Alice Ripley proving a tad elusive — Page 2

She was out this past Saturday's evening too. I really liked Pearl as Diana, so I'm not heart broken that Alice was out and I saw Alice on Broadway. It was nice to hear the score sung...properly (for lack of a better word).

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Yes, to hear Pearl sing "properly" was very nice...the music is so beautiful and she certainly does it justice.

Does anyone know if Alice went on tonight?

In response to your question -- No, Alice didn't go on last night, and apparently she didn't go on for the matinee either. I can understand that there are circumstances where the regular performer can't go on, but I was still disappointed because I was really looking forward to seeing "Tony Award winner Alice Ripley" and had a great seat (first row mezzanine on the center aisle).

Pearl Sun has a great, powerhouse voice and did a decent job with the role. However, she didn't really seem totally invested emotionally, which I guess would stand to reason since it's not "her" role. Although it's not like I have any basis for comparison since I've never actually seen Alice Ripley!

The actor who played the son was particularly outstanding, and the husband had a fantastic voice. (Sorry I don't have my Playbill with me, or I would have mentioned them by name, but they were the "regulars".)

I really do not understand why people are so dissapointed
I love Alice and have appreciated her talent since I saw her in Tommy but most people do not even know who she is. So they should just see the show for what the show is not for the "star" because if you didnt tell them half of them would say it was Alice anyway LOL
It is a shame she is wrecking her voice for a role ..but she knows how far she can go with it ..she is a smart woman

Love Alice, thought she was amazing in the role when I saw it on Broadway, but she doesn't know how to take care of herself. With this many absences, she should be resting when not performing if she's taking the tour seriously. Many people going to see the tour want to see her, and she owes it to her audiences to give it her all to go on as often as possible, or at least just set an alternate schedule. I'd go see the show with or without her (especially since I am interested in seeing Pearl do it), but many people I know are going specifically for Alice.

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If she weren't doing concerts concurrently then I would just figure she needed some vocal rest or whatever. But to miss performances and then do a concert is not only rude but potentially
a breach of contract.

Ultimately it seems like her "moonlighting" job is adversely affecting her performance (pun intended) at her "real" job.

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Whether or not Ripley's performance schedule is announced publicly is up to the producers, not up to her. Shows like Billy Elliot and Fela also had a secretive performance schedule, and that's a producer's decision.

Given that I've seen ads that say to go see N2N because of Ripley's "legendary, Tony-winning performance," I think the producers are setting themselves up for angry patrons when they know that 25% of the time, the audience isn't going to find out until they get there that they're not going to see that legendary performance, but that's on the shoulders of the producers and not on the performers.

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How about instead of questioning it, we just accept the fact that she had a knee injury and had to take a few shows off? I understand that people are upset and disappointed but it's frustrating that everything is endlessly scrutinized whenever she is brought up on this board.

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If you are going to advertise your star as the reason to see the show, she better be there.

But Joe, this was not the "Alice" who won the Tony. With her performance on Tuesday night, I don't think she would have been nominated. She would have been replaced by opening night and Marin would have won the Tony.

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littlegreen2, you lack an ability to be objective in this discussion b/c you're blinded by your love for Alice. Accept the fact that you can't fairly participate in this discussion and quit coming back. You're just going to stress yourself out.

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I hasten to point out that the tour plays less than two weeks in the third largest city in the U.S., a city that loves live theatre. While Broadway in Chicago is a subscription series that “Next to Normal” is a part of, there are many of us who do not subscribe but buy tickets to shows of interest because of particular appeals. A physical ailment is unfortunate but when the show is touting its star to pull in an audience, it’s a hard pill to swallow when you show up and learn that the star is not only out but has been out for most of the show’s brief run.

That being said, I caught the show last night with Pearl Sun in as Diana and have to say that I’m grateful that I saw, er listened, to someone who could sing the score as it is written and without manipulation. I really wanted to see the Pulitzer Prize winning material on its feet, in its original production, and hoped to catch the Tony Award winning star in her Tony Award winning performance.

I was familiar with the score going into it but hadn’t seen the show and it was a very moving experience. I didn’t love all of the performances (didn’t care much for the acting of Asa Somers or Emma Hunton and imagine that Alice is probably better acting the role than Pearl, but Pearl was still authentic to the character’s experience and the material, conveying the necessary truth to be effective) but the material is so strong that as long as it is delivered as written and without distracting performance styles or interpretations, I have no qualms with seeing an understudy. The power of the piece is built into the material: the music, lyrics, orchestrations, and book. This I did not know going into it and that surprise vastly outweighed the surprise of the star’s absence.

Frankly, after all that I’ve heard and the experience that I had in the audience, I'm glad she was out.