As much as I love JLo who can dance and most definitely has the sex appeal...I would have to question her ability to handle the score. I'm pretty sure she can knock "Gimme Love" out of the park, I'm thinking more about the title song...
I'm of the opinion that the entire point of Aurora is that she's not a hot sexy A-list star.....the relationship Molina has to her and her work is the one a lot of us have towards Better and Joan in Baby Jane or Gloria Swanson in Sunset Blvd.
No one said she was an A-list star...but she's a sex symbol very much like Rita Hayworth and definitely NOT like Bette or Joan in "Baby Jane" or Swanson in "Sunset Blvd." Updated On: 1/13/15 at 05:08 PM
Forget Cats, this seems like the perfect vehicle for Nicole Scherzinger to make her Broadway debut. She has the glamour, the sex appeal, the voice and killer moves.
"this seems like the perfect vehicle for Nicole Scherzinger to make her Broadway debut. She has the glamour, the sex appeal, the voice and killer moves."
The only problem is that nobody knows who she is and the actress who plays Aurora should be billed ahead of Alan Cumming.
If anyone ever tells you that you put too much Parmesan cheese on your pasta, stop talking to them. You don't need that kind of negativity in your life.
Catherine Zeta-Jones would be beyond perfection in this role. If the show weren't so niche, I'd love to see her and Rob Marshall reteam for a movie adaptation or a first-rate revival on stage. Really the kind of movie star Molina describes in the novel and the musical is a glamorous diva who exudes sexuality, allure, and she should be someone you can't quite peg down since she's acting in all these parts, we don't know the actual Aurora. I imagine someone like a combination of Rita Moreno and Rita Hayworth. The only two actresses that I think would be beyond genius in the part are Salma Hayek and Penelope Cruz, neither of whom have expressed interest in appearing on stage (I'll never get over the missed opportunity of having Salma Hayek continue with WOMEN ON THE VERGE). Jennifer Lopez has no class, and don't even get me started about that Nicole Scher-what'shername, the opposite of class, sophistication, and mystery. Audra is great but she lacks the sultriness and the mystery; in her performances she is giving and present, the opposite of what I think Aurora should be. At the end of the day Audra is Audra though. How much do I wish we'd get to see a Latino cast as the three principals: Salma Hayek or Penelope Cruz as Aurora, Robin DeJesus as Molina, and Raul Esparza as Valentin (I know I mentioned him for Molina earlier, but he's more right for Valentin). A pipe dream if there ever was one.
"Some people can thrive and bloom living life in a living room, that's perfect for some people of one hundred and five. But I at least gotta try, when I think of all the sights that I gotta see, all the places I gotta play, all the things that I gotta be at"
Put me in the camp of "they're great performers, but not right for these roles." Aside from none of them evening "passing" as Latino:
Audra: not a dancer, not the right kind of sexy, too operatic Alan: too old, too Scottish, not a good enough legit voice Steven: really, he's just too damn white, but otherwise fine actually
I think Catherine Zeta Jones would be perfect as Aurora/Spider Woman, or maybe Vanessa Williams again? Audra Mc Donald is not the right person for this part.
"People have their opinions and that doesn't mean that their opinions are wrong or right. I just take it with a grain of salt because opinions are like as*holes, everyone has one".
-Felicia Finley-
I cannot see Audra doing this, but I couldn't see her as Holiday, and I couldn't have been more wrong, although I'm still in the minority who didn't believe for a second that she was a whore in Porgy and Bess.
Audra is one of the legendary performers of our time, but I do not think her voice fits Aurora, nor am I certain of her dance ability. (Has she belted since "Marie Christine?") Nicole Scherzinger would make a fantastic, alluring Aurora, as would Naya Rivera, although Naya might be a little too young. The mentions of Karen Olivo and Donna Murphy are pretty fantastic as well.
Likewise, is Alan a good fit for Molina? He's Scottish and a little old for Molina. While he's a great actor, it would be nice to see an age-appropriate Steven Pasquale would make a great Valentin.
"I saw Pavarotti play Rodolfo on stage and with his girth I thought he was about to eat the whole table at the Cafe Momus." - Dollypop
"I'm of the opinion that the entire point of Aurora is that she's not a hot sexy A-list star"
Aurora is what's in Molina's mind and he fantasizes that she is a mysterious, glamorous, seductress.
If anyone ever tells you that you put too much Parmesan cheese on your pasta, stop talking to them. You don't need that kind of negativity in your life.
I've been carping for years that Nicole Sherzinger should play Aurora. Sara Ramirez is another actress I'd like to see in the role. Robin De Jesus for Molina. Is Jeremy Jordan too young for Valentin? Or does he read as more of a Molina?
Audra doesn't seem right at all but it's Audra so she'll be great but it would be nice to see an actress who could capture the mystery, sex, and danger Aurora calls for. I think that's what Audra lacks more than sex appeal in my book is that dangerous quality lurking beneath the surface. But like it's been said 1000s of times in this thread and the Lady Day, thread it's Audra so she'll find it.
Sara Ramirez is not the right person for this, just because she is a Latina it doesn't mean she's right for the role. Yet, anyone will be better than Audra. Bring Vanessa Williams back or Catherine Zeta Jones!
"People have their opinions and that doesn't mean that their opinions are wrong or right. I just take it with a grain of salt because opinions are like as*holes, everyone has one".
-Felicia Finley-
In the opening the Warden of the prison explicitly states that Valentin is 27 and Molina is 37. Obviously an easy enough thing to change if they wanted, but as the script currently stands Jeremy Jordan is at the right age for Valentin (though he's certainly not the first person who would jump to mind if I was casting the show and going through the people we would want to call in).