IDINA MENZEL — Page 2

Idina Menzel, who? Never heard of her. Is she the one who sings "La La La La La...Loving You Do do dooddy do do I'm so in love with you..You're Beautiful...OOOOOOO (high pitched OOOOOO).

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*sigh*

Why must all threads Wicked related turn into an Idina bash-fest? Can't we all, yes myself included, be civil to each other? Everyone has their opinions, I happen to adore Idina, but if you don't that's fine. However, that doesn't mean you have to abuse me and others who do like her... I'm not sure when it became "cool" to hate Idina and Wicked, but all fads come and go, and I would really like to see this one go. On that note, I hear Daphne sucks as Fantine...

Is she the one what sings "A Spoonfull of Sugar"?

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Some of you people need to show a little more respect in general to any actor/actress who can get up on a broadway stage, especially the Gershwin, and sing their guts out. I went to the Gershwin three times because Idina blew everyone away including me. I don't pay 120 plus a ticket for CRAP performances. More than a few snobs on this board disagree with the general public, and since Wicked has been #1 in Gross and in the top 3 Attendance for how long day...its safe to say the General Public has spoken. For all of you Idina Haters, shame on you. She is a talent to be reckoned with, whether she is playing Maureen, Kate, Tessa, or Elphaba....doesn't matter Idina Menzel is one of the greats! Show some respect...

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I hEaRt IdIdEn EsPiNeNzEl!!!!
yA! sHe RoCkZ!!!!!!
sHe'Z lIkE tOtAlLy FaBoO!!!!
xoxoxoxoxoxoxo

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"Some of you people need to show a little more respect in general to any actor/actress who can get up on a broadway stage, especially the Gershwin, and sing their guts out."

No one NEEDs to do this. They're paid for their job and if they suck they suck and actually it kinda pisses me off because I paid $100 for a non-sucky performance. I only respect people who do good performances. I saw Idina and it sounded pretty much like the Tony Awards.. and I saw her within the first two months of her run.

8 shows a week is hard, but GOOD performers are well-trained and don't get strained. I know lots of performers who perform 8 shows a week who don't get strained because they don't sing completely on their throats like Idina. THAT's what I respect!

Um, sondhead, Idina's vocal problems in Wicked had NOTHING to do with her technique. Her vocal strain was because she performed a week with bronchitis--in retrospect it's probably a bad idea, as she never had the chance to completely recover afterwards, since she was performing, you know, eight shows a week in one of the most vocally difficult roles around now for a year thereafter.

Also, I can't for the life of me figure out how her performance was "sucky" and Shoshana Bean is "wonderful." Shoshana Bean has pretty remarkable abilities, but she doesn't know the first thing about SINGING a song--that is, performing a song with meaning. She does vocal acrobatics, and she does not ACT. SHE was not doing her job. Idina Menzel was breakin' her ass in that role; there is no WAY she wasn't doing her job. The woman is an actress, which is generally what should be hired in a dramatic piece. It's not just about hitting notes.

And yes, you do have a little bit of nerve sitting back at your computer criticizing someone who has the talent and work ethic to get up there and do a damn good job. You obviously have no idea what sort of abilities it takes to do what she does, so you can't even give minor credit where it's due. But that's OK, her talent kind of speaks for itself, and it's bringing her a lot more success to than your criticism is bringing you.


(Ha. And I said I didn't want to get involved)

Updated On: 11/22/06 at 12:56 PM

haha, this thread made me laugh when I first opened it :P but hey, maybe it'll turn into an idina love thread... I'm all for that!

aanyway,

"8 shows a week is hard, but GOOD performers are well-trained and don't get strained. I know lots of performers who perform 8 shows a week who don't get strained because they don't sing completely on their throats like Idina. THAT's what I respect!"

Idina actually IS very well trained. She's said in MANY interviews that she's very anal about her voice and takes every precaution to protect it. And, considering that she's been taking vocal lessons since she was really, really young, from what I can only assume were very qualified voice teachers, I'd be willing to bet she doesn't sing out of her throat very often Really, think of it this way- she was doing 8 performances of wicked a week, for over a year on broadway. She had a VERY good attendance record, and was very rarely out. It was only in the very end, as far as I know, that her voice started getting a little bit tired. If she didn't know how to sing properly, do you really think she could have gone that long without completely destroying her voice?

