Has anyone ever missed their first or last performance?- Page 2

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 2/2/11 at 10:45pm

Andrew Varela's wife is Susan Spencer. And she's wonderful!

[sorano916]

Posted: 2/2/11 at 10:48pm

In Berkeley, I believe that Matt Caplan missed opening night of "American Idiot." Ben Thompson went on for Tunny instead.

[dramarama3]

Posted: 2/3/11 at 4:04am

I was just thinking how great/awful it would be if an actor missed opening night and it closed immediately. Like glory days or something. Can you imagine?! ahh...

[Gothampc]

Posted: 2/3/11 at 11:21am

When Andrea McArdle was doing "State Fair" on Broadway, she fell and either sprained or broke her ankle. If I remember correctly it was near the end of the run and she didn't finish the run of the show.

[JoeGillis]

Posted: 2/3/11 at 12:00pm

I was at the final performance of Sunset Boulevard and Alice Ripley did not go on as Betty .

[WOSQ]

Posted: 2/3/11 at 3:09pm

Teresa Stratas missed the whole first week of the out-of-town Boston tryout of Rags. I think Judy Kaye was the standby and she played the week. As it turned out, Rags ran much longer in Boston than it did in New York.

Stratas then missed the cast recording, done later, and was spelled by Julia Migenes I think.

The Tony rules used to state and may still do, that whoever is in the official Broadway opening night cast are the actors who are Tony eligible. Stockard Channing had a nasty case of the flu when Blue Leaves moved up to the Beaumont from the Newhouse where it started. She played the opening night but only barely. All the previews upstairs were played by the understudy.

[The Other One]

Posted: 2/3/11 at 3:42pm

Are you sure you're talking about THE HOUSE OF BLUE LEAVES and not SIX DEGREES OF SEPARATION, WOSQ? I might be wrong, but I remember THOBL moving from the Beaumont to a Broadway house(with Baraanski replacing Channing), while SIX DEGREES moved from the Newhouse to the Beaumont (with Channing in tow for opening after Kelly Bishop had played the role for a while).

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 2/3/11 at 3:48pm

I've always heard the Tony eligibility requirements use the term "opening night credits." So I would assume that even if an understudy/stand-by did go on for that performance the lead that they are going on in place of would still be the one eligible, since the actor going on that night is still listed in the Playbill/credits as an understudy/stand-by.

[WOSQ]

Posted: 2/3/11 at 4:23pm

Six Degrees also started out downstairs and moved up. Stockard had a tv commitment or something and left the cast for a few months after the transfer and Swoosie Kurtz took over for that period. (I had a semi-heated discussion with the box office when I wanted to exchange the ticket I had bought based on Stockard's reviews after her temporary leave was announced, and they tried to give me the line about her not being above the title, and I wouldn't budge. I won.) Kelly Bishop was Stockard's standby and played the role, too.

But Blue Leaves started downstairs, moved up to the Beaumont just in time for the Tony cut-off and then moved to the Plymouth in the fall. I saw it in all three venues with Stockard, her understudy (since I was comped during previews) and Baranski in the same role.

At the time the theatre world all knew Stockard was practically at death's door and was missing all the previews, but Lincoln Center couldn't delay the opening because they were like 2-3 days from the cut-off. Stockard being the trouper she is, rose from her sick bed and did the performance.

[sondheimboy2]

Posted: 2/4/11 at 12:22am

I was waiting for someone to mention Teresa Stratas in "Rags". (Of course, I'm old.) And I believe Christine Andreas was her understudy.

[KT1385]

Posted: 2/4/11 at 2:06am

If I am not mistaken Stephanie J. Block missed some opening performances of Wicked on tour due to a back injury. That woman had no luck with that show.

[dry2olives]

Posted: 2/4/11 at 3:53am

Christopher Lloyd hurt his foot the night before Happy End opened on Broadway. Bob Gunton played his role until Lloyd was able to go on stage in crutches. The crutches worked so well for the character that he kept using them after his foot healed.

[jamiekennywicked]

Posted: 2/4/11 at 7:37am

Didn't Nicole Parker miss her 'first performance' in Wicked? (Apologies if it was already mentioned in the thread)

[bryan2]

Posted: 2/4/11 at 8:34am

Teresa Stratus missed the opening night in Boston (she was sick for about 2wks) ..Christine Andrea was her standby and went on and was reviewed (not Judy Kaye).it got really good reviews in Boston.needed work but on its way. I saw them both in Boston ...Christine Andreas was wonderful (and should have recorded it when stratus walked out) but Stratus had the roof of the theater shaking with her voice. I still dont understand how a show really close to being great ..left Boston went to NYC and was ruined...ahh to many hands in the pot!