Charity on Today

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 8:53am

Not bad at all....Christina did what seemed to be the right dance moves...her voice faltered a little bit, but it was a great performance of I'm a Brass Band

[Jwei123]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 8:53am

It was so cute. I really want to see xtina now....

[Justice]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 8:56am

So, is she in it, now?

[ken8631]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 9:05am

Yes she is...

She's also on Regis & Kelly right this morning (just started)....

[ianacts]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 9:27am

She did a wonderful job! she sang just as well as Gwen Verdon (yes, I said it!) and she danced beautifully.

[st8gemom]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 9:31am

aaaahhhhhhgggggg! She just made my mind up for me! No way am I going to see "Sweet Charity". Her singing was atrocious...that is not Broadway quality (in my opinion).........

[WickedShopofQ]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 9:37am

i feel bad saying this, but it was definatly better than i expected. se was cute and really was the part. no the singing wasnt broadway quality but in my opinion it added something to the character. oh and the dancing, i wouldnt be able to tell that she broke her foot, she was great!
also she sounded good humming on Regis and Kelly
Go CHRISTINA!!!!

[broadway betty]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 9:48am

Her voice is teeny tiny but she's just so gosh darn cute. I'm happy for her. I was getting ready for my classes and was standing on the other side of my room when I looked at the tv and I thought Denis O'Hare was standing next to Christina but it was just Matt Lauer with his jacket off.

[SueleenGay]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 10:06am

Were the vocals live or were they lipsyncing? If they were recorded there is no excuse for the poor vocals other than the fact that she can't sing very well. It made me long for Gwen!

[WithoutATrace]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 10:17am

I taped The Today Show and Regis and Kelly. I will watch both when i get home...after i see Sweet Charity tonight. I have been looking forward to this for nearly a year and am soooooooooo excited to see Christina!

[MaTakeALookAtMe]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 10:21am

I made myself late for work to see the Today show...she is very cute..could definitely not tell her foot was broken, but also definitely agree with the poster that said her voice is "teeny tiny". All in all, I wasn't blown away, but it was enjoyable and I still have high hopes for her.

But I have seen at least a couple of students at OCU that could have done better..

[Princeton78]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 10:29am

I'll post full reviews later, but I was at Christina's first performance on Monday night. It was obvious that she was being careful, but I thought she was delightful, and many of you know I'm a big Charlotte fan, but CA did win me over with her spunk. It was a pleasure to watch, and she was a darling afterwards....

[robbiej]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 10:44am

OK...No...she doesn't sing as well as Gwen Verdon. Not nearly. At all.

HOWEVER, Christina was completely winning in the number. She pulled off the dancing quite well and is completely and totally endearing. I found myself rooting for her in a major way.

Her voice is a liability. But everything else was just delightful...and I usually HATE Today Show musical appearances.

[Justice]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 10:48am

Are you all saying that Gwen Verdon was a good singer?
Or even Ann Reinking for that matter?
What about Shirley MacLaine?

They certainly did not have "Broadway quality" voices.

[robbiej]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 10:51am

Though Gwen certainly had a distinctive style, she most certainly was a better singer than any of the others mentioned. Just listen to her powerful 'Whatever Lola Wants'. None of the other ladies (nor Bebe Neuwirth in the revival) could touch it.

[AndiV]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 10:58am

i was there this morning...and while i agree that her voice wasn't the best i had heard, she sounded fine live (it was live)...and given the fact that it was FREEZING out there! i can't imagine dancing, singing AND shivering!! wow...she's got my vote! :)

[Princeton78]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 11:08am

She's actually got a bashfull little belt on her. She needs this foot to heal and to get some confidence. I'm hoping the reviews are kind. I've certainly seen much worse.

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 11:14am

Rob --

Just about anyone sounds good on a cast recording. Even Sarah Jessica Parker sounds decent on the ONCE UPON A MATTRESS recording. I'm sure Applegate will sound like Ethel Merman on the CHARITY cd.

And to be fair, I've heard some "archival" tapes of Verdon in performance in CHICAGO and her voice was very small and pitchy.

[robbiej]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 11:19am

The thing is, by CHICAGO, you could tell she'd blown her chords out. Can you imagine what this generation of belters is going to sound like by they time their 51 (the age Verdon was during Chicago).

And as for anyone sounding good on a cast recording, I submit one name:

Tyne Daly.

Now run along Michael...I'm older and know more.

[Princeton78]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 11:22am

I think what Michael was saying was that anyone 'can' sound good on a cast recording. Whether they 'do' or not depends on how it is engineered. I have never been a fan of Verdon's voice, but I understand that she was a classy performer and I'm sure she came across just fine in person, she's just a bit harsh on the ears via CD.

[JHartnow]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 11:22am

I too, was late for work. It was worth it! Christina was very cute. Girlfriend got those high kicks in! I liked the choreography for the number, and I can only imagine it was hard to perform in the space that The Today Show alotted for them. No, I wasn't blown away by her vocals on that particular song, but they weren't bad at all. I was very entertained and I can't wait to see her in the show.

Did anyone else love the red dress??

-John

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 11:28am

"Can you imagine what this generation of belters is going to sound like by they time their 51 (the age Verdon was during Chicago)."

Well Betty and Patti and Karen Morrow all still great and they are at all 83 years old!

[robbiej]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 11:33am

Ah the wonders of cocaine!

Strip those nasal passages till there's nothing left but hard cartilage and bone! Talk about resonance!!

[ianacts]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 11:34am

Oh. Don't get me wrong, I love Gwen Verdon as much as the next man but she was known for her spunky charisma and out of this world dancing and comedic abilities but she will never be hailed as one of the greatest voices of all time. Like wise Christina's vocal performance this morning, while not Fantastic, certainly was more than passable for this role. the question should be
" Could she act and Dance it?" and the answer is a resounding
" YES"

[robbiej]

Posted: 4/22/05 at 11:38am

No...Verdon was not Audra or Barbara Cook or even Susan Johnson. BUT she had a powerful, distinctive voice that had a lot of shading to it.