Posted: 9/26/17 at 9:00am
Sorry but Samantha Barks is such a disappointing choice for this.
Posted: 9/26/17 at 9:29am
I'm so glad I'm not the only one who questioning Barks. I can live with Kazee, other than the fact that yes, he's much younger than that character is supposed to be, but maybe they have something different in mind for him? But I can't with Barks....anyone with actual humor, comic timing, and charisma would be better than her, she'll be as interesting as watching paint dry, kinda how I felt when Christy was cast as Anya, but I've come to live with that. I actually didn't know Annaleigh did the previous readings, etc. for this and now I can't unsee her in this she'd be GREAT!
Posted: 9/26/17 at 9:39am
who cares. its pretty woman the musical. Who honestly cares.
Posted: 9/26/17 at 10:02am
I've only ever seen Samantha in the Les Mis film and her performance didn't bother me at all. There was FAR worse going on in that film. I'm very curious about this show and I'll definitely see it. Mostly excited to see Kazee, but I am hoping I enjoy this more than Mitchell's work on Kinky Boots, which I found to be a pretty average show.
Posted: 9/26/17 at 11:09am
I only wanted to see this when Patrick Wilson was going to play Edward. I'll have to go see Brigadoon instead.
Posted: 9/26/17 at 11:12am
Auggie27 said: "The script is by Marshall, and if you haven't seen the movie lately, take a peek. It's not an easy musical book (it's just not that funny), and the sex worker Cinderella aspect, already questionable in the 90s, is -- you should excuse the expression -- harder to swallow in 2017. Maybe it'll be wonderful. But having watched it this summer, I can at least say: it needs a lot of revisiting. If "Goodbye Girl" was a challenge, this is a bigger one."
^^^^^
This . Totally agree I hate this movie and the whole" Cinderella whore w a heart of gold" thing . NEVER a good message and certainly not in 2018.
Posted: 9/26/17 at 11:19am
Just a point of clarification on the age for Edward. Richard Gere was 41 when the movie came out, and Steve Kazee will be 42 next month. Obviously the character's age doesn't have to be the same as the actor's, and Gere's hair clearly made him look older, but just in terms of how old they were when they played Edward, Kazee is older.
Posted: 9/26/17 at 11:23am
I usually hate both a pile on and judging a performance before it happens, but I found Banks to have the stage presence of cardboard when I saw her in AMELIE out of town. And that role needs the exact opposite.
Posted: 9/26/17 at 11:39am
Yeah, I think Kazee will be good - they'll grey up his hair I'm sure - and he was in Spamalot, etc, so I think he's got some quirky charm. But Barks, eh, jury is out. She seems bland and this show needs spunk and quirk or else it's just going to be boring. I like Mitchell, but he's not the best at shaping stories.
Posted: 9/26/17 at 11:53am
sabrelady said: "Auggie27 said: "The script is by Marshall, and if you haven't seen the movie lately, take a peek. It's not an easy musical book (it's just not that funny), and the sex worker Cinderella aspect, already questionable in the 90s, is -- you should excuse the expression -- harder to swallow in 2017. Maybe it'll be wonderful. But having watched it this summer, I can at least say: it needs a lot of revisiting. If "Goodbye Girl" was a challenge, this is a bigger one."
^^^^^
This . Totally agree I hate this movie and the whole" Cinderella whore w a heart of gold" thing . NEVER a good message and certainly not in 2018.”
Are you saying sex workers can’t have winning personalities?
Posted: 9/27/17 at 3:24pm
I wonder if the score will be all-new from Bryan Adams or if they may utilize some of the songs that played in the movie...? (ala Footloose...)
I'm guessing the most likely would be Pretty Woman (Orbison), less likely would be It Must Have Been Love (Roxette) and King of Wishful Thinking (Go West... and a personal guilty pleasure)
Posted: 9/27/17 at 5:12pm
I love Samantha Barks, but this choice is so random and I can't imagine her in the role. Annaleigh would have been perfect
Posted: 9/27/17 at 5:25pm
Good for Samantha! I hope she slays and make you bitchy queens eat crow.
Updated On: 9/27/17 at 05:25 PM
Posted: 9/27/17 at 5:49pm
Sunny11 said: "Good for Samantha! I hope she slays had make you bitchy queenseat crow."
I am ALWAYS ready to eat my words when doubting someone. I do hope she slays it and the show is incredible
Posted: 9/28/17 at 2:33pm
None of us were there when Ms Barks did her audition[I'm sure many times] so she must have shown the right spunk to the director to be cast.
Casting mistakes have been made and principals tossed, but maybe there's a hidden ho deep down inside her and she'll be another Charity[worker].
Posted: 9/28/17 at 2:47pm
Well shes most famous for playing Eponine, a spunky street girl. That kind of character is her wheelhouse now.
Posted: 10/3/17 at 12:13pm
Posted: 10/3/17 at 12:45pm
I adore Orfeh, but this is... strange. Who is doing casting for this show??
Posted: 10/3/17 at 12:45pm
Didn't JERRY MITCHELL say he rewrote the part to make KIT older?
Posted: 10/3/17 at 12:53pm
Skimbleshanks2 said: "Didn't JERRY MITCHELL say he rewrote the part to make KIT older?"
Jerry Mitchell is not one of the Authors.
Posted: 10/3/17 at 12:56pm
I definitely remember reading something about KIT's age being changed... Whatevs...
Posted: 10/3/17 at 1:16pm
I'm personally excited to see Orfeh back on Broadway.
Posted: 10/3/17 at 1:25pm
The Playbill article specifically mentions that Mitchell heard the song the composers wrote for Kit and he said Orfeh had to play the role.
Orfeh is very talented, but also is a very specific performer. I think it's a great role for her talents.
Posted: 10/3/17 at 1:50pm
IdinaBellFoster said: "The Playbill article specifically mentions that Mitchell heard the song the composers wrote for Kit and he said Orfeh had to play the role.
Orfeh is very talented, but also is a very specific performer. I think it's a great role for her talents."
Found it:
http://ew.com/theater/2017/05/25/pretty-woman-musical-broadway-jerry-mitchell-details/
Posted: 10/3/17 at 2:29pm
BroadwayConcierge said: "I adore Orfeh, but this is... strange. Who is doing casting for this show??"
This. The casting suggests they're doing something very different from the movie but that doesn't seem like it will please the people who go in expecting to see the movie on stage. I'm curious who they'll cast in the Hector Elizondo part. Given these last three choices, I doubt I'll be able to predict it.