Ok, so here's my over all opinion:
Idina is my favorite elphaba, and it really has nothing to do with the fact that she was the original or that she won the tony. The only slight role that might play is that she WAS the first elphaba I was introduced to- so its possible that through the recording and everything I got used to her voice in the role. But I try to stay very open minded when exploring other elphaba's, and I'd like to believe that I give all of them equal chance to wow me. And vocally, many of them have. In fact, as far as vocals go, I honestly dont feel that belting is idina's strength. She's AMAZING doing it, she really is, but listening to SWIWS actually made me realize that she's even BETTER when doing music that really shows all the colors in her voice. So, there are plenty of other people who I'm sure could sing the part of elphie just as well as idina (again though, I have become partial to her voice). Her REAL strength comes in the fact that she's the only one I really, really care about from the very beginning. I'm not quite sure what it is- I think its just that she has this nack for being extremely open, honest, and vulnerable on stage. And thats something that NOT a whole lot of people can match her with in my experience. She also KNOWS the character better than anyone else I think, probably by the nature of that she started working on it so early, but also because she seems like the kind of performer who really, really does their research. Not to say plenty of others dont either, but its just always impressed me how much time and effort and THOUGHT she seems to put into every single thing she does. So, through that, I think she just has the best understanding of the character, and therefore adds a depth to her that no one else has been able to match in my opinion. Eden has come very close, but she's the only other one. So THATS why I love idina as elphaba- she makes me feel for her sooo much more than anyone else. She could be having the worst vocal day EVER and STILL manage to give me goosebumps durring defying gravity. Because, as BroadwayGirl107 said, she doesnt MAKE it all about the vocals. She makes it about what elphaba, as a character, is going through at that moment in time. The music just happens to be there, as a means for her to express that even more clearly. This is so different than shoshana, who, though she is INCREDIBLY, freakishly talented, makes the whole thing about her abilities in singing. You could be the best singer in the world, but if you make something like defying gravity or no good deed about showing that OFF, instead of making it truly a part of telling the story and giving the character more depth, it's just going to seem fake. So many people critisize Idina's tony performance, and I totally agree, vocally it was probably the weakest I've seen from her, but what people seem to overlook about that performance is how incredible it STILL was, in spite of that. Because she was still SO in the moment and so.. real that it was amazing.

ok, wow, if I dont stop myself now I'm going to end up writing a friggin novel! (edit: ok.. I kind of already have. I apologize!) haha... but yeah... thats my opinion :)

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Updated On: 11/22/06 at 01:31 PM

I wasn't making fun of Idina, but rather the fact that it was called "the Idina show" (which, I know some people ONLY equate here with the role of Elphaba. which, again, I would have of loved to have seen.) and also chiding at the fact that if rico would have of done some rather easy searching, he/she probably could have of found the dates, and the name of the replacement (doubtful that he/she cares) without having to type out his/her simple post on here.

that is all.

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*envies RentHead2 for having seen SWIWS*

haha, I'm still bitter about not getting to see it *glares*

but yeah, I totally dont mind the whole Idina Show thing, because thats just commenting on the fangirly fanbase- which can get a bit out of hand (though, really, Idina has MANY awesome fans too, and the majority of her fans ARENT fangirls I dont think) :P But I do mind how harsh some people on here are towards her. Some of the comments I see are just... totally unnecassery. So please guys, if you dont like her or whatever, thats totally fine, but be respectful of the way in which you state it! Theres no reason to make rude comments about ANYONE you dont like, because chances are theres a bunch of people on here who ARE going to like them, and they dont want to have to read those things.

/lecture :)

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Updated On: 11/22/06 at 03:17 PM

Seriously, I think Idina is amazing. This is not because I am a teenage girl, but it is because she can really belt it.

The fact that she was the first and the original actress to play the role of Elphaba gives her some credit, but the fact that she put so much passion into the role and made the role so believeable made up for her off days.

She played the role with so much conviction that it has inspired many people that being different is okay, and that is why she is so adored by the young girls.

She also works her butt off. This is one of the main reasons I respect her. She rarely missed a show, even if she was sick. That really shows someone's character on the inside. I guess she knew people were coming to see her and she didn't want to let anyone down.

If loving Idina is wrong, then I don't want to be right!

"Guys - I just got back from London where I sat in second row center and saw Idina do a FABULOUS job. I've seen here here in NYC, Chicago and Toronto many times and she blew it out of the park even more so in London (and I do believe she's alot more rested now as well).
She was amazing."

YAY for seeing Idina and a positive post about her!!