Jekyll & Hyde — Page 5

Wait...jekyllforever...are you talking about the keys of the songs?

I'm talking about the actual notes that have to be sung. You can put a standard in B flat and it'll have a one-octave range. Sure, there was a time when, say, Etta James would saunter up to a microphone and say to the bandleader "Black Coffee in F", but again, those songs had a range that would do into any voice, as long as you started it in the right place. Most Broadwy singers couldn't tell you what key a song is in, even if they sing it once a week...they'll just know that it's in the original show key. Since I'm guessing you're an instrumentalist (forgive me if I'm wrong), you might be shocked to know how many Broadway singers can't even read music. I know I was.

These songs are much rangier than those old standards and showtunes. Lucy has a nearly two-octave range, which must all either be belted or sound like it's belted. Wildhorn would have chosen B-flat because of its "mood"...not because it makes the show easier to sing....because, believe it or not, Frank Wildhorn doesn't read music either. He plays it organically and then someone takes it down for him. So his songs develop based on what comes out of the singer's mouth--in this case, Linda Eder--and what is most exciting for him to listen to.

Plus, every single song Lucy hass (except Sympathy, Tenderness) modulates higher at least once. "A New Life" changes keys at least three times, getting higher and higher and higher. So the key it starts in is almost never the key it ends in. In fact, I would be hard-pressed offhand to think of five solos in that show that start in any key and stay in that key. That's just not the way Wildhorn writes--which is one of the things that makes it exciting for the audience.

When you're regularly belting D's, E's, and F's 8x a week, it's just simply not an easy sing regardless of what key it's in.

And yes, boy oh boy, if you go to a performance of J&H and leave talking about Emma, something is seriously off. The whole show is written so that Jekyll gets huge ovations, and Lucy steals the show anyway. Emma is almost entirely thankless, even though she, too, does some crazy difficult singing. You can usually be a great Emma and still have the audience walking out barely remembering your character's name.

(edited after I read some other responses.)

Updated On: 9/9/12 at 11:49 AM

I agree with you...I feel sorry for Cox or anyone else who steps into this role. They will always be compared to Eder. Even some of the "real" reviews from professional press will hold her up as the gold standard.

I'm glad for you that you can sing them...but that doesn't mean it's easy for most women to sing the show, start to finish, 8x a week. I make my living singing this type of song, and have done this role a few times. I found it difficult, and tiring.

I wish her and Constantine and the production the best of luck. Will probably see it if it actually comes to Broadway...which will be a far better moment to judge whether they can do it than the first preview of the tour.

Just please recognize that most altos do not have a 3 1/2 octave range--that is a rare and lucky thing. You're way ahead of most women if you have that many notes at your disposal, or if you can handle all Lucy's Act One music, then "Dangerous Game", "In His Eyes" and "A New Life" in relatively quick succession every night without ever getting tired.

Most women cannot do that. Even on Broadway, Luba Mason back phrased and mixed much of the score, and Coleen Sexton blew her voice out so many times that I wish I had bought stock in prednisone when she took over.

somethingwicked, I agree, Sharon Brown was an amazing Lucy. She and Kelli O'Hara knocked those songs out of the park.

"Most women cannot do that. Even on Broadway, Luba Mason back phrased and mixed much of the score, and Coleen Sexton blew her voice out so many times that I wish I had bought stock in prednisone when she took over."

Very true - Coleen gave a great performance, which was captured on DVD but the year leading up to that was rough - they eventually upped the tempos for Coleen on the endings to "In His Eyes" and "A New Life."

Sharon Brown also gave a thrilling vocal performance night after night, but she was also, to my recollection, difficult to work with particularly with the orchestra. I'm sure she wasn't thrilled when they announced Andrea (and eventually Kelli O'Hara) were headed to B'way, and Coleen Sexton was upgraded from understudy instead.

Though it's entirely too nasal for my personal taste, Coleen Sexton has an undeniably powerful instrument. Unfortunately, even more so than Linda Eder, she couldn't act her way out of a paper bag. I find the DVD of the closing cast unwatchable because of how painfully aloof she seems the entire show. When she didn't look like a deer in headlights (which was most of the time,) she was making really awkward gestures that were totally inappropriate to the moment. A good example of that is in "A New Life," where she she sings the entire song as if she's really, really angry. It's hard to articulate, but she also tended to have facial expressions that were really self indulgent toward how well she thought was singing. As if to say, "I'm really nailing this, aren't I?" It was all very odd.

When Sexton was missing shows all the time, was that when Kate Shindle was understudying Lucy? I forget when Shindle was in the show.

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Updated On: 9/9/12 at 02:11 PM

I actually really like the uptempos

I like the faster ending of A New Life. Some of the other tempo changes, not so much. A lot of the numbers were taken faster than they were on the OBCR when I saw the show with Rob Evan. I remember that Alive was taken particularly quickly.

I would've loved to have seen the show with Kate Shindle as Lucy.

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Shindle wasn't there for very long. She took over for Stevens and was replaced by Massey. IIRC she went on a few times and within 3-4 months left to do Cabaret. I didn't see her do it, but there was a bit of press attention her first time on as Lucy, and then Sexton didn't miss many more shows before she left!

I'm not a huge fan of Sharon Brown's Lucy. There's one video where she does an odd "scream" or something on "just to play the game" during A New Life which I thought was unnecessary. I'm all for making a song your own, but that was an odd choice.

To answer a few questions:

1. I don't know if the Don comments from twitter are Don Simon (J&H fan club pres.) I do know he has been in NY seeing a lot of Constantine with the recent Wildhorn & friends events. Could be.
2. Robert C. and are acquainted via the show and FB friends. I am a close theater friend of Rob Evan and a few others in the original cast some whom I've worked with via concerts/masterclasses.

3. I saw Kate Shindle play Lucy the 4th time onstage and she was extremely good. Very comfortable in the role and vocally well equipped to handle the score.

There are no "best" in the roles and I can't really judge anyone especially not here publically.

To me the important factor of this "re vamped" version will be a combination of how well it's directed, how the sets lend to the flow and storyline and of course the ability of the leads to do the roles justice. I'm NOT expecting anyone to sing like anyone else. It doesn't matter what songs they added/elminated.

If the overall show is impressive Frank and Co. will be happy. Shoot, Frank's happy about all his work. He just needs to break the 10 yr. Broadway "curse" which is his biggest boil on the butt. Personally, I like him as a person. He's passionate about his art and a creative, ambitious person. Always got a show on the shelf to introduce and often re-introduce. Just my 2 cents, again.

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Kate Shindle is out of this world on the Resurrection album. Her rendition of Bring on the Men is sstteeaammyyyy.

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J&H commercial with Constantine & Deborah:


JEKYLL AND HYDE Starring New TV Commercial

Love it.

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