He's too old, not an actor, and isn't attractive. Bravo Pippin!!
Well that makes one decision easier for November. The casting for Pippin could not be more wrong. I can think of at least 10 Broadway leads and another 5 or 10 true stunt casting ideas better than this. He must be really cheap
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/15/07
Jackie took her vacation to get married/go on a honeymoon. She was only supposed to be gone a week, maybe two, but the producers asked her to take more time off so they could get a name in the show for a bit. While Whoopi was there and for a few weeks after, they were courting people (Rosie, Harvey Firestein, Rosanne, Kathy Lee, Fran Dresher) to do 6 weeks replacing Mary Testa. They also asked Ben Vereen and Huey Lewis to play Tony Robert's role.
No, Just No. Poor Rachel is gonna have to kiss that?!
He looks like an Ewok!
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/21/06
"Josh Kaufman, who in May of 2014 was announced as the winner of Season 6 of NBC's hit show "The Voice" as a member of Usher's team, will make his Broadway debut playing the title role in the Tony Award winning PIPPIN for a limited engagement beginning Tuesday, November 4 and through Sunday, January 4, 2015."
Congrats to Josh but PLEASE can we just put Erik Altemus in as Pippin every night!!!!
This guy? This Josh Kaufmann? Is there another one and I'm just posting the wrong person?
Of course there's the age factor, but also I just don't think he's in shape to do this role. At least it's only for 2 months.
The person playing Pippin needs to do heavy dancing and a back flip and all kinds of stuff. This guy doesn't seem quite right.
Altemus would have been the superior choice by far. I could also easily see Andrew Keenan-Bolger , Hunter Parrish, Mark Evans , Dave Thomas Brown, or any number of broadway talents. Do they think this guy will draw?
AKB doesn't really have the voice or the height for that role. I am shocked they didn't bump up Erik to the Pippin role full time, he seemed to be a crowd favorite when I was there. I don't know anything about this guy, but maybe if he won The Voice, it could draw people. No clue though.
Understudy Joined: 5/5/12
I thought Kaufman was a good singer on The Voice, but absolutely nothing about him says Pippin. Like, at all. Pippin is supposed to be young, bright eyed, and uncertain of himself. This takes away from the jokes about Catherine being too old for the part and being older then Pippin. This should make for a stark contrast against Lewis, as well.
Sam Lips would have done well if they moved him up. I can think of so many people who, on the surface at least, seem like they would have been better choices.
(As for this being stunt casting, it's a textbook example for me. The Voice will probably be in a new season and there's tons of potential for promotion. Also...totally serious here, but do people even watch The Voice? I'm young, up to date on pop culture, and can't name a single person who won, unlike the early seasons of American Idol.)
Oh, I had no clue Erik had left Pippin. I hope it wasn't due to him not getting bumped up.
Just noticed that only 7 original cast members remain in the show:
Charlotte d'Amboise
Rachel Bay Jones
Colin Cunliffe
Andrew Fitch
Orion Griffiths
Ashton Woerz
Brad Musgrove
I'm so happy I got the opportunity to see the entire original cast. It was unforgettable.
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/20/13
I wonder if the Weisslers are making him lose weight, shave the beard, etc. Maybe then he will look like a fresh-faced graduated college student.
@RW3 ^
It may make him look younger, but still no way right for Pippin. I take back what i said about him looking like an Ewok- He looks like the love child of an Ewok and Zelda Rubinstein (Tangina in "Poltergeist")
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/20/13
darreyl102, I agree with you. He is not right for Pippin at all. I was only suggesting options that might make him look a little bit more like the others. However, this is a particularly strong move of the Weisslers. They are bringing him during the beginning winter months. Additionally, when Christmas hits, he will bring in a lot of money for the production just because he is a celebrity.
"Additionally, when Christmas hits, he will bring in a lot of money for the production just because he is a celebrity."
Is this guy really a celebrity? I can't believe he'd bring in more people then any other actor.
This production never cared about getting an interesting vocalist on stage - they finally do but he's not the right age. I do find it interesting that they have been settling on being so middling with their casting choices and it reflects in their middling grosses. On top of all of it is the fact that the score is not challenging enough for his voice
I think he will bring in people only if Pippin can advertise him.
I don't think he's a celebrity, people have actually heard of celebrities. If you don't watch that show on tv, you have no clue who that dude is.
Updated On: 9/18/14 at 09:22 PM
I have a thought. Would Matthew Thomas consider returning to the role on Broadway? Then Erik Altemus could take over as the touring Pippin (in the event that the tour Pippin with vocal problems doesn't work out).
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