Adam Epstein on WEDDING SINGER'S failure on BROADWAY BULLET podcast

Last night, I was listening to BROADWAY BULLET'S season finale Podcast, which featured an interview with Adam Epstein [producer of "Hairspray" and "The Wedding Singer"]. He spoke on his feelings on why Wedding Singer failed. He said many things ranging from "the heart not being in it" to "it being rushed: they did three readings and then opened out of town." to one sting at both Stephen Lynch and Laura Benanti not being the best choices for the leads.

He also went on to diss several other musicals "some jukebox, some not" who did not "have their hearts in the right place".

To hear his interview: Download it off Itunes or go to http://broadwaybullet.com/

---

Cleanliness had nothing to do with it. The show ran for a good 8 months, got 7 Tony nominations (which were filler), but it was just not good.

Entertaining? Yes. Good? No.

Stephen Lynch was very good in the show. Perhaps the best part.

The reason they failed was the same reason why Legally Blonde got mediocre reviews. The characters were indelibly inked by their film counter-parts. Laura Bell Bundy is no Reese Witherspoon, and Laura Benanti was certainly no Drew Barrymore. Both lacked the charm needed to successfully convey the roles.

Tina Maddigan, on the other hand, the understudy who only got her name above the title 2 weeks before the lead came back from medical leave after playing it for 5 months, was significantly more charming.

The score was mostly mediocre (great opening and closing, but that's it), the book was nothing to scream over. Rob Ashford's choreography was easily the best part; John Rando's pacing was fine, as well.

Did you listen to the interview?

He really bashed it, it was really horrible.

---

Just downloaded it, listened to it.

Epstein isn't rude, he is 100% correct on why the show failed.

Sub-par material, unrealized material, and 2 leads who weren't Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore.

"Epstein isn't rude, he is 100% correct on why the show failed. "

Your right, he's is correct.
But, he really tore it a new one.
It was just shocking

---

Updated On: 6/21/07 at 09:26 PM

Not to dig up an old arguement.

But I still fail to see how Maddigan had more charm. If anything she was much more one-dimensional with it. Her performance fell very flat to me.

I thought Benanti was superb. Who says they HAD to find Sandler and Barrymore clones?

---

And you'll notice at the end he said that he personally loved the show, he just understood why it failed.

---

I can't get it to work! Oh well.. but I'm pretty suprised, actually, that he'd admit what was wrong with it. He 100% had his heart in the project.
I took a class with him at NYU (did anyone else? if you go to NYU- it's a gallatin class called "broadway and the independent producer" go take it)

Though I do agree what he said about Wedding Singer was fine, honest, and matter-of-fact, my favorite part of the interview was actually when he said "there's no place for avante guard bankruptcies"

---

I couldn't agree more. Tina Maddigan WAS Julia. At least she didn't phone it in.

---

She's so charming...

---

Now that's chemistry!

---

Well, at least her souffle didn't fall.

---