Casting What Could Have Beens — Page 4

ErmengardeStopSniveling said: "Bart was also fired from the producer/Hook role in Finding Neverland out-of-town; Michael McGrath took over, and then they replaced him with Kelsey Grammer.


Bart wasn't fired from Finding Neverland. He left because of "artistic differences." Word was he wouldn't sign on unless he was guaranteed NYC, which he wasn't.

Also at the ART, Melissa Leo left Even Ensler's O.P.C. over artistic differences. Stephen Collins left the same show while he was under investigation for child abuse. His replacement also left that production.

Paula Vogel withdrew from Waitress.

Always a bumpy ride over at the ART.

Not at the ART, but I recall an announcement that Sean Hayes would be a replacement Cat in the Hat in Seussical. However, from the May, 2001 Advocate:The New York Post reports that Sean Hayes, who plays the flamboyant Jack on TV’s Will & Grace, will not be taking over the role of Cat in the Hat in Broadway’s Seussical as previously thought. He will instead be spending his summer promoting his new film, Cats and Dogs. Hayes claims, in fact, “I haven't even heard of Seussical!” (At the time, Eric McCormack was in The Music Man. I remember trying to figure out a way to get, them and Messing and Mullally on Broadway together. Imiginary casting: Messing in Proof and Mullally in Chicago.)

Updated On: 8/5/19 at 12:25 PM

Bernadette and Mandy were rumored to headline a revival of Kiss Me Kate. They apparently even did a reading of it according to reports at the time. I don’t know if this became the Mazzie/Stokes revival or of it was a different project entirely.

Patti LuPone, in a recent video interview, talked about being courted for a revival as well. Again, I don’t know if this is all the same production, different ones, or what. She said she declined because she’s not a soprano. They asked her to sing through the score with Paul Gemignani, so she did out of courtesy and found they only needed to drop the songs about a step. Then they asked her to audition and she said no. Then they asked her to meet with the director and she did because she was a fan of his work. Then they asked her to audition again and she said no again. And that was the end of that.