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Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A "Difficult" Reputation

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#1

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A "Difficult" Reputation

Posted: 4/26/18 at 5:26am

Actually, the author of this article used a more colorful word to describe hiring a person with a difficult reputation. Even before I read the article, the first person who popped into my mind was Lea Michele. http://www.onstageblog.com/editorals/2018/4/15/casting-asshole-actors-at-your-own-risk

"Noel [Coward] and I were in Paris once. Adjoining rooms, of course. One night, I felt mischievous, so I knocked on Noel's door, and he asked, 'Who is it?' I lowered my voice and said 'Hotel detective. Have you got a gentleman in your room?' He answered, 'Just a minute, I'll ask him.'" (Beatrice Lillie)

#2

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A "Difficult" Reputation

Posted: 4/26/18 at 5:55am

Boy, that blog post says a whole lotta nothing new.

If we're not having fun, then why are we doing it? These are DISCUSSION boards, not mutual admiration boards. Discussion only occurs when we are willing to hear what others are thinking, regardless of whether it is alignment to our own thoughts.

#3

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A

Posted: 4/26/18 at 6:58am

i saw the title of this thread and thought of Lea Michele. why will no one cast her? could she really be that difficult?

edit; also that blog is terrible

"Contentment, it seems, simply happens. It appears accompanied by no bravos and no tears."

Updated On: 4/26/18 at 06:58 AM

#4

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A "Difficult" Reputation

Posted: 4/26/18 at 7:01am

dramamama611 said: "Boy, that blog post says a whole lotta nothing new."

My thoughts exactly.

"You travel alone because other people are only there to remind you how much that hook hurts that we all bit down on. Wait for that one day we can bite free and get back out there in space where we belong, sail back over water, over skies, into space, the hook finally out of our mouths and we wander back out there in space spawning to other planets never to return hurrah to earth and we'll look back and can't even see these lives here anymore. Only the taste of blood to remind us we ever existed. The earth is small. We're gone. We're dead. We're safe." -John Guare, Landscape of the Body

#5

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A "Difficult" Reputation

Posted: 4/26/18 at 7:47am

Ya'll I thought they were going to drop names. What's even the point of this article otherwise?

#6

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A

Posted: 4/26/18 at 8:02am

"I've never met a director who made up a story to falsely depict an actor's behavior".

Oh you have. You just don't know it.

I have seen so many situations of an actor being worked out of a professional show for not replying the advances of a director, the advances of friends of a director that are in the show too and often have dinner with that director, another friend of the director wanting to claim a certain actor's spot, and thus "creating a spot", etc, etc. Literally, I have seen a situation where the most trustworthy, kind, reliable actor I know was worked out of a show because of this, the musical director and producer (friends) literally claiming that he was unreliable and did not show up before a rehearsal while he was there, fully prepared, first person in the building. That's what he thought at least. He walked in on the musical director screwing an ensemble girl in the wings and while he was very discrete about it, the next day he was called into the office and fired due to "artistic differences". There is a whole lot more going on in the business than this author suggests and understands.

Updated On: 4/26/18 at 08:02 AM

#7

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A

Posted: 4/26/18 at 10:04am

There's so much about OnstageBlog I want to like, but man do they need an(other) editor.

"This thread reads like a series of White House memos." — Mister Matt

#8

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A

Posted: 4/26/18 at 10:26am

And some more interesting writers. They never cover anything in any kind of depth; it's all too broad and general. At least have some stories that hold ****in' attention if you're gonna write like that, or at least something more dramatic than "One time I told a casting director that what they'd heard from other people about an actor was true."

Formerly gvendo2005
Broadway Legend
joined: 5/1/05

Blocked: After Eight, suestorm, david_fick, emlodik, lovebwy, Dave28282, joevitus, BorisTomashevsky, Seb28

#9

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A

Posted: 4/26/18 at 11:29am

This blog is trash and that "writer" is a joke

#10

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A

Posted: 4/26/18 at 11:33am

Peterson claims to be a champion of theater while doing everything in his power to antagonize and destroy it. He deletes comments that don't agree with his point of view and to top it all off, his "articles" are just poorly written.

#11

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A

Posted: 4/26/18 at 11:47am

GeorgeandDot said: "Ya'll I thought they were going to drop names. What's even the point of this article otherwise?"

Well they said that this male actor quit the production just before tech week and it was a couple of years ago so 2016. What are the options?

#12

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A

Posted: 4/26/18 at 12:06pm

Sunny11 said: "GeorgeandDot said: "Ya'll I thought they were going to drop names. What's even the point of this article otherwise?"

Well they said that this male actor quit the production just before tech week and it was a couple of years ago so 2016. What are the options?"

Who knows where the production even was? Yeah - that was a whole lot of nothing. Fortunately, it was a very short blog entry.

#13

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A

Posted: 4/26/18 at 12:08pm

From the article:

"I went onto explain how this actor would inevitably become a disruption in the rehearsal process because, to put it bluntly, he was an a$$hole. "

When someone says somehing like that to me about a colleague, they've just informed me that they are the person I need to keep an eye on. A statement like that sounds personal, like they have a bone to pick with the "difficult actor". A person giving that kind of advice, is, at best, undiplomatic and indiscrete, and at worst spreading malicious gossip about someone they have it in for.

Either way, they are actively attempting to sabotage another's career. It's unprofessional and petty.

#14

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A

Posted: 4/26/18 at 12:13pm

To be fair, I could be wrong but I thought the article said that the person had already heard negative things about this actor and was looking for input from the author. Having said that, it is kind of ****ty to put it in such blunt terms.

