End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
#1End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
Posted: 3/14/13 at 4:08amJust got back from Seeing Tracie Bennett in End Of The Rainbow and i gotta say i personally was blown away- i know alot of people did not enjoy the play but i personally was extremely impressed. Tracie is truly spectacular as Judy, and performed one hell of a show that makes me wonder just how she is able to do it 8 times a week LOL!! It made a personal theatre first for me- i cried, not just watery eyes but crying! I seen SOOO many shows and this was the first where i actually cried. i am going back to see it tomorrow! I would greatly recommend this show if your in town!!
PETAL6
Swing Joined: 3/27/12
#2End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
Posted: 3/14/13 at 8:40amI saw this show in London and the UK Tour....Astounding.... Miss Bennett encompasses Judy Garland in such a way, that you actually believe you are watching her for real.... Ok, there may be a few added extras for theatrical effect, but what do we know, no-one really knows the truth, and that is what is so appealing about this show....it is open to your own interpretation. Nothing can take away the fact that Miss Bennett is a Class 1 actress, and was well and truly robbed at the Tony's last year.....Bravo!
#2End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
Posted: 3/18/13 at 1:22amI just got back from seeing the show and was blown away. I heard Nina Arianda was great in Venus in Fur but I cannot believe Tracie didn't win the Tony. She was astonishing
#3End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
Posted: 3/18/13 at 1:36amNina blew Tracie out of the water! No comparison.
#4End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
Posted: 3/18/13 at 1:50am
I agree that Nina was better, but then so was Stockard Channing.
It was sad not to see Nina and Stockard tie for the award. In my mind Tracie wasn't even in the running.
FishermanBob
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/9/12
#5End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
Posted: 3/18/13 at 3:22amTracie gave a great performance. She put every bit of herself into that role and became Judy Garland. Having said, Nina's performance was remarkable and she rightfully took home the Tony. Two of the best performances of the year by two talented performers. Just my opinion but no one was robbed and no one blew anyone else out of the water.
Huey's Pop
Featured Actor Joined: 4/19/05
#6End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
Posted: 3/18/13 at 9:04am
I saw Saturday night's performance and was amazed and overcome with emotion. Can't get this show out of my mind.
Updated On: 3/19/13 at 09:04 AM
#8End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
Posted: 3/18/13 at 10:53amTracie was outstanding, in my opinion. I was rooting for her to take the Tony until I saw "Venus in Fur" the week before the actual ceremony. Nina Arianda delivered the kind of performance that an actress would sell her family to the gypsies to be able to do. She rightfully won.
Wildcard
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/21/06
#9End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
Posted: 3/18/13 at 12:40pmI loved Tracie's performance. She was a little over the top but that was what Judy Garland's personality had. I was reminded of Liza Minnelli's chutzpah in Tracie's performance. People were standing before she even appeared at curtain call. However, I do understand why she did not win the Tony.
loliveve
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/24/12
#10End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
Posted: 3/18/13 at 4:08pmRandom question about the Ahmanson: do they have different-sized Playbills than the standard? I thought one of my friends said something about them not fitting her Playbill binder, and I just was reminded of it when I saw your post (and btw, I'm hoping to see the show in a couple weeks!!)
#11End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
Posted: 3/18/13 at 4:33pmThe Ahmanson does not use traditional playbills. The programs are 8 1/2 X 11 and look like a thin magazine.
#12End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
Posted: 3/31/13 at 4:05pmSaw this last night. Stunning performance, truly stunning!
#13End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
Posted: 3/31/13 at 6:52pmThanks for the encouraging words, guys. I can't say I'm enthusiastic, but a friend felt so strongly about the performance that she bought me tickets. What could I say to that?
#14End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
Posted: 3/31/13 at 6:55pmThe difference between Nina and Tracie was that Nina had amazing writing. Tracie had that nonsensical junk to recite every night. That play is trash. Tracie is far better than the material.
#16End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
Posted: 3/31/13 at 7:00pmGaveston-don't fret. You will be seeing a remarkable performance by an incredible actress. There's nothing to second guess. Enjoy youurself!
#17End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
Posted: 4/20/13 at 2:36am
I thought it was absolutely awful. Who on earth told this woman she could sing like Judy? Judy, on her worst, pill infested, crawling around on the bathroom floor day was a better singer than Tracey Bennett.
