairy guys too. Hope he was spared the axe.

[quote]Nor do I understand why some people here insult others (like me)

Well, you're an insult queen, so why don't you tell us, why do YOU lob around words like "stupid cunt" at will? You set the tone, and others respond to you in kind. Maybe if you had a more civil tone, others wouldn't give it back to you. Or do you even have a civil tone?

The Fosse/Verdon finale needed to be retitled Nicole!

[quote]Why are the Sardi’s portraits always so ugly?

The more important question is why doesn't Brooks Ashmanskas have any lips?

[quote](I did you not)

You certainly didn't.

it's pretty sad to see the old-time caricatures and compare them to the recent ones. The oId ones had wit and some style (ahhh, sort of like the old shows). I agree with r230 that the new ones look like they're from the artists who couldn't quite cut it in front of Applebee's.

We had caricatures then!

Brooks may or may not have lips but he was certainly given a beautiful jaw line that he no longer quite possesses in his caricature.

Those caricatures look like they're done on cheap paper pads with felt markers, like Sardi's knows these "stars" won't necessarily be around next season. Do they just push pin them up for a few weeks at the coat check?

Just read that they're not streaming the Drama Desks this year, darn it. I was looking forward to seeing Michael Urie host again. Oh, well.

Ok. I saw OKLAHOMA! last night. My first time seeing Oklahoma EVER. Never seen the movie (watched this AM), didn't know anything about it. First, I really hate this kind of trendy staging where the show is like a staged concert. I don't know anything about the actress, but Laurie was a miserable character. She walked around with a stank face and like she was on methadone. Stomping around ocassionally like a psycho. I could care less what happened to her. Curly's voice seemed affected at times but nice voice overall. Kinda cute in profile. His performance got a little too abstract sometimes for me though. Haha. I found Judd's gay voice/lisp very distracting in Act 1. He was better about it in Act 2. A girl next to me at intermission said, "He's obviously scholastically trained. And he's amazing." Hahahaha! I am so sick of all the fake woke stuff (I'm a Millennial). Of course Judd is just a "misunderstood" creepy weirdo now. They teased a kiss between two females and between Curly and Judd for no reason whatsoever. Just to implicate something that does not exist in the material. Just to be edgy for the sake of it. And of course the person dancing the dream sequence is a black girl with a shaved head. Give me a fucking break. And of course she had to twerk. WHY. Ali Stoker had good energy and gave a funny performance but nothing worth a Tony. The wheelchair doesn't work for me. Sorry. This show was like amateur performance art project. I don't mind the whole dark side of Oklahoma perspective but please cut out the senseless grabs at "wokeness" and give a stage with proper sets. I don't wanna be immersed in your production. There is a time and a place. There were a lot of empty seats and a lot of people left at intermission. I didn't get the chili because they stopped and left me and a whole line of people standing on the stage. Didn't say anything either. Just packed up and left us there on the stage. haha. RUDE. Jake Shears from Scissor Sisters was in the audience. That said, I didn't hate it completely. I was more miserable at Beetlejuice and Hamilton.

[quote] Just to implicate something that does not exist in the material.

That word does not mean what you think it means.

[quote]That said, I didn't hate it completely.

A ringing endorsement.

[quote]Of course Judd is just a "misunderstood" creepy weirdo now.

Why do liberals like to glamorize/romanticize criminals, psychos, and evil-doers in general? It's always "they're misunderstood" angle. It's like the left suffers from hybristophilia.

Why, suddenly, is Keri Russell giving a terrific, modulated performance in Burn This, and Driver is all over the stage, eating every piece of scenery in sight, and out of control. Sure, Mayer is a shit director, but reign your boy in. Happily, the play survives.

This is truly a year when NO award should be made for Best Musical Revival.

This is truly a year when NO award should be made for Best Musical Revival.

What did you say, r250?

What's the word on Strange Loop? Talked with a friend who saw it over the weekend who flipped out. Anyone else feel the same?

What the fuck is the deal with Jujamcyn putting Hadestown tickets up at the TKTS booth and then charging $182.50 for them? They claim its a 30% discount, but WIF? Are people falling for this shit? Based on the weekly b.o. take, I guess they are.

R246 haha. Really? Oh well. Works for me. Anyway, you know what I mean. Thanks for the heads up. I'll be more careful using it in the future. :)

[quote] What's the word on Strange Loop? Talked with a friend who saw it over the weekend who flipped out. Anyone else feel the same?

The people I know who are raving about it on social media are the same people who raved about Be More Chill, so make what you may out of that.

R250 I agree. R248 Yea, I don't get it either.

[quote]Sure, Mayer is a shit director, but reign your boy in.

Oh Dear! why does Adam deserve a coronation?

rein.

Michael Mayer is the worst and yet busiest director working these days. His recent shows and operas don't get good reviews. Why is he hired?

He’s hired because of the rimjobs from NYT reviews of Spring Awakening, which “changed theatre forever”

Camryn Mannheim was close friends with him, which I think sums itself up

What's wrong with Camryn Menheim?

Nobody can find this thread. I had to Google.

R1 That's not Michael!

ignore that above -- posted here for some reason.

Brooks' lips and jawline died so that his VPL could live.

Can you refuse a Sardi's portrait? I would decline until a new artist came along.

R248, it is hard to write a song for a character you cannot to some degree empathize with. That is why musical theater has so few irredeemable villains. All of them have to have something to sing about.

It is not that Hammerstein was a liberal. It is that Hammerstein was a librettist.

Who was it who said Brooks is thin now?

"it is hard to write a song for a character you cannot to some degree empathize with."

It's not so much one wants to empathize with a villain, but rather that one is made to UNDERSTAND him. We understand that an outrageous injustice is responsible for Sweeney Todd's murderous rage, while refusing to condone it. I recently read HITLER'S VIENNA, and by charting the circumstances of Der Fuhrer's youth and early manhood in detail (his draconian upbringing, his extreme poverty, etc, etc), the author pulls off the amazing hat trick of giving us insight and understanding into history's most notorious and genocidal madman.

No one said Brooks is thin. He's lost weight but he's galaxies away from thin.

Brooks is certainly THIN-NER

R266 Am I seeing the head of Brook’s dick in that photo? Looks large.

Anyone had him?

Ewwwwwwwwwwwww.

Brooks' next project should be a musical version of this Stephen King book/movie:

^^Either my hearing is shot or the audio on this video is terrible.

Supposedly the delay with West Side Story is this- they thought they were getting the Winter Garden... All signs pointed to Beetlegeuse dying a quick death, but that didn't happen- thus silence on the show

[quote]All signs pointed to Beetlegeuse dying a quick death

Oh Dear!

no way dearie, I'm the 9th biggest STAH in the whole fucking universe! been around for eons and I ain't going nowhere

Is the Winter Garden the only theatre big enough to fit an aquarium for the Sharks?

It's BIG, r280......

Jesse Williams will be showing his bat.

R273, yes that's definitely his dick.

If you'd asked "who's had Brooks?" ten years ago, half of DL would've replied with "who hasn't?" There haven't been stories about his exploits in a long time, but I'm sure someone knows something.

[Quote] If you'd asked "who's had Brooks?" ten years ago, half of DL would've replied with "who hasn't?" There haven't been stories about his exploits in a long time, but I'm sure someone knows something.

That makes sense. I figured some of you had tricked with him back when party lines were a thing.

