Leona Lewis OFFICIALLY cast as Grizabella - Page 4

[Wilmingtom]

Posted: 5/28/16 at 3:36am

I'm not sure how selling 20 million records qualifies Lewis as a flash in the pan or a has been.  Because we in the USA aren't familiar with her?  Just like we weren't familiar with Elaine Paige, Vanessa Redgrave, Ian McKellan, Richard Burton, Cynthia Erivo and so on?   Shall we give her a chance?  And exactly which Broadway divas do you think would take that role?  Patti?  Bernadette?  Audra?  Idina?  I doubt it.

[Buffalo Bill]

Posted: 5/28/16 at 2:57pm

My guess? Leona's going to come out on that stage and nail that song to the back wall. It strikes me that she knows she has big shoes to fill and like her character, Grizabella (the Glamour Cat) she has to try to succeed against naysayers and against all the odds. I think this thread is setting the stage for a really amazing night of theatre. 

[gypsy101]

Posted: 5/28/16 at 5:46pm

JM226 said: "thats not how being a 'one-hit wonder' works. it is is in reference to how many of your songs chart in the billboard top 40. that being said, she DID have at least two tracks chart in the top 40 so that characterization by the other poster was inaccurate to begin with "

You're correct, I misspoke. Having a single in the top 40 does qualify it as a hit, and she had one hit number 11 after Bleedin' Love.

[BroadwayConcierge]

Posted: 8/30/16 at 12:46am

How has Ms. Lewis' attendance been since the show opened? I feel like I see the Broadway understudies Twitter reporting very often that Jessica Hendy is scheduled on for Grizabella. Wondering if that's just me.

[nolanativeny]

Posted: 8/30/16 at 12:55am

BroadwayConcierge said: "How has Ms. Lewis' attendance been since the show opened? I feel like I see the Broadway understudies Twitter reporting very often that Jessica Hendy is scheduled on for Grizabella. Wondering if that's just me.

 

"

She was on tonight. I actually didn't think she was too terrible, but then again I was expecting the worst based on what some had said. 

[10086sunset]

Posted: 8/30/16 at 7:07pm

BroadwayConcierge said: "How has Ms. Lewis' attendance been since the show opened? I feel like I see the Broadway understudies Twitter reporting very often that Jessica Hendy is scheduled on for Grizabella. Wondering if that's just me."

 

I was just thinking the same thing...

Feels like she's become the new Alex Brightman...

[Sally Durant Plummer]

Posted: 8/30/16 at 8:21pm

If she cannot commit to regularly performing 8 times a week, she should get an alternate (a la Brightman). However, having finally seen School of Rock last night, I must say that Brightman IS the show. He's onstage for virtually every scene and involved in most of the musical numbers for 2 and a half hours. Miss Lewis' most arduous moment is doing her makeup, and she's onstage for less than 15 minutes. This behavior would be unacceptable were she not d-list celebrity. My heart goes out to her, but perhaps she is simply not cut out for theatre.

[Dancingthrulife2]

Posted: 8/30/16 at 8:25pm

Intermission right now. She just butchered Memory... WOW...

[trpguyy]

Posted: 8/30/16 at 9:18pm

Dancingthrulife2 said: "Intermission right now. She just butchered Memory... WOW..."

The song is at the end of act 2, but ok. 

[Dancingthrulife2]

Posted: 8/30/16 at 9:36pm

trpguyy said: "Dancingthrulife2 said: "Intermission right now. She just butchered Memory... WOW..."

The song is at the end of act 2, but ok. 

 

"

There's a snippet at the end of first act. The acting is forced in both acts consistently. She was still better than what I expected, though I walked in Neil Simon having prepared for the worst.

[trpguyy]

Posted: 8/30/16 at 9:39pm

Sally Durant Plummer said: "This behavior would be unacceptable were she not d-list celebrity. My heart goes out to her, but perhaps she is simply not cut out for theatre."

I find this a little silly. So to recap, people on here make fun of the casting choice, saying Leona Lewis is not a draw and won't sell tickets. Then they delight in her mediocre reviews, which is fine. Then people act upset that she's missed a few shows, as if it's a big disappointment that she's out of the show. 

In reality, she and every other actor on Broadway are allowed sick days and personal days.

[Sally Durant Plummer]

Posted: 8/30/16 at 10:23pm

I just find it alarming that she has been out multiple times less than a month after the opening. It's normal to have a sick day here and there, but this seems a little more extreme. Obviously, I have no inside information, I am simply making a statement with the information available.

[trpguyy]

Posted: 8/30/16 at 10:46pm

Others in the company have missed as many or more performances. I don't find it alarming in any way. 

[evic]

Posted: 8/30/16 at 10:47pm

Maybe she hates the show as many people do and just cannot bare to go to the theater.

