Hardest Roles Currently on Broadway

[Hot Pants]

Posted: 7/13/19 at 2:18pm

What are some of the most difficult parts currently being performed on Broadway?

A few that I find to be particularly challenging are:

Evan Hansen - Dear Evan Hansen (To me, Evan is up there with Mama Rose, Sweeney Todd, and Evita as one of the hardest roles of all time)

Hades and Orpheus - Hadestown

Elphaba - Wicked

Aaron Burr, Alexander Hamilton, and Marquis de Lafayette/Thomas Jefferson - Hamilton

Elder Price - Book of Mormon

Michael Dorsey/Dorothy Michaels - Tootsie

Roxie Hart and Velma Kelly - Chicago

[MollyJeanneMusic]

Posted: 7/13/19 at 2:26pm

By difficult, are you judging in terms of acting ability, singing range, or both?

[Hot Pants]

Posted: 7/13/19 at 2:36pm

I’m judging based on a few different things, but most of them boil down to acting, singing and dancing. For instance, Orpheus is mainly there for singing, while Roxie and Velma are mainly there for dancing.

Updated On: 7/13/19 at 02:36 PM

[ChildofEarth]

Posted: 7/13/19 at 3:42pm

Persephone (sing like that, act like that, and do those strange dance moves and make it seem natural? Good luck replacing the part)

Burr, obviously.

Karen Smith (this character could fall so flat without the right comedic timing)

Elphaba

[MollyJeanneMusic]

Posted: 7/13/19 at 3:50pm

Some of the riffs in "Me and the Sky" are pretty intense - I'd put Beverley Bass and Jenn Collella's other characters on the list.

[Hot Pants]

Posted: 7/13/19 at 4:06pm

ChildofEarth said: "Persephone (sing like that, act like that, and do those strange dance moves and make it seem natural? Good luck replacing the part)

Burr, obviously.

Karen Smith (this character could fall so flat without the right comedic timing)

Elphaba"

I actually should’ve put Persephone on my original list. Musically I’d say Hades and Orpheus are harder, but she’s still far from a walk in the park. From an acting perspective, she’s definitely more difficult than Orpheus (Like I said, I mainly put him there because of his music. If his actor doesn’t have excellent falsetto than his whole character falls flat) and on a similar level to Hades, as they’re the most complex characters in the show. I firmly believe that Hades is the hardest role in Hadestown though, as he’s a multi layered character (the audience needs to find him both horrifying and sympathetic, which Patrick Page accomplishes beautifully) who has an onslaught of seemingly inhuman notes.

[Alex Kulak2]

Posted: 7/13/19 at 11:50pm

Say what you will about Dear Evan Hansen, but when Ben Platt has to go to physical therapy to keep from picking up the tics and body tension the character has, you have to admit that's a taxing role.

[Emmaloucbway]

Posted: 7/14/19 at 12:46am

The title role in Beetlejuice. 

[musicals1989]

Posted: 7/14/19 at 12:55am

Alex Kulak2 said: "Say what you will aboutDear Evan Hansen, but when Ben Platt has to go to physical therapy to keep from picking up the tics and body tension the character has, you have to admit that's a taxing role."

Ben has had those ticks and tension in EVERY role he's played. That's just Ben "acting".... 

[RWPrincess]

Posted: 7/14/19 at 1:23am

Elsa in Frozen

Off Broadway but every single character in Yiddish Fiddler because Yiddish isn’t the primary language for any of them

Carole King in Beautiful

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 7/14/19 at 1:33am

The actress playing Heidi Schreck In “What the Constitution Means To Me” is onstage for pretty much the whole show. That’s pretty hard.

[Ledaero]

Posted: 7/14/19 at 3:39am

Alex Kulak2 said: "Say what you will aboutDear Evan Hansen, but when Ben Platt has to go to physical therapy to keep from picking up the tics and body tension the character has, you have to admit that's a taxing role."

And say what you want about Ben Platt, but having to go to physical therapy for acting mannerisms does not constitute good acting.

 

[BritCrit]

Posted: 7/14/19 at 7:48am

RWPrincess said: "Elsa in Frozen

Off Broadway but every single character in Yiddish Fiddler because Yiddish isn’t the primary language for any of them

Carole King in Beautiful"

Elsa is still very much a secondary character, but her three big songs are pretty hard to do, and interacting with all the projections and technical effects is quite a challenge. She has to make you believe that a film as big and fantastical as Frozen can work on the stage...

[BritCrit]

Posted: 7/14/19 at 7:50am

Emmaloucbway said: "The title role in Beetlejuice."

The "ventricular fold phonation" (of whatever it's called) that Alex Brightman uses to make his voice more abrasive must be really hard to pull off eight times a week...

[darquegk]

Posted: 7/14/19 at 9:25am

He and Alice Cooper are the only people I’ve ever seen really nail the almost midsentence transition between smooth natural voice and distorted voice without sounding like they’re pushing.