When will UPSIDE OF AVERAGE: THE BONNIE FRANKLIN STORY make it's way to the stage?

IIRC, he was known more for getting around in summer stock and liking them young, R284. Someone here once referred to him having a "talented mouth."

I think the stories about him started to fizzle out around the time he met his partner, who I believe he's still with. We used to have a couple of mutual acquaintances but I'm out of the loop these days so I don't have anything new or certain to offer.

R286, what can you tell us about his partner. Obviously, not name, address, and phone number, but in or out of the business?, Same age?, etc.

Not in the business and a few years younger. I don't think his name is a secret--it's Shawn. Brooks has mentioned him in interviews a couple of times over the years.

And just to reiterate... I've been out of the loop for a couple of years so I don't know if they're still together. If they are, I imagine he'll be Brooks' Tony date again, so you might get a glimpse of them together on the broadcast.

Elaine Stritch looks really good, physically, in those clips.

(The camera's quite far away, though)

Cleveland?

Did I miss this? Laura Benanti recording a MY FAIR LADY mini-album with four songs. I assume it’s to the existing orchestral tracks from the OCR.

The bitch is relentless.

I look forward to Loni Ackerman releasing a mini album of tracks from Evita.

Sorry, forgot to provide the link.

[quote]The bitch is relentless.

Please. Lauren Ambrose was a controversial Liza, with most people feeling like she didn’t quite pull off the singing. Benanti got raves and is a seasoned musical theatre pro (which Ambrose wasn’t). Why shouldn’t they release an EP with her tracks?

Ackerman played Evita when there were already two cast albums (London and Broadway) available, and both Elaine Paige and Patti got raves for their singing. No one would have felt the need for another Evita album starring Loni Ackerman.

Did those Vicki Clark FOLLIES tracks ever get released?

Ambrose's singing sounds fine on the recording. Both of them were directed to be relative wimps when singing "Show Me" though -- Julie Andrews sounds ferocious in comparison. The first two ladies also sounded like they were protecting their voices from singing out too much.

Jessie Williams to be Darren in "Take Me Out" on Broadway. Guess he'll be taking his out!

[quote]Elaine Stritch looks really good, physically, in those clips.

Whereas Kim Stanley looks terribly homely as Cherie, which wouldn't matter if the character wasn't supposed to be gorgeous. I hate to sound superficial, but even if you think she's a brilliant actress, she's quite repulsive physically in that filmed segment. For that matter, Albert Salmi isn't exactly hot as Beau, either. Sorry, but I think for BUS STOP to work, both of those actors have to be beautiful. I'm surprised Inge allowed the original casting.

Has the Lee Pace Interview Magazine piece been discussed? Was Gough just pissed that she had a new Joe Pitt? Or was her relationship with Tovey little better?

But it did work, Blanche, it did!

[quote]r300 Kim Stanley looks terribly homely as Cherie, which wouldn't matter if the character wasn't supposed to be gorgeous.

I haven't read the play - is she specifically described that way? Or is that just what we expect because MM played her?

`R301, Gough is said to be a total bitch, which is why Tovey did not want to do the show in NY.

Her performance was great, but neither Joe found it enjoyable to work opposite her.

MM was wonderful as Cherie. Funny and touching. Her finest acting role.

When you have an original production of an Inge play that was directed by Harold Clurman, one should assume that the original casting is correct. Cherie is a Hillbilly who has never played anything better than a dive bar. Her silly hat and jacket are perfect for the character. Bo is not supposed to be Hollywood gorgeous. If he was, Cherie's reluctance would make less sense. He needs to be passably good looking. In a town of 400, he might be the best looking guy there,. In NYC, he'd be a 5 at best.

Kim Stanley’s looks, while not homely, weren’t much more than plain. This was never more evident than in “The Goddess,” where she was playing a Monroesque character, and was simply wrong for it. By the time she had her brief resurgence in the 1980s, she had moved solidly into character actress category, and it suited her well.

I didn’t realize Kim Stanley had three children, one of them by Brooks Clift, Montgomery Clift’s Brother.

Louis Peitzman is going to claw his way into that theatre to see Williams' bat every night...

Are we really reduced to discussing Louis Peitzman, a literal nobody (who is insufferable and not nearly as funny as he thinks he is)?

Is no one going to post a parody song:

THE STORY OF JUSSIE AND JESSE

No, r312. That story has been played out for weeks. We’ve all moved on to more au courant themes. Can you give us something about Aaron Schock’s hole?

I'd rather have seen "homely" Kim Stanley in BUS STOP than almost any other actress of the time in the role.

r300 = John Simon

Oh, come on, guys. I'm not being "looksist." I think it's really important for Cherie in BUS STOP to be beautiful -- or, at least, not homely -- for it to make sense that Beau is so aggressively pursuing her. I guess it's not quite as important for Beau to be hot, but it helps if he is, because I think it's important for the audience to sense that there's a strong physical attraction between the two of them, even when she's trying to get away from him because he's acting like he can just take whatever he wants. Monroe and Murray were really pretty perfect in the movie, one of the few times a Josh Logan film was cast properly.

R316, It isn't important what you think. The author and the original director thought Kim Stanley was right; so, she is right.

R316

And yet Kim Stanley was almost universally acclaimed in the role, while the beautiful Marilyn Monroe as unfavorably compared to Stanley when the film came out.

"Homely on screen" isn't necessarily "homely on stage".

"Homely on screen" isn't necessarily "homely on stage".

[Quote] —Julie Harris

I was actually thinking of Julie Harris in the film of "I Am A Camera" when I typed r319.

I think the costuming in the stage Bus Stop (at least in those segments above) deliberately made Stanley look tawdry.

I saw her live on stage (once) and she looked fine. If Stanley's Cherie had been dressed as Monroe was, she'd look a lot better to you.

Further, I don't know how much input Josh Logan accepted from Inge when he cast the stage Bus Stop. Salmi definitely wasn't what Inge liked in men; he was wild for the very young Warren Beatty, for instance. And the poster above who pointed out why we need two attractive young people in those roles is in effect suggesting that Logan had a screwy idea about who should play Bo. Inge wouldn't do a musical without a hunky chorus, but his leading men are rather an odd collection. Ralph Meeker (in Picnic) was certainly attractive. But others were much less so.

Maybe Logan caught some menace in Salmi that he liked for Bo. Salmi did end up killing his wife (and himself).

[quote]Inge wouldn't do a musical without a hunky chorus, but his leading men are rather an odd collection.

Do you mean Logan wouldn’t do a musical without a hunky chorus? Other than “Hot September” and the Little Sheba musical, I don’t think Inge’s name has ever been attached to a musical.

Albert Salmi had a good, corn-fed kind of look. He was fine for Bo. He was offered the film, too, but turned it down because he was an Actors’ Studio snob who looked down on film and tv.

I agree that he looked fed, but otherwise...

Salmi? Stupid name. Too close to Salami.

R324, for someone who looked down on TV and film, Salmi did an awful lot of it.

Is he going to be more open, though? I doubt it. Julian Morris has been with his guy for at least a decade. Have they ever been pictured together at Pride? Madden studiously avoids being drawn into "issues". It would blow my mind if it hapoened but I don't expect to see them at Pride.

By when do Tony voters have to turn in their ballots?

Gwendoline Christie spanked Tom Hiddleston. She's OK in my book.

