KING AND I Revival a possibility- Page 5

[gabrieljwickedone]

Posted: 12/29/11 at 11:02pm

I do agree that Lea is too old. I couldn't think of anyone else though.

I think Lou could do it again since Yul did it for so many years and in so many different productions.

I really don't see what's wrong with Paolo or Loretta.

And Kristin could do it. Just think about her operatic voice. :)

Updated On: 12/29/11 at 11:02 PM

[ChenoKahn]

Posted: 12/29/11 at 11:54pm

Kristin intrigues me a lot. I think she would either be amazing or terrible. But I am rooting for Laura Benanti so much.

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 12/30/11 at 12:20am

Mrs. Anna is not a high Soprano role,
though it has been played very well by many.

The role needs a strong ground, a Motherly charm the children fall for, and the strength the King is confused and attracted to.

Baldwin and O'Hara are good choices.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 12/30/11 at 12:36am

The more I think about this revival, the more I want Laura Benanti to come in and work her magic on it. I think she'd be so brilliant in a role like this.

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 12/30/11 at 12:37am

I would LOVE to see Benanti as Anna.

[somethingwicked]

Posted: 12/30/11 at 12:44am

Kelli O'Hara's schedule is going to be mighty tricky the next few seasons. She has a year long contract with NICE WORK IF YOU CAN GET IT, and she's also very much attached to Jason Robert Brown and Marsha Norman's musicalization of THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY, which (last I heard) was looking toward going into production right when she becomes free to do so. She'd also been involved with FINDING NEVERLAND, should that ever get legs, as well as another impending revival that I know for a fact is looking to work around her scheduled availability.

While I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if Sher had every intention of making this a vehicle for her, if it's going to happen this coming fall at the Beaumont as rumored, he's going to have to use someone else. I'm not even kidding when I say that this sounds like a much more appropriate opportunity for him to work with Lauren Ambrose in a musical.

Updated On: 12/30/11 at 12:44 AM

[SondheimFan5]

Posted: 12/30/11 at 1:15am

Anna needs to be a wonderful actress. She can range from age 30 to age 50, but the range of her songs is really only an octave - though she has great songs and it sounds best when a skilled singer is in the role.

I doubt this would occur within the next year or so -- I have a feeling War Horse will stay around at the Beaumont for another season at this rate (though they could surprise us and close up shop). I have a feeling the film will help sales because people will be intrigued to see it in a different light.

[f13overture]

Posted: 12/30/11 at 1:15am

How about Harvey Fie- wait no! - Kristin Chenoweth as Tuptim.
O, Cheno how I love thee

BEHOLD!!!

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 12/30/11 at 1:17am

if it's going to happen this coming fall at the Beaumont as rumored

THIS fall? I was thinking War Horse would have the Beaumont for a while since it is doing so well...

[somethingwicked]

Posted: 12/30/11 at 2:08am

bwayphreak234, the initial rumors were that this was a project intended for the fall of 2012 at the Beaumont.

While I can't speak for what Lincoln Center plans to do with WAR HORSE, I do know that the new cast that's going into the show next month is only contracted through the summer, and, with the tour and Toronto productions launching next year, I wouldn't be surprised if they wanted to go out on top and close the show in New York next August or September while its still riding high (no pun intended.)

That would also afford them a nice window of opportunity to capitalize on the exposure afforded by the release of the film adaptation this holiday season.

Updated On: 12/30/11 at 02:08 AM

[bwayfan7000]

Posted: 12/30/11 at 2:20am

If that situation comes to pass and this revival happened fall 2012, I would be happy beyond words. And, yes, please, Laura Benanti for Anna. That would be glorious. I'd love to see what Sher could do with this show in the Beaumont.

[ljay889]

Posted: 12/30/11 at 2:27am

While I wouldn't be upset if the role goes to O'hara; I really think this is the role that could turn Benanti into a leading lady!

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 12/30/11 at 3:44pm

Kate Winslet and, as I've said before, John Lone.

[ChenoKahn]

Posted: 12/30/11 at 4:11pm

Just wondering but could War Horse transfer to a different theater.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 12/30/11 at 4:37pm

I wouldn't know what to do with myself if Kate Winslet played Anna, she'd act the role perfectly, I do wonder if she could sing the role 8 times a week though, Catherine Zeta-Jones has a background in musical theatre and she struggled some with the vocal demands of doing a musical on Broadway, I don't think Winslet has ever done musical theatre on a regular basis and Anna seems like it'd be vocally demanding for someone who isn't used to the routine.
I love the idea of Lauren Ambrose. I was gonna suggest her earlier but thought she might come off as too contemporary (thinking of SIX FEET UNDER, where she was consistently brilliant), then reading SomethingWicked's post I remember her fantastic turn in the EXIT THE KING revival and the great reviews she has gotten whenever she does Shakespeare, with some people on this board and other friends claiming her Juliet was among the best they have ever seen. She'd be great as Anna.

[gabrieljwickedone]

Posted: 12/30/11 at 4:50pm

I don't think Lauren Ambrose would be the best choice, the same thing might happen that just happened with the Funny Girl Revival. It sounds to me like no producer wants to take a gamble on her.

