Neil Patrick Harris Appreciation Thread

I'm continually surprised at how much NPH disdain I see on here, and how some people seem to delegitimize Neil's performance in Hedwig because the O.G. JCM came later in the run. I'm not sure how many people understand that this entire production would literally have never have happened if it weren't for Neil. The show's producers waited years for his schedule to allow him to do the show. Not only that, but once he committed to the role, he took home the Drama Desk, the Tony, and earned the freaking Drama League Distinguished Performance Award. He deserves so much more than "I didn't see Hedwig, I saw Neil Patrick Harris in drag."

Sorry not sorry.

Updated On: 8/24/15 at 01:03 PM

I don't think he was a bad Hedwig at all; he clearly put in a lot of work into the role, and it paid off onstage. Plus, it's important to note that without him, this production very much would not have happened. He understood the role just fine, but being a performer that leans more towards comedy, NPH twisted things a tiny bit and decided to focus a bit more on the comedic side of the show than the serious one. Is this a bad thing? The beautiful thing about Hedwig is that it all boils down to each audience member's personal preferences. For some people NPH's choices worked, and for others, not so much.

Now, was NPH my favorite? No. I actually thought that Darren Criss did a better job, and JCM is...well, JCM, who is very hard to beat. (I haven't watched the others in their entirety yet, so I can't compare NPH to them fairly.) But again, it all boils down to preference, and NPH still did great in his own way.

Updated On: 8/24/15 at 01:21 PM

I am 99.99% certain that NPH doesn't give a crap about some hate from anomalous posters on a message board. He got everything that an actor could possibly want from a job during Hedwig; many awards, seamless employment after his sitcom with likely a great salary and an artistry challenging role which allowed him to showcase a range that people may not have thought that he had before.

Updated On: 8/24/15 at 01:21 PM

I seem to remember scrolling through the "Hedwig Previews" thread at the time, and seeing a LOT of support and love for his performance. I think there are lots of people out there who love him, and who appreciated his performance, but generally those people aren't the ones who keep bringing up their opinions over a year later.

As someone who is not a huge fan of Hedwig as a show (though it's beginning to grow on me), I definitely enjoyed NPH's performance more than I did the musical itself.

I also feel like adding, given the title of the thread:

I think his performance as Bobby in Company is very underrated. I've seen the video of Raúl, and a few other Bobbys (bootlegs, regionals, etc), and I think NPH might be my favorite. Among other reasons, I think the charm that he's brought to the role was essential to the character.

I saw him and I thought he did a fantastic job. I think it's quite unfair to compare any other actors to JCM due to the fact that he is the creator of the character.

This production would not have happened without Neil's involvement and I am sure that JCM is grateful to him for that.

I saw every HEDWIG on Broadway except for Andrew Rannells and I thought each one brought something interesting and different to the show and to the character. The only one who was sorely lacking in engaging me was Taye Diggs.

But back to Neil - there are a lot of people, especially gay men who are jealous of his success and the family he has built with his husband David Burtka. They just cannot stand that he is happy and successful.

Too bad for them.

Updated On: 8/24/15 at 01:35 PM

"But back to Neil - there are a lot of people, especially gay men who are jealous of his success and the family he has built with his husband David Burtka. They just cannot stand that he is happy and successful. Too bad for them."

I see your point Carlos. For me it kind of all crossed the line when there was a huge billboard here in LA with the two of them which was touting David as some celebrity we all should know and respect. I can't remember what it was for now.. but I think a pic of it is in some other thread. Around that same time that Architectural digest spread came out and it all had a air of pretentiousness. ( at least for me) . Then add to all that the epic failure that was the oscars and all yenta tongues went loose. Oh and Davids early departure from the broadway show ( after so publicly commenting that they were moving back to NYC so that David can resume his broadway career) and then posting pics on instagram of them vacationing making it obvious there was nothing wrong with him.... the whole thing felt kind of snotty to me. It just didn't sit well. Both Neil and David are super talented and I can't wait to see what is next. But..

"

Updated On: 8/24/15 at 01:42 PM

skies said: "CarlosAlberto said: "But back to Neil - there are a lot of people, especially gay men who are jealous of his success and the family he has built with his husband David Burtka. They just cannot stand that he is happy and successful.Too bad for them."

Why especially gay men?

In my experience I have found them to be especially hard and critical of him.

Updated On: 8/24/15 at 01:46 PM

I really, really loved Neil in COMPANY. I think he did a fantastic job in the role.

What's interesting about Neil is that he is in an enviable position that Rock Hudson, Montgomery Clift, Anthony Perkins,et al were not in because of the times. He's able to be openly gay and live his life out loud and proud and still be accepted playing a straight man by the general public.

Updated On: 8/24/15 at 01:52 PM

I believe this one of the billboards in West Hollywood everyone at the time was rolling their eyes at. It may not seem like much now. But it was overkill at the time.

Updated On: 8/24/15 at 01:55 PM

SmokeyLady said: "I believe this one of the billboards in West Hollywood everyone at the time was rolling their eyes at. It may not seem like much now. But it was overkill at the time.

People rolled their eyed over an ad for London Fog? SMDH.

Petty.

haterobics said: "So if we didn't care for him as Hedwig, but liked him in Company, can we be forgiven?

There's nothing to forgive. You are entitled to your opinion.

"