Did anybody see Mary Louise Parker and Billy Crudup in the Bust Stop revival of the 1990s at Circle in the Square? I believe that's where they met.

I never thought of Bo as being dangerous, just somewhat oversexed.

[quote]r322 Maybe Logan caught some menace in Salmi that he liked for Bo. Salmi did end up killing his wife (and himself).

Dear me!

^^ sorry, that's costar - and 1st wife - Peggy Ann Garner.

I can't find a pic of the murdered 2nd wife, Roberta : (

Yes, R323. I confused the two names.

I saw the Circle in the Square production with Parker and Crudup. Crudup was sexy as hell but too short and runty to play Bo. Parker was very good, though.

WHET Sam Harris? Singing show tunes in a cabaret in Palm Springs now? There are worse fates, I guess.

Per Broadway.com Glenda Jackson's Lear is closing a month early on June 9.

Glenda Jackson’s collapse is complete.

Broadway doesn’t go for booze and drugs! Or for 80 year old women cross dressing the classics!

Very embarrassing for Glenda Jackson. First the Tony snub and now this. I wonder how long it will be until she comes back to Broadway.

Didn't someone ask recently whatever happened to Rory O'Malley? Well, this was on the Playbill website today:

Riedel's two cents on the Tony race:

Mame's producers, as well as Jerry Herman, who had written the show with Judy's voice in mind, very much wanted Judy as a replacement Mame, but they weren't able to get an insurance company to cover her. Judy's last few years were very sad from a business perspective.

Not sure why Scott Rudin pulled the plug on Lear. It's selling better than two of his other shows (Gary and Hillary/Clinton). Seems like a dickhead move from him, but that's no surprise.

R342, I was looking up a few people I had not seen in years. I did not know Christopher Hanke was on Devious Maids. I was also surprised that Kevin Cahoon was so active in regional theater. He has not been on Broadway since The Wedding Singer.

Lear has a much larger cast than the other two plus musicians, and many of the actors are known and probably make a decent amount. Lear may be bringing more in but is probably losing more than the others. Lear also has no chance of winning a Tony, while Gary and Metcalf possibly could.

It’s a dickhead move, but his investors are probably happy. Lear could lose half a million dollars or more to stay open that extra month.

Also, Rubin may not care if Jackson is pissed at him. He may care if Nathan Lane and Laurie Metcalf are.

Anyone have any information or insight into why the Sondheim-Ives collaboration on Bunuel is over?

David Ives is a hack, based on all those Encores adaptations he did for so many years.

Whether or not Glenda Jackson will ever return to Broadway is a fair question, but the bigger one is will any producer ever hire Sam Gold to direct another Broadway revival? He does so well with new work but his revivals stink.

Sam Gold tries too hard to be Ivo van Hove (he even worked t his co in Amsterdam I think) but he's more like Rip Van Winkle.

What is Michael Riedel on about in his column, claiming that TOOTSIE was the frontrunner for Best Musical and AIN'T TOO PROUD might pull off an upset? Hasn't it been a done deal for a while now that HADESTOWN will be the big winner this year?

No, not a done deal for Hadestown.

Tony voters turn in their ballots after they have finished asking their friends who they should vote for.

Finally saw Laura Benanti's Eliza. Unlike a lot of you, I actually really liked her in She Loves Me and didn't mind the sometimes slyly contemporary take on the character. It worked for me and, of course, she sang it beautifully. But, I thought her Eliza was an almost complete failure. It felt like she was commenting on, rather than playing the character. And, god damn, what a trainwreck her accents were. You hear more authentic British accents on SNL. Such a shame, because, on paper this casting made so much sense and I was genuinely happy for her to finally get this role she'd dreamed of.

Also, side bar, anyone else having trouble with this thread? I can't get it to show up on my Watched threads -- not by replying to thread, nor by manually "watching" it by attempting to change the eye icon orange.

This year, nobody’s cheering for the musical they want to win the Tony.

Instead, we are all hoping the show we don’t want to won’t win.

Glenda has publicly stated this would be her last stage appearance.

Bertie Carvel was publicly slagging off Glenda Jackson’s Lear portrayal at a recent event.

"slyly contemporary take on the character."

Except the role's not a contemporary character, and the production was devoid of any continental charm or period flavor. If you don't trust the material, don't do it...

R359, in that specific case, it was more about not trusting the audience.

[quote]It isn't important what you think. The author and the original director thought Kim Stanley was right; so, she is right.

Right, I'm sure you've never objected to any casting of any show or movie that was sanctioned by the author and the original director. What a stupid remark.

[quote]Lear has a much larger cast than the other two plus musicians, and many of the actors are known and probably make a decent amount. Lear may be bringing more in but is probably losing more than the others. Lear also has no chance of winning a Tony, while Gary and Metcalf possibly could. It’s a dickhead move, but his investors are probably happy. Lear could lose half a million dollars or more to stay open that extra month. Also, Rubin may not care if Jackson is pissed at him. He may care if Nathan Lane and Laurie Metcalf are.

And also, one can only imagine that Jackson is not thrilled at the way this production turned out or the way it has been received, so I wouldn't be surprised if she doesn't mind calling it quits a month early. I don't think the early closing is a "dickhead move" on Rudin's part, not by any means.

[quote]David Ives is a hack, based on all those Encores adaptations he did for so many years.

More accurately, Ives is very talented at writing adaptations of classic old comedies (by Moliere et al.) in rhyming verse, but he has almost no talent for any other kind of playwriting (or, presumably, musical theater book writing). He got incredibly lucky with VENUS IN FUR because of the sexy subject matter and the stars, but you'll notice he hasn't had a hit original play since then.

Still no word on what Encores! season will be next year. Are people fighting with Jack Viertel after a number of disappointing seasons and lackluster casting before they announce? It's usually out there by now what it is going to be since people are all theater-crazy with the Tonys and all.

Sherrie Scott was right for "Women on the Verge...", I tells ya!

[quote]Still no word on what Encores! season will be next year. Are people fighting with Jack Viertel after a number of disappointing seasons and lackluster casting before they announce? It's usually out there by now what it is going to be since people are all theater-crazy with the Tonys and all.

I would be great if they're going to remove him. Some really, really bad decisions and administration over the past several years. On the other hand, I hate to imagine the worst as far as whom they might replace him with....

Sorry, that was supposed to be "IT would be great" if they decided to remove Jack Viertel, not "I would be great." Though I'm sure even I could do a better job than him at programming and administering Encores!

Bugsy Malone is on right now.

Terrible score.

[quote]Riedel's two cents on the Tony race

Overpriced.

That Bugsy Malone clip is terrible. Is the whole film that bad?

[quote] Right, I'm sure you've never objected to any casting of any show or movie that was sanctioned by the author and the original director. What a stupid remark.

Actually, yours is the stupid remark. I am not objecting to *any casting*. I am saying that, whether one likes it or not, what the original author approved, is probably what he wanted*. It is like complaining about Julie Harris in I am a Camera because she is nothing like Liza Minnelli. If another director wants to take it in another direction, that is fine. But claim the original is "wrong" because it does not duplicate the movie version is stupid.

I also love how a few people judge Kim Stanley from an emotional scene where she should actually look a mess. It isn't how she looked the entire show.

*Yes, there are some cases where the author loathed the original casting or concept, but those cases are usually well documented.

It was just a misguided concept, r369.

Her costume is nicer than Marilyn's (from stock) costume, r370.

