Did Courtney Reed have a cold when recording the Aladdin OBCR?

[Shubert Alley Cat]

Posted: 4/17/18 at 8:02pm

This has bugged me for a while now.  CR sounds super nasal on the recording like her nose is plugged up.  Am I crazy?  Does anyone else notice this?  Or is this how she always sounds?  Needless to say I am always disappointed in the Jasmine dialogue and vocals on the recording.

[Damiensta]

Posted: 4/17/18 at 8:13pm

Haven’t heard the recording but she was the weakest cast member when I saw the show

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 4/17/18 at 8:14pm

Sadly, that is how she always sounds. She was horrible in Aladdin.

[theatreguy12]

Posted: 4/17/18 at 10:07pm

Certainly this musical isn’t Shakespeare. Nor is there much depth to her character. She’s a Disney princess. I, too, felt she was pretty weak. Thousands of women could do as well if not better. Not sure what made her a standout above the others who auditioned. Nothing really special there. Of course, again, it’s a Disney princess we’re talking about. She really doesn’t have to be much better than what you’d see at a theme park. Disney and Broadway are in their own sphere of existence.

[gypsy101]

Posted: 4/17/18 at 10:31pm

when i think of disney princesses i usually think of them having great voices, like Jodi Benson, Lea Salonga, Susan Egan, Mary Costa, Judy Kuhn... Courtney Reed surprised me with how mediocre she sounded on the recording. Her A Whole New World is not good. I did enjoy Palace Walls, though.

[trpguyy]

Posted: 4/18/18 at 1:51am

She sounds infinitely better on the recording than she did later on in the run.

[DramaTeach]

Posted: 4/18/18 at 2:30am

That's sad because the recording is already not good. I really wonder what Disney was thinking too. I'm sure she's a lovely person, but come on.

[antonijan]

Posted: 4/18/18 at 3:49am

I wanna see her if the tour comes around the 2nd time in SF.

[AllThatJazz2]

Posted: 4/18/18 at 6:25am

She was terrible when we saw her - notes all over the place and completely bungled A Whole New World. I couldn’t believe she was part of the OBC when I first read it, but thought she might just have been having an off night. Sad to hear the cast recording isn’t much of an improvement.

[Justin D]

Posted: 4/18/18 at 1:09pm

Just saw the london version and the vocals up there were dreadful, particularly Jasmine, she and Aladdin could not harmonize at all and ruined "whole new world" for me. they were shockingly bad to be honest.

[disneybroadwayfan22]

Posted: 4/18/18 at 1:15pm

Am I the only one who loved Courtney as Jasmine?

[notalwaysontime]

Posted: 4/20/18 at 6:38am

I adore Courtney, but sadly that's just how she sounds. I wanted to give her benefit of the doubt when I saw the show, hoping the cast recording was just not produced well (because honestly, overall, that recording was a major let down for me. Its one of the weakest ones I've ever heard overall), but that was exactly what she sounded like live.

[gypsy101]

Posted: 4/20/18 at 6:52am

maybe she should look into appearing in straight plays and not in musicals where she has to sing

[trpguyy]

Posted: 4/20/18 at 11:10am

gypsy101 said: "maybe she should look into appearing in straight plays and not in musicals where she has to sing"

She has moved to LA, and given the lack of theatre there, I assume she's pursuing television and film.

[broadwayboy223]

Posted: 4/20/18 at 11:13am

When I saw Aladdin (which I thought was one of the worst shows I've seen on Broadway btw) her singing was SO bad. I also noticed she and Aladdin had trouble harmonizing

[natashalost]

Posted: 4/20/18 at 7:52pm

theatreguy12 said: "...She’s a Disney princess. I, too, felt she was pretty weak. Thousands of women could do as well if not better. Not sure what made her a standout above the others who auditioned. Nothing really special there..."

I saw her understudy, Tia Altinay, and she was nothing short of spectacular. I was shocked to find out she was only the understudy. I went back to see it again with a friend and was so disappointed in Reed's performance, it was at a minimum ten times worse than Altinay.

 

[gypsy101]

Posted: 4/21/18 at 2:44am

i’m super curious as to who she knew that she somehow convinced them to cast her in the role, to be honest

[Bwayfan292]

Posted: 4/21/18 at 11:28am

They probally casted her based on looking like Jasmine. I saw her at the Pantages and she was not that great. Her acting wasnt good either. The people next to me were laughing everytime she spoke. She was definitly the weakest link.

[broadwayboy223]

Posted: 4/21/18 at 11:42am

Omg her acting was horrible. I don't know if it was just her portrayal or the script for the stage version, but Jasmine just came off as a whiny spoiled brat. I just remember her in the original movie is so much more strong and independent