[rg7759]

Posted: 7/14/19 at 9:38am

I don't think it's really the role controlling this, for instance. Curly, Judd and ado Annie could be quite easy to play, but are currently being completely mastered and therefore living up to these current performances seems hard if not next to impossible. The vocals in ain't too proud are temptations-worthy, and seemingly difficult or at least extremely specific

[Unknown User]

Posted: 7/14/19 at 10:45am

It may not be the most obvious answer but Cady in Mean Girls is constant singing, rare offstage time, and carrying the arc of a show. Props to Erika Henningsen. I think she is undervalued. 

Atticus Finch also comes to mind just in terms of expectation and again, overall arc and effort required.

Jenna in Waitress has sort of become an iconic role in some ways. Talk about an inspiring female character. The amount of music to sing, plus the emotional place to go to everyday is no joke.

*Bonus.

I know it just recently closed but I had to bring up Eliza and Higgins in My Fair Lady. Two of the hardest and must complex characters ever written.

[youwillbefound2]

Posted: 7/14/19 at 2:08pm

Sorry if this is an ignorant question, but is there an understudy for Heidi Schreck? I just ask since it’s a mostly one woman show and I can’t find out any information about an understudy for her.

[Hot Pants]

Posted: 7/14/19 at 2:55pm

ND_2000 said: "It may not be the most obvious answer but Cady in Mean Girls is constant singing, rare offstage time, and carrying the arc of a show. Props to Erika Henningsen. I think she is undervalued.

Atticus Finch also comes to mind just in terms of expectation and again, overall arc and effort required.

Jenna in Waitress has sort of become an iconic role in some ways. Talk about an inspiringfemale character. The amount of music to sing, plus theemotional place to go to everyday is no joke.

*Bonus.

I know it just recently closed but I had to bring up Eliza and Higgins in My Fair Lady. Two of the hardest and must complex characters ever written."

I agree with all of these. While I don’t think Cady’s music and characterization are particularly difficult, it’s still a big part that has to carry the whole show. Poor Erika Henningsen has to do all the heavy pushing, but since her character isn’t interesting, the rest of the cast gets way more attention.

Atticus Finch as written is already difficult, but it’s his iconic and beloved history that makes the role so hard. People love the character in the book, and Gregory Peck’s performance in the film is universally acclaimed, meaning that anyone who plays him has very big shoes to fill. Jeff Daniels even said that doing the role is a big responsibility, and that “A lot of parts are just parts. This one is an honor.”

Jenna is another one of those roles that needs to carry the whole show, and her journey is a very raw and emotional one. Her arc of regaining control over her life needs to be realistic and empowering. The quality of the show truly depends on the quality of Jenna’s actress.

And yes, Henry Higgins and Eliza Doolittle are both very hard, and need to be judged based on both their individual performances and their chemistry together. The audience needs to see a genuine connection develop between them that continues to be present even during their several arguments. Whether that connection is platonic or romantic is an important question that both performers should agree on. While neither of them become completely different people by the end, the actors still need to show a real change within them. Eliza’s actress needs to have pure soprano that is capable of being both beautiful and funny, while Higgins’ actor needs to find the heart behind his character’s mean spirited exterior.

Updated On: 7/14/19 at 02:55 PM

[Mm882]

Posted: 7/14/19 at 3:29pm

I would add David Ruffin in Aint Too Proud

[JustAnotherNewYorker]

Posted: 7/14/19 at 9:57pm

Jordan Catalano said: "The actress playing Heidi Schreck In “What the Constitution Means To Me” is onstage for pretty much the whole show. That’s pretty hard. "

This made me snort. Well played. 

[clearastheday]

Posted: 7/14/19 at 10:42pm

I saw Moulin Rouge! yesterday and I think Christian is a pretty difficult role to play. Aaron Tveit was onstage for almost the entire show, and in addition to acting, singing, and dancing, he also served as the narrator. The character goes through a huge range of emotions and I think Tveit mastered Christian’s slow descent into madness and grief in Act 2.

[IslandBoy27]

Posted: 7/15/19 at 3:16am

Satine.

Karen Olivo.

I could never imagine doing this every night. On all levels.

People have said that she isn’t sickly looking enough to do this. But the thing is, you can’t be sickly and do this 8 shows a week. No way.

[Wee Thomas2]

Posted: 7/15/19 at 9:55am

JustAnotherNewYorker said: "Jordan Catalano said: "The actress playing Heidi Schreck In “What the Constitution Means To Me” is onstage for pretty much the whole show. That’s pretty hard. "

This made me snort. Well played."

Indeed.  But to be pedantic, Heidi is not playing Heidi in the traveling version of the show.

[Lot666]

Posted: 7/16/19 at 2:09pm

Christine in Phantom of the Opera