Broadway Singers who Smoke......- Page 3

[milton]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 12:36pm

Norbert doesn't smoke. Especially right now he is really trying to care of his voice and body because he has such a demanding role. He puts himself on vocal rest before and after the show. I don't think he'd go to such lengths and then light up.

[mother cabrini]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 12:50pm

streisand used to smoke....didnt hurt her at all!....and if i set fire to bernadette peters, im sure she would smoke!

[IveGottaBeME]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 12:59pm

daphne did quit smoking... but people like daphne, adam and billy - they have those raspy voices so it works for them. i just hope it doesn't end up damaging their voices.. whoever said billy smoked, are you sure? he gave me all of this advice on how to protect my voice and keep it healthy lol

[bella cantato]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 2:10pm

Milton, how do you know this? As of a few weeks ago, he was smoking still. Did he quit in the past few days?

[idinarocksmysocks!510]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 2:25pm

My gosh! All these people I admire!!!!!!!!! Don't they know that they're ruining their body, and their voice? geez!!!!!! Ewan Mortan, Alexa, Adam, Michelle, Norbert!??? y????????????? And Idina?! geez!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Okay, Alexa's pregnant she obvioiusly had to quit. Norbert, he's sick right now, right? But I can't believe Idina?!

[ShbrtAlley44]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 2:42pm

Leah Hocking smokes, and lit up a cigarette after she mentioned to me how she's having trouble belting eight shows a week. I wonder why.

[idinarocksmysocks!510]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 2:51pm

All I know is that I'd never do that to myself! I remember someone on Live journal saying "Sorry can't smoke, I'm on Broadway" I love that!

[Esther2]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 3:19pm

As a singer who smokes (oh my god please don't pelt me with stones)..my experience has been that it's actually made my voice stronger, maybe more virile..more impervious I guess. I do notice I have to be more 'aware/conscious' of my breathing..and who knows how seriously it will affect me later on in life. On the other hand, I haven't smoked for that long, and don't smoke THAT much, but I'm also not a Broadway singer who is singing 8 shows a week, if I were I'd probably be more conscientious. Not sleeping enough, talking too much, and generally feeling overworked take much more of a toll than smoking ever did.

[Love4Cheno]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 3:28pm

Esther2, that's what you get for being a smoker!!!

[idinarocksmysocks!510]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 3:28pm

I just wonder how it makes a voice stonger?

[peach]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 3:32pm

Aside from singing - like mentioned earlier, a lot of ballerinas smoke. In fact, every dancer I've ever worked with, male and female, with the exception of *very* few, smoked every so often (some quite often, actually).

An in terms of voice, I think if you are in touch with how things affect your body, you handle it the way that works best for you. I know plenty of singers who smoke - and they say it makes their voices stronger. Others don't go near a cigarette because it has a terribly adverse affect on them.

For me, I find the absolute *worst* thing for my voice is just not getting enough sleep! That's worse than any cigarette for me - so to each his own! But if you are not a smoker, I don't recommend starting. I know first hand that it's very difficult to quit.

[Esther2]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 3:34pm

Love 4 Cheno, Wow that's some Picture, hasn't happened yet, but I don't rule out a thing.
Re Making your voice stronger. Can't explain, it also could be in conjunction with getting older and singing different kinds of songs. In the end, I freely admit that it's bad for you. But again, every singer/voice is different, and everything effects different singers in different ways. Obviously, I don't plan on smoking for the rest of my life. Hoping to stop soon.

[idinarocksmysocks!510]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 3:38pm

Yeah, I'm a dancer and I've seen and heard about other dancers smoking. I don't plan to start but it's interesting how some know their voices well enough you said,Esther2. And I'm not pelting stones or whatever at you so don't worry.

[Elphaba3]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 3:59pm

I know that Idina and Liza do, and Bernadette and Kristin don't. Judy did of course. Anyone know if Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick do?

