IF Sunset Boulevard should ever be revived, ... — Page 2

I don't know, WannaBe!
I'm having major identity issues with BWW.com, mainly, it keeps logging me in as Phyllis Roger Stones, and when I finally log in as myself then it does that with my av. and it even says the wrong info, I'm a member since '05 not '07. It's craaaazy. Thanks for noticing though, it's driving me insane

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Chrsitine Ebersole or Patti Lupone. I love Bernadette, but I have to agree with foster- Bernadette will always sound too young.

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Well, Sally Field did release an album back when she was playing the flying nun. I'm guessing she can sing the same way that Glenn Close can sing. She'd make a great Norma.
I'd love to hear Streep's rendition of "As If We Never Said Goodbye" and "With One Look." Really, if she were to be part of this musical I rather it be the film than a Broadway revival.

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i know "she couldn't/wouldn't do 8 shows a week," and she's a touch too old, but i would love to see liza's take on the role.

If it opens in London, I do hope it's either Caroline O'Connor or Sally Ann Triplett, I think they'll be INCREDIBLE as Norma... though still abit young.

Bernadette rocks in ANY role she is in!

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I guess she wouldn't be enough of a "star," but Victoria Clark I think would be AMAZING!

even though I stand by my belief that Charles Busch would make the greatest Norma, I've definitely entertained the thought of Beth Leavel in the role. but then I usually follow it up by insisting Danny Burstein play Max...

and, I'm not sure about Victoria Clark, actually. I love her to death, but I'm not sure I can imagine her as Norma.

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Patti LuPone or Christine Ebersole. My money is on Patti. Close is more likey than Babs, but something tells me of the four, there are only three who have a shot at actally

Never been a fan of the show. Although Michael Ball as Joe doing the song SUNSET BOULEVARD gives me CHILLS... the good kind. That song-done right- is the best part of the show.

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If this is ever revived again, it needs to be someone with a strong presence and voice. While most of these suggestions could act it, strong belt vocals really need to be in place to sing "This time I am staying, I'm staying for good I'll be back where I was born to be. With one look I'll be me!"

yes, exactly. although my test is always the "I've come home at last" part in "As If We Never Said Goodbye". and Patti is pretty much the best ever, IMO. I loved seeing Christine Ebersole sing it at the Kennedy Center Honors (blunder and all), but...I just don't feel it. on the other hand, Patti was too young when she played the role in London, meaning even she wasn't perfect.

I don't think the show will ever be revived, because I think it's a horribly bloated show that honestly had so much potential. I mean, let's look at the source material. Billy Wilder's movie is pretty much as close to perfection as you can get. what made it all wrong? ALW did, honestly, write a great score, as repetitive as his scores tend to get. The lyrics, though? they're not so good. I believe it was Patti [or maybe I'm just making that up] who said that the show would've done better if he hadn't been so focused on having a hit. I read somewhere else that the book suffered because they were too busy with this enormous clunky set. the show needs a lot of work before it's ready for a serious revival.

or they could go in the total opposite direction and play it for camp. but I honestly don't think ALW is willing to have his work taken for anything less than s00per srs biz.

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"yes, exactly. although my test is always the "I've come home at last" part in "As If We Never Said Goodbye".

I had thought about that, and it should be belted, but an actress could get away with not belting it by giving it a sentimental interpretation or using a grand gesture with little vocal support. I didn't particularly like Petula Clarke's interpretation because she did that and wasn't as fierce as I think Norma should be. To me the test is the ending of "With One Look". If the actress can't blow the audience's wigs off with that song, then there's no use coming back for Act 2. LOL.

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Updated On: 2/6/08 at 11:54 AM

Oh I was kidding!!!!
Sarandon has always reminded me of Swanson, especially as she ages.I know she can't sing,but she is a hell of an actress. This is the sort of show that we won't see again until Encores does it in 2015. The Madonna thing was a huge joke

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Leslie Uggams

"While my Whitney Houston suggestion was somewhat tongue in cheek, I do expect Broadway to look to pop vocalists to cast this the next time around."

EEKKKKK!!!! You said it again when I made a request that no one ever mentions this again!!! LOL!!!

Anyway, with all the arguments going on over a good singer/belter, I remember wayyy back when I had to do a review of a theatre show that I saw for a class in college. Faye Dunaway was touring as Maria Callas in "Master Class", and I took it as an opportunity to comment on her being kicked out of Sunset.

While I agree that Dunaway only had a passable singing voice (unless she was directed to sing her part in Master Class a little more cracked), I could have still seen her as Norma. What's funny is that why would a silent screen movie star who couldn't make it into the world of talkies for whatever reason (age, acting, VOICE), why would she posess a great singing voice. I think this is what drew me to Glenn Close's interpretation in the first place. She is not the greatest singer, but does fine on her own style. It has been more about the acting and the journey that she takes from broken down actress who has a (delusional) glimmer of hope of returning to celebrity and stardom, to broken down madwoman, so whipped up over lust and broken dreams that she kills a man. Glenn Close, while I do agree that she did play it a little over the top at times, put across this despiration the best for me. It was a little more about the acting than the singing.

I actually think the biggest problem with the show was the specticle of the mansion coming up and down. It was too much to concentrate on, both during pre-production and during the shows run, that the book did seem to suffer a tiny bit. Though the Petula Clark tour that came through with just the suggestion of the mansion (mostly done with just the staircase, a few pieces of furniture, and a lot of curtains) seemed a little too sparse.

Oh, and reading that mini-article that Elizabeth Taylor was once in the running made me die from laughter asphyxiation! Even on her best day in the last 10 years, she couldn't get through a whole day of doing it!

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