Melissa Errico

[touchmeinthemorning]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 11:22am

Anyone else think she's AMAZINGLY overrated?

Could someone give me specifics as to why she gets cast in things?

By specifics, I don't mean "cause her voice is pretty" or "her acting is good"...what is pretty about her voice? what does she bring to the table that a million New York City actors dont do just as well if not better than her?

Right now, i've only got one: she has good boobs, and isn't afraid to show them.

[BobbyBubby]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 11:33am

It's hard for me to find her overrated after just listening to her glorious work on the Finian's Rainbow recording.

MEF can shed more light on Ms. Errico's charms.
Updated On: 9/7/05 at 11:33 AM

[Garland Grrrl]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 11:45am

in a review of her live show, sometime in thelast year and a half, stephen holden of the new york times basically said that ms. errico is incapable of registering human emotion or anything resembling it and that her patter revealed a state of detached entitlement.
ouch.

[touchmeinthemorning]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 11:45am

What does she do that is so amazing on Finian's Rainbow?

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 11:53am

I'm not really a huge fan of Melissa's work. Though she is talented -- and a true triple threat (most people don't know she's a pretty fierce dancer) I find her a very distant performer. The "emotionally detached" description seems like a good description to me, though obviously she has her fans on this board and elsewhere.

[BobbyBubby]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 11:54am

It's hard for me to explain. Her voice just fits on the music so well, and pushes so much natural emotion through.

[WonderBoy]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 11:55am

Agreed. I love her voice but I've yet to feel her emotions let alone really see them on stage. And yes, Michael Bennett is correct, she is a pretty good dancer as well.

[BobbyBubby]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 11:59am

I used to find her bland, but she redeamed herself, at least vocally on Amour and Finian's Rainbow.

And does she sometimes sound like Judy Kuhn, or is that just me?

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 12:01pm

She doesn't have any of Judy Kuhn's vulnerability though. Anyone who wants to see an amazing performance should check out the video of CHESS at Lincoln Center Library. Judy Kuhn is amazing in it, and devestating in the final scene.

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 12:05pm

"ms. errico is incapable of registering human emotion or anything resembling it and that her patter revealed a state of detached entitlement."

Wow. That's EXACTLY how I'd describe her performance as Dot in the Kennedy Center Sunday in the Park. Her performance was so cold and authoritative and devoid of emotion that the character made no sense.

[Born2cthelightsofbway]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 12:10pm

Melissa Errico is talented and has a nice voice, but IMO, it is nothing special. However, she is incredibley sweet, and nice to work with it, so maybe that has something to do with it.

[touchmeinthemorning]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 12:19pm

Exactly, Margo. Having seen that performance, too, I agree 100%...she had big shoes to fill (doing a role Ms. Peters made famous), and the only thing she even remotely made her own was a nude scene added to the show.

Her voice has never been anything that any number of New York legit female singers couldn't match and exceed with ease.

And, I have heard many a horror story of working with her. Perhaps they are just stories, but something tells me that if she is detached onstage, it is because there is a better drama she is acting out off stage.

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 12:21pm

Totally off subject, but did anyone see Audra do SUNDAY at the Ravinia Festival?

[redhotinnyc2]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 12:26pm

I'm right there with Margo on this one. I saw that production of Sunday at the Kennedy center and, having done the national tour, was expecting great things (and I was not dissappointed in the overall production, as a matter of fact, I really liked the way they handled the Chromolume)...but Erico was just as cold as ice. I think she has a beautiful voice and is a great looking woman, but I've yet to see or even hear her emote during a performance - I'm always aware of technique when I watch her.

[melissa errico fan]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 12:58pm

Melissa overrated? Seriously, I say this not as her biggest fan but as a plain old theatregoer: If anything, she's underrated.

[touchmeinthemorning]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 1:00pm

I knew we'd get you on this thread, MEfan!

What is it about her (be specific)...I just don't get it, and I want to know what her fans love about her?

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 1:03pm

Perhaps her detachment and utter lack of vulnerability might work well in certain roles, but most of the time, it makes her just come off as an ice princess.

[melissa errico fan]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 1:03pm

Since I'm only on my lunch break, and I want to read more of the board, I'll keep this short, but I promise to give a longer, more detailed response later.

I've never really been sure why Melissa speaks to me in a way that very few performers have. From the first time I discovered her, I was hooked. The way that her voice interprets and totally envelopes a song is mesmerizing, IMO, and sometimes it feels like she's singing only to you. I also feel that she is a totally capable actress and, as MB said, an awesome dancer, although her dancing skills are rarely tapped.

Funny, I thought Dot was her best performance ever. Go figure.

[muscle23ftl]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 1:07pm

she was great in "Dracula".

[WonderBoy]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 1:10pm

Too me she is like Linda Eder. She has a beautiful voice and emotion comes through vocally but nothing shows physically. Capisco?

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 1:12pm

Her Dot was so completely in control and calculating and teeming with intelligence and poise, I couldn't believe for a second she was illiterate or needed any tips on modeling or anything else from George. She so dominated him, you began to wonder why she was bothering hanging around such a loser. Was she slumming? Was it just the sex? Her carriage and attitude exuded zero weakness or helplessnes. She didn't need George or Louie or anyone else. She seemed like she should be off running a bank or something somewhere.

You don't have to do a carbon copy of Peters' performance to be a succesful Dot, but for chrissakes, Dot can't come off as well-educated, stronger, smarter and more powerful than George for the show to work. And again, there wasn't an ounce of vulnerability or dependence or regret in Errico's Dot at the end of Act I, which threw the whole show out of whack.

Updated On: 9/7/05 at 01:12 PM

[WonderBoy]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 1:15pm

Preach it Margo!

[SayWhyNot]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 1:40pm

Overated? I agree with Errico Fan. I can still remember being moved to tears by her "I could've danced all night." Having heard it only on the OBC prior to seeing it in the Chamberlain tour, I could not believe the kind of emotion that she could muster -- of course, her instrument, able to sustain the kinds of notes in that song, was a revelation. She'll always be underated in my book.