BREAKING: BEHIND THE SCENES AT FUNNY GIRL

BREAKING: Already been posted a half-dozen times OP.

This is why Jonathan Groff has been nonstop extolling her virtues for two months. I hope Lea sold herself cheap.

Why would they have to redesign the costumes?

Maybe they won’t, and Lea wears a fat suit?

I wonder if Beanie missed that Sat. matinee while Benko had covid just to throw the show into some chaos.

Comparison of Barbra, Beanie, Benko and Lea.

R3, they needed an all-new wardrobe, because Lea Michele shit in the old one.

How embarrassing for Beans.

Beanie looks like she’s in her 50s.

Damn, this show is a straight up soap opera. LOL!

And before this, I had never even heard of this 'Beanie' girl.

I can't wait to see the all the subway and billboard ads shouting "A Major Improvement!"-nyt over Leah's Fanny.

[Quote]BREAKING: Already been posted a half-dozen times OP.

But it's worth repeating.

Lea Michele went to them and said, I can do it? I admire the girl's chutzpah!

I'm curious about the advance ticket sale for the upcoming Lea's show. Any info? I would think an expected initial bump but the real test is once the hoopla faded.

Those Jews are really goin at each other!

"new costumes" translates to "take them in a few sizes"

A few DOZEN sizes.

LOL R17, it would be hilarious to see Miss Chrissy Metz play that role. Could you imagine? I’d even pay $2500 for that ticket!

Isn't Lea a bit too old for this part?

No mention of Beanie's daddy in the article

Beanie always acts like a slutty, spunky fat, ugly girl in high school in most of her roles.

[quote] I’d even pay $2500 for that ticket!

Please, for the love of all that you may hold holy, do NOT TEMPT THEM!

[quote] I’d even pay $2500 for that ticket!

R18 that's a lot Oreos, I will sing you in person!

Chrissy can sing it lol

Lea’s not too old

Moral of the story is that audiences would rather see a wig-shitting sociopath in the role than Fatty Beanie. Ben Platt and his father most likely recognized this and threw poor Beanie under a very big, long, heavy bus.

We don't understand the casting here.

Was Fanny Brice both a blimp and a dyke?

I love it! That's what life is, sometimes you just have to go to the fat girl's boss and say "FIRE her HIRE me, the services savings alone..."

They sure are kissing Beanie's ass in this piece and falling all over themselves for "not taking action sooner". They sound very guilty. Is Beanie beloved or something? Sounds like as soon as the Hawker piece released she unleashed her inner diva.

The subtext is that Beanie should have been aware enough to quit herself after the terrible reviews, but stayed on, despite the producers saying they had decided to "stand by" her.

And there's one producer who apparently was the reason she got hired and stayed on, which is hinted at in the piece. Thinking maybe the Gawker leak was done to force his hand and make Beanie leave on her own? Especially if it's true that they didn't start talking to Lea seriously until after the piece. It sounds like the producer was willing to tank the show out of some obligation to Beanie, until the choice got taken out of his hand.

Who knows how many were trampled in Feldstein’s obsession to get the role? She has learned however that things can cut both ways. Brutally. She leaves trailing disaster.

Beanie Feldstein is Patti LuPone in The Glenn Close Story, starring Glenn Close.

When is Babs' next concert tour?

[quote]Erna (confused)

Erna (shit-for-brains)

Must suck when your understudy gets more praise than you do.

Where does Michael Mayer fall in all of this?

When nepotism goes wrong. You know you've done a bad job when even one of the most reviled and disliked actresses in the industry is called upon to replace you.

But she's not one of the most "reviled and disliked actresses in the industry". That's just bs, to the tune of the Twitter crowd who calls her a "known racist" for no reason.

^ hush, Jonathan.

This is a show that deserves to be closed. A disaster in every way.

Lea doesn't mind playing the villain. She knows most people despise her, so this is a natural choice for her. Besides, she desperately needs the work. When even Emma Roberts hated working with you, you know you've earned your C-card.

[quote]Moral of the story is that audiences would rather see a wig-shitting sociopath in the role than Fatty Beanie.

Moral of the story is that audiences would rather see a STREISAND IMITATOR in the role than Fatty Beanie.

R40 arent she and fellow cunt friends? They've posted each other

[quote]This is why Jonathan Groff has been nonstop extolling her virtues for two months

I'm genuinely surprised he avoided social media criticism for that. Without that doc, there's every chance this wouldn't have happened and Funny Girl would've just closed.

Mind you, he's gotten a free pass for decades on being her friend, so why stop now I guess

Jane Lynch also leaving early.