Hadestown isn't some great new revelation but it is the only respectable choice and the best out of all new musicals. No question about it. R355 I really liked her in SHE LOVES ME too. I wasn't impressed with her Eliza either. It was just ok. On paper it does make so much sense.

Didn’t Scott Baio bust his cherry in England when shooting that film?

THE PROM's grosses and average ticket price have been going up over the past few weeks. They're not taking home any Tonys, but I hope the upward trend continues and lets the show run through the summer. I'm a sucker for an underdog.

I wonder if it will get a West End production.

Barbara Bel Geddes was not the classic overripe sexpot, but by all accounts she was a great Maggie the Cat. Ditto with Geraldine Page in SWEET BIRD. But those women were actresses who could make you believe anything.

You also have to remember the obvious: that when Bel Geddes, Page and Stanley appeared in those roles, no one had seen anyone else perform them before.

I think it's also safe to safe say that in those 3 plays, Williams and Inge wrote the young men to be the sex objects.

Just got in from "Frankie & Johnny." It's a good play, although Shannon gives Johnny such a creepy vibe at times that you wonder why Frankie doesn't just call the cops on him. That aside, Michael and Audra have good chemistry and he looks great without clothes on and does have a very raw sexiness about him. I definitely wouldn't kick him outta bed (Shannon that is, not Johnny).

By the way, I also saw "A Strange Loop" last night at Playwrights Horizons. "Strange" is exactly the word for it but it's also a pretty fun time with a very game cast and the playwright, Michael R. Jackson (who we ran into in the lobby before the show; very nice guy), is an equal-opportunity offender with plenty of jokes aimed at blacks, whites, and Tyler Perry, too.

[quote]I am not objecting to *any casting*. I am saying that, whether one likes it or not, what the original author approved, is probably what he wanted*. It is like complaining about Julie Harris in I am a Camera because she is nothing like Liza Minnelli. If another director wants to take it in another direction, that is fine. But claim the original is "wrong" because it does not duplicate the movie version is stupid.

I didn't criticize the casting of Kim Stanley as Cherie because she's a different type that Marilyn Monroe in the movie, but because I really think it's important for the story that Cherie be very pretty rather than downright homely as she appears in that video clip, so that we understand Beau's aggressive pursuit of her. That said, I just Googled to see if I could find more visuals of Stanley in BUS STOP and I came up with this photo, in which she looks FAR prettier than she does in that video. So I guess maybe she just looks particularly bad in that clip for some reason, and I apologize if I misjudged her appearance in the role based on that.

[quote]Barbara Bel Geddes was not the classic overripe sexpot, but by all accounts she was a great Maggie the Cat.

Funny you mention that, because I was just about to say that the clip I've seen of Bel Geddes and Ben Gazzara in a scene from CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF leaves me thinking that both of them were terribly miscast in that play -- she because she's totally wrong for Maggie in terms of her physical appearance, her personality, and her lack of overt sex appeal, he because his voice and type are all wrong for Brick. And no, I am not just comparing them to Elizabeth Taylor and Paul Newman, but to every other actress and actor I've ever seen in those parts.

[quote]Also, side bar, anyone else having trouble with this thread? I can't get it to show up on my Watched threads -- not by replying to thread, nor by manually "watching" it by attempting to change the eye icon orange.

#MeToo

#metoo

R299 Jessie Williams was the nude model love interest in the sequel to the SISTERHOOD OF THE TRAVELING PANTS movie.

[quote]It's usually out there by now what it is going to be since people are all theater-crazy with the Tonys and all.

It’s actually only the last couple of years that the next Encores! season was announced in May. Prior, it was more often in September.

The worst-case scenario for a replacement for Jack Viertel at Encores would be Daniel Fish.

R385 , that made me laugh. What if Daniel Fish had directed Kiss Me Kate this season? What crazy ideas would he have had?

I have a hunch that A Strange Loop will make me want to poop. What the f*ck kind of non-story is this, a navel-gazer about a black gay musical theater writer? Crikey.

This is the summary?

[quote]Usher is a black, queer writer, working a day job he hates while writing his original musical: a piece about a black, queer writer, working a day job he hates while writing his original musical.

Not to bring the room down but Michael Friedman was Viertel's heir apparent so

Maybe the insufferable Louis Peitzman can be the heir apparent, since that who 'journalist' thing didn't work out too well

I’m available!

From Variety: “Atlantic’s “Hamilton” album has beat the record held by Adele’s “21” for longest stay in the sales top 40.”

r355 r381 and r382 click the eye to make it orange, then leave the page open long enough for the recent threads column to populate fully. That seems to keep things in place for the 'Watched' option to take effect.

I'm guessing that there was a scrappy and aggressive hyper-sexuality that made up for physical allure in Bel Geddes' performance as Maggie. She was more the equivalent of Big Daddy than Brick.

Interestingly, Kim Hunter was no great beauty and hardly matched up to Brando's magnificent presence in Streetcar.

R394, why should Stella be a great beauty? That is a weird comment.

I've always thought that Stanley was supposed to be considered above Stella's league and that's why she endured his abuse and put up with his shenanigans. Because she was hot as fuck for him and didn't think she could do better, lookwise.

R396, that is one interpretation--but not the script itself.

You idea is viable. But she could also be a goodlooking woman who puts up with an abusive man in her league because she loves fucking him.

Also, seeing Stella and Blanche's interaction one can think that Stella is someone who has been dominated all her life by family and it happy to find a man who recreates that scenario.

Or that with no family resources Stella is trapped and making the best of a bad situation.

There are many ways to play the relationship.

How can anyone feel that Kim Hunter was plain?

She was what was known as a “handsome woman.” Not pretty in the conventional sense but still attractive.

Kims (Hunter and Stanley), Sandy Dennis, Bel Geddes, and Page were what I call "character actress pretty".

I'm probably never going to bother with Tootsie but Santino's Awards Chatter podcast with THR is pretty likeable.

Here's that clip of Bel Geddes and Gazzara in CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF, so everyone can just for themselves whether or not they were well cast.

So the Drama Desks aren't streaming anywhere this year?

Speaking of diversity in casting ... I saw an all-Asian (well, and one African-American) cast in "Mamma Mia!" in L.A. yesterday. The audience was mostly Asian, too. (And there was some MAJOR male eye candy.)

That's what I read the other day, R403, though I'd certainly like for that to be misinformation. I look forward to watching the stream every year.

R404 All-Asian (and one black) is not diversity.

Well, Bel Geddes looks radiant in that clip, no doubt about it. She may not have the heat of a Rita Hayworth or an Ava Gardner but she's certainly as pretty as any 1950s stage star.

I believe it was considered quite daring playing an entire long scene in a thin silk slip, even in 1958 (not that it was her idea).

Geraldine Page at her most glam in “Sweet Bird of Youth”

[quote]Well, Bel Geddes looks radiant in that clip, no doubt about it. She may not have the heat of a Rita Hayworth or an Ava Gardner but she's certainly as pretty as any 1950s stage star.

Right, but Maggie is not supposed to be radiant in a very pretty, open, fresh-faced young woman way, she's supposed to be sexy in a much more sultry way.

[quote]r407 Well, Bel Geddes looks radiant in that clip, no doubt about it. She may not have the heat of a Rita Hayworth or an Ava Gardner but she's certainly as pretty as any 1950s stage star.

