Kelli O'Hara led Kiss Me Kate 2019 Broadway Revival!!!- Page 7

[rjm516]

Posted: 6/28/18 at 4:53pm

Omg Norm would have been sooooo exciting! Dammit

[little_sally]

Posted: 6/28/18 at 4:56pm

Not surprising but Will Chase does nothing for me. Boring.

[EllieRose2]

Posted: 6/28/18 at 5:00pm

Will Chase is wonderful, I am so happy with this casting!  

[Jeffrey Karasarides]

Posted: 6/28/18 at 5:10pm

GeorgeandDot said: "Frankly, I don't know why they didn't go with Norm Lewis. Great baritone and would sound stunning alongside Kelli."

Norm did play Harrison Howell in the benefit concert Roundabout presented back in 2016. He is also set to play Harold Hill in The Music Man at the Kennedy Center for a few days in February shortly before previews begin.

[JBroadway]

Posted: 6/28/18 at 9:19pm

Broadway61004 said: "Classic Roundabout. "Let's take one of the greatest classical baritone roles in musical theatre and cast a high rock tenor in it!""

 

You clearly aren't that familiar with Chase's career. Yes he's played a few rock tenor roles, but he's also played the leads in Oklahoma, Bells Are Ringing, Kiss of the Spider Woman, The Music Man, Nice Work if You Can Get It, The Secret Garden, and of course his Tony-nominated performance in the Mystery of Edwin Drood. Granted, not all of those were baritone roles, but still he can sing a mean baritone, and he's no stranger to more classical styles. I've always considered Chase to be among the most versatile musical theatre performers. 

In case I haven't made it clear, I love Will Chase and I'm very excited by this news! He and Kelli also have a long history of performing together, so it's exciting to see them re-united again! 

[Elegance101]

Posted: 6/28/18 at 11:00pm

They'll definitely be getting a dancer for Lois Lane, so I'd say Betsy is out.

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 6/29/18 at 3:38pm

Yes, Lois is a Dancing role, and besides, I hear Betsy is pregnant or replacing Lindsay or Cassie soon.

[CindersGolightly]

Posted: 6/29/18 at 5:40pm

It’s so sad how many people think they’re funny on this board.

[poisonivy2]

Posted: 6/29/18 at 7:13pm

This role needs a real baritone, not a pleasant tenor like Will Chase.

This will not cut it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJAS15ekiug

Especially when the part was composed for a voice like this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1thQvnu4gRE

[Solipsist234]

Posted: 6/29/18 at 7:22pm

CurtainPullDowner said: "Yes, Lois is a Dancing role, and besides, I hear Betsy is pregnant or replacing Lindsay or Cassie soon."

Okay, THIS was hysterical!

[Elegance101]

Posted: 6/29/18 at 7:35pm

Having seen the concert, and I've mentioned it before on here, Will Chase was great. "Where is the Life" got the biggest applause of the night and he easily was my favorite performer in this production. There are other actors who would be great, but it's not like we've never heard him sing like this before. I get that he's mainly a tenor, but after hearing him sing these songs, I am extremely confident in his ability.

[VintageSnarker]

Posted: 6/29/18 at 11:39pm

FOAnatic said: "Will. Chase.

Could we have gotten more of a Wonder Bread decision?"

Ugh. At least with My Fair Lady there was the potential of being surprised. Will Chase has always been so bland to me. But maybe this will be the show that changes my mind.

Why are they waiting so long to announce if it's just going to be the same people from the reading/concert/gala/whatever it was?

I don't want to say Steven Pasquale should get all the baritone roles but if they were going to go with someone who had already worked with Roundabout and Kelli, I'd rather have seen Pasquale than Chase. Or... you know, not a white actor. It feels like at best everyone's a baritenor these days. I consider Brent Barrett, Ryan Silverman, Norm Lewis, and Aaron Lazar acceptable baritones but they're all part of The Broadway Tenors so what do I know?

[The Distinctive Baritone]

Posted: 6/30/18 at 9:54am

Steven Pasquale has a great baritone, but it has a lighter, brighter sound than a role like Fred/Petruchio requires. Andy Karl is in the same vein. Will Chase is a tenor, and is an odd choice vocally, although plenty of tenors I'm sure have played the role before.

I imagine it will be like when Brent Barrett did the London version of the Michael Blakemore revival - sure he sounded great, but it's much more exciting to hear a bass-baritone like Brian Stokes Mitchell hold out an F4 money note, which is near the top of his range, than a tenor, for whom it is not. It goes back to the Patti LuPone Evita thing - no one has sang it as thrillingly as her because she was a mezzo, dramatically belting out high notes that don't have the same effect when being sung effortlessly by a soprano.

[bwaylvsong]

Posted: 7/1/18 at 12:01am

@VintageSnarker, because so few roles are being WRITTEN for true baritones any more, most men seriously pursuing a career in musical theatre are basically forced to train to be able to sing in the baritenor/tenor range so that they can sing 99% of any contemporary material being thrown their way.
I personally trained as a classical baritone in HS and college but had to re-calibrate my voice after I graduated to fit the needs of the industry.

[CindersGolightly]

Posted: 7/1/18 at 9:03am

Emily Padgett could be a thrilling Lois Lane.

[theaterdude2]

Posted: 7/1/18 at 9:47am

This has got to be one of the most disappointing casting decisions in recent memory. I've never understood Will Chase's "popularity", and he couldn't be more wrong for Kiss Me Kate. I will not be attending. 

[CPannullo]

Posted: 7/24/18 at 12:35am

Has anyone who has purchased tickets received them in the mail? It’s been almost a month and I’ve never got mine yet. Just curious if I’m the only one

[RippedMan]

Posted: 7/24/18 at 12:39am

Anyone who thinks Chase is bland should be watching his performance on "Sharp Objects" on HBO. He's great. And, I'm a huge fan. His voice is brilliant and he's played a variety of roles. I'm beyond excited for this. 

[ElphabaGoodman]

Posted: 10/10/18 at 8:12am

https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Breaking-Corbin-Bleu-Stephanie-Styles-More-Join-KISS-ME-KATE-on-Broadway-Amanda-Green-Will-Update-Book-20181010

Full casting has been announced - Corbin Bleu as Bill/Lucentio, Stephanie Styles as Lois/Bianca - interesting to note that Amanda Green has joined the creative team to update the book.

[laurensambrose]

Posted: 10/10/18 at 8:18am

SUPER excited for Corbin and Stephanie! 

[little_sally]

Posted: 10/10/18 at 9:24am

I like Corbin Bleu but this is so underwhelming.

[Itonlytakesajourney]

Posted: 10/10/18 at 9:29am

Very excited about this! I really like Corbin, and I think Stephanie is an inspired choice.

[IdinaBellFoster]

Posted: 10/10/18 at 10:35am

Corbin is a fun choice, but I can't help but feel underwhelmed by Stephanie Styles. I'm sure she gave quite the audition, as I can think of so many other women I'd love to see in that role. I hope she's great! 

[adamgreer]

Posted: 10/10/18 at 10:36am

Did we know before now there would be revisions to the book?

[fashionguru_23]

Posted: 10/10/18 at 10:37am

What are we updating? Was the 1999 revised book that bad?