La Cage wierd occurance! — Page 3

Surprised no one has linked to this yet.
http://www.talkinbroadway.com/allthatchat/display_message.php?id=73036

Oh geez, here we go...

Nathan Lane IS a diva. I love the man, I think he's brilliant, and he's a diva. And about giving out the signed playbills- hey, that's lucky. At least he didn't duck out of the way and run for the limo like I've seen Heather Headley (I love her) do. That's not rude. You don't know why he did it. Maybe it was because he didn't have time and had a pressing appointment to run to. Maybe someone in his family was sick. IT DOESN'T MATTER. WHETHER HE IS A DIVA OR NOT, I WILL SAY THIS AGAIN, HE IS STILL A PERSON.
The other thing is: when he hurt himself, it's not because he fell, it's because he got scratched up badly when the trap door brought him back onto the stage at the end of Act One.

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"I think his habit of signing fifty playbills backstage and giving them out when he leaves the stage door, not stopping to take pictures or sign ANYTHING else, if very rude."



I knew it had more to do with fan petulance than any real rudeness on Lanes part.

Sorry, Bal. Once that curtain goes down, Lane (and anybody else) really doesn't owe you - or any other fan - jack.

S-S, I still don't know why you think Nathan Lane is a "diva" because of that.

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Strange how this thread has morphed into the bash Nathan Lane thread. Getting back to Daniel Davis, unless there is some validity to these claims about David and/or Beach's attitudes and feelings backstage, it really isn't fair to judge what is going on. No more than it is to judge Lane from a distance. While some of you have claimed to have the inside scoop, perhaps my definition of a 'diva' is slightly different than yours. Creative people are complex creatures and, like most of us, they have bad days. I DID read Jeff Denman's book and NOWHERE did he trash Lane for being a diva. He talked about the stress of working on the show and of being nervous working with him as Leo on the occasion he stepped into the role but he ALSO said that after the show was over Lane was sociable with him and congratulated him. The interesting thing about all of these stories is that they seem invariably to come back to fans who didn't like that he didn't sign at the stage door (not his job by the way) or that he didn't act friendly to them...whereas Peter Bartlett, Roger Bart, Matthew Broderick, Susan Stroman, et al always talk about how professional and giving he is as a performer. And someone who is a diva does NOT head to London on a day's notice to take over a part that nearly killed him the first time around. He sits on his butt and eats bon bons and complains about getting the wrong color M&M's. In fact, the injuries he suffered in the Frogs were siginificantly worse than what was reported in this thread (ala Bartlett and others talking about the screams they heard backstage and the visit to the hospital - not because of a 'scratch') but that aside.

Lane and Davis worked together in the Frogs and Davis was the ultimate professional in the Frogs under some very difficult circumstances with long rehearsal hours and rewrites and Chris Kattan leaving the cast which set them all back. In all the years he's been in the theater, he has never been called a diva, though he is a perfectionist and his standards are high but then so are Gary Beach's standards.

I am sorry that this post was started here and on ATC because some people will believe everything they hear and more than one stage actor has had to work around NY and face people who now think they are rotten human beings because of bad mouthing on these boards.

I'm certainly glad the rest of us don't have to endure that slap in the face without getting to defend ourselves. So and so doesn't sign autographs...so and so snapped at someone backstage. You should have someone follow you around for a week and chronicle your behavior and see how you come out in the press? All of this is a long winded way of saying that we need to be less critical and judgemental and that a good story or piece of gossip isn't always true.

No name dropping here either or unfounded rumors...just saying that people are usually not what they seem and that rumors can get out of hand. Celebrities are human too

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Hey--I didn't start this thread to become a Nathan bashing thread. Has anyone found out if Davis went on tonight?

What a nice "Welcome to the Boards."

I agee. Strongly.

Davis was out again last night when I went to see it.

I was *very* dissappointed. Though Hillner had a voice that could sing you to sleep, the chemistry with Beach wasn't there and it was a long, long show.

I wouldn't spend more than a student rush ticket to see the production in the state it's in right now. It could use more rehearsal time. Much more rehearsal time.

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Well, they are supposed to be going through their mid-life crisises, aren't they? And Daniel Davis isn't much older than Gary Beach, if I remember. Although, when I saw it, it did seem as though his hair was a lot greyer than I remembered. Either he's getting old very fast...or they dyed it, and that doesn't make much sense.

I wouldn't spend more than a student rush ticket to see the production in the state it's in right now.

Oh, man, are you kidding? I would pay for a full price ticket just to see Gary Beach and the Cagelles dancing. They blew me away; the Cagelles are definitely worth the ticket price.

Sorry to hear about the not-so-chemical chemistry. Will we ever find a perfect mate for Gary Beach's characters? Well, besides Roger Bart.

Thank you, CurtainUp, for saying what I was afraid to say. I do think Georges is, and should be potrayed as, older than Albin. At times, Albin can be like a child, and Georges helps reign him in.

I remember going to a dinner theatre and seeing Dracula. In the little paper they gave out, it mentioned La Cage under the credits of one of the actors. When he came out on stage, my first thought was, "No. He is way too young to play Georges." Later, I wandered around the house of the theatre. There were pictures of past productions, and in the La Cage one, Albin looked much older than Georges. It...clashed. It didn't look like it worked, for me.

sorry you felt I was criticising you,ebonic,& I'm not accusing you of anything-this board is an open forum-when you bring up a subject(nathan)don't be suprised when someone responds to it.I'm not angry or upset(or even bashing nathan),just stating the facts as I see them.I understand people have bad days but I have never seen or heard of another actor who utilises the stage with the frequency he has to voice negative comments-and trashing a fellow performer from the stage(or in print) is just unprofessional.Keep creating threads & voicing your opinion-that's what these boards are about-open(calm,hopefully unemotional)discussion...

I love space bars...esp the cantina in starwars...

c'mon over to the spacebar,sum,I'll buy you a drink...