Laura Bell Bundy

yea I saw hwe as glindal last moth when she went on and I thought she was great, I hope to see her in a show again soon!

---

Negative Nancy Alert!

Someone suddenly starts posting raves about a gal who just lost a big job, I call them out as a shill and therefore I'm negative? Maybe just not gullable.

I hope Laura Bell works very soon, but I just wonder in what... Are there any upcoming roles that we know about that she would be great in? I'm not sure...

I LOVE YOU Papa!

Can't help it PLM, it's just the way I feel.

It so happens that Laura passed on an unreasonable offer...if anything else, she should be lauded for standing up for herself. It's somewhat well-known in the industry that the Wicked producers are not the greatest people in the world...they are known to spread terrible rumors about people who work for them and it's about time someone said NO to them. Several members of the cast are unhappy there...and good for her for getting out if she's not getting offered what she's worth.

"Natrurally going to step up"???? HUH? Stand-by status is not a "given" take ovet step. Many times a standby may be given "first refusal" whena role opens up, but it requires an entirely different contract when that role opens up.. contract negotions are VERY complex and, like thsi case, a deal can not always be agreed upon.

I dunno...is Laura BB enough of an established name/talent that she can name her price? I would think that for a 22-year-old looking to build a career, the exposure of playing Glinda would be worth it under almost any circumstances. Maybe I'm wrong, and she just has an extraordinary sense self -worth and isn't willing to compromise.

But when weighed against the thousands of talented actresses working menial or boring jobs while waiting for a break, being offered the role of Glinda at any salary probably sounds like the chance of a lifetime. I'm just having a little bit of a hard time swallowing the party line explanation that's being offered. Sounds like there is probably more to the story.

---

People just want ajuicier tale to tell

Ifflit, you and I are in total agreement. Check my posts on the "get your hankies" thread.

LBB was not as in control of the negotiations as many of you seem to think, in fact, when she walked the Tony red carpet with her "MamaRose" and Wicked handbag in a bid for attention, she was still under the impression she was the next "girl in the metal bubble". Little did she know, that Thompson was practically in costume fittings. I know that there's going to be MUCH clamor as to where I heard this, and I'll tell you flat out, one of my closest associates works for Allure magazine and had a prime postition on said red carpet and relayed this story to me days ago. I didn't see fit to retell it, I'm usually much more discreet but I'm sick of how many postings there are saying that LBB "turned it down". It only make her and her "great agent" sound none too bright.

since we're all specualting like rank amateurs here and none of us is in a position to know the truth, i'll happily leap in here.

first of all, flit, you sound like maragaret thatcher's cousin ethel, "why, she should be happy just to be on that stage in such a show! and she wants money on top of that? harumph. let her wither in debtor's prison until she come to her senses." i think the left is going to ask for your membership card, ya make any more arguments like that.

on the idea of whether or not she's worth some more money, who knows what they offered her? anybody? anybody? no? so it's possible that the producer's thought she wasn't enough of a name to take over the leading role so they low-balled her on negotiations in the attmept to get a bigger name in there that they could advertise as "tony-nominee jennifer laura thompson as glinda." now when i say low-ball, i mean low-ball. it's perfectly conceivable that they offered her a teensy weensy bump in salary. now she's not gonna get a nomination for taking over the role so that leaves cash and if they're not paying, why take it when there are roles out there that will be available to her that she can make her own?

when it come to negotiations it's a thin line that must be walked. if she was being low-balled, then she should be applauded for having fought for more cash as it could have set a precedent. "hey, c'mon, laura bell bundy didn't take that much to step into a lead role in wicked, and that's a huge show. we poor producers can't possibly afford such a huge bump in pay for you." and if you don't think precedents like that matter in the broadway world, you've never met a producer.

in the end, though, since none of us know what the situation was, it's pretty easy to let our emotions and feelings color our judgements, isn't it?

---