New HAIR Broadway Cast to Be Announced on Tuesday — Page 5

Nicole Lewis is a Dionne understudy as well.

IfYouCan, Nicole hasn't covered Dionne since the show was in the park.

Even then, her and Saycon Sengbloh actually split the track. When Patina Miller was out, Saycon would sing "Aquarius" and the solo lines in "Ain't Got No" and Nicole would sing the lead in "White Boys."

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Updated On: 2/20/10 at 01:06 AM

adamgreer, I think Kate Rockwell is inheriting the ensemble track currently occupied by Jackie Burns that covers both Sheila and Jeanie.

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I went back and checked my Playbill from last week and noticed that you're right about Nicole now covering Dionne. My mistake.

It's strange to me that she started out the Broadway run without understudying anyone and now covers the two biggest female principal roles in the show. Since she covered Dionne in the park and didn't continue to do so once the show moved, I figured there was a reason for that (since she'd gone on previously.) Was Chasten really that bad?

In regards to the track structure, I think the same groups of roles will be covered by one person, but not necessarily in the same specific track as was used originally. For example, while Kate Rockwell is most likely covering Jeanie and Sheila like Jackie Burns does now, she may not be following the logistics of Jackie's actual track.

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Updated On: 2/20/10 at 02:32 AM

Was Chasten really that bad?

That's what I'm wondering. Chasten has only gotten to perform the role, I believe, 1.5 or 2.5 times. She went on mid-show picking up after KRYSTAL dropped out mid-show. I don't know how they can expect her to have a fully fleshed-out, brilliant performance when she has only gone on mid-show and one or two times after that. They should have given the girl a fair shot and let her go on a few days during Sasha's vacation so that she could have worked on her characterization and really been the best she could be. I just feel like it's such a waste of what Chasten can do, she's a very talented girl and if she's "understudying" Dionne but will never go on, I don't see the point in wasting her time.

It is weird about Nicole, and altogether very shocking, that the producers apparently hated her Sheila the first time she went on, yet now she's understudying the two lead females and is actually getting a fair bit of time in each role. From what I've heard of her Dionne, it's really not pleasant at all. Ah, well.

I agree with you about the tribe tracks, and if Kate Rockwell does end up being a Sheila/Jeanie understudy, I would be very interested to see what she does with both, but especially Jeanie.