Laura Marie Duncan is going on as Nellie in SOUTH PACIFIC tonight! — Page 2

South Pacific is no longer in previews. The show has opened.

I'm sure she was fantastic, considering the circumstances.

She was FANTASTIC as Christine in the Dirty Rotten Scoundrels tour.

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Point taken broadwaybaby086!
You're right I did get a little rude.
Sorry.

I saw her 3 times in DRS. I thought she was wonderful.

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Probably just all the stress of opening the show and all that. It is 3 hours long after all.

Hope she gets better by the 30th when I have tickets.

Considering how little practice she had, she was great.

Is Kelli sick or saving her voice? If she's sick, rest and get better soon! I definitely missed her voice yesterday, but Laura did a fine job acting. Standing O at the end.....

Ken

Just my bad luck then... Many people were disappointed seeing that in their Playbills (about Kelli being out).

Laura did do an outstanding job though, considering that she hardly had any practice!!! I didn't even realize that!

Ken

As an individual who has lucked into seats at South Pacific a total of 5 times, I feel relatively comfortable commenting on the overall quality of the production.
I saw 3 previews (including the first), opening night, and Saturday night’s performance with Laura Marie Duncan in as Nellie Forbush.

Please note that I am by no means some random shill pumping “O’Haran” propaganda into the veins of BWW – nor am I an understudy fanatic working to get recognition for the unsung heroes of the Great White Way. I am just a guy (a performer myself) who loves this show and wants people to be well-informed.

Random rumors as to the state of Ms. O’Hara’s voice and/or the quality of Ms. Duncan’s performance do not aid in the overall “health” of this forum. Truths are what I’m looking for and what I hope to, in the end, provide.

That being said, here is a review of Ms. Duncan’s performance on Saturday night:


Understudies fascinate me. Namely because they are often hired to function as doppelgangers – clones of their primaries who sit in the wings sweating it out hoping both to go on and to not go on. More often than not, they end up being quite the opposite. They develope into completely different representations of the character.
Often times they are severely under-rehearsed.

It seemed, at first, as though nerves would get the best of Ms. Duncan. Her opening scene seemed a little stilted, and while she could not be blamed for this, it distracted from the scene and the chemistry between she and Mr. Szot.
Although, one could also argue that this stiltedness provided her Nellie with an energy that served the overall arch of the character quite well.

In any event, this nervousness was short-lived, as by her second scene that reserved, cautious characterization had all but vanished. In its place a strong-willed, hick-ish, energized individual - whose style harkened back to the qualities of Ms. Martin more so than Ms. O’Hara - had surfaced.

Ms. Duncan presented a less refined Nellie – a country girl with the accent to back it up.
Her over-the-top spunk coupled with a facility for comedic timing drew more laughs from the audience than Ms. O’Hara’s depiction – though one could point out that the latter’s Nellie brings more pathos.

Ms. Duncan’s best work (imho) was during the “revelation” scene (POSSIBLE SPOILER) when she discovers Emile’s secret. Her decision to play up Nellie’s drunken state allowed for a wonderful arch – her supreme vulnerability giving away, suddenly to a sharp sobriety upon her discovery that these children were indeed, Emile’s. Her acting in this scene was quite good.

Duncan’s “Honey Bun” was also worth note. Her performance was less polished than Ms. O’Hara’s and as a result, somewhat more believable.
Ms. O’Hara’s Nellie never quite struck me as the type of girl who would be willing to act like an ass in front of thousands of soldiers. Duncan’s however? – quite the opposite.
She threw herself into a choreography that, for her, is quite fresh. She popped the movements, and tossed herself around with such abandon that I fell in love with Nellie all over again.

Now, while I find it slightly unfair to critique a person’s weaknesses when they are so new to a role, one cannot help but notice that Ms. Duncan’s voice is not as suited to this role as is Ms. O’Hara’s. Ms. Duncan’s power-house belter style is not highlighted in the least and while Ms. O’Hara faces similar difficulties (being a high lyric soprano) she has had the time to discover vocal nuances that distinguish the role as her own. Unfortunately, Ms. Duncan has not had the time to do so. Thus her voice does not ring out with the same glory as Ms. O’Hara’s.

To sum it all up? Ms. Duncan plays with this role with abandon. While the role is still half-wrapped for her, she managed to wring a newness from it that was refreshing to those who had seen O’Hara’s performances.
By all accounts, her Sunday performance was 10 times stronger. Apparently her singing was stronger and her timing was even better, causing the audience to laugh in places that had never elicited such response in the past.

I think that it is safe to say that she will only get better…that is if O’Hara is ever out again. I could be wrong, but I think that this is the first time Kelli has ever called in which is pretty spectacular.

One last thing - it should be noted that several swings went on this weekend, as well as Laura Marie's cover Wendi Bergamini.

Updated On: 4/14/08 at 09:53 AM

Thanks for the review - now I have more of a feel of the differences between the two since I didn't get to see Kelli.

Ken

broadwaybaby086 ~ I tried to respond to your PM, but it says you don't accept them.

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Looked like a wig to me - was wondering about that though during the hairwashing sequence......

ken

Thanks, jordangirl, it's on again. I hate how mine turns itself off.

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