Original Broadway Casts

Hi All. Was curious to find out if anyone knows what the longest shows are that the Original Broadway Cast stayed with a show. I just read that John Lloyd Young had done another 6 month extension and I think that brings him and the rest of the principal cast up to almost 2 years. Do O.B.C. members usually stay that long?

Ethel Merman played the entire run of the shows she originated.

do you mean the entire OBC or just certain members?
Anthony Rapp stayed w/Rent from 96-98 and then did the West End production

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Updated On: 4/25/07 at 08:58 AM

Bill Nabel has been with Beauty and the Beast for all of its run, and there was a women who did Cats for all of its run. Are there still any Phantom OBC performing? It's usually ensemble members who are able to do this kind of thing because of the kind of contract they are on.

Michelle Federer was the longest remaining original cast memeber in WICKED - about 3 years.

Beauty & Beast OBC - about a year before most of them opened the LA Production.

Tom Alan Robbins is the only member of the original Broadway cast of the musical to continue to play his role as Pumbaa

The guys who play Andre and Firmin in Phantom, have been there since it has opened.

Well Jeff Keller left Sept 05, but George Lee Andrews is still there. In fact that's what their Easter Bonnet skit was about yesterday, "The Longest Running Actor on Broadway."

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A number of stars of that "Golden" era Mary Martin, Carol Channing, John Raitt and Alfred Drake seldom missed performances. Gwen Verdon missed some of REDHEAD due to an injury and began cutting songs at matinees of SWEET CHARITY.

The myth persists that Ethel Merman never left a show and never missed a performance. She did leave ANYTHING GOES before it closed to go to Hollywood to make the (very unfaithful) film version. She left PANAMA HATTIE (she was pregnant) as well. She rarely missed shows, usually only because of illness so severe she could not sing.

Once in GYPSY she burst a blood vessel in her throat and was out for a week. Buy she had a level of professionalism that few current stars maintain. She felt that since people had paid good money buying tickets in advance to see her she had an obligation to be there.

In an interview years ago she said "I also gave the same performance closing night as I did on opening night...I cannot bear to have people let down on the job...you have a contract and you should live up to it!"

This nonsense that some stars have in their contracts that they only have to show up for 6 performances a week should be forbidden. If you can't handle 8 performances a week 50 weeks a year, then stay away from Broadway.

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Marc Calamia was with FOSSE from the first preview in Toronto and also did the post-Broadway tour. In addition to being incredibly talented, he is also one of the nicest people you'll ever meet in or out of theatre.

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Frontrowcentre2: Thanks for the information and quote from Ethel Merman--a true professional.
In addition to staying with GYPSY for the entire 702 performance run she also toured with the show for 6 months immediately after GYPSY closed on Broadway. What a trouper!

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