I agree. The clips from BUS STOP and CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF are misleading, because I think they were shot out of context for the Ed Sullivan show or something, on terrible film stock with harsh lighting, and the crude footage isn't even well preserved. Those performances were never intended to be see in closeup. The actors aren't even giving what would have been their true performances, because they're doing one random scene without any build up, as they'd have on a usual night in the theater.

[quote] I believe it was considered quite daring playing an entire long scene in a thin silk slip, even in 1958 (not that it was her idea).

She just spends 1 or 2 scenes in her slip, but those are the most photographed (!) Maggie enters in a party dress that's soiled, takes it off, and eventually changes into another dress. But between those two outfits she IS in her slip for a long time.

I love the original Broadway poster, BTW

Ben Gazzara wasn’t right for Brick, either. He was too Italian-American and thuggish for Brick. I’d never have believed him as a former football star in the South.

I read on the broadway database site that Patricia Neal played Maggie for 2 weeks in the original run - maybe when Bel Geddes was on vacation?

I bet she was fabulous. Her voice is so wonderful.

Well, my GOODNES. Big Mama in the 2017 London production!

Millie Dunnock would just DIE!

What that production set in a cathouse??? My lord!

Outrageous. Foul.

And dangerous.

r409 and r411 'supposed to be' and 'wasn't right'? are you bitches seriously correcting Kazan and Williams's original casting?

They're allowed their own opinions, r416.

[quote]r409 Maggie is not supposed to be radiant in a very pretty, open, fresh-faced young woman way, she's supposed to be sexy in a much more sultry way.

Says who? She's a housewife who wants to have a baby, not a Las Vegas call girl. The fact that some actresses have played her as "sultry" in the past does not mean that's a necessary characteristic.

She's described as "fertile".

[quote]r417 They're allowed their own opinions

Like HELL they are!

I think my favorite celeb story is someone saying to (uptight) John Wayne during the McCarthy hearings, "You know, Duke, not everythings a black and white issue." To which he answered, "Why the hell [italic]NOT??"[/italic]

[quote]She's described as "fertile".

Which translates as "slutty".

Would Alex Brightman winning for "Beetlejuice" be considered an upset? I actually saw one poll that listed him at #2 behind Santino.

[quote]r420 She's described as "fertile" / Which translates as "slutty"

It would actually be funny to see a dowdy actress play Maggie. ("You can't even bear to touch me!")

One wonders what Sada Thompson, Bea Arthur (or dare we say it, Chrissy Metz) might do with the role.

Did Tennessee Williams coin the phrase "....like a cat on a hot tin roof" or was that something Southerners always said?

[quote]Would Alex Brightman winning for "Beetlejuice" be considered an upset? I actually saw one poll that listed him at #2 behind Santino.

He's actually listed as number two a couple of places. But there is no way he would win. Santino's the winner. The only possibility of a squeak-through would be with Brooks because he is so well-liked (though so is Santino). Alex, on the other hand, is NOT well-liked.

[quote]or dare we say it, Chrissy Metz) might do with the role.

Can Maggie have a snack purse?

alex brightman better not win shit.

or else what, r426?

Santino Fontana, bland and boring, winning for Tootsie the goddamned musical. Broadway is such a waste of time these days.

^^^It really is. I sat next to a woman at HADESTOWN yesterday. She's been coming from Denver for years to see Broadway. She said she was tired of the crap and Hadestown was the only one she wanted to see. No one should be winning any awards this season. All winners are getting away with highway robbery. R427 I SAID WHAT I SAID.

"It would actually be funny to see a dowdy act play Maggie."

No, it wouldn't. You want variety of types. You got a dowdy actress? Cast her as Big Mama. But since Williams described Maggie as a "pretty young woman," cast her exactly as that or you go against the author's intention , which is out of the question.

Well, Aaron Burr never said he wanted to be played by a Latin guy or any POC.

That Sienna Miller "Cat On A Hot Tin Roof" was one of the phoniest pieces of shit I've ever seen. Unwatchable except for Brick's dick.

I remember an interview with Tony Shalhoub after he won for The Band's Visit in which he said that he couldn't believe that after four Tony nominations he finally won for Best Actor in a MUSICAL for a show in which he barely sang and didn't dance.

He sounds like a bitter bitch - -

No, r434, I'll try to find it, but he really came across as being dumbfounded by the win, which he wasn't expecting at all.

How was the ScarJo "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof"?

You mean the one with Charlie Williams as Dream skipper?

Was ScarJo's production the one where you saw the naked ghost of Skipper or whatever his name was?

......

Before posting the above, I googled and indeed it was. Rob Ashford directed, surprise, surprise, and why?

But yeah, how was ScarJo and the rest of it? I remember very divided reviews.

I'd have liked to see the 2008 production.

It's quite a loooooong play, though. Are all of Tennessee William' 3 acts?

Well, you know it's true that Ashford's lips are permanently attached to Charlie's cock.

I guess that means Ashford had the good sense to be out of frame in the vid of Charlie giving that bartender a french polish.

I am dying to respond to you favorably, r431, but discretion forces me to bury my quill.

Agreed, r432. As dreadful as that Gillian Anderson STREETCAR.

[quote]Well, Aaron Burr never said he wanted to be played by a Latin guy or any POC.

Aaron Burr didn’t write “Hamilton”.

The Yiddish Fiddler just beat Oklahoma for the Drama Desk.

Yes but did Jackie Hoffman beat Ali Stroker?

And Prom beat fucking Tootsie

I've always thought the story of Theodosia. Burr's daughter would make a good romantic musical. He made sure she was very well educated, unusual for a woman of that period, and they were very close. She married the Governor of South Carolina but disappeared off the coast of North Carolina while sailing back to New York to see him. Standard histories say her ship was lost in a hurricane but for decades there have been rumors her ship was captured by pirates and she was either forced into sexual slavery or to walk the plank. Other stories say she was married into a Native American tribe. A mysterious portrait of her that she was allegedly carrying on the ship reappeared decades later. The rumors are intriguing as to her actual fate and have some supporting but inconclusive evidence.

Tootsie wins best book, lyrics, and music, but The Prom wins Best Musical?

Raymond Burr's daughter did all that?

You mean the daughter he made up? Or was it a son and a wife?

Ragtime won best book, lyrics, and music, r448, but lost to Julie's puppet show as Best Musical.

I hope Hadestown won bupkes.

[quote]Ragtime won best book, lyrics, and music, [R448], but lost to Julie's puppet show as Best Musical.

Not at the Drama Desks it didn't. Ragtime won.

r452 It wasn't nominated because it wasn't eligible.

R450, He made up a son, who died, and two wives, who both died, one in a plane crash. I didn't know he also made up a daughter, who, I presume, also died.

[quote]r454 It wasn't nominated because it wasn't eligible.

[bold]#iWantToSpeak2aManager

Yeah, I should have specified I was talking about at the Tonys, r453. Glad it won the DD.

Is Tonys the correct plural of Tony? I don't know anything any more.

Yes....

Unless you're talking about the home perm.

Or the doll....

or the frosted flakes mascot

Or Toni Tennille.

"Ragtime won best book, lyrics, and music, [[R448]], but lost to Julie's puppet show as Best Musical."

Well, of course. Julie's puppet show had an idea in its head.

No, it has a good opening number and a plot stolen from Hamlet.