Laura Benanti would be good I think, but something just turns me off to the idea. Looking at the roles she has played in the past, it's just hard for me to see her doing this.

I think Kelli O'Hara is my top choice for this.

And someone mentioned Danny Burnstein earlier for the King. I took it as a joke....and then I thought about it. He might do good.

I still stand with my Lou choice. I saw him play it this summer at my local theatre and he did great....which reminds me, he played opposite Rachel Bay Jones and she was marvelous. She might be good too.

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 12/30/11 at 4:56pm

Ray-Anthony, Anna is not a difficult role to sing at all. Perhaps we think of the role that way because of Murphy and because of Marni Nixon's dubbing Deborah Kerr in the movie. Gertrude Lawrence was reportedly a remarkable star in musicals but she was not a great singer. And if you listen to her Anna on the original recording, it's not at all well sung. From the little I've heard of Winslet singing, she's leaps and bounds beyond Lawrence.

[jamiekennywicked]

Posted: 12/30/11 at 4:59pm

For some reason I see Megan Hilty in the Anna "get-up".

[random person 112]

Posted: 12/30/11 at 5:47pm

Hilty or benanti would both be great fun.

[elphaba.scares.me]

Posted: 12/30/11 at 6:53pm

Isn't Benanti becoming a regular on SVU? That would shoot Broadway in the foot for the time being.

I like an Anna with tremendous warmth and openness...Laura might just be too sophisticated. I'd rather see Susan Egan, who is very gifted and sophisticated but still has a childlike quality. Compare her to, say, Melissa Errico, who strikes me as chilly. I would love Carolee Carmello.

And something tells me the time is right for a very young cast. Think WSS...Josefina Gabrielle would be lovely. Karen Olivo would be fantastic singing "Something Wonderful." They'd never get her to do it, though.

Annaleigh Ashford could be an interesting Anna. Or Jennifer Damiano, with the proper direction....she's SO talented, although I've only seen her play contemporary characters.

You could also plug in a star...say, Jane Krakowski, if she wanted to demonstrate her range. All they'd have to do is say " the last Anna won a Tony" and actresses (and their agents) would come out of the woodwork.

Agree with those pointing out that it's not a tough sing. Keys can be changed.

Just as long as it's not Stephanie Block...that casting would give me the willies, though I'm not sure why.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 12/30/11 at 7:00pm

Henrik, I've no doubt Winslet could do wonders with the part both acting-wise and musically. I imagine she'd act the hell out of the numbers, her "Shall I Tell You What I Think of You" would probably be a tour de force (much like Murphy's). I was thinking more in terms of Winslet's vocal stamina, can she sing all those songs (does Anna sing what? Like 4 or 5 solos at least?) 8 times a week for 6 months? If she can, then someone call her right away! But that's where my doubts come from.
FUNNY GIRL was a commercial production of a show that depends--to a fault--on star power. And I personally think it's *very* unfortunate we'll never get to see what Ambrose would have brought to that role specifically. THE KING & I would be at LCT so name-casting isn't important, Ambrose has worked with them quite successfully in the past in AWAKE & SING and clearly Sher (who directed her in that production) wants to work with her again. I think, if given the chance--and Sher seems to be very much willing to take risks when it comes to her--she'd be a wonderful Anna.

[elphaba.scares.me]

Posted: 12/30/11 at 7:01pm

I forgot about Laura Osnes: slam-dunk.

Bart Sher likes casting creatively and putting his stamp on revivals. An Anna and King who were in their late twenties, just learning about each other's cultures (as well as their own in the global context) would be very moving.

You'd have to cast Tuptim very young, and Lady Thiang in her thirties...I feel like there are plenty of girls around who are weary of doing summer stock productions of Miss Saigon, and they could find a Tuptim the same way they found Lea Salonga.

Celia Keenan-Bolger would also be a fascinating Anna. She's got all the charm, warmth, and curiosity the role requires to really soar.

Bart Sher doesn't seem to direct standard revivals of anything...expect someone unexpected, if this ever happens.

Unless it's Kelli...who I guess is kind of Mitt Romney for me in this whole discussion. She's a perfect fit, and would be wonderful, but............

[ChenoKahn]

Posted: 12/30/11 at 7:39pm

Never mind post I was responding to get deleted.

Updated On: 12/30/11 at 07:39 PM

[DottieD'Luscia]

Posted: 12/30/11 at 9:11pm

People keep mentioning Lauren Ambrose, but for some reason I can't warm to that idea. Her acting on Six Feet Under is so ingrained in my mind, that I can't see her as Anna. She just doesn't read "warm" to me for some reason.

[Jonwo]

Posted: 12/30/11 at 9:29pm

I don't think The King and I will happen until 2013 at the earliest given how well War Horse is doing, if they want it in 2012, The King and I could be done in another Broadway theatre.

Keli O'Hara would be an amazing Anna, Elaine Paige did it at the London Palladium and while she was good, she was simply too old for the role.