Most Vocally Demanding Roles- Page 4

[Lot666]

Posted: 9/25/18 at 8:03am

Snakeskin said: "I see a lot of people saying Eva Peron and Sweeney Todd and this confuses me because the most famous actors filling those roles was Madonna and Johnny Depp. Clearly you do not even need to be a good singer to be cast in these roles."

Those actors played the roles in movie versions of the respective shows, which does not mean they were well-cast from a vocal perspective; they were cast because their names are box office draws. The fact that Russell Crowe, who is a weak singer at best, was cast as Javert in the film version of Les Miserables does not mean that Javert is not a vocally demanding role; it just means that they wanted a Hollywood actor. Same with Gerard Butler in the film version of Phantom of the Opera.

[HanonO]

Posted: 9/26/18 at 5:18am

Snakeskin said: "I see a lot of people saying Eva Peron and Sweeney Todd and this confuses mebecause the most famous actors filling those roles was Madonna and Johnny Depp. Clearly you do not even need to be a good singer to be cast in these roles."



Honestly, if you've not seen Evita or Sweeney Todd performed on stage as written, I think I can understand that people might think they aren't vocally demanding roles. Eva requires vocals of steel (I believe it was the show that established required alternates for matinees so nobody ever had to sing it twice in a day), but Madonna sang in lower keys in the movie. Evita is almost a vocal stunt show, and if she's not going to aim for the roof, there's not really a point in doing it at all.

Sweeney's music is not incredibly high, but is demanding and intricate and runs through layers of intensity that make it a bit more conducive for an "actor who sings." Depp mostly mumbled his way through the score. Helena Bonham Carter approached her music as if she were feather dusting the piano and occasionally humming along.

Simplifying the music in those shows to accommodate a mediocre singer is like putting on a circus with the high-wire on the ground and a children's swingset for the trapeze artists.

Compare:

Johnny Depp: https://youtu.be/g5O9yLhEuTs - notice how intense and angry the orchestration is and Depp kind of warbles along. He yells a lot, but when he sings his acting drops out.

Michael Ball: https://youtu.be/quctDawu_bo - I have never seen this one before now, but it gave me chills three separate times.

Updated On: 9/26/18 at 05:18 AM

[theaterwiz414]

Posted: 9/26/18 at 8:24am

As far as current running shows go, would you say Regina George is vocally demanding? 

[7thbighero]

Posted: 9/26/18 at 8:31am

I’m surprised no one has mentioned Diana Goodman. Now THAT is a vocal marathon

Updated On: 9/26/18 at 08:31 AM

[Sebastian R Twohey-Jacobs]

Posted: 6/2/19 at 11:19am

To problem with Anatole is that his vocals are written for a person with a strong head voice, and 'For Petersburg' is only a C5, which is a cake walk for most male singers regardless of vocal type. The end of Letters is slightly more difficult as it requires a heady mix or strong head voice to an E. But it is for sure more difficult to belt consistent Bb4 than flip in to head voice for a few high notes.