Who was the best Cassie?
Who was the best Cassie?
irememberitwell
Chorus Member Joined: 5/5/06
#1Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/8/06 at 9:56am
Okay, all you passionate Chorus Line afficienados, lets start another discussion:
Who was your favorite Cassie and why?
Vicki Frederick, Ann Reinking, Pamela Sousa, Deborah Henry, Cheryl Clark, Angelique Ilo, Laurie Gamache, Wanda Richert, Donna McKechnie, Sandy Roveta, Gail Mae Furguson, Bebe Neuwirth . . .
Put on the red skirt and go to town!
#2re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/8/06 at 10:29am
Most of the people on this board probably weren't even alive when those gals played the role, but I certainly look forward to hearing everyone's opinions!
Oh, and don't forget Alyson Reed and her asymetrical haircut in the movie version 
#3re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/8/06 at 10:38am
Yeah, I was thinking that too. I'd actually like someone to come forward and say they saw them ALL, and pick...
...
God, I feel old.
Okay, who's your favorite Dolly?
Channing, Rogers, Merman, Martin, Grable, Raye, Osterwald, Diller, Streisand or Bailey?
"Jaws is the Citizen Kane of movies."
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#4re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/8/06 at 10:39amI've said it before and I will say it again. Out of all the Cassie's I have seen on Broadway, have worked with and seen in other productions Vicki Frederick wins hands down!
"For me, THEATRE is an anticipation, an artistic rush, an emotional banquet, a jubilant appreciation, and an exit hopeful of clearer thought and better worlds."
~ an anonymous traveler with Robert Burns
#5re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/8/06 at 10:40amRe: Best "Cassie"...I saw Donna, Bebe, and Pam Sousa do the role. For the sheer history factor, Donna was great (and probably the best all around). But I gotta say, Pam Sousa's dancing was EXCELLENT...singing, not so much. Bebe was really green when I saw her do it on the National Tour. She wasn't bad, but she didn't resonate.
ILUVTOMG
Stand-by Joined: 8/8/06
#6re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/8/06 at 10:42amDeborah Henry who passed away much too young was a great cassie. She was also a pretty snappy Val.
#7re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/8/06 at 11:08am
I saw Pamela Sousa and Laurie Gamache.
Michael Bennett, that hair-do of Alyson's in the movie was absolutely tragic.
Hey Dottie!
Did your colleagues enjoy the cake even though your cat decided to sit on it? ~GuyfromGermany
#8re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/8/06 at 11:41am
I saw THE Cassie, Donna M, on the tour stop in Richmond VA back in the late '80s. Tears of joy 
By far the best. Ever. Hands down.
I can not WAIT to see Charlotte.
I bet Bebe was great, too.
Ann Reinking.
I enjoyed Alyson in the movie. I have gotten conflicting information. Did she or did she not play Cassie on stage?
"TO LOVE ANOTHER PERSON IS TO SEE THE FACE OF GOD"- LES MISERABLES---
"THERE'S A SPECIAL KIND OF PEOPLE KNOWN AS SHOW PEOPLE... WE'RE BORN EVERY NIGHT AT HALF HOUR CALL!"--- CURTAINS
Updated On: 8/8/06 at 11:41 AM
#9re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/8/06 at 11:41amVicki Frederick was probably awesome as well.
"TO LOVE ANOTHER PERSON IS TO SEE THE FACE OF GOD"- LES MISERABLES---
"THERE'S A SPECIAL KIND OF PEOPLE KNOWN AS SHOW PEOPLE... WE'RE BORN EVERY NIGHT AT HALF HOUR CALL!"--- CURTAINS
Updated On: 8/8/06 at 11:41 AM
BS
Understudy Joined: 6/2/05
#10re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/8/06 at 12:43pmI used to call Pam Sousa, the dancing Cassie. She was off the charts and really into the moments. As said before, singing just fair.
#11re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/8/06 at 12:50pmAlyson Reed played Val and Cassie on tour.
#12re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/8/06 at 12:52pmSadly, I am old enough to have seen Donna McKechnie, and I saw two subsequent Cassies on stage, plus Alyson Reed in the movie. No one compared to Donna.
"It does me no injury for my neighbour to say there are 20 gods or no god. It neither picks my pocket, nor breaks my leg."
-- Thomas Jefferson
Gothampc
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/20/03
#13re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/8/06 at 12:52pm
"Michael Bennett, that hair-do of Alyson's in the movie was absolutely tragic."
What about in the flashback sequence when she has the long hair? Yikes!!
Donna's Cassie can be seen on the site which shall not be named. It's poor quality video, but you can still see how wonderful McKechnie was in the role.
If anyone ever tells you that you put too much Parmesan cheese on your pasta, stop talking to them. You don't need that kind of negativity in your life.
#14re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/8/06 at 12:56pm
That is so funny you mention her hair in the flashbacks: my best friend refers to her two styles in that segment as the "Heidi" and the "Woodland Sprite" - simply awful!
