378 posts
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Post by ctas on Feb 25, 2022 12:29:38 GMT
Loved Amara as Laurey in the Chichester Oklahoma! a few years ago, incredible soprano. Really looking forward to this one now.
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Post by lonlad on Feb 25, 2022 13:22:18 GMT
Mrs Higgins isn't a singing role .... too bad they couldn't bring over Rosemary Harris, who was SUBLIME in the part in NY, replacing Dame Diana Rigg (who was not).
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7,051 posts
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Post by Jon on Feb 25, 2022 15:20:46 GMT
Mrs Higgins isn't a singing role .... too bad they couldn't bring over Rosemary Harris, who was SUBLIME in the part in NY, replacing Dame Diana Rigg (who was not). I think Rosemary Harris being in her 90s probably doesn't want to travel to London. |
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Post by Seriously on Feb 25, 2022 15:37:04 GMT
I could see someone like Bill Bailey as Alfie Doolittle.
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Post by lonlad on Feb 25, 2022 15:49:18 GMT
Rosemary Harris is FROM London. And seemed in great form in NY. But she may not want to work anymore, as is fair enough. Vanessa had such trouble, though, getting through the run of THE INHERITANCE .... oh well. Mrs H is a smaller part.
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Post by FrontroverPaul on Feb 25, 2022 16:56:16 GMT
I could see someone like Bill Bailey as Alfie Doolittle. I do think a celebrity name is needed beyond Vanessa Redgrave to draw in the crowds. Last year Hairspray had regular discounting and daily Rush despite the presence of Michael Ball. Current pricing is very steep and the Coliseum is a huge venue to fill. Bill Bailey would be ideal, as would Bradley Walsh who recently mentioned in a Radio Times interview an ambition to appear in a stage musical. Both have the right look, high profiles and are very popular. |
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Post by jaggy on Feb 25, 2022 18:41:06 GMT
Maybe someone like Lenny Henry for Alfred Doolittle?
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Post by alece10 on Feb 25, 2022 18:47:32 GMT
Maybe someone like Lenny Henry for Alfred Doolittle? Please god no! Let him stick to his Premier Inn ads. Plus we already have one knight of the realm in the show. |
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Post by jaggy on Feb 25, 2022 19:39:10 GMT
Maybe someone like Lenny Henry for Alfred Doolittle? Please god no! Let him stick to his Premier Inn ads. Plus we already have one knight of the realm in the show. lol, my initial thought was Alun Armstrong but at 75 he may be too old. |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 25, 2022 19:58:58 GMT
And how about Idris Elba as Alfred Doolittle? He’d put bums on seats and he said that he’d love to do a musical as long as he doesn’t have to do it for six or more months:
link
The only problem I see is that he’d tower over everyone else. |
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Post by robertb213 on Feb 25, 2022 20:08:03 GMT
Alexander Armstrong wouldn't be a bad idea, he'd get the housewives in and has a good voice.
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Post by alece10 on Feb 25, 2022 20:13:13 GMT
Brian Conelly? Ready made Cockney accent.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 25, 2022 20:21:53 GMT
Matt Berry would also be great.
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Post by nottobe on Feb 25, 2022 20:22:34 GMT
Pickering could be a good role for a name. This is very wishful casting but Ian McKellen has said he wants to do a musical it could be a good fit.
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Post by theatreian on Feb 25, 2022 21:57:18 GMT
Vanessa Redgrave is old enough to be HHP's grandmother... She is 85 and he is 40, so yes, easily old enough and she will look too old really. |
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Post by Being Alive on Feb 25, 2022 22:03:43 GMT
Neither Rosemary Harris or Diana Rigg were not believable as his mother on Broadway...I don't understand the problem here
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Post by mattnyc on Feb 25, 2022 22:04:14 GMT
Awwwww, I loved Harris. Why didn’t you like her?
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Post by theatrelover123 on Feb 25, 2022 22:09:10 GMT
Neither Rosemary Harris or Diana Rigg were not believable as his mother on Broadway...I don't understand the problem here Double negative. So they WERE believable?  |
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Post by theatreian on Feb 25, 2022 22:09:11 GMT
Just think that it is always better to have believable actors who could be old enough etc in real life to play the character they are supposed to be playing. It makes a mockery of telling a story if those in it look too old etc to eb playing that role.
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Post by jaggy on Feb 25, 2022 22:26:08 GMT
I don't see the big issue. Yes, Redgrave is too old especially if you consider the time period/ socials norms of when the musical is set. However, this isn't a film nor is it an Ivo van Hove production. You will not be seeing close ups of Redgrave and Harry Hadden-Paton. Also, if the audience's suspension of disbelief can accept a flower girl passing as a Hungarian princess they can accept Redgrave playing Hadden-Paton's mother
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Post by inthenose on Feb 25, 2022 22:31:03 GMT
Just think that it is always better to have believable actors who could be old enough etc in real life to play the character they are supposed to be playing. It makes a mockery of telling a story if those in it look too old etc to eb playing that role. Believability is more about commitment and talent from the performer, especially nowadays, than literal interpretations based on factors like age, race and gender. They aren't the limiting factor they once were. This is a very good thing. If a white child can grow into a black adult (Amara in Les Miserables) and we "go with it", I can't see why anybody of any age, race or gender can't play any part. It all comes down to our own idea of "believability", really. For some, something like that can take them out of the moment, for others it isn't an issue at all. If we can forget we are watching actors, on a stage, with a crew and lights and microphones, and just accept that as our "reality" for the evening, anything is possible. If Alfred and his daughter can be any race, then they can be any age. Everyone has their "line" where something becomes absurdist theatre, though. Do we cast a 35 year old male Matilda if they were the best audition? Being "right" for the part should still be on casting directors minds. In short, ageism is rife - if other obviously "non-literal" casting is encouraged and accepted, then it is just another case of selective equality by the liberal echo chamber. |
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Post by Being Alive on Feb 25, 2022 22:45:27 GMT
Sorry, for clarity I didn't have a problem with either Harris or Rigg's respective ages in the show at all.
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Feb 26, 2022 7:53:31 GMT
They’re going to need some sort of name because the general public won’t know who the other leads are, I would suggest.
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Post by mrbarnaby on Feb 26, 2022 8:43:55 GMT
They’re going to need some sort of name because the general public won’t know who the other leads are, I would suggest. You would hope that the title is the star. Perhaps Sheridan Smith as the housekeeper to draw the crowds? |
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Feb 26, 2022 9:38:52 GMT
They’re going to need some sort of name because the general public won’t know who the other leads are, I would suggest. You would hope that the title is the star. Perhaps Sheridan Smith as the housekeeper to draw the crowds? You jest but she probably would. The Coliseum has definitely gone down the route of using household names for its musicals over the past few years. Kelsey Grammar, Michael Ball, Alfie Boe, Kathryn Jenkins, Glenn Close. (Notable exception On Your Feet). I think there is probably an expectation that it would continue. I’m not saying is has to, but we were discussing in another thread how lots of less frequent theatre goers do want to know “who’s in it” before deciding to go. So when your average Joe and Josephine look at the casting for this and see Amara Okereke… erm? Harry Haddon Paton… who? Vanessa Redgrave? Ohhh yes I know HER let’s go! The ticket prices perpetuate the expectation that there’s going to be name recognition too. |
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