Nick Jonas & Michael Urie in HOW TO SUCCEED... Thoughts?- Page 5

[Gaveston2]

Posted: 1/6/12 at 8:26pm

Criss sounds okay compared to Radcliffe, especially considering the short rehearsal time for Criss.

They both sound thin and weak compared to Robert Morse. Who wasn't actually a "singer", BTW, but was one of the funniest men I ever saw on a stage. (I saw him in SUGAR, not HOW TO SUCCEED.)

[willep]

Posted: 1/6/12 at 8:37pm

I feel like the lack of rehearsal excuse is, well, just that...and excuse. The rehearsal period is simply for learning the blocking, choreo, etc. It has nothing to do with how he sounds. As someone who sings professionally for a living and has known for months that he would be doing this, he has had lots of time to work on it. He just isn't a musical singer...he is a pop singer. It will be the same when Jonas comes.

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 1/6/12 at 8:37pm

How many times are Criss' fan-attics gonna say " yeah, he doesn't have a Broadway voice"? And if he agrees and "wishes" he had a Broadway voice, What the hell is he doing on Broadway?

Lea is gonna give him hell when he returns to set.

[Borstalboy]

Posted: 1/6/12 at 8:42pm

Am I completely off my rocker or would Aiken actually be a pretty good fit for this role?

And what happened to the Claymates, anyway? Did they ALL abandon their God after Clay came out??

[strummergirl]

Posted: 1/6/12 at 8:49pm

"Lea is gonna give him hell when he returns to set."

Presumably, this is just another day on set.

[blaxx]

Posted: 1/6/12 at 9:06pm

Am I completely off my rocker or would Aiken actually be a pretty good fit for this role?

You're completely off your rocker.

[jsg03jd]

Posted: 1/6/12 at 10:08pm

"I don't think BWW would be happy with me posting the link, but there's audio of Darren singing 'Brotherhood of Man' up on youtube. It sounds like they've reverted the number back to it's original key and Darren sounds incredibly nervous."

How so? Was it transposed down or up for Daniel Radcliffe?

[willep]

Posted: 1/6/12 at 11:17pm

Saw this comment on the youtube video and just about died from laughing, thought people here would enjoy:

"...I saw him opening night, and the reviews I saw were all positive. In fact, his performance during rehearsal was so perfect that they made him change it to make him look less perfect. It said so in the NY Times because the director thought 'his character should lack finesse'. They kept him from being perfect about everything. If he wasn't asked to do so, absolutely everything would have been spot-on, 100%."

[perfectlymarvelous]

Posted: 1/6/12 at 11:21pm

jsg03jd, I don't have perfect pitch, but I just listened to Criss and then the cast recording with Radcliffe, and it sounds like they transposed "Brotherhood of Man" down at least a step (if not more) for Radcliffe. Someone who is better with that sort of thing can probably tell you more definitely, but the song was definitely lowered...I'm not sure why they took it back up for Criss.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 1/6/12 at 11:24pm

I just listened to that clip. Holy God, that's bad. I guess the autotuners over at GLEE really are miracle workers.

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 1/7/12 at 12:09am

Just listened to the audio:
"Remember mediocrity is not a mortal sin"
Has never been truer.

[DAME]

Posted: 1/7/12 at 12:14am

What would be a good way to find it?

[ACL2006]

Posted: 1/7/12 at 12:29am

That was bad. You can tell he's nervous, but there's no projection at all. And all those comments are off the wall. These "Glee" fans have no clue what real Broadway singers sound like.

[theatrefreak0109]

Posted: 1/7/12 at 12:31am

i found his I Believe in You and wow it is bad just search it on youtube and you can find it. he lacks any confidence in his voice, really disappointing i didn't expect him to be perfect but this is just bad.

[emida]

Posted: 1/7/12 at 12:48am

Youtube. It's very easy to find. I didn't think Darren was that bad, honestly. I was more annoyed by Bridges. His voice isn't the greatest, but I find it less worse than I thought it would be.

It did however made up my mind to go see another show when I'll be in NY next week... It's not that Darren sounds bad, I just don't think I'll like his portrayal of Finch. He sounds too much like Blaine (his character in Glee) and I always thought his character lacked personality.

