Parts that Hugh and Renee are perfect for

[broadway86]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 3:32pm

I was just thinking and came to the realization that Hugh Jackman and Renee Zellweger are two of the only movie stars that could play a good number of Broadway musical roles. Check this out...

Renee Zellweger
Sally Bowles, CABARET
Annie Oakley, ANNIE GET YOUR GUN
Polly Baker, CRAZY FOR YOU
Charity Hope Valentine, SWEET CHARITY
Rosemary Pilkington, HOW TO SUCCEED...
Babe Williams, PAJAMA GAME
Roxie Hart, CHICAGO (duh)
Ruth Sherwood, WONDERFUL TOWN (Not too sure about this one)
Janet Weiss, ROCKY HORROR
Lola, DAMN YANKEES

Hugh Jackman
Sid Sorokin, THE PAJAMA GAME
Joe Gillis, SUNSET BLVD. (duh)
Frank Butler, ANNIE GET YOUR GUN
Father, RAGTIME
Fred Graham, KISS ME KATE
Billy Flynn, CHICAGO (WHY didn't he do the movie?!?!?!)
Curly, OKLAHOMA (duh)
Brad Majors, ROCKY HORROR
Gaston, BEAUTY AND THE BEAST (duh) Updated On: 9/17/04 at 03:32 PM

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 3:36pm

hugh was supposed to do the movie of chicago, but plans for that fell through.

[EponineThenardier]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 3:36pm

I'm not a huge fan of Zellweger and I don't personally think she could pull off any show on stage. She was alright on film.


Hugh on the other hand!! Love him. He has played Gaston in B&B.
I would pay big bucks to see him as Fred/Petruchio in Kiss Me Kate. Oooooooh yes!

[Jimmcf]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 3:40pm

I believe Hugh turned down the film of "Chicago" saying he felt he was too young for Billy Flynn

[BwayLover]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 3:45pm

Ummmmm... There's a tiny problem with all that casting -
Renee Z. can't sing.

I know a lot of people don't share this opinion, but she almost ruined CHICAGO the movie for me (I say almost because CZJ was a divine Velma and so that was a little comforting.) If I had to hear that part with her butchering that note in "All That Jazz" (you know what I'm talking about, the one where she picks up from where CZJ left off and screeches "Jaaaaaaaaaaaaaazzzzzzzzzzz"..... BLACH!) I would have committed suicide. The worst thing was they put it in the trailer and so I had to hear it over and over again.

But anyway.... I would love to see Hugh as Joe Gillis or as Brad Majors- that could be fun!

*Edit for spelling

Updated On: 9/17/04 at 03:45 PM

[LittleFish8386]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 3:50pm

Hugh didnt do Billy Flynn in the movie b/c he felt that he was too young for the part. And I couldn't agree with him more. Billy is supposed to be this older guy lawyer who has been around the block a couple of times and knows what he is doing. Everytime I see it on Broadway with a younger person in the role, it seems more contrived and less real.

[Fan2]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 3:50pm

Hugh Jackman:

Joe Gillis, SUNSET BLVD.: Hugh won the Australian Tony Award for playing Joe Gillis in Sunset Blvd. in Australia.

Billy Flynn, CHICAGO: He was offered the role of Billy Flynn in the movie but turned it down because he thought he was too young.

Curly, OKLAHOMA: played him in London, Olivier nomination.

Gaston, BEAUTY AND THE BEAST: His first role in a musical in Australia playing Gaston in Beauty & the Beast. I have the Australian CD and he is a riot!

He also played Billy Bigelow in CAROUSEL opposite Audra McDonald in a benefit concert at Carnegie Hall, and I think he would be great in that also.

If you want to see pictures of him in any of these productions, go to http://www.jackmanslanding.com/gallery1.html and see "on the boards."

[broadway86]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 3:50pm

I think that Renee can sing. At least, her voice fits all of these parts (none of are tough singing arts). She would be the best Sally Bowles, if ever given the opportunity. Why? Because her singing voice, acting skill, and spot-on British accent fit it.

Annie Oakley? Ever seen "Cold Mountain"? She'd be great.

PS - I think that Renee was perfect for Roxie. In fact, she was the best one in the film. CZJ could sing and dance very well and all that jazz, but I still need convincing that she's a strong actress. "The Terminal" didn't help, either.

[umgeoboy]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 3:54pm

Sorry, I have to chime into this discussion but thankfully Cabaret closed so she could not go in as sally bowles and ruin the part! That is my favorite show and I just would not want to see her ruin it. She would be horrid!! Sorry, this is just my opinion. But I agree with everyone else that she just can't sing well enough.

Updated On: 9/17/04 at 03:54 PM

[BwayLover]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 3:59pm

Best Sally? Sorry, Natasha Richardson already has dibs on that title (and the Tony to prove it).

I still don't think she can sing. Her voice is thin and annoying, and she didn't pull off any of her songs in CHICAGO. Plus, don't get me started on her in the acting department....The fact she can imitate a British accent does not mean she can act.

I guess we'll just agree to disagree on this one.

[VIETgrlTerifa]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 4:09pm

In Chicago, I thought Renee was a much better actress than CZJ. I thought Renee did a really good job as Roxie, and out of the three principal actors of that movie, I thought she did the most convincing job. I mean is she really any worse than Ann Reiking?

I usually think Renee is a pretty good actress, but I thought she was horrible in Cold Mountain...of course I thought the whole movie was horrible, but that's a different topic.

[zoran912]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 4:16pm

I definitely prefer her voice to Ann's. Is Ann a smoker? She sure sounds it.