It would be cool if Streisand herself came back for the role. Yes, I know she's 80, but no one would care and tickets would sell out.

Is Ramin Karimloo continuing as Nick?

What's still so bizarre to me about this story is how the anonymous sources backstage all agree that Beanie did not have the voice for this role, yet no one explains why she got it or what strings were pulled to get a revival of this show mounted starring an unknown. (Of course I know it was her father pulling strings, but there's no discussion of it.)

There's something very weird going on on Broadway with all this nepotism, with first Ben Platt for "Dear Evan Hansen" (which miraculously was a success as a Broadway show if a disaster as a film) and then "Funny Girl." It's as if no one is standing up to these producers who are demanding their only marginally-talented and inexperienced children be cast in roles that carry an entire show. I've yet to see any articles about this in the mainstream media, and yet it's such an odd situation. It's an old story (think of Lorriane Gary and "Jaws-The Revenge," and Marion Davies and Cosmopolitan Pictures), but it's been weird it's been happening repeatedly on Broadway lately.

Sorry, i meant her brother, not her father.

[quote] Is Ramin Karimloo continuing as Nick?

Yes, but he will now play his role in the nude.

Damn, Ramin is THAT fine?

Good god, when did Ramin Karimloo start looking like that?

The most telling item they slipped into the article is that Jane Lynch is leaving early with the implication that she does not want any overlap with Michele.

Get Streisand on the phone. These young broads blow.

At this point, get Joey Heatherton on the phone.

I wish they'd just give the role to Julie Benko. She even looks like a young Fanny Brice (which neither Streisand nor Michele do, and which Feldstein certainly did not).

r54 You're nowhere close to being a draw, Julie

I'd settle for Lola Heatherton.

Why does Beanie keep deleting her birth year / age at her wikipedia page?

Beanie looks older than Lea, for Pete’s sake.

R54 Julie is a great physical match for Fanny Brice, but is simply competent, not exceptionally talented. Beanie was so terrible that she seemed great by comparison, but objectively she's not all that.

They cut the ticket prices when Julie took over. So even though her taking over saw an increase in sales of 428 tickets, the gross went down $183k

An "investigative" report.

The report is actually very good.

r61/r62 Your YT channel sucks. Fuck off

OP’s pic is a scream!

I’m a little puzzled, they didn’t know Beanie couldn’t sing all the way through rehearsals? I’m not a Glee person but I saw a Lea Michelle clip, I frankly expected more. Adequate but not more,

My father always told me that, in relation to a job, never follow a legend, but always follow a flop. That way, anything you do will be seen as great. Lea will be seen as great.

Roll that beautiful baked Beanie footage!

Lea Michele, like Sarah Brightman, has fooled people into thinking she's actually a good singer.

The DL dream scenario:

Lea is very good in the role and gets great reviews. Tickets go through the roof.

Then she resorts to her usual cunt antics and we get daily dribbles of backstage gossip about what a terror she is. But it's a hit and they can't fire her.

DL's dream scenario would be that she's horrible in the role and the reivews are even worse. The show closes early because it's not salvageable anymore.

THEN, reports of her usual antics come out with everyone under the sun describing her terrorizing everyone which gets worse as her collapse becomes complete. In the wettest of wet dreams, a Christian Bale-like video with clear audio emerges as irrefutable proof of what a monster she is - extra points if she uses a slur or two (I'm betting on "retard" as she's probably smart enough not to use a racial or homophobic one).

Why on earth would DL's dream be for her to have great reviews or box office success?

[quote] DL's dream scenario would be that she's horrible in the role and the reivews are even worse. The show closes early because it's not salvageable anymore.

Agree 100% with the first part. But not with the show closing.... we would want there to be more backstage drama as they scramble to find a replacement.

r70 Exactly, plus the worse she does the more cunty she'll become. As many have said before, initially she'll be on her best behaviour.

I don’t get the video harping on the criticism of Beanie’s weight. Did any of the legit reviews do this? Or just online posters?

The character of Fanny Brice isn’t supposed to be traditionally attractive, and the show harps on this. Having a bigger sized person play the role is perfectly fine.

But it's expected the character will at least resemble the real-life person they are portraying, R73. Fanny Brice was not 300 lbs.

[quote]R74 But it's expected the character will at least resemble the real-life person they are portraying,

No one in the general public today would be able to pick Fanny Brice out of a lineup.

She made her deepest impression as a radio star.

Why they even revived this dated, predictable and boring show in the first place is the real mystery.

