Elaine Paige In Gypsy- Page 2

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 7:25pm

Patti LuPone is 74

[ljay889]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 7:26pm

BrodyFosse is 8 years old.

[WickedBoy2]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 7:42pm

Piggy Paige is 60

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 8:54pm

Ljay, I was being silly, mostly because as much as I support this GYPSY revival I do find the whole LUPONE GYPSY somewhat funny. And MURPHY GYPSY sounds like a weird show on the sci-fi channel! My point was that she deserves her own GYPSY revival :)
And Ljay is right re Murphy's age, which I believe makes her a great age to play the role, I'd love to see a younger Rose. Although LuPone has said that one of the reasons she sees herself fit for the role is the fact that she is the oldest woman to play Rose on Broadway, which means she is at a point where she has learned the proper way to handle the technical aspects of this mammoth role.
Oh, and I got that WickedBoy was talking about Elaine Paige (and I thoroughly agree with him), my comment re Murphy being able to act/sing circles around Paige was referring to the OP's comment re Murphy's voice.

Updated On: 4/27/08 at 08:54 PM

[jewishboy]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 9:39pm

Well, Paige has said in an interview (around the time she was in Sweeney at the NYCO) that she would love to play Rose. I think she is phenomenal and would love to see her tackle this role as much as Murphy.

[Patti LuPone FANatic]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 11:08pm

I disagree with those who say that Elaine Paige cannot act. She has had a long and distinguished career BEcause of her acting and singing: "Evita", "Piaf", "Anything Goes", "Sunset Boulevard", "The King and I" and many other roles. It may be that she may not be everyone's "cup of tea", but to blithely throw about that "she can't act" bit is patently unfair to Miss Paige and to the people who believe in her and her body of work. from RC in Austin, Texas

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 11:22pm

Meh, I've found her completely one note in all of those performances (from cast recordings). I find her to be humorless and uptight to no end. That's why I don't really think much of her acting. LuPone, Roger and even Madonna (whom I loved in the film) provide much better portrayals of Eva Peron; LuPone and Merman shine through in ANYTHING GOES more than she could; the likes of Close and Buckley (whom I don't like in anything else) were more unique Normas; and Lawrence, Kerr, Julie Andrews, Barbara Cook, and la Murphy herself did wonders with the role of Anna Loewens that I don't think Paige's Anna could even begin to touch.

[zooxanthellae]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 11:28pm

I agree 110% with ray. I'm hardly ever impressed with Paige. I would rather see Murphy in Gypsy any day, she would be absolutely brilliant!

[defyingravity07]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 11:28pm

Another thought I'd love to see Patti as Grizabella.

[kathy selden]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 11:40pm

What about Debra Monk? She was awesome in Curtains.

[zooxanthellae]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 11:43pm

Debra Monk is an inspired choice, but on Broadway, I'd rather see Murphy tackle the role. Monk would be good somewhere other than Broadway for a limited engagement, I feel.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 11:49pm

Yeah I think Monk would be a fantastic Momma Rose at Papermill or another high-profile regional house.

[zooxanthellae]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 11:58pm

I think a slightly younger Donna McKechnie could be another interesting Rose at a high-profile regional theatre.

[jewishboy]

Posted: 4/28/08 at 12:45am

While I can't vouch for her performances in Webber shows (although I absolutely think her "As If We Never Said Goodbye" is the best out there), I can say she gave a perfect, classical, interpretation of Miss Lovett at the NYCO. She channeled Lansbury as best as anyone could and added her own unique comic touches throughout the show (especially during "By the Sea"). I would agree that she's less than stellar on the Anything Goes, Evita and Cats recordings though. However, there is a reason she’s one of London’s most popular musical theater stars.

[MaxVonMayerling2]

Posted: 4/28/08 at 3:20am

Please stop the "Elaine-can't-act" bashing.
She's a wonderful gifted and brilliant actress and her Norma is, by far, the very best.
I've seen her several times in London and she received a standing ovation in every production I witnessed (and you know what that mean in London!).

[givesmevoice]

Posted: 4/28/08 at 6:43am

well I'd go see Donna Murphy, Elaine Paige OR Debra Monk play Rose. oh, and Harvey Fierstein, for good measure.

I'm actually really interested to see who they bring in during Patti's vacation, or if they'll let Lenora Nemetz play the role. (I'd LOVE to see her Rose, too)

[alxscrz2]

Posted: 4/28/08 at 2:54pm

For the poster who said that all her roles are one note. Have u ever heard Elaine Paige sing I dreamed a dream, on her CD encore ? Its the best version I ever heard

[robUK]

Posted: 5/1/08 at 6:58am

Well!- if her acting was even half a teeny bit sincere I might agree but alas it isn't, end of story!!!

[robUK]

Posted: 5/1/08 at 7:26am

Hi- what info have you regarding ACL opening London?
Cheers!

[givesmevoice]

Posted: 5/1/08 at 8:12am

I can say she gave a perfect, classical, interpretation of Miss Lovett at the NYCO. She channeled Lansbury as best as anyone could and added her own unique comic touches throughout the show (especially during "By the Sea").

I like Elaine Paige, but I personally don't think this is a very good argument in her favor. I know a lot of actresses have portrayed Mrs. Lovett a la Lansbury and have done excellent jobs. this doesn't make them bad actresses, but might mean they're safe actresses (imo).

[jewishboy]

Posted: 5/1/08 at 9:04am

Right, but for the production at the NYCO, they used the original concept in set and staging. So, I don't think an interpretation such as LuPone's would have worked in this production. But, I understand your point.