Also, this play had VERY LITTLE dignity. Way too much foul language. At one point, Mickey Dean says "The f_gs will c_m in their pants if you die". What the heck is that? Language like that- that ain't Broadway. Not my Broadway, baby.
Updated On: 4/20/13 at 02:36 AM
AngusN
Broadway Star Joined: 3/23/05
#18End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
Posted: 4/20/13 at 5:35am
I disagree, I think she sounded very much like Judy. And I loved that line from Mickey, it was an ironic nod to the majority of the fans, and epitomised his lack of sincerity and awareness.
And while I agree that the crawling around on the floor was sensationalist, Judy did become a parody of herself during the pill-popping later years.
Personally, I thought Bennett was incredible, one of the greatest performances I've seen on the stage.
#19End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
Posted: 4/20/13 at 2:58pm
AngusN I have to respectfully disagree. This play had no dignity. It was disgusting the way they talked.
Tracy Bennett did NOT capture the spirit of Judy. It saddens me that anyone thought this trash was good.
#20End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
Posted: 4/20/13 at 4:45pm
I'm sorry, Bettyboy and others. I forgot this thread was here, so I posted in the LA room.
Yes, I saw the show and absolutely agree about Tracie Bennett. I thought her performance was magnificent. I wrongly had thought the play took place even later in Garland's life and expected the entire evening to be "bad Garland". It is not. There is one example of Garland performing after taking too much speed, but otherwise Bennett sings very well indeed! If anything, she sounds closer to 1963 than to 1968.
I don't know what you mean by a "lack of dignity", lovebwy. This particular play chooses to show us the breakdown of a personality under the influence of addiction. Unless you just want the theater to stage fairy tales, why isn't that a fair subject for a play? The language may be more graphic, but the way characters treat one another has nothing on STREETCAR, for example.
I DO think the play itself is mediocre and not helped by filling Garland's world with nothing but archetypal characters. Michael Cumpsty survived even the most cringe-worthy sentimentality, but the actor playing Micky Deans was stuck playing the most cliched "brutish heterosexual".
The line you mention, lovebwy, may have stood out because, in NYT critic's Ben Brantley words, it was "signpost" language (intended to announce Garland's cultural significance more than sound like an actual person speaking). But the basic idea wasn't out of character for a husband growing increasingly frustrated as he tried to keep his wife sober AND on stage at the right time.
Thanks for the encouragement, everyone. I'm very glad I saw Miss Bennett in this role. (For anyone in LA who hasn't seen it, closing day is tomorrow, April 21.)
Updated On: 4/20/13 at 04:45 PM
#21End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
Posted: 4/20/13 at 5:01pmWait, there's an LA room? Directions, please :)
FishermanBob
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/9/12
#22End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
Posted: 4/20/13 at 5:21pm
lovebwy, if it disgusted you the way they talked, perhaps you should limit your theatergoing to Lion King and Annie. Whatever you do, don't ever see Mamet.
Tracie was magnificent and as far as the play having no dignity...what the hell does that even mean? Sorry the last few months of her life couldn't be portrayed as an uplifting Hallmark movie of the week but that's life sometimes. The theme and tone of the play was pretty widely known. Were you not aware of this?
#23End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
Posted: 4/20/13 at 6:34pm
Wait, there's an LA room? Where?
On the Broadway message board, go to the top. About 4 inches down and 4 inches from the right there is an option: "Pick a board"
Click there and it will give you a long list of cities. Highlight the one you want and click "go".
But the Broadway board gets the most traffic, so a lot of people discuss major events (particularly shows coming from or going to Broadway) on the Broadway board.
Updated On: 4/20/13 at 06:34 PM
#24End Of The Rainbow at The Ahmanson Theatre
Posted: 4/20/13 at 6:38pm
To the poster who wrote that Bennett "overplays" the role, it's a matter of opinion of course, but what I took from the performance was that Garland had largely lost the ability to distinguish between public and private events. So she was much the same in an intimate conversation as she was in playing a 2,000-seat house.
I thought that was a very important point to make in a play about someone who was on a stage more or less every day from the time she was 5.
Updated On: 4/20/13 at 06:38 PM
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