[BwayLover]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 4:20pm

All I have to say is....At least Ann has character.

[zoran912]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 4:21pm

That's very true. I still found her voice grating. I have great respect for the woman though. I loved her in "Annie."

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 4:39pm

Well, seeing Ann live is an amazing experience -- so much star quality and charisma (and the fact that she's arguably the greatest dancer of her generation) -- I was never annoyed by her gravelly singing voice.

The thing about Renee is that she can't do anything you saw in the movie live on stage -- and certainly not eight times a week (I know a couple of dancers from the movie and they told me that there was a reason Marshall had to use so many camera angles and editing tricks -- her performance just wasn't that good otherwise).

There's also a reason that at the Oscars that year that an eight-month pregnant Catherine Zeta Jones and Queen Latifah performed and not Zellwegger -- the two of them are actually skilled live performers, while RZ knew better than to try and sing live in front of an audience without any studio editing and tweaking (and digital pitch correction).

Sorry, but you'll NEVER see Zellwegger in a Broadway musical.

Updated On: 9/18/04 at 04:39 PM

[broadway86]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 4:42pm

Exactly how would Renee not be good as Sally? Looks, singing style, dancing style, acting style, vulnerability? Looks like she's got what it takes. Besides, Sally isn't supposed to be a good singer (example: Natasha Richardson can't sing).

At least Ann has character? i don't know what that means, but I believe that Renee won a Golden Globe, SAG, and an Oscar nomination for that role. Reinking didn't even get a Tony nod.

As for Zellweger, through all of the editing, I still saw something that I liked about her singing and dancing. That is something that heavy editing cannot take away. Roxie has the lesser talent of the two leads. There is a reason why she was not cast as Velma. Updated On: 9/17/04 at 04:42 PM

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 4:48pm

In the politics that are the Tony Awards, Reinking wasn't nominated because everyone knew she would pick up the award for her choreography, so why waste another nomination... She had played the role to acclaim for years (including as a replacement during the original run in 1975), learning the role from Fosse himself (her then-boyfriend) and Gwen Verdon (who's performance was Ann's inspiration -- Ann's was almost an exact carbon copy of Gwen's performance).

[Plum]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 6:04pm

Thank you, Margo, for bringing up the biggy when it comes to screen musical "stars" transferring to the stage- pitch correction. Basically, even if Ms. Zellwegger was a half-pitch flat the entire movie, it could be fixed. So I don't completely trust musical performances on film unless the timbre of the actor's voice is really good (like John C. Reilly) or I know they've successfully done live performing before (like Catherine Zeta-Jones).

Ms. Zellwegger's voice was thin and breathy at best in Chicago. I was fine with that, since Roxie is supposed to be marginally talented anyway, and the acting more than made up for it. But if her voice was that unimpressive with all that digital tweaking, how bad would it be on stage?

Anyway, put me down for Hugh Jackman as Bobby in Company. (Yes, I know I've said it 15 times. I still think it's true, so I'm saying it again.) Or better yet, build a new musical around him. Something better than The Boy From Oz can't be that hard to conjure up, can it?

[Mamie]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 8:43pm

I don't care much for Renee's voice either. One item on your list did strike some interest. How about Hugh and CZJ as Sid and Babe in Pajama Game? That one might be fun.

[Plum]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 8:46pm

Oh man, I hate that show. Urgh. Besides, no show could afford them both without charging stratospheric ticket prices. Not to mention that Zellwegger ain't doing live musical theater anytime soon- she knows she's not up to it. Look at the Oscars.

[mallardo]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 9:21pm

I believe Zellweger was actually scheduled for the Oscar telecast but got cold feet, so Queen Latifah was brought in.

[ljay889]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 9:32pm

Oh please, Renee wish she could top Ann as Roxie. Althought I've never seen Ann's Roxie. I can truely appreciate her in the role just from the cast recording, etc.

Ann also played the role in the 70's, if you didn't know that (people knocking Ann), and reprised in the role for Encores, than made it to Broadway in 96. And Ann didn't get win or get nom. for a Tony for Roxie, but she did win the Tony for her brilliant choreography she did for the show, in style of Fosse.

So don't even start to compare Renee to Ann.

Anyway, the stage show is a million times better than the movie.

[VIETgrlTerifa]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 9:38pm

mallrado, I don't think Renee ever intended to perform because she didn't announce that she wasn't going to perform until the last day the ballots were due. She just let people think she was going to perform so it would help her chances for the Oscar.

I'm not denying that Renee wouldn't be able to perform on stage because I don't think she would be that great, but I do think she was a pretty good Roxie in the movie. I'm not knocking on Ann because I know what a great performer/dancer/choreographer she is, but I was strictly talking about their singing ability. That said...I love Ann's rendition of "Roxie."

[BWayBoy88]

Posted: 9/17/04 at 9:47pm

Im not a huge fan of Renee's voice but I think it was fine. Out of all the shows listed I could see her in Cabaret because of the fact that Sally isnt supposed to have an outstanding voice, however I would much rather see someone like Natasha Richardson do it.

Posted: 9/17/04 at 10:16pm

As a reply to Zoran's post about Ann being a smoker...

answer: not anymore. She used to (way back when...during DANCIN', and mainly when Fosse was alive.) But also alot of her scratchy voice is from overuse, and she actually has a quite different voice to begin with.

but i think she is a truly gifter performer. No, her voice is not a gift from the gods, but her acting is incredible, which doesn't even compare to her dance.

I love Ann! and i thought she was amazingly increidble as roxie.