I worked at the FSC in Toronto during the last 2 weeks of the run. Yes, her voice was shot. Yes, she sounded tired. But she pushed through and gave an incredible performance. Nuanced and honest. There were days you could tell she was vocally tired wouldn't push as much but she was still amazing. For the 2 weeks, she missed two shows. And bless her understudy, Pearl Sun. She sounded great (and healthy!) but for me (IMO) I preferred Alice. She let Diana have a sense of humor about her illness which Pearl dealt with rather dryly. Just my taste, I guess.
And it would be a strange thing. People came because they heard that Alice Ripley was a "Tony Winner" and on the two shows she missed, people were outraged that she called out. And a handful (not many, but some) people would complain when she did perform, saying her voice was shot and she should have called out. She really couldn't win with some people.
To me, it's an iffy thing. She wasn't in top vocal form, but she gave an incredible performance all the same. The closing night is something I will always remember. The house was full of fans of the show, of Alice, and people who had no idea who the hell Alice Ripley or what this show was about. And they responded so incredibly to it. All of them.
I hope she manages to rest up and get her voice nice and strong.
Updated On: 6/17/12 at 07:19 PM