Hairspray Actors Fund.

[divaintraining05]

Posted: 5/15/05 at 3:12pm

Is anyone going? Can you please post a review? Thanks!

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 5/16/05 at 1:15am

just returned from it.

First off - since people WILL ask - spotted in the audience were Jai Rodriguez, Rebecca Luker, and Seth Rudetcky..

The show itself was great. Michael Cunio was on as Corny with Rusty Mowery stepping in as Brad. CJay Hardy was on as Inez and Leslie Goddard was on as LouAnn for Becky Gulsvig. Overall, the show was great.. the pacing felt a bit off in act one, but settled in. Barbara Walsh's timing was very off on her first entrance and she sadly killed about 4 laughs that should have been gotten, especially from tonight's audience. Carly Jibson was in, for the record. Jim Bullock altered a line and said that Tracy won a scholarship to EQUITY Community College (not ESSEX as scripted) and that recieved a large round of applause.

Bruce's funny but out of place jokes tonight included jabs at Paula Abdul and her American Idol boytoy, Desperate Houswives, and a pregnant Britney Spears. He made a rather funny curtain speech about the actor's fund post curtain call.

the enegry there tonight was INSANE, though it WAS marred by a few people in the audience. Several arrived WELL over half way through act one, including one man several row in front of myself who proceeded to stand in the aisle, then in his seat, adjusting his jacket, LOUDLY speaking to the usher, saying hello to the patrons, and asking what he missed prior to his arrival before sitting. It was awful. There was also the man across the aisle who proceeded to tell everyone to hush repeatedly at random moments....


all in all, a wonderful evening and the cast turned in a great show this evening.

[QueenS]

Posted: 5/16/05 at 10:13am

I was there as well. I haven't seen the show since the orginal cast left and it was interesting to see the new performances.

I love me some Actor's Fund shows. The crowds are always great and the actors are usually in high form. This show was so much fun to see--with all the cheering and laughter.

I thought that Barbara Walsh, Jim J Bullock and Julie Halston were just as good, if not sometimes better than the originals. Those women, however, did have some timing issues dealing with the more than usually exuberant crowd.

Bruce was delightful. I'm afraid that having seen the role played to perfection, no one will ever compare. I liked that he wasn't trying to play it as Harvey had. At times, he was often girlish, which I enjoyed.

Carly seemed to be having some vocal troubles. She was in and out of the "Tracy voice" and had some pitch issues a couple of times. However, she was so charming in her delivery. It was the first time that I got that the character was a teenager--alternately fiesty, dreamy, sulking. She has great comic timing and uses so many levels in her speech and body. Interestingly, her Tracy's dance ability is less about skill than verve. While not as clean a dancer as Marissa (I'd say frenetic), she certainly puts her all into it.

I'm glad to see that the show still holds up. It is one of my favorites.

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 5/16/05 at 11:57am

Yes, Carly had been out all week on vocal rest due to vocal troubles and I know that she was nervous at a few points in the show because she didn't want to blow it during the show straining herself. Carly, being a young thing of 20, isn't far off from Tracy and she does truly make you see Tracy as a teenager.. and I like her more frenetic dancing.. it's more about Tracy's spunk, energy, and do or die attitude that get her what she wants than anything else. you know?

Jim J BUllock is, without a doubt, my FAVORITE Male Authority Figure. He was simply hysterical in every aspect of his performance.

The audience's energy was fabulous and I know that the cast was running on a high from it all.

My one issue with Bruce as that occasionally, he plays the 'femme' up when she should butch it up a SLIGHT bit.... for example, the "No, I am not her father" phone gag is really lost because he uses such a high pitched voiced on the line before that.

[QueenS]

Posted: 5/16/05 at 1:37pm

Carly's under-her-breath line readings were hysterical. And yet, everything came from truth. When Link leaves the record shop, you could have heard a pin drop during the scene between her and Bruce. That's when you know an audience is with the show. When they get all the laughs, but are rivoted during the quiet moments.

As a matter of observation (not judging talent or characterization, but comparing acting style): Harvey (and to an extent Marissa) turned in very clean, polished performances. I saw it with them a couple of times and I got the sense that you could rely on them to turn in the same show each night. Every gesture, every line had been perfected.

Bruce and Carly, on the other hand have a more off-the-cuff style. Things might vary night to night, depending on other circumstances. Not major things, but all the little details. I hate to use the word organic, but perhaps there isn't a better one.

Both of these styles have their pros and cons. The former could have a tendancy to grow stale, the latter could have a tendancy to change so much the whole show changes scope. Harvey and Marissa seemed just as fresh when I went back months later and Bruce and Carly have been doing the show (tour included) for over a year and haven't seemed to stray, so I'm not saying that either set has fallen into any of the pitfalls. It's just interesting to see how process and performance vary--even within the framework of the same show.