Formerly gvendo2005
Broadway Legend
joined: 5/1/05

Blocked: After Eight, suestorm, david_fick, emlodik, lovebwy, Dave28282, joevitus, BorisTomashevsky, Seb28

#15

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A

Posted: 4/26/18 at 12:44pm

I’ve always found this blog to be sloppy and erroneous. Also, the content/tone gives me the impression the writer cares way more about getting traffic and attention than reporting anything helpful or truly insightful. To be honest, I’ve wondered if Onstage blog makes threads on here about their own articles just to stir the pot and get attention (not implying this one is). I think Peterson’s “reporting” (really just blogging) is often toxic, catty, and has gaping holes - and am relieved if others feel the same or similar. I find far more desperation in the writing than I do integrity.

Updated On: 4/26/18 at 12:44 PM

#16

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A

Posted: 4/26/18 at 12:48pm

You are correct, g.d.e.l.g.i. The article says:

"I had worked with [the actor] previously and [the director] had heard some unpleasant things about his reputation and wanted some input.

'I would advise you not casting him,' I said.

'Really? Are you sure?' she replied.

...but that exchange simply doesn't ring true. If the director had already heard "some unpleasant things" about the actor, why on earth would she respond with apparent incredulity: "Really? Are you sure?" when advised to to hire him?

In any case, if you truly think an actor is a problem, you don't just say, "He's an a$$hole, don't hire him" - if you must, you explain why you think he's a bad bet and cites examples of previous behavior of your own personal knowledge, not hearsay. Frankly, I would avoid even that. It pays to be circumspect in this business. It's a very small world, and you never know who knows who. I had someone warn me at length about how difficult a particular actor was. I listened, nodded and thanked them for the information they had given me.

I never told them that the actor they had been bad-mouthing was a close personal friend of mine, and now I knew that the person spinning that tale was an untrustworthy liar. I kept that information to myself.

Updated On: 4/26/18 at 12:48 PM

#17

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A

Posted: 4/26/18 at 1:00pm

I've never met a director who made up a story to falsely depict an actor's behavior. So if you're warned to stay away from casting a certain actor, you should heed that advice.

He's not a [director], but this is literally the way that Harvey Weinstein operated, by allegedly falsely depicting the behaviors of actresses who wouldn't sleep with him. Ask Mira Sorvino, Ashley Judd, et al.

If you're warned away from casting a certain actor I would question who is giving the warning, and why.

#18

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A

Posted: 4/26/18 at 1:35pm

There's another interesting discussion about this blog on ATC. Again, sorry that my ad blockers don't make this clickable:
https://www.talkinbroadway.com/allthatchat_new/d.php?id=2418311

"This thread reads like a series of White House memos." — Mister Matt

#19

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A

Posted: 4/26/18 at 2:56pm

I mean, sometimes someone IS awful/unreliable/etc and that is good information to know. However, I think it pays to be generous, and be specific. What's a dealbreaker for you may not be for someone else.

"So and so showed up late to multiple rehearsals" is something I can live with if I'm keen on an actor, I can work around that. "So and so made fun of another actor when she was affected by an intense scene" would be more of a dealbreaker for me (but again, moreso if I'm doing a drama vs a comedy).

I'd never say 'don't case someone', but I'd probably say "This is the experience I had with this actor. This is a suggestion of an environment in which I think they would be more successful. I would/would not/would hesitate to work with them again." and make it clear that was my thoughts and they were free to make their own decision. It's good to be generous - maybe they've changed, sobered up, gotta out of a toxic relationship, become more responsible. The guy who blew off your show at 22 may be a very different person at 30. Be honest but generous.

#20

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A

Posted: 4/27/18 at 4:33pm

I had never heard of Chris Peterson and his blog before. LizzyCurry's link regarding Javier Muñoz is eye-opening. Muñoz doesn't look great, but given the way Peterson seems comfortable trashing performers, Peterson looks worse.

#21

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A

Posted: 4/27/18 at 5:46pm

seymour krelborn said: "Peterson claims to be a champion of theater while doing everything in his power to antagonize and destroy it. He deletes comments that don't agree with his point of view and to top it all off, his "articles" are just poorly written."

Yes. He is thin-skinned and shady. A while back, he tried to get me to write for him (for free -- that was a hard pass). Then after I (cordially) disagreed with something he wrote, he deleted my comments and blocked me from the OnStage Facebook page. I've heard similar stories from other people. He seems like the worst kind of pushy and entitled theater "fan".

"You travel alone because other people are only there to remind you how much that hook hurts that we all bit down on. Wait for that one day we can bite free and get back out there in space where we belong, sail back over water, over skies, into space, the hook finally out of our mouths and we wander back out there in space spawning to other planets never to return hurrah to earth and we'll look back and can't even see these lives here anymore. Only the taste of blood to remind us we ever existed. The earth is small. We're gone. We're dead. We're safe." -John Guare, Landscape of the Body

#22

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A

Posted: 4/27/18 at 6:01pm

It depends on the director. Some directors subscribe to the Phil Jackson philosophy of thriving with very difficult personalities. If there were no Phil Jacksons in the world there would be no Shaq/Kobe or MJ/Pippen/Rodman.

#23

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A

Posted: 4/27/18 at 9:18pm

As others have said, the "blog" is a joke and the writer of it is a jerk. He is on some kind of weird power trip, with his "exposes" of the casting director or whoever he was, and then kind of stalking Javiar Munoz. I won't even give this nerd the click anymore.

#24

Onstage Blog: Casting Actors With A

Posted: 4/27/18 at 9:53pm

I read this and thought - “Most of the original cast of Hamilton”.

"Broadway...I'll lick you yet!"

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