Greatest Villains

[Hot Pants]

Posted: 7/12/19 at 9:38pm

I feel like people talk a lot more about their favorite villains in film and tv, so I wanted to make a thread about theatre’s greatest bad guys

Some (actually a lot) favorites of mine include:

Sweeney Todd and Mrs. Lovett - Sweeney Todd

Roy Cohn - Angels in America

Hades - Hadestown

Iago - Othello

Mama Rose - Gypsy

Miss Trunchbull - Matilda

Fagin - Oliver

The Witch - Into the Woods

William Shakespeare - Something Rotten

Caldwell B. Cladwell, Penelope Pennywise, and Officer Lockstock - Urinetown

Macbeth and Lady Macbeth - Macbeth

The Engineer - Miss Saigon

John Wilkes Booth - Assassins

The Phantom - The Phantom of the Opera

Roxie Hart, Velma Kelly, and Billy Flynn - Chicago

Jud Fry - Oklahoma

Audrey II and Orin Scrivello - Little Shop of Horrors

John Jasper (And depending on the outcome, the other potential killers) - The Mystery of Edwin Drood

Leading Player - Pippin

Bud Frump - How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying

Claudius - Hamlet

Voldemort and Quirrell - A Very Potter Musical

And some shout outs to wonderful antagonists who I just can’t bring myself to describe as villains

Aaron Burr - Hamilton

Javert - Les Miserables

Judas - Jesus Christ Superstar

Updated On: 7/12/19 at 09:38 PM

[Isaiah8195]

Posted: 7/13/19 at 1:28am

You peg the witch as the villain over the giant? And Iago is one of my all time favorite villains

[TotallyEffed]

Posted: 7/13/19 at 2:19am

Scott Rudin.

[Hot Pants]

Posted: 7/13/19 at 8:46am

Isaiah8195 said: "You peg the witch as the villain over the giant? And Iago is one of my all time favorite villains "

The giant is the main threat, but to me, The Witch is still a villain. She may be right at times and have some very sympathetic moments, but she’s still unnecessarily cruel, abusive, and selfish. I can fully understand if someone believes she’s not a villain, and it’s a testament to how great a character she is that she’s able to be seen in those two different lights.

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 7/13/19 at 5:51pm

There are serval on the list I wouldn't classify as villains, notably Fagin. Bill is more of a villain in Oliver than Fagin is. I also don't think the Engineer is a villain. Thuy may be the antagonist but even then I wouldn't call him a villain necessarily. Not in the traditional sense.

[LuPita2]

Posted: 7/13/19 at 6:08pm

Trump, Rudin, Ramasar

[Hot Pants]

Posted: 7/13/19 at 6:54pm

HamilHansen said: "Todd and Lovett are not the villains. Turpin and the Beadle are the villains."

Just because Sweeney and Lovett are the protagonists doesn’t mean that they aren’t villains. Todd may be very sympathetic, but he’s still a murderer. And in my opinion, Mrs. Lovett is second only to Judge Turpin in terms of moral bankruptcy. Even in her very first song, she reveals that she’s a woman of very few morals (“Just the thought of it’s enough to make you sick/And I’m telling you them ****cats is quick&rdquo

Updated On: 7/13/19 at 06:54 PM

[Hot Pants]

Posted: 7/13/19 at 7:30pm

CATSNYrevival said: "There are serval on the list I wouldn't classify as villains, notably Fagin. Bill is more of a villain in Oliver than Fagin is. I also don't think the Engineer is a villain. Thuy may be the antagonist but even then I wouldn't call him a villain necessarily. Not in the traditional sense."

Bill Sikes is the main villain, and a much worse person than Fagin, but I still think Fagin counts. Yes, he ultimately decides to turn over a new leaf(in the stage version), but he still starts out the story as an amoral scoundrel. However, I fully understand if someone believes Fagin’s not a villain, and even if you believe (like me) that he starts the show as a villain, you can’t deny that he’s not a villain by the end. The Engineer, however, I believe is a villain through and through. Much like Fagin, he’s extremely charismatic and strangely likable which can distract the audience from some of his amoral actions. Unlike Fagin, he never shows any signs of changing for the good. Even though he helps Kim, it’s entirely for his own selfish plan to improve his life. And while the audience may sympathize with his wish to escape his horrible living conditions, The American Dream shows that even if he got to America, he’d continue to be just as amoral as ever.

[MollyJeanneMusic]

Posted: 7/13/19 at 9:55pm

Earl in Waitress.  When we saw Waitress, the applause actually took a dip when Ben Thompson took his bow, and I felt really bad for him (he did a great job) - but he gave the audience a little look like, "Yeah, I get it.  Earl sucks."

Posted: 7/14/19 at 12:20am

MollyJeanneMusic said: "Earl in Waitress. When we saw Waitress, the applause actually took a dip when Ben Thompson took his bow, and I felt really bad for him (he did a great job) - but he gave the audience a little look like, "Yeah, I get it. Earl sucks." "

 

That happened for me, too! I was sitting quite close to the stage when I saw Waitress and we he came out, the applause died down, he put his hands up and said, "Yeah, I know."