I’m going to call it right here that Paul Hilton takes home the Supporting Actor Tony Award. His 20 (or so) minute monologue is one of the most exquisite things you’ll ever see on stage.
I can easily see Paul Hilton, John Benjamin Hickey, and Sam Levine get nominated for Best Featured Actor in a play (I'd presume Burnap and Soller would be up for lead actor.)
I'm unfamiliar with Lois Smith's work but excited to see her in this role! Really wishing this play the best.
I adored the show in London. Redgrave, while a tremendous actress, was miscast--her Southern American accent was distractingly odd. I still sobbed through her scenes. But seeing Lois Smith who feels PERFECT for the role...I can't wait.
I called this casting and am extremely excited for all those reprising their performances. The more I've thought about them over the past year the more I've realized how truly amazing they all were in very different ways. The only one I questioned if they'd transfer was Paul Hilton, who was glorious, but assumed they'd get someone like Dylan Baker to take the role.
I knew we'd get a theatre-name actress and not a big star (Angela/Julie/Meryl) from the go. It's a great part and an easier schedule than most runs but I couldn't see them pulling a "spend hundreds on a 7 hour play to see XYZ in 15 minutes of Part 2!" I also didn't love Redgrave the times I saw it. The accent was a mess, she seemed to be being fed every line via an earpiece, and basically had to be led around the stage by the other actors. It honestly took me out of so many moments wondering if this legend was ok.
Disappointing only in the sense that Redgrave would have automatically generated a rush of ticket sales, which no doubt this very ambitious play could have benefitted from. But Lois Smith of course will be wonderful.
“I knew who I was this morning, but I've changed a few times since then.”
QueenAlice said: "Disappointing only in the sense that Redgrave would have automatically generated a rush of ticket sales, which no doubt this very ambitious play could have benefitted from."
Oh please –– Redgrave doesn't mean that much over here. She's also sort of problematic from a PR perspective, so perhaps they dodged a bullet... Lois Smith is also a cheaper hire than Redgrave, and she's local.
Sam Levine is the only one who gets fully naked. You see Andrew Burnap in a speedo as well as another member or two of the boys, but not sure which of the new actors it is who plays the son/agent/trainer/dealer track.
ErmengardeStopSniveling said: "QueenAlice said: "Disappointing only in the sense that Redgrave would have automatically generated a rush of ticket sales, which no doubt this very ambitious play could have benefitted from."
Oh please –– Redgrave doesn't meanthatmuch over here. She's also sort of problematic from a PR perspective, so perhaps they dodged a bullet... Lois Smith is also a cheaper hire than Redgrave, and she's local."
Redgrave’s appearances on Broadway have historically sold very well. She is an Oscar winning draw regardless of what you might think and regardless of her past controversies. Her involvement would have generated some additional interest that Lois Smith’s name won’t. That is simply my point.
“I knew who I was this morning, but I've changed a few times since then.”
She seemed to contribute to sales in London, at least for the initial Young Vic run. Bizarrely (or maybe not) part 2 completely sold out but not part 1.
"You can't overrate Bernadette Peters. She is such a genius. There's a moment in "Too Many Mornings" and Bernadette doing 'I wore green the last time' - It's a voice that is just already given up - it is so sorrowful. Tragic. You can see from that moment the show is going to be headed into such dark territory and it hinges on this tiny throwaway moment of the voice." - Ben Brantley (2022)
"Bernadette's whole, stunning performance [as Rose in Gypsy] galvanized the actors capable of letting loose with her. Bernadette's Rose did take its rightful place, but too late, and unseen by too many who should have seen it" Arthur Laurents (2009)
"Sondheim's own favorite star performances? [Bernadette] Peters in ''Sunday in the Park,'' Lansbury in ''Sweeney Todd'' and ''obviously, Ethel was thrilling in 'Gypsy.'' Nytimes, 2000
Redgrave is not a draw in the United States. From all I have read and heard, the piece itself is the star. And with such strong actors, they don't need a name. What I don't understand is during previews in September and October why part 1 is performed so many more times than part 2 (18/10). Pretty pricey for both, but clearly worth it. And their marquee is stunning!