[WonderBoy]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 5:39pm

Didn't we go over this in another thread not too long ago? I said it before and I'll say it again. Some of the people mentioned here whom you think do not light up indeed do regardless, who cares? It's their life and judging them on whether or not they smoke is just crazy to me. Get them off the pedestal people. LOL

This thread makes me wanna go have a smoke.

[milton]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 6:26pm

Bella- I was actually just in NY and met with NLB after the show. He goes to great measures to protect his voice.

[CostumeGirl2]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 7:49pm

What gets me even more is the number of singers who smoke pot. I know some who do, and it just hurts me that they have this wonderful gift and they ruin it by smoking pot which fries their chords.

[Glindafan]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 8:38pm

This has been a very reasoned group of responses to a serious question and it's spurred talk about other choices singers/actors make, including the effects alcohol, which is more widely used, I would guess.

As a former long-term smoker, I would like to offer some opinions on some of the recurring comments in this thread:

“It’s none of our business” – actually it is, if we are non-judgemental about it. We learn from other’s experiences and knowing that a singer is or was also a smoker explains vocal changes and that can benefit budding singers and the choices they make early in life.

“Smoking can ‘improve’ your voice” – sort of like athletes taking occasional steroids to improve a different type of physical performance, smoking comes with the same caveat – this activity can be dangerous in the long run.

Personally, I think smoking is more likely to initially diminish a singer's lung capacity before it alters vocal quality.

Thus far, we've named the following smokers - with a ? behind those we're uncertain about.

Julie Andrews
Michael Ball
Tammy Blanchard
Laura Benanti
Eileen Brennan
Kerry Butler ?
Norbert Leo Butz ?
Liza Chain
Kristin Chenoweth ?
Daisy Egan
Jarrod Emick
Michelle Federer
Leah Hocking
Patti Lupone ?
Tyler Maynard
Euan Morton
Adam Pascal
Billy Porter
Ann Reinking
Daphne Rubin-Vega ?
Colm Wilkensen


I agree that it is difficult to imagine a broadway singer jeopardizing their 'instrument' by smoking, but because of this thread, maybe we can begin to understand the 'why' of it.

[melissa errico fan]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 8:47pm

Patti LuPone quit smoking 15 years ago, when she became pregnant with her son, Joshua. She hasn't smoked since.

[mint0621]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 9:10pm

i know that ballerinas/male dancers smoke to keep their appetites suppressed, even though it compromises their lung capacities. Priorities, i guess.

[melissa errico fan]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 9:16pm

Many actors have started smoking to lose weight. It's not uncommon.

[maybethistime]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 9:21pm

I know that both Natasha Richarson and Alan Cumming smoke. He talkes about how "luckly she smokes like a chimney" in his diary section of the Cabaret book.

I'm also pretty sure Sarah JP smokes, or at least she did all the time on SEX & THE CITY.

Posted: 8/1/05 at 10:10pm

Wow...what a shame. I guess ruining your voice is one thing to be concerned about. And even if smoking "supposedly" makes your voice sound better, are the risks worth it? I mean talk about emphysema, COPD, or lung cancer. I'm sure that there are a lot of healthier ways to improve your voice that doesn't sacrifice your health.

~Rosalynn

[actress_06]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 11:00pm

Wow this thread is really interesting. The only thing I really know is that for some people smoking and second hand smoke are horrible things for the voice. If I am even around smokers for 5 minutes I cough for at least 2 hours. I have no allergies or asthma. It just happens to work that way for me. I have never, and hopefully will never, thought about trying to smoke because I am scared to death of what it might do to my voice.

Kaija

[WickedGeek28]

Posted: 8/1/05 at 11:19pm

I personally wouldn't be cocnerned with my voice, I would be more concerned with my many alveoli popping and my lungs sufferring and throat and chords. I'm an avid "NO smoking, drinking!" The fact that im 16 really baffles people when i go up to someone drinking and say, "Did you know that your body recognizes that beverage as poison? Would you rather swallow arsenic!"