Probably revived the show because the new musicals, mostly jukebox or based on movies, were pure crap. With the right cast, it could work.

r73 Funnily enough the one review which did mention her size was Reed's ridiculous rave, calling her "roly-poly"

I love Jewess on Jewess violence. I would pay good money to watch Lea and Beanie fight, preferably involving mud (but fully clothed)

First commercial with Lea…!

As Ginger Rogers said about Ruby Keeler in 42nd St., she’s going to panic ‘em.

Lawsuit filed b4 Sept 30th??? OH Beanie, get a new fucking agent before your new attorneys file a lawsuit!!!

SCANDAL CONTINUES!!

One more question? Why would Beanie's agent hide the fact that he was representing the Evil Lea? Massive conflict of interest, TRUE!! Broadway peoples, does this happen alot on Broadway??

I know contract law in California, but finance& money.

Lea isn’t Jewish

I know some people who saw Beanie in her final week. These are people who work in theater as well as produce plays. They thought Beanie was excellent, and not compared to their expectations, they thought she was excellent compared to anyone. They reported a really fun night of theater. I was happy to hear it!

Haha Lea looks good in it.

[quote]I know some people who saw Beanie in her final week. These are people who work in theater as well as produce plays. They thought Beanie was excellent, and not compared to their expectations, they thought she was excellent compared to anyone

Beanie had very enthusiastic and very vocal supporters at every performance she bothered to show up for. But those audiences were dwindling.

So the producers fired her.

Lea needs to make Fanny her own and stop imitating Streisand’s version, or else this production will come off as a Vegas tribute to the original Broadway show.

They should write a full-frontal nude scene for Lea. Maybe have her strip and simulate masturbation (playfully) during Sadie,Sadie? Her well- groomed hoo-haw might move some tickets.

[quote]R85 I know some people who saw Beanie in her final week. These are people who work in theater as well as produce plays. They thought Beanie was excellent

So she grew into the role?

Just when we thought she couldn’t grow any bigger.

Can we quit being so cunty about her weight? Fanny Brice did not have a knockout figure. The problem here is nepotism and no-talent hires, not whether the leading lady is starving.

Well, you put yourself (and your no talent) on a stage and people are going to talk about what they see.

[quote] BREAKING: Already been posted a half-dozen times OP.

But I cannot read.

Lea already looks ready to take on the role nude going by that little commercial

I'm definitely no fan of Beanie, and never understood why she was cast in the show. But, after seeing Lea in that ad, if I HAD to choose between the two of them, I would probably pick Beanie. At least she's more interesting personality wise. R88 nailed it about Lea.

[quote]Lea isn’t Jewish

half correct.

Someone needs to make a T shirt with Lea's picture on it that says "Hide your wigs!"

I'd buy one.

[quote]But it's expected the character will at least resemble the real-life person they are portraying

The "real-life" person she's portraying is Barbra Streisand. The show is only vaguely about Fanny Brice, and as R75 said, no one in the general public today would be able to pick Fanny Brice out of a lineup. Lea as Streisand playing Fanny Brice is perfectly acceptable and what the public probably wants.

Yeah, keep up in the back: Funny Girl was NEVER about Fanny Brice. The show was tailored to the talents of Barbra Streisand.

Anyone playing the role, first, needs to tailor it closely to themselves, and then locate their inner "ugly duckling" and take us on that journey.

That's it, that's all.

The Lea clips only emphasis the COMPLETE INSANITY of ever casting Beanie Feldstein in the role.

That was absolute lunacy.

Here's a direct link to Lea's Funny Girl Teaser Trailer

R101 She looks like a young Sandra Bernhard in that clip. I like her non-traditional looks - It makes her more interesting on stage. Unfortunately, her reedy voice is more suited for the lead in “Annie.”

[quote]Fanny Brice did not have a knockout figure

Fanny had a lovely, svelte figure, r91.

Actually, I think she's doing less of a Barbra imitation than she did on Glee and they're not hiding her voice the way they hid Beanie's. Her technique seems to have improved a bit--less swooping.

[quote]r103 Fanny had a lovely, svelte figure

Who are you, Frances Stark?

When my time comes, I'm going to be interred at Westwood Cemetery not very far from Fanny who is now enshrined in the Stark family plot. I knew the salesperson who sold them the $400,000 piece of property. She got a $40,000 commission.

^Westwood is located in Los Angeles. Their most famous resident is of course, Marilyn Monroe.

What would you call her figure in that clip, r105?

Average. Not busty. A little lanky. Not overweight.

There’s really nothing to praise, or really criticize. Just an average female form, almost nondescript.

Lea's tits look great. Fascinating to see her after the cancellation. There's more depth to her whether she likes it or not, and the voice can be fire at times. A star returns? Sure. It's hilarious Beanie ever got the part.