Biggest undeserving star on Broadway

[PReeves2]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 1:45am

Who is the biggest waste of money and hype to star in a broadway show right now?

[Q]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 1:45am

Not you, obviously.

[PReeves2]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 1:53am

thank you! only commenting on the fact that many shows are banking on stars. Julia Roberts didn't land, CZJ did. Sean Hayes sort of does, certainly better than Kristen Chenoweth. are big name stars that important? why doesn't the material itself sell a show like Next to Normal?

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 1:55am

I can't tell if this has been discussed before. If only there were a way to find out.

[PReeves2]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 2:01am

Lizzie, i'm sure it's been discussed before in some fashion on this website. is musical theater about making art or making money?

[mallardo]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 2:02am

Julia Roberts didn't get great reviews but she she did get great box office. That's what stars do.

[PReeves2]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 2:07am

we can all see what big stars do based on The Addams Family weekly sales. Does it help bad quality shows like Addams Family to hire big names so producers can make their money back?

[BwayTday]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 2:16am

To make art, you got to spend money. To get that money back, you have to have a successful run. Unfortunately, sometimes the art can't sell itself the way it needs to and that is where "names" come in. The Addams Family team didn't set out to make a bad show, and it is all a matter of opinion. Of course having stars recognizable to the general public helps make money, in any show...


No star is undeserving, they all got to be names enough so that producers felt like hiring them would help the show. Updated On: 4/14/10 at 02:16 AM

[Q]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 2:20am

"so producers can make their money back?"

And they're producing WHY?

[PReeves2]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 2:26am

BwayTday, to get deeper into my point what about the most recent/not so recent Greece revivals? It seems that to keep shows running they turn to "stars". Dominique Daws as a "Star"? They also seem to be pushing current "stars" even if they don't fit into the material of the show Kelsey Grammer (really we need to see him play Albin)? I know my broadway knowledge isn't as broad as most people on this site but, come on isn't this sort of concept hurting the musical theater form in itself?

[PReeves2]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 2:28am

@Q to get onstage and accept a tony award? just a thought. what happened to old school producers who did it for the art?

[lightguy06222]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 2:41am

Preeves, did you see "Greece"??

I saw that one. My favorite number was the tap dance finale where Brute stabbed Jules, and they did the blood with red fabric.

Didnt Harvey win a tony?

[PReeves2]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 2:44am

sorry iightguy i didn't see Greece due to the fact that the "star" was...? After all the biggest selling shows on Broadway right now don't have BIG stars. Wicked, West Side Story, Jersey Boys, The LIon King, Mary Poppins, etc. Those are all long running shows at this point. On the other end of the spectrum Fela, Come Fly Away, and Memphis seem to be doing quite well at the moment without any BIG stars and all got decent to rave reviews. Not to mention Every Day Rapture about to come onto the scene. Then there is Addams Family 2 big stars with horrible reviews.

[lightguy06222]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 2:47am

2 big stars, horrible reviews, and a SMASH at the box office.

PReeves- read before you speak.

https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/NY_Times_Compares_ADDAMS_FAMILY_Critical_Reaction_To_Smashing_Box_Office_20100413

[PReeves2]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 2:49am

the formula seems to be any revival NEEDS a star and any new show needs only quality work...unless the show itself isn't any good (Addams Family). There for, I ask who is the biggest undeserving star?

[Q]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 2:52am

You.

[lightguy06222]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 2:54am

PReeves, you seem to know the formula, why dont you enlighten us???

Who is a broadway STAR that is undeserving? What makes them undeserving? Are they undeserving of being a star? Are they undeserving of being in a specific show? What makes them a "star" in the first place? Are you talking movie stars? Broadway stars? are they the same to you?

do you have any idea what it is you are talking about?

[PReeves2]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 3:12am

my "formula" is only based on the facts of current running shows. Broadway stars and Movie stars are not the same. Live theater verses take after take. who is the real artist? Bebe is amazing at what she does in front of a live audience, she needs a live audience to survive and be at her best. Other stars like Julia Roberts that star in a broadway show have NO clue what to do in front of a live audience.