I'm not sure that "Music and the Mirror" choreography has really worked on anybody other than McKechnie; it is so designed for her body and her amazing torso work.
It would be fascinating to have seen how Bennett modified the choreography for Ann Reinking and Cheryl Clark ("leg" dancers).
I have heard an audio recording of Reinking in the role and her acting was probably the best of any Cassie I've heard.
Updated On: 8/8/06 at 12:56 PM
Gothampc
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/20/03
#15re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/8/06 at 1:00pm
"my best friend refers to her two styles in that segment as the "Heidi" and the "Woodland Sprite" - simply awful!"
Woodland Sprite!! I love it.
If anyone ever tells you that you put too much Parmesan cheese on your pasta, stop talking to them. You don't need that kind of negativity in your life.
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/31/69
#16re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/8/06 at 1:01pm
ACL was the first show I attended on Broadway. At the tender age of VERY YOUNG I saw the original, and best, Miss Donna M.
#17re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/8/06 at 1:56pm
Thank you, Michael Bennett! I knew you'd know about Alyson
"TO LOVE ANOTHER PERSON IS TO SEE THE FACE OF GOD"- LES MISERABLES---
"THERE'S A SPECIAL KIND OF PEOPLE KNOWN AS SHOW PEOPLE... WE'RE BORN EVERY NIGHT AT HALF HOUR CALL!"--- CURTAINS
latheatrelover
Stand-by Joined: 5/28/06
#18re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/8/06 at 4:35pm
I was lucky enough to see the original cast (well, 95% of it) when they first toured to L.A. in 1976 and I still remember being blown away by Donna McKechnie. I have seen a few productions since then but none stick in my mind. I would like to have seen Bebe Neuwirth. (Did she ever play Sheila, because her sass would be good for that role?)
But if we want to open up to the best Val (T&A) I've seen, my vote would go to someone I saw in a Canadian tour, Patti Colombo. She at least had the figure for the song. I remember Pamela Blair but the song didn't fit her figure. I recall when she appeared on Johnny Carson and she kidded herself by saying that she was singing about T&A and all she had really were these raisin-ettes.
I would like to have been at the special night when they broke the record for longest-running musical and they had all these Cassies from different productions, Vals, Sheilas, etc, etc. I did see that special ending on TV on something called "The Best of Everything", I think.
Updated On: 8/8/06 at 04:35 PM
Jon
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/20/04
#19re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/8/06 at 6:14pm
I would have loved to have seen Karen Ziemba as Cassie. She played it a few times on tour around 1984 (she was one of the "cut" dancers, and understudied Cassie, Morales, Maggie, Judy and Bebe - and got to play them all at least once).
Meanwhile, on that website with all the videos that we can't link to, there is a faded, grainy black-and-white video clip from 1975 of Donna McKechnie doing the complete "Music and the Mirror" scene and song - simply amazing.
Luvinbroadway
Leading Actor Joined: 7/18/03
#20re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/8/06 at 7:37pmMy votes goe to Wanda Richert & Donna McKechnie (in that order). What happened to Wanda? I saw her play Peggy Sawyer and Cassie and it was thrilling to how she could pull off the two different roles so effectively...She was something!
#21re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/9/06 at 8:38am
I completely agree: the choreography for MUSIC AND THE MIRROR only REALLY seems to work for Donna M.
Yes, Bebe played Sheila on Broadway, latheatrelover
"TO LOVE ANOTHER PERSON IS TO SEE THE FACE OF GOD"- LES MISERABLES---
"THERE'S A SPECIAL KIND OF PEOPLE KNOWN AS SHOW PEOPLE... WE'RE BORN EVERY NIGHT AT HALF HOUR CALL!"--- CURTAINS
alterego
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/5/03
#22re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/9/06 at 8:58amI saw Cheryl Clark before she did Broadway as Cassie when she played the role in Sydney and later Melbourne. I saw Pamela Sousa on Broadway. I can't really remember much about either's individual performance but I do remember being madly impressed with both at the time.
#23re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/9/06 at 11:28amLuvinbroadway, I did ACL with Wanda as Cassie about 10 years ago. She was pretty damn good!
"For me, THEATRE is an anticipation, an artistic rush, an emotional banquet, a jubilant appreciation, and an exit hopeful of clearer thought and better worlds."
~ an anonymous traveler with Robert Burns
#24re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/9/06 at 11:34am
I just read a few days ago something I didn't know - that Leland Palmer briefly played Cassie in the Los Angeles production. This is intriguing because, along with McKechnie, the character was largely based on Palmer's relationship with Bennett in the early 70s; and apparently a lot of the confrontation scene dialogue was inspired by their actual fights.
Apparently Palmer agreed to play the role after a lot of persistance by Michael Bennett, but felt very uncomfortable playing "herself" and left after a few weeks.
That's one performance, though, I would love to hear about!
#25re: Who was the best Cassie?
Posted: 8/9/06 at 11:51amDid someone ask about Wanda Richert? Oh, hers is a sad tale full of talent, sex, unreliability, Gower Champion, redemption, and Jesus.
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