Eric Idle was the original Cat in the Hat in Seussical?

[NathanLaneStalker]

Posted: 10/20/06 at 10:47pm

I was just reading what cast they had in the original reading of Seussical and most of the cast from the original reading went to broadway with it except for Eric Idle as The Cat in the Hat! Why didn't he do it on broadway? He would've been wwwaaaaayyy better than David Shiner (though I never saw his performance, I heard him on the Cast Recording and it's....different)

[theaterdude87]

Posted: 10/20/06 at 10:57pm

really wow...very interesting. It would have helped the show stay longer.

[NathanLaneStalker]

Posted: 10/20/06 at 11:01pm

That's what I was thinking to! Just picture him singing the Cat's songs and dialouge and everything! And to see him sing "How Lucky You Are" would be like watching him sing "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life"!

[theaterdude87]

Posted: 10/20/06 at 11:39pm

it also may have added a differnt elemnt to the show...

[NathanLaneStalker]

Posted: 10/20/06 at 11:42pm

Yes.

Did Rosie bring in more money when she played the Cat? Or Cathy Rigby? Or Aaron Carter as JoJo?

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 10/20/06 at 11:42pm

Well, he was the original book writer and they threw* that out and so he probably felt that it was somebody else's baby at that point.

* thanks to SM2

Updated On: 10/20/06 at 11:42 PM

[NathanLaneStalker]

Posted: 10/21/06 at 12:10am

Really? Wow! I didn't know that either.

Who's SM2?

[theaterdude87]

Posted: 10/21/06 at 12:21am

Frank Gallotti was also the original director but was replaced out of town.

[ThankstoPhantom]

Posted: 10/21/06 at 1:07am

Aaron Carter brought in busloads of fans (which I unfortunately sat next to once). About two days AFTER he left, they announced the show's closing for about a week after his departure...

[NathanLaneStalker]

Posted: 10/21/06 at 1:21am

How was he? I heard he wasn't that good.

[ThankstoPhantom]

Posted: 10/21/06 at 8:24am

He was atrocious...I'm usually very optimistic about people's performances, but he totally ruined the show for me. He had this slumped posture the whole time, delivered his lines like he was a school jock trying to read Shakespeare in a classroom, and he showed no emotion...he had the same careless expression for the get-go on. The fangirlies cheered and roared every time he entered on stage, and would cheer LOUDER even if he did not do a THING in the scene...

Easily one of the only two bad performances I've seen on Broadway.

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 10/21/06 at 8:40am

Idle wasn't the original Cat in any staged performance. He was just the book writer.

[adamgreer]

Posted: 10/21/06 at 9:01am

Idle was only involved in the very early development of Seussical. He wrote a draft of the book, and his concept was mostly rejected. His vision involved stuff popping out of walls, mecanical hands reaching out into the audience, that sort of thing.

In the early workshops, Andrea Martin was the Cat in the Hat. It's a shame she didn't continue with the show, because she would have been great.

The best Broadway Cat was Cathy Rigby, by far. She didn't bring in tons of people though, and the show closed. She headlined the tour, which sold much better.

Aaron Carter, who was in fact atrocious, did bring in the most people. Rosie did all right, but she didn't sell out.

[Jon]

Posted: 10/21/06 at 9:29am

It's notable that SEUSSICAL had the "Green Eggs and Ham" call-and-response army msarching chant, and SPAMALOT did the exact same thing with the knoight's marching reprise to "I'm Not Yet Dead":

"Become a knight and you'll go far (repeat)
In suspemnders and a bra (suspenders and a bra???)*

* also a reference to the Lumberjack Song, of course.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 10/21/06 at 9:33am

Yup. Idle was only involved with the writing portion of the workshops. Andrea Martin played The Cat in the Hat during the workshop stages and she declined to play the role when it was announced it was indeed going to go to Broadway.
June 16, 2000 PLAYBILL Article

[NathanLaneStalker]

Posted: 10/21/06 at 3:36pm

Well, Eric did the first reading for the Cat then. Is there anywhere I can find more on his concept?

I never heard of Andrea in the workshop! She would've been great!

Cathy Rigby was most definitely the best Cat!

[jasobres]

Posted: 10/21/06 at 3:38pm

There is a credit in the Playbill that says, "Conceived by Stephen Flaherty, Lynn Ahrens and Eric Idle."

[LI Larry]

Posted: 10/21/06 at 4:17pm

I have a friend who was in the original first reading through the workshops and in the Broadway company. We had dinner one night and he said the original concept was much darker than what was seen on Broadway. They had a song for "The Lorax" which was cut out of town. It was too dark and depressing a song. They played it when I took my class on a field trip and it was kind of a dull song. The cat was more of an evil figure which was changed when they changed directors. They also knew that there were problems with the character of Gertrude McFuzz (when Janine Lamanna wasn't playing her, the character stood out like a sore thumb). There really wasn't much of a story for her. The original story is only a short 5 page story in the Yertle the Turtle book. I know parts of The Lorax song as well as other cut parts became the song "Here on Who". I do remember that when Rosie was doing The Cat, the box office was about 90%. Aaron Carter sold a lot of tickets but a lot were also sold through TDF. I saw all of the cats. I actually thought Bryan Batt was the best. But I also liked Cathy Rigby. The show closed when they didn't get any tony nominations (except Kevin Chamberlain)and couldn't get a celebrity to take the role of The Cat. It was mainly a Michael Riedel orchestrated move against The Weisslers. It came into NY with his badmouthing it in his column and never was able to build an audience. I went in expecting not to like it but ended up loving it.

[NathanLaneStalker]

Posted: 10/21/06 at 4:19pm

How was David Shiner?

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 10/21/06 at 4:24pm

If I remember correctly Andrea Martin dropped out because she lives in LA and her son was entering his senior year in high school and she didn't want to be in New York and miss his last year at home.

[neddyfrank2]

Posted: 10/21/06 at 4:38pm

Idle was only involved in the very early development of Seussical. He wrote a draft of the book, and his concept was mostly rejected. His vision involved stuff popping out of walls, mecanical hands reaching out into the audience, that sort of thing.


That sounds very interesting does anybody know more about it?

Also if anybody knows where I can here a copy of The Lorax song can they PM me.

The cat was more of an evil figure which was changed when they changed directors.

Can anybody elaborate on this?

[LI Larry]

Posted: 10/21/06 at 4:45pm

How was David Shiner?

David Shiner was stiff. He was obviously uncomfortable. He was best at the physical stuff. (going up on the rope).

"Also if anybody knows where I can here a copy of The Lorax song can they PM me."

I don't believe there is any recording of The Lorax out. If you listen to Here on Who, the part about the truffula trees being cut down was taken directly from The song of the Lorax. Also if you listen to the old cartoon done in the 60s, it sounded a whole lot like the song from that.

[NathanLaneStalker]

Posted: 10/21/06 at 4:49pm

So he was bad?

[neddyfrank2]

Posted: 10/21/06 at 4:49pm

Where did you hear the song?

as well as other cut parts became the song "Here on Who"

What other cut parts?

And what do you mean the original concept was a lot darker than what was on broadway?

[NathanLaneStalker]

Posted: 10/21/06 at 4:50pm

So he was bad?