The Raúl E. Esparza "Spread the Love" Thread, Part Four — Page 112

The article says that McNally substantially re-wrote the play, so that might explain going behind closed doors again to see if the revisions work. What I wouldn't do to be a fly on the wall at that reading!

So Raul is doing a reprise of BABALU in Florida in July? That is going to be one hot audience!

Well, that's certainly not something I need to hear ever again. I'm sorry, but I couldn't even make it through half the song.

All I know is that Lance Horne is a composer whose name is semi-familiar to me, but I can't figure out why and looking at his website didn't help me place it. I guess I've just heard his name around since he's had his stuff performed some recently. But yeah, not too compelled to find out more based on that, from the song and from Raul's singing. Ouch.

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Hm. Well, at least he sounds like he's having a good time.

Here's what Raul is doing for the Fourth of July.
OPAS 3rd Annual Blast

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How neat! Wish I were anywhere in the vicinity for this. Anyone going?

And I won't be seeing him in NYC on June21st either, as I have tickets for TITANIC that night.

Darn it -

Ouch - just noticed those benefit prices! At least TITANIC was relatively inexpensive.

I've never seen TITANIC and I'm very excited about the performance.

Someone on All That Chat is saying that they've cast the female lead opposite Raul in Leap of Faith, and it's going to be.....


Brooke Shields


WTF??

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Ok, I could be eating my hat on this soon because I know nothing from the inside. BUT. Having seen the show, this is my thought. I am having a hard time believing it, not because I don't like her (I do, I saw her in Wonderful Town and thought she was quite good), but because she goes against everything they have spent more than five years creating this character to be. Sutton is not not doing it because they've decided to take the character in another direction, she's not doing it because she's not available. And I just can't understand why, after all this time of one idea for the character, and having it work almost perfectly, they would suddenly switch to something completely different.

The differences between the movie and the musical are subtle, but their ramifications are huge, and the relationship between Jonas and Marva is very complicated and very very delicate. Such that the dynamic is with Raul playing Jonas, I can't see it working the way it, IMO, should. It's completely illogical to me, and I hope it's just a weird rumor. It just doesn't fit.

If it's true, however (of which I am skeptical), I hope I am wrong in that (assumptive) assessment, and that she surprises me. The powers that be have done too much right with this show to screw it up like that (again, not by putting her in it because she's Brooke Shields, but by messing with the character as much as it seems like this would). I just want it to be as good as it has the potential to be.

So that's my opinion, for what it's worth, since I saw the show in pretty recent form. And honestly, don't these kinds of rumors turn out to be false almost as often as they turn out to be true?

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Updated On: 6/7/10 at 11:03 PM

I'm pretty sure it was just Gina Gershon and Molly Ringwald.

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Sigh. I wouldn't be surprised if, after all is said and done, there will be one fragment of a scene with a recognizeable Raul in it, and the rest will be the stunt guy in makeup and CGI. Poor Raul may end up on the proverbial cutting room floor (which, in my somewhat skewed opinion, is not a bad thing).

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