Nosing around in the Lortel archives, I note both Bonnie Franklin AND Pia Zadora replaced Bernadette Peters in [italic]Dames at Sea[/italic] in 1970.

So hard to pick who'd be better to see - -

"Ragtime" has a pretty damn good opening number too!

I saw "Dames At Sea" at least 30 years ago, but my local community theater is doing it next month. I think it's worthy of a repeat viewing -- I remember enjoying some of the score.

"No, it has a good opening number and a plot stolen from Hamlet."

Which, of course, is the least of it.

"I remember enjoying some of the score."

It's a WONDERFUL pastiche. But is there an audience left to appreciate it? Hopefully you'll have a lot of TCM fans in the house.

Charlie Williams did not play "Dream Skipper" while that character lasted in Ashford's horrific CAT production. It was another actor, Jordan Dean.

Incredible that anyone would insist Barbara Bel Geddes and Ben Gazzara were right for Maggie and Brick, especially after seeing that clip. They were wrong, wrong, wrong for the parts, and I don't care who cast them. Just because they were the originals doesn't mean they were good casting, and even geniuses can make casting mistakes.

David Christmas' next show after "Dames At Sea" didn't require too extensive a costume, as "Grin and Bare It" required him and other actors, including William Le Massena, who acted with the Lunts, to appear nude, as the play was about a family of nudists.

R471, compare your left costume sketch to this:

Eerie! The designer could well be a DLer!

#FullCircle

[quote]Santino Fontana, bland and boring, winning for Tootsie the goddamned musical. Broadway is such a waste of time these days.

Then why do you keep showing up to bitch about it? You’ve become as boring and one-note as Broadway is.

So on FB, the word is out that two of the Encores shows next season will be Love Life and Mack and Mabel, both of which were speculated about her in the last couple of weeks. Sondheim’s 90th is in March, but there’s nothing left for them to do except his hits. Oh, and supposedly Doug Sills and Alexandra Socha will be playing Mack & Mabel, as they did in that Hey Look Me Over revue. Sills will be four years older than Preston was when he originated it.

People have been speculating about Encores doing Love Life and Mack and Mabel for literally years. Two of their most requested shows. The usual reasons given for not doing them have been that were waiting for the officially authorized restoration of LL to be completed and that Herman wouldn't license M&M for a New York concert because he had been holding out for a full scale revival.

Lets focus on 2020 tony awards, since no one really cares about this year-

Does Moulin Rouge sweep?

r451 Urinetown won book music and director Tony but Thoroughly Modern Milie won Best Musical

I had a friend who was the conductor of Dames at Sea. He said that Pia Zadora was wonderful. Unfortunately, she lied about her age to get the job, (she was 16); so, they had to fire her.

And Into the Woods won best book and score but Phantom took Best Musical (and best director, I think, for Prince).

FOUR Drama Desks for Tootsie? Shameful.

To give it the win for music is embarrassing. Be More Chill had better music than Tootsie. I say that as a Yazbek fan. He phoned this one in.

Steven Skybell or Brooks should've won over Santino.

Evita at Encores? Really?

Oh, wait, Evita will be a special two week engagement at City Center. Never mind.

And an Asian Thoroughly Modern Millie? Uhhh...OK.

Even if Millie gets a revised book, it still has that stinko score.

[quote]r480 I had a friend who was the conductor of Dames at Sea. He said that Pia Zadora was wonderful. Unfortunately, she lied about her age to get the job, (she was 16); so, they had to fire her.

I bet Bonnie Franklin ratted her out, so she could take the job.

Some things never change.

You were stomping your little foot as you were typing that, weren't you, r470?

A PC Thorougly Modern Millie? Really, Jack Viertel? That’s the best you could do? Wow, worst Encores choice ever!

This should be Viertel's last season at Encores. There are beloved old shows he refuses to consider, so as part of that new initiative they're boasting about, Viertel's ouster should be a major part of it.

The SJWs are now running Broadway and Hollywood, which is why we're constantly bombarded by these message shows/lectures and ultra PC mixed casting. Nothing wrong with non-traditional casting until you're being forced to cast your show/films that way, even if it takes place in a specific time and place. It's insane!

I dread to see what they'll do to EVITA, one of my favorite shows. They'll probably cast swarthy Hispanics even though Argentina is not like other Latin American countries. Like the US, Argentina received a influx of European immigrants and thus have a white majority population. Eva herself was of Basque descent. Peron was Italian (original surname Peroni). Che Guevara was of Basque/Irish ancestry.

Then LMM will make the perfect Che, R491!

I just hope we finally see a day when LMM stops acting. Why should we all suffer just because he can’t stop writing vehicles for himself? OR take a goddamned voice lesson and put yourself into an acting class. You can afford it!

I hope we finally see a day when LMM sits down and shuts up.

I hope we see the day when the "I hate LMM" troll finally sits down and shuts up.

LMM is Tuesday night Eva!

I think that's multiple trolls, r495.

For the person upthread wondering if Brooks is still with his longtime boyfriend, sounds like the answer is yes.

Why don't the SJWs have a problem with Miss Saigon? Is the female subjugation okay because the women aren't white or black?

LMM will be translating the English into Spanish for EVITA. And of course, playing Peron. You heard it here first.

Please say you're joking, r500.

Who sank Bonnie Franklin’s stage career post ONE DAY AT A TIME? She had her 1970 Tony nom, she’d been fêted and cosseted by all when she triumphantly returned to the televised awards show the next year ... then she finally limps back to the stage decades later at the Pittsburgh Public Theater, of all places.

Was she really that insufferable? Why was she shunned? Even Nancy “BAJOUR!” Dessault was a replacement witch in INTO THE WOODS.

I’m dying to know why Broadway hated her.

[quote][R451] Urinetown won book music and director Tony but Thoroughly Modern Milie won Best Musical

Once again-- not at the Drama Desks.

Musical and director: TMM

Book: Elaine Stritch: At Liberty

Music and Lyrics: The Last Five Years

Why didn’t Bonnie Franklin and Elaine Stritch do ‘NIGHT, MOTHER in stock together?

(And why do I giggle at the thought of Bonnie Franklin in practically ANY stage role???)

Did Bonnie ever play Rose?

Bonnie actually looked like someone who could be named Reno Sweeney.

I don't think Brandon was coming on to anyone on the return plane home. He was just being friendly.

R104, have you seen Richard in interviews? He's not full on Ben Whishaw on the spectrum, but he does seem quite self conscious. Brandon seems much more sure of himself.

The poster above is right, R is often glued to his phone in pap pics. It wouldn't surprise me if his claims of "unplugging" are just a front.

In the immortal words of Forbidden Broadway: "Hi, I'm Thoroughly Modern Millie, the WORST Best Musical ever!" I'm stunned that Encores has subverted their mission this much to produce a PC version of this mediocre musical. With decades worth of neglected musicals to showcase at Encores, THIS piece of shit cried out for a new (and revised) production? And regarding this new policy, will only living composers be allowed to rework their flawed musicals for Encores, or if the original artists are gone will we start getting more godawful "revisals" like the David Henry Hwang Flower Drum Song? This really strikes me as a cynical move to fix a troubled show so that it can have a second life, which is not what Encores was supposed to be about. It’s time for Jack Viertel to move on.

Agreed. Were it not for LOVE LIFE, I'd sell my excellent 5th Row Orchestra subscription seat.