[PReeves2]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 3:15am

by the way lightguy do you ever answer a question or only ask more? this thread wasn't meant to be taken so seriously. much like most of the other posts/threads on here. It's BWW!!! everyone has an opinion.

[lightguy06222]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 3:25am

Thank you for clarifying the difference between live theatre, and movies.

Some FILM actors do brilliant work on the stage. (HUGH JACKMAN anyone???)

Other actors who can do film AND stage, and do them both quite successfully(in my opinion):
Ian McKellen, Christopher Plummer,, Peter Gallagher, Laurence Fishbourne, Bill Irwin, Michael C Hall, Jude Law, Audra McDonald... just to name a few. All have worked successfully in film/tv, and done great work on the stage.

Other stage actors, who have done successful work in Film/TV?
Bebe Neuworth and Nathan Lane just to name two. Look them both up on ibdb.com and imdb.com and you will see NUMEROUS listings.


But i STILL have no idea what you are talking about. Do you think that Julia Roberts did not "deserve" to be on broadway?

Are people not allowed to try other art forms?

My question is, why is only ONE of them a "real artist"? Is there only one type of "artist"?

Everyone has a different kind of art. What about painters?Sculptors? Animators? Directors? Film Actors? Graphic Designers? LIGHTING Designers? Stage Actors? They are ALL artists.

Some of them have the ability to perform the craft of Multiple DISCIPLINES. Some painters can also do graphic design. Some Musicians are also great at photography, but are miserable on a stage.


EDIT: you havn't expressed an option. you are making blanketed statements, that are nonsensical. Feel free to express an opinion! Who is a nondeserving broadway star, and why?

Please, feel free to use complete sentences, references, and reasoning to express your opinion.

Just wondering, how old are you?
Updated On: 4/14/10 at 03:25 AM

[Q]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 3:34am

This is just sour grapes posturing, nothing else.

[Marquise]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 5:24am

Count this as one of the most ridiculous and hateful threads I've seen on this board.

Someone who can't even get the spelling correct for the title of one of the most basic Broadway musicals: GREASE loses my respect as far as knowing ANYTHING about Broadway, Broadway performers and musical theater in general as far as I'm concerned.
Updated On: 4/14/10 at 05:24 AM

[dramamama611]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 7:12am

UNDESERVING? That's incredibly judgemental, don't you think?

ONLY stunt casting bothers me. I don't think either Lane or Bebe are stunt cast. THey are both perfect for their roles. Just because someone becomes famous, doesn't mean they can't/shouldn't do B'way anymore.

People were all up in arms when Corbin Bleu was cast as Usnavi, but once folks gave him a chance, they all seemed to understand the casting.

Chenowith is a b'way icon...and while she seems miscast (based on others opinions) how does that make her 'unworthy'?

PReeves, it seems you just want to dish dirt and tear some people down. You started a very negative thread.

And yes, it is G R E A S E. It's not about the country but the goop they put in their head in the 50s.

[tazber]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 8:34am

What is the point of this thread other than to piss off and offend? First of all "undeserving" isn't even a concept that can be discussed objectively.

If what you are asking is what actor has the most clout in terms of sustaining a track record of financially successful shows there are dozens of additional variables that must be considered.

You should do some research, run a statistical regression, and then you can determine (strictly in economic terms) who is the most reliable draw.

But even that would be a flawed analysis because it doesn't capture all the fluid biases of the general theater going public.

So, in essence you're asking for opinions that can not be qualified by anything other than personal preferences and framing the query as a pseudo-factual discussion, which always leads to acrimony.

[Piper3500]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 9:18am

"I can't tell if this has been discussed before. If only there were a way to find out."

In a round about way on the West End board.

Unknown names in a cast going to London will not sell out a show, but if there are names like Nicole Kidman and Ian McKellan coming to NYC it may. It is a long discussion, lol.

I agree to a point. But what a lot of people don't realize as well is that some big stars as they call them got their start on stage. Even many soap actors in NY and abroad are stage and musical theatre graduates who are well studied but may get a job elsewhere, then if they show up on broadway or the west end, it's like "for the first time on stage"

biggest undeserving star on broadway? i will be lambasted if i say what i think CM