I know lots of people are bringing up the rehearsal time argument, but seriously... the singing part shouldn't be a problem for Darren. He is singing almost every week in Glee (autotuned most of the time, but still...) and Daniel Radcliffe had no prior singing experience. He is supposed to sing better than Radcliffe. Having heard live audios of both actors, he isn't singing the role better. I think Radcliffe is just better suited for the role in the end. I find it weird that Darren acknowledges that he doesn't have the voice for Broadway... then why is he doing a broadway show? I just don't get it...

EDIT : Scratch that... it is as bad as people are saying... His I Believe In You is so boring... There's no emotion at all. It's like he's reciting the phonebooth. The more I become acquainted with his roles, the more I'm thinking that he's just not a good actor. I'm sure he's talented. He can sing, dance and write songs, but he's a pretty bad actor. That's the real problem...
Updated On: 1/7/12 at 12:48 AM

[pitfever]

Posted: 1/7/12 at 1:05am

To say that he's been autotuned on Glee is ridiculous. I have seen him live performance, and he sounded great singing live.

So what's wrong for him to say that he doesn't have a Broadway voice? That's a fact. And I don't think How to Succeed needs a Broadway voice. From the Broadway.com interview, he mentioned that there are some musicals he would not touch because he knew he couldn't do them. I thought the whole interview was great.

I don't think he sounds that bad either. I also know some people here (a few of you, and you know who you are) have nothing but trying any chance to bash him however they can.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 1/7/12 at 1:24am

"So what's wrong for him to say that he doesn't have a Broadway voice?"

Um...The fact that he's on Broadway?

[emida]

Posted: 1/7/12 at 1:28am

Actually, it's not ridiculous to say he's been autotuned. It doesn't mean he's not a good singer. All the actors in Glee are autotuned in a lot of songs, even Lea Michele.

I am not saying that he's not a good singer. I have also heard him sing live and I like his voice. All I'm saying is that this role isn't suited for him vocally. That's my opinion, though.

There's nothing wrong with not having a broadway voice, but when you're doing a broadway show with that much background and it's considered a classic, you have to accept that some people are going to complain. It seems like he's taking the critics very well, so good for him.

[blaxx]

Posted: 1/7/12 at 4:59am

I am not saying that he's not a good singer.

I am! Just listened to Brotherhood of Men - yikes! Mediocre is too kind. He couldn't hold a note, even if it was in self defense. And when he tried he went really off key. It sounded like someone from the Bad High School Productions thread.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 1/7/12 at 5:55am

Nobody is out to get Criss. Most people thought it was pretty good casting. If what they saw was worthy, they'd be singing it from the hills like nobody's business.

I find it funny that PitFever claims that people are just trashing him for the sake of trashing him -- aren't you just defending him because you are a Gleek? Sure seems that way.

Trust me, Criss doesn't need defending, he's a big boy. He has bitten on more than he can autotune.

[everythingtaboo]

Posted: 1/7/12 at 10:50am

You know, he's only in the show for three weeks. Shouldn't you guys be saving your energy to trash Nick Jonas for five months?

But seriously, who would be good "star" names of a similar age/type to bring into this production? (Not the role, but this production?)

Sure, Criss may not be the best fit, but isn't it a crap shoot? I mean, how lucky were we that DanRad worked out?

[DRSisLove]

Posted: 1/7/12 at 10:59am

From what I've heard, it sounds like he's giving an excellent performance, if I were to see this show at a high school, or community theater. It's not *terrible* but it really just isn't anything spectacular.

[ACL2006]

Posted: 1/7/12 at 11:34am

I wouldn't be suprised if Criss returns in the summer after Nick's run for anywhere from 3-8 more weeks depending on the "Glee" schedule.

[Actor2]

Posted: 1/7/12 at 11:44am

Um...objectively speaking, I think he sounds really good on that recording.

[darquegk]

Posted: 1/7/12 at 6:55pm

Neil Patrick Harris would be fun, but a bit old now, at least with this production emphasizing Finch as a young man clearly out of his element.