Agree with R510. Millie is only being produced by Encores so they can fix the... dare I say it... PROBLEMATIC aspects of the show so that high schools can produce it again, guilt-free. It’s only for money.

[quote]r505 Did Bonnie ever play Rose?

It could have been GREAT publicity for her to do some "Reunion Tour" with Mackenzie as Louise.

Schneider as Herbie, of course.

[quote]r510 This really is not what Encores was supposed to be about. It’s time for Jack Viertel to move on.

LOCK 'IM UP!

I'm sorry, but [italic]Love Life[/italic] climaxes with a MINSTREL SHOW?

[quote]The final scene is an old-fashioned minstrel show in which the interlocutor and minstrels review some foolish responses to love and marriage ("We're Sellin' Sunshine"): using astrology to find the right mate ("Madame Zuzu"), ignoring love altogether ("Takin' No Chances"), and insisting on unattainable perfection, which inspires Susan to sing about her own ideal man ("Mr. Right").

Well, that sounds charming. Will there be full-on blackface, or just jazz hands?

R515, If Encores is true to its mission, that is exactly how it should end.

[quote]"Hi, I'm Thoroughly Modern Millie, the WORST Best Musical ever!"

Oh, really? Worse than me?

Worse than any POS musical that wins this year?

Was Dorothy Squires offered any stage shows?

Her subtlety is ... quite something.

Some lovely soul has uploaded a full length bootleg of the fucking delightful 2014 revival of ON THE TOWN. Might wanna download it before it gets taken down. I regretted only being able to see this production once. I'm loving reliving that GORGEOUS Bernstein/Comden-Green score performed by that incredible orchestra, sung so winningly by that cast and - god - the dance. I highly doubt even the original production was this strong.

Well, the original didn't have Jackie Hoffman climbing the scenery (literally) to get a laugh.

Has Encores ever done Carnival? I love the song "Her Face."

The only thing I didn’t like about that On The Town revival was Jay Armstrong Johnson. I can’t even listen to his voice on the cast recording. He’s so... googly.

I thought the Minstrels go throughout Love Life, not just the ending? Economics comes midway through Act Two.

There used to be a video of a college production that was done about 25 years ago, but I don’t think it’s on YouTube anymore.

Yes, r522. Anne Hathaway was Lili, Brian Stokes Mitchell was Paul, and Debbie Gravitte was Rosalie. This was about 16 years ago.

Big dick, though, r523. That can make up for a lot of googliness.

Thanks, R525. Was it good?

Yes, the Encores! production of CARNIVAL was excellent. Hathaway and Stokes were wonderful in it, also the rest of the cast, including Doug Sills and Debbie Gravitte.

It's a shame that Carnival didn't transfer- it was beautiful, Stokes was at his finest (early 21st century Stokes is missed) and Hathaway was heartbreaking

Hathaway's acting was wonderful in Carnival, but if you've heard Anna Maria Alberghetti on the Broadway album, you've heard the part sung in a way that Hathaway couldn't hope to come close to.

That ON THE TOWN was wonderful! So far superior to An American in Paris and even The King and I the same season.

If nothing else, watch the Miss Turnstiles Ballet with magnificent Megan Fairchild at around 15:00 in, and the rarely seen Gabey's Comin' with the dress store mannequins before that.

I liked ON THE TOWN. Saw it twice. I didn't really care for the three actors playing the sailors though.

I do not think Santino comes across well in his Awards Charter podcast. He’s too eager, complimentary to literally everyone and a name dropper like I’ve never heard.

He sounds delighted with his success, which is nice for him, but trying way to hard to charm and ingratiate himself with listeners.

Kelli O’Hara, on the other hand, comes across as much tougher, ambitious and driven than I would have expected. Her interview sounds way more authentic than Santino’s.

These podcasts are fantastic if you don’t know them. Not usually Broadway stars, but enough sprinkled in here and there. Scott Feinberg, the host, really prepares and knows his stuff - though he’s much stronger with movies.

CARNIVAL also included David Costabile, currently of Billions fame, in the Pierre Olaf role.

CARNIVAL clips.

Anne is beguiling.

R533, that’s just reflective of how, in one of the weakest seasons in several years, being the front runner does not mean you are a star.

Santino is so bland. He got lucky to pick up a starring role, even if it is in Tootsie. The prince role in Cinderella is perfect for what he can do. He isn’t much beyond that, though.

Santino gets the job done in Tootsie. It’s not the easiest role to play, and he is convincing as a man who could pass as a woman in the world of this musical. But is he inspired? No, not really. Sarah Stiles, John Behlman and Andy Grots are all working on a higher plane than he is. But this is a weak season, and he would still get my vote.

I would put Lilli Cooper in the same good-enough category. I found Reg Rogers to be affected and irritating. McGrath and Halston are great as always but their parts are very small.

[quote]r521 Well, the original didn't have Jackie Hoffman climbing the scenery (literally) to get a laugh.

Was she lauded for this? The Hollywood Reporter was mean. I'm sure she was just doing what she was told:

[italic]"The one area in which Rando pushes too hard for laughs is with human cartoon Hoffman. Not only as Mme. Dilly but in a series of bit parts, the always-amusing character actress attempts to turn the show into “Tales of Hoffman” with her unrestrained sourpuss mugging."

[quote]Millie is only being produced by Encores so they can fix the... dare I say it... PROBLEMATIC aspects of the show so that high schools can produce it again, guilt-free.

So is this going to be a Thoroughly Modern Millie Jr.? Will they still have the regular show available for community/regional theater?

Why are we not discussing Stephanie J Block having won an award?

Doesn't this mean she really is the front runner for the Tony?

SJB has won every single precursor to the Tony so yes, she’s going to win Best Actress in a Musical.

There’s nothing to discuss.

[quote]Was she lauded for this? The Hollywood Reporter was mean. I'm sure she was just doing what she was told:

I wouldn't assume that Jackie Hoffman was "just doing what she was told." She's a chronic chewer of scenery, and I would imagine she came up with many of her bits during rehearsals.

Another high point of that Encores! Carnival were the wonderful puppets designed and built by Jim Henson's NY Muppet Workshop.

I have to admit I usually love Jackie Hoffman's mugging but she was insufferable in On The Town. But then, so was Mary Testa. Maybe its the part...

I would never pay to see anything with Jackie Hoffman again. She makes the show all about her, no matter how small the part. Remember all the bitching she did about her part in Addams Family? Sorry, but no one in the audience was concerned about the comings and goings of Grandmama.

What did she say about Grandmama?

She was constantly bitching about not having enough stage time or a song. Sorry. You took a shitty part, albeit one perfect a human cartoon like Hoffman. Seriously though, who cares what that character wants or needs? It wasn’t The Jackie Hoffman Family.

I am second to none in my loathing of Jackie Hoffman, but she’s surprisingly good in the Yiddish Fiddler that’s off-Broadway now. And the Tevye is the best I’ve ever seen. He’s leagues better than Alfred Molina or Danny Burstein.

Or Topol?

An unfortunately worded announcement. Before the obit, the Tony Committee stated:

[quote]Sad to hear. Bonnie Franklin received a Tony Award nomination for her memorable performance in the musical “Applause.”

We’ll say!

[quote]Doesn't this mean she really is the front runner for the Tony?

Where have you been? She’s been the front runner almost since the nominations were announced. Kelli O’Hara, her only viable competition, already has one, so it’s SJB’s.