[Oak2]

Posted: 8/30/16 at 10:52pm

I love everything I've heard and seen about Cats, but honestly Leona Lewis's performance, even if it's as bad as people say, probably won't bother me. To be fair, that's probably because I don't consider "Memory" the highlight of the show while it seems that's what it is to most people - I can't stand most slow songs in general, so for me the highlight of the show is Magical Mr. Mistofflees, and the upbeat shows in general is what I enjoy. Since I don't like Memory in the first place it probably won't matter how well or bad it's being sung. As long as the upbeat numbers are done well, I'll still enjoy the show.

[Dancingthrulife2]

Posted: 8/30/16 at 11:02pm

Oak2 said: "I love everything I've heard and seen about Cats, but honestly Leona Lewis's performance, even if it's as bad as people say, probably won't bother me. To be fair, that's probably because I don't consider "Memory" the highlight of the show while it seems that's what it is to most people - I can't stand most slow songs in general, so for me the highlight of the show is Magical Mr. Mistofflees, and the upbeat shows in general is what I enjoy. Since I don't like Memory in the first place it probably won't matter how well or bad it's being sung. As long as the upbeat numbers are done well, I'll still enjoy the show.

 

"

I guess it depends on how you think of the show. To me and many others, it's a show that mirrors the human condition that's been right in front of us but we hardly bother to really change. Memory is the number that leads to the finale where the idea that every cat (human being) matters and deserves respect is stated clearly. So the number needs a genuinely moving and heartfelt performance for other cats' change of attitude to make sense and for the final message to come across. I think the reason Cats is made an ensemble show is just like Chorus Line, where everyone matters and has his or her or their irreplaceable story. Without this message that seeps through T.S. Eliot's poems, I don't see Cats as anything great except an enjoyable night out. 

Updated On: 8/30/16 at 11:02 PM

[Oak2]

Posted: 8/30/16 at 11:07pm

@Dancingthrulife2 - I get that. And I can appreciate the meaning of the song. That doesn't change the fact that I can't get into enjoying it - I'm autistic and have attention span problems, so it's just the type of song that tends to fail to catch my attention. I fully acknowledge that my lack of appreciation for it is entirely a me thing rather than anything to do with it, but it still doesn't change my own perspective of the show. 

And I'm fine with Cats as just an enjoyable night out, but I do enjoy hearing the stories of all the different Cats, and do agree with you on the main meaning of it in seeing differnet types of people, as with the original poems. Again, I can appreciate the deeper meanings of the show, but at the same time I'm also able to enjoy the show on the more base levels as well, and even if I can appreciate something doesn't mean I'll always be able to enjoy it.

[Sondheimtime]

Posted: 8/30/16 at 11:12pm

^ well said! 

[adamgreer]

Posted: 8/30/16 at 11:33pm

trpguyy said: "Others in the company have missed as many or more performances. I don't find it alarming in any way. 

 

Others in the company also do a significant amount of dancing, so it's to be expected they would be nursing injuries and whatnot. Miss Lewis doesn't dance, and is onstage for about 12 minutes. 

 

[trpguyy]

Posted: 8/30/16 at 11:41pm

adamgreer said: "trpguyy said: "Others in the company have missed as many or more performances. I don't find it alarming in any way. 

 

Others in the company also do a significant amount of dancing, so it's to be expected they would be nursing injuries and whatnot. Miss Lewis doesn't dance, and is onstage for about 12 minutes. "

I'll have to remember that next time one of my subordinates calls out of work. Only dancers get sick or injured. 

[BroadwayConcierge]

Posted: 8/30/16 at 11:41pm

Grizabella, though an immensely nuanced role to pull off well, does diddly-squat physically compared to the rest of the company. The proportion of absences shouldn't even be close.

[trpguyy]

Posted: 8/30/16 at 11:48pm

Why are you making a correlation between the demands of a role and attendance? There are a million reasons that someone would need to miss a show (or many shows) that have nothing to do with work.

[rangersrule132]

Posted: 8/31/16 at 8:30am

I would honestly be absolutely fine if she left this production. carrying a contract like hers is a waste of money when they can put Jessica Hendy in that role and she would be just as good if not better then Leona.

Another thing is that the rake is quite extreme, I did not expect it. It just makes the jellicle ball even more beautiful then it already is!

[Oak2]

Posted: 8/31/16 at 8:35am

"Another thing is that the rake is quite extreme, I did not expect it. It just makes the jellicle ball even more beautiful then it already is"

What does this mean? I am not being sarcastic, I genuinely don't know what the "rake" means in this case. I"m glad if it improves the show, though. 

[nolanativeny]

Posted: 8/31/16 at 8:45am

Oak2 said: ""Another thing is that the rake is quite extreme, I did not expect it. It just makes the jellicle ball even more beautiful then it already is"

What does this mean? I am not being sarcastic, I genuinely don't know what the "rake" means in this case. I"m glad if it improves the show, though. 

 

"

It's referring to the angle at which the stage is tilted toward the audience.