I'd like to think that the Kings and Queens of Broadway are performers who have been around for years and have continued to work on Broadway.In other words I'm looking at longevity. So with this in mind I nominate:
King: John Cullum from understudy in Camelot to Urinetown. Queen: Chita Rivera from West Side Story to Nine. Both these artists have been performing on Broadway for over 40 years. Grand Dame of the Broadway district Carol Channing.
Heir apparent to the King: Nathan Lane. Heir apparent to the Queen: Leslie Uggams.
iluvny, Louis is queen of 3 of the 5. She did it in Toronto, on the first national tour, as well as Broadway. She was never in the 2nd National tour or Las Vegas companies.
Mathew Broderick and Lesley Uggams can light up a stage in both plays and musicals. Most of these posts seem only to mention those that appear in musicals what about the non musical actors?
King: Adam (I HAVE to say him...when I met him, I blurted out something along the lines, "I feel like I'm talking to Broadway royalty right now!!":))
Prince: Torn between Gavin Creel and Sebastian Arcelus (Sebastian just because I seriously love the guy and hope he really does go on to achieve Broadway royalty status)
QUEEN: Bernadette Peters (although here in America there is no royalty, so Regis Philbin has given her the title of "The First Leading Lady of Musical Theatre").
PRINCE: Hunter Foster
PRINCESS: Sutton Foster (though if Ruthie Henshall lived in the USA she would hold that title).
"It's the little things; the details, that distinguish the Barbra Streisands from the Rosalyn Kinds."~Gilmore Girls~
CHITA IS QUEEN she has been performing since 1957, beat that! lol
QUEEN - CHITA RIVERA, Patti LuPone KING - Anthony Warlow, Philip Quast, Colm Wilkonson, Michael Ball PRINCESS - Alice Ripley, Ruthie Henshall, PRINCE - Brian D'Arcy James, John Barrowman
King: Brian Stokes Mitchell. Hands down the best singer currently on Broadway. His deep rich baritone fills the theatre with incredible energy and emotion. Acting wise, I have seen him go from Ragtime, to Kiss Me Kate, to La Mancha (three totally different roles) and loved him every time. I look forward to whatever he does next and of course to solo albums of any kind.
Queen: Marin Mazzie. What a thrill to have my queen and king in three shows at the same time. It is such a pleasure to hear her sing. Vocally her range is quite large. Her change from soft, gentle singing to loud, harsh belting is amazing. If you go on vocal power, she has lots of it. And control as well.
Prince: Max von Essen. The surprise of my DOTV experience. I didn't know what to expect from him going into it. After one show I was really impressed. I look for him to do wonderous things in the future.
Princess: This is the category with many in it. For this I will have to go with Mandy Gonzalez. A true belter for the future. I really want to see her in Aida.
Court Jester: Having not seen Nathan Lane on Broadway, (poor soul I am) my court jester is the funny Ernie Sabella. I love this little guy. He is such a riot just to look at in the little costume he wears in La Mancha.
There are my picks and an explanation of my views!
King: Brian Stokes Mitchell (Hands down) Queen: Tie between Bernadette Peters and Angela Lansbury Prince: Hunter Foster (a lot of potential, and he might be King one day) Princess: Between Audra McDonald, Kerry Butler, Laura Benanti, Kerry O'Malley, and Marissa Jaret Winokur. So MANY good potential young ladies out there.
"Someone tell the story...Someone sing the song...."
King: Brent Carver and Len Cariou Queen: Bernadette Peters, Donna Murphy, Christine Andreas, Judy Kuhn and Glenn Close. Prince: Marc Kudisch, Patrick Wilson Princess: Kerry O'Malley (love ya babe) Marla Schaffel and my three girls Sutton Foster, Laura Benanti and Sarah Uriarte Berry. Oh and
King: Brent Carver and Len Cariou Queen: Bernadette Peters, Donna Murphy, Christine Andreas, Judy Kuhn and Glenn Close. Prince: Marc Kudisch, Patrick Wilson Princess: Kerry O'Malley (love ya babe) Marla Schaffel and my three girls Sutton Foster, Laura Benanti and Sarah Uriarte Berry. Oh and Emily Skinner.
Okay- there's only supposed to be one. That's the challenge of this thread. I didn't think there should be a list of people, otherwise, it will turn into a favorite actor or actress thread. There can only be one of each! I know it's hard, but you must come up with one that beats all. Believe me, these are hard choices, and you can list your runner ups, but the point of the thread was one actor or actress each!
I'm from a different era, but I would like to give my choices. I've broken them down into categories. I'm sure that if I saw some of these performers today I would find them old fashioned, but in my youth they were highly palpable stage presences.
Best Dranatic Actress: Katharine Cornell Best Comic Actress (not slapstick or outrageous): Shirley Booth tied with Rurh Gordon Best Musical Actress: Vivienne Segal Best Dramatic Actor: Paul Muni Best Comic Actor: Joseph Cotten Best Musical Actor: William Gaxton Best Broadway Dancer (Female): Libby Bennett Best Broadway Dancer (Male): Duke McHale Dancer with the loudest laugh: Me!!!!!!
Miriam
Every movement has a meaning--but what the hell does it mean!
I agree with most of your choices onceadancer2, but I have outgrown them. My attitude always seems to be forward moving and most of the time I forget most of the people I grew up with. Broadway certainly has changed. It is really hard to compare the stars of today with the stars of yesterday. Two totally different attitudes. For me, I prefer today to yesterday.
I agree with you totally, Theatre Nut. I don't live in the past, and, of course, one can't compare the Broadway 0f 30s, 40s and 50s to the Broadway of the 21st century. If we were to look at Katharine Cornell today we would groan. However, if we saw Shirley Booth I am sure that we would still howl in the aisles! Still, as one gets older, and I'm over 80, one looks back and tries to find some joy in what has hapened and what has impacted us the most. So, for these thespians, I am grateful!
Sabre, Duke and Libby were two chorus dancers, but in my performing days they were the best. Versatile in ballet, tap and character, they always lit up whatever show they were dancing in. Unfortunately, I don't know what happened to either one!
Love, Miriam
Every movement has a meaning--but what the hell does it mean!