Playwrights Horizon reading of "Sense & Sensibility" WIth Noll, Burkhardt, Petkoff, Arcelus, and James

[Shakeshafte]

Posted: 6/24/11 at 1:34pm

Ragtime Tony nominee Marcia Milgrom Dodge directed an invitation-only reading of a new musical based on Jane Austen's Sense & Sensibility June 23 at Playwrights Horizons.

The reading featured the talents of Tony nominee Christiane Noll (Ragtime) and Brandi Burkhardt (Tale of Two Cities) as the Dashwood sisters, Elinor and Marianne; Robert Petkoff (Ragtime, Spamalot) as Colonel Brandon; Sebastian Arcelus (Elf, Jersey Boys) as Edward Ferrars; and Jeremiah James (Teatro) as John Willoughby with two-time Tony nominee Mary Testa (Xanadu) as Mrs. Jennings, Drama Desk winner Jim Brochu (The Zero Hour) as Sir John, Erin Mackey (Sondheim On Sondheim, Wicked) as Lucy Steele, Jamie LaVerdiere (The Pirate Queen) as John Dashwood, Erin Maguire as Fanny Dashwood, Kay Walbye (Urinetown) as Mrs. Dashwood/Mrs. Ferrars, ensemble members Janna Cardia, Chris Critelli, Christy Morton and Edward Prostak and narrator Anthony Dodge.

Did anyone see this? This sounds wonderful!


Sense & Sensibility Musical at Playwrights Horizon

[AC126748]

Posted: 6/24/11 at 1:49pm

Christiane Noll sounds like a perfect choice for Elinor.

[philly03]

Posted: 6/24/11 at 2:04pm

Christiane Noll and Brandi Burkhardt... two of the best sopranos around!

[bwaylvsong]

Posted: 6/24/11 at 2:17pm

Neal Hampton (the composer) is brilliant! I hope this leads to bigger things!

[sowren1020]

Posted: 6/24/11 at 5:20pm

The entire cast was beyond expectation, the chorus set the tone of the narration perfectly and the story was very moving. Christiane Noll and Brandi Burkhardt as Eleanor and Marianne were ideally cast and those beautiful voices were given ideal songs to sing. Mary Testa was hilarious as Mrs. Jennings and Sebastian very romantically right as Edward. Song in the second act that Robert Petkoff as Col. Brandon sang was was stunning, as was Christiane's song to her sister when she was ill. We were all asking for tissues amongst us in the audience. Hoping to see this on Bway this next season, it was superb.

[Owen22]

Posted: 6/24/11 at 6:23pm

Does Noll read mid 20's as she is in the novel. I know Emma Thompson played her in the movie but she herself said she was way too old. The irony of the piece is that Eleanor is thought to be an old made at 24 or some such age...Noll just played Mother in Ragtime for heaven's sake.

[sowren1020]

Posted: 6/24/11 at 6:36pm

Age wasn't an issue, Christiane's age seemed right to go with her Eleanor who was being wooed by a same young aged suitor, played by Sebastian. Marianne, her sister seemed much younger than she, which is an important plot point. Late 20's, early 30's for those characters isn't as important an issue as getting the best singer/actors who can perform the roles.
Updated On: 6/24/11 at 06:36 PM

[Owen22]

Posted: 6/24/11 at 8:16pm

With the talent pool in NYC I'm sure they could do both. And its not that I didn't love Noll in Ragtime. I actually don't think she's really too old in actual age...she just reads so much older to me...I'd believe her as Elinor or Marianne's mother.

[AC126748]

Posted: 6/24/11 at 8:39pm

Marianne is supposed to be nineteen, which was actually how old Kate Winslet was when she played her. I don't think it really matters, though.

[massofmen]

Posted: 6/24/11 at 10:18pm

LOL if this comes to broadway i predict 6 months or less. Let's just call this "little women 2" Cause every straight man would rather be burned alive and skinned than go to a jane austen musical.

Come on people..you cannot alienate an entire gender and think a musical will sell.

[sowren1020]

Posted: 6/25/11 at 1:11am

People said the same thing about Wicked, it's too much of a girls/woman's story. Women buy a lot of theatre tickets to good musicals. I'm looking forward to seeing SENSE & SENSIBILITY run a long time since straight men don't have to be criteria for musicals in New York City. Haven't you heard, New York supports basic civil rights for all sorts.

[bk]

Posted: 6/25/11 at 1:20am

And exactly how did you come by your invitation? One is always curious.

[massofmen]

Posted: 6/25/11 at 9:12am

LOL people did not say the same thing about Wicked. Did you read the book?
At least no one i knew said the same thing about Wicked. The title WICKED does not denote a girl musical..
You say the word JANE AUSTEN to probably 90% of straight men and they will run run run to the furthest hill. Maybe we can compare it to the success of jane Eyre.. come on..

Silly idea.

[WestwardHoHo]

Posted: 6/25/11 at 10:39am

Reading took place at Playwright's Horizons but has nothing to do with Playwrights Horizons. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

Marcia Milgrom Dodge? Zzzzzzzzzzzz.

Composer teaches at Brandeis? Zzzzzzzzzzzz.

Jane Austen? ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ!!

[wonkit]

Posted: 6/26/11 at 10:29am

Petkoff as Col. Brandon seems ideal.

[bwaylvsong]

Posted: 6/26/11 at 1:48pm

Westwardhoho, Neal was one of a handful of Brandeis professors who never made me want to zzzzzz. He was fantastic.