SJB has always been infinitely more talented and interesting than O’Hara, but O’Hara’s blonde, and you all know how that goes in America.

R553 that blondness didn't help her to win the first 5 times she was nominated. In fact, she lost TWICE to two black actresses -- LaChanze in '06 and Audra in '12.

She has always had more attention than Block.

AnnE does sound lovely in those Carnival clips. It's too bad she left the theater, although, I'm sure, she is making a lot more money for a lot less work. She could have made a wonderful Eliza Dolittle.

Santino comes off as a disingenuous try-hard. I hope Tony voters have taken note, as he really doesn't deserve the award.

Any West Side Story update?

Oddsmakers predict the Tony winners:

Eh, I'm taking those predictions with a grain of salt. There's no way Daunno is 2nd behind Fontana. It's either Brightman or Ashmanskas. Santino will easily win, though, so it's moot.

Also, The Prom winning Best Musical? Where are they getting their information? I'd love to see that happen but it seems like a distant third after Hadestown and Tootsie.

I don’t know, I’m sensing a surprise win for Ashmanskas, this being a nore significant Pride Month than usual this year.

True, R561, though perhaps that will be the one big shocking win this year (if there's going to be one I mean).

Brandon Uranowitz? Nope.

[quote]She has always had more attention than Block.

It has nothing to do with her hair color. It might have to do with her luck in getting much better shows than SJB has had.

Or her talent, maybe?

Fans of THE PROM might be interested to know that Matthew Sklar will receive the "Frederick Loewe Award for Dramatic Composition," sponsored by the Dramatists Guild.

Or her ability to smile without looking demented?

I don’t even know what this means

it's LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS starring Aspies

I just read over at BWW that PBS is repeating its broadcast of Falsettos on Friday, June 7 as part of Pride Month.

THE PROM does have a lot of momentum and goodwill (and Brooks too), particularly on social media, but I wonder if it that has trickled down to voters. It may be too late.

[quote]I don’t know, I’m sensing a surprise win for Ashmanskas,

Your sensor is out of whack. It's Santino's, he's very popular, he got raves, and everyone who sees it loves him in it. And of course, all the prognosticators have Alex Brightman as number 2, not Brooks. Our Miss Brooks gets zip this year.

[quote]And of course, all the prognosticators have Alex Brightman as number 2, not Brooks.

I've noticed this, too, but can't really figure out why. The reviews for "Beetlejuice" weren't exactly raves, plus there are the rumors that Brightman (unlike fellow nominee, Brooks) is said to be not particularly well-liked by his colleagues in the industry, so how is it that he sits in the #2 position behind Santino for the win? Is it based on box office? Or perhaps he's way more liked than people say he is?

three potential award things voters might keep in mind when they vote for award (besides quality of performance and whether they personally like them or not):

1. Brooks is doing a gay role, really very well, having and a ball, and having seen the show tonight, really giving the audience a terrrific time (really thought the show was a lot fun)

2. Santino is playing a woman -- and he's straight. Ok, George Hearn and the "La Cage" guys have done that. It's been done.

3. Alex Brightman went full frontal on some tv series a while back -- might be different if he did full frontal in his show, but gay voters might think him kind of brave and cute, regardless of his performance in "Beetlejuice".

So a gay role, a (straight) guy playing a woman, and nudity (elsewhere but recently) -- I'd say in a gay pride year and to say fuck you to Trump (not that he cares), it's Brooks!

1). Brooks has absolutely no chance. 2). O’Hara is actually an actress. Block can’t act, at least not very well...

O’Hara can’t act at all. SJB is Meryl compared to her

R575, you’ve become a real bore, hon. No one, but no one, cares about your one-man crusade to make sure Santino doesn’t win for a “trans” role. You will have zero effect on the Tony voters, so at this point, it’s just masturbation, posting to hear yourself talk.

I guess I can kinda understand finding Jay Armstrong Johnson a touch grating (though, he really grew on me), but I can't imagine a finer Gabey than Tony Yazbeck's. He brought pathos to what could have strictly been a one dimensional cartoon (that gorgeous, heart-rendering performance of Lonely Town), danced with such power and grace, too. And, good lord, that body. And Clyde Alves was such a charmer as Ozzie. And when the three of them danced together it was, yes, with athleticism and precision, but they also managed to dance in unison without losing their individual characterization.

You obviously didn’t see SJB in Meet Vera Stark, Shite sandwich. O’Hara is quite a skilled actress; that’s why she’s Bart’s pet.

I'm with ya, R580, I don't understand DL's apparent dislike of O'Hara. I think she's a brilliant musical theatre ACTRESS. No, that doesn't mean she's perfect for every role. Honestly, she didn't do it for me in The King & I, but I found the entire production a bit bloodless. But I thought she offered fascinating, complex portrayals in so many other productions from South Pacific to Far From Heaven, Light In the Piazza, the Carousel concert...

Is anyone else concerned that this may be the last national network broadcast of the Tonys since its presence lately has been due to the fact that sexual harasser Les Moonves loves Broadway and wanted to present "prestige shows"? The ratings lately have been borderline. Like :Louis B. Mayer would always produce at least one "prestige" picture a year that he knew might or night not would lose money? Like TWOZ in 1939, for example, or Pride and Prejudice in 1940 Whose feelings or rating considerations will be important at CBS now?

R578 First time I weighed in on the matter, babe. Don't hurt yourself on the humble line out.

Breaking News Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Tour has posted its closing notice.

Fran and Barry showed up for Donna Marie Asbury’s final performance in Chicago after 20 years, and I must say, Fran looked good. She spoke at length and read a letter from Walter “Killer” Bobbie, and contrary to popular DL opinion, was totally together, even charming, and not at all ready for her fruit cup at the old folks’ home.

[quote]r585 She spoke at length and read a letter from Walter “Killer” Bobbie

[italic]LOCK 'IM UP!

^ Sorry for all the sloppy typos above. But is anyone else worried about the Tonys ending up on cable, PBS or just live streaming?

Then again, would that necessarily be such a bad thing?

Not really worried. The Tonys may not draw huge ratings, but it attracts high end advertisers, due to the viewer demographics.

SJB really is a horrible actress. How does she work her pop-eyes into her performance as Cher? Whenever she thinks she needs a laugh, she bulges her eyes.

I hope Jagged Little Pill finally gets Elizabeth Stanley some recognition and the level of fame of SJB and KO'H.

I think she's a far better actress than either of them. She was hilarious as Claire deLoon (or whatever that character's name is) in On the Town and her rendition of Some Other Time at the end of the show was beautifully heartbreaking.

I thought Elizabeth Stanley was absolutely charmless in On The Town. I remember wondering how on earth she got the part.

Oh yea? Well I saw Elizabeth Stanley in Jekyll and Hyde at Pittsburgh CLO. Stop being so jealous!

Time to post the next thread, since search is sucking here

And JLB is Stenley's Next to Normal, if she plays it right, What do we know about the other lead women next season? Karen O for Moulin, and who else. Sutton for Music Man is still a year and half away.

Thoroughly Modern Millie was about its press agent. He deserves that Tony Award.

Here?

Bajour!

The "Bajour!" thing is as dated as your clothes, R596, and about as funny.

Mrs. Uranowitz agrees.

Millie’s press agent had a huge dick. Married now so the dick has been tied down, but huge nevertheless.

Whoop-Up!