Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

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Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/11/05 at 9:46pm

I am seeing Rent w/ Matt Caplan on the 19th of March and I am very excited not to be seeing Drew Lachey from what I've partially heard about him, yet now I'm hearing the same things about Matt Caplan..
I ask:
Matt Caplan vs. Drew Lachey and why? (and not just cause one is hot! Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

)

And the other thing about the Phantom Lady was, Bert, she realized, in the city that never sleeps... What did she realize, Kitten? That all the songs she'd listened to, all the love songs, that they were only songs. What's wrong with that? Nothing, if you don't believe in them. But she did, you see. She believed in enchanted evenings, and she believed that a small cloud passed overhead and cried down on a flower bed, and she even believed there was breakfast to be had... Where? On Pluto. The mysterious, icy wastes of Pluto.

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/11/05 at 9:47pm

I've never seen Drew...

But I thought Matt was/is really good...

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/11/05 at 9:54pm

For the record, I like Drew better than Matt.

Matt's Mark is very, um, quirky. He's played the role for six years (on Broadway and on tour) and has added a lot of Matt-isms into it that really show who he is, rather than the character. However, he's very, very funny to watch, he's got a nice voice, and he works well with Cary Shields as Roger.

JOHN LITHGOW I just realized, your last name is Butz! Both "Norbert" AND "Butz" are in your name! You must have gotten picked on a lot as a child!

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/11/05 at 10:16pm

When I saw him, he seemed very bored in the role. Breaking character left and right. Hopefully this break did hime good.

I want to write music. I want to sit down right now at my piano and write a song that people will listen to and remember and do the same thing every morning...for the rest of my life. - Jonathan Larson. Tick, Tick...BOOM!

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/11/05 at 10:38pm

Matt is the only mark Ive ever seen... so i have a good sense of his portrayal. He plays mark as a bit of a smartass.... and plays up all the laughs he can in TANGO MAUREEN, LA VIE BOHEME, and most of the first act. Some of his antics are a little annoying at times...but for the most part it was funny and a nice little break from some of the heavier stuff going on. His singing is really really good, and i found him overall effective in the role. Hope that helps.... if you have any more specific questions about him let me know

My Music Classroom Giving Page: https://www.donorschoose.org/MrHMusicRoom

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/12/05 at 12:36am

I've seen them both. Matt Caplan was MUCH better.

Faced with these Loreleis, what man can moralize!

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/12/05 at 12:39am

i agree, mallardo

Matt is one of my favorite "marks," and those little "Mattisms," which he HAS added, i think, work very well in the role.

i have seen matt quite a few times and he never broke character/ seemed bored.

awkward.

"I think it was the Korean tour or something. They were all frickin' asian!" -Zoran912

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/12/05 at 12:50am

I've seen all Marks...and Matt Caplan is one of my LEAST favorites.

He has been in the role for far too long - you can tell he's bored on stage. He's never in character anymore, and the show is more about himself and his personal inside jokes than actually telling the story. I found him very distracting and annoying.

"If you are going to do something, do it well. And leave something witchy." -Charlie Manson

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/12/05 at 12:52am

Has anyone seen Trey Ellet?

Do you remember him? He was my first Mark....

#10

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/12/05 at 12:54am

ive heard of trey, but never saw him...

fist mark- anthony :) <~incredible.

awkward.

"I think it was the Korean tour or something. They were all frickin' asian!" -Zoran912

#11

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/12/05 at 12:55am

Yay, Trey. =D

JOHN LITHGOW I just realized, your last name is Butz! Both "Norbert" AND "Butz" are in your name! You must have gotten picked on a lot as a child!

#12

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/12/05 at 12:59am

i saw matt in december when i flew to new york (during a matinee we saw almost all of the understudies and was sad not to see jeremey, but loved matt) i loved him. I think that because he has been doing it for so long, his quirks are what makes it special and adds to the heart of the show. Matt does play up the laughs in songs, but it keeps the show going and makes him more endearing and hearfelt when he is doing the more dramatic moments. I had horrible seats but i still felt very connected. i think you will enjoy it :)

#13

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/12/05 at 1:07am

I saw Matt way back when he was on the Benny tour....however I was obsessed with Owen Johnston so I didn't have time for Matt.

#14

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/12/05 at 7:44am

I haven't seen Drew, so can't really compare him to Matt but I have seen quite a few Marks and Matt Caplan is my least favorite. Actually, I don't even want to use the word 'favorite' in the same sentence.

I thought he was terrible and I was absolutely appalled by his performance. I hadn't had the urge to write to a Stage Manager/Producer etc to complain about a performance until I saw Matt Caplan as Mark twice last year.

He was bored, he mumbled his lines, could hardly be bothered to open his mouth when speaking or singing. He constantly broke character and was nowhere near the character Mark throughout the show, you didn't even recognize the character anymore.

I can't even begin to describe how disgusted and annoyed I was by his performance and I was a bit tempted to meet him after the show to tell him that (bet he would have LOVED that).

I love Rent and have been lucky enough to see some great performers in it... and to see Matt Caplan making a mockery out of the character and the hard work Anthony Rapp and Jonathan Larson (and others) have put into creating it made me want to kick his ASS!

He's been in the role for a very long time (too long) and I strongly feel he should not be on that stage anymore.
If you can't be bothered to give 100% anymore get your butt off that stage and let young people who still have the desire to perform take over.

Lots of people blame the 'stunt casting' for the bad state Rent has been in for the last few years. I feel we have to thank half-assed performances like Matt Caplan's (and others) for that. Where is the passion, man?

QM

'He really wasn't good as Fieyro. Is it just me or does he sort of come across as a pimp? Just...the hand motions I've seen him do and the attitude..not that Taye is a pimp.' - SallyBrown on Taye Diggs as Fiyero

Updated On: 3/12/05 at 07:44 AM

#15

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/12/05 at 9:17am

I've seen both of them. No comparison ! Matt was the best thing in the show, Drew was the worst thing in the show !

Take care

#16

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/12/05 at 9:21am

I can't wait to see Matt to help erase Drew's portray of Mark in my mind...

#17

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/12/05 at 9:30am

See, I didn't think Drew was particularly horrendous. I mean, he DEFINITELY wasn't good, but do the words Joey Fatone mean anything to anyone? now HIS performance was horrible. Oh, and so was Scary Spice's. Oy. Stunt casting is horrible

awkward.

"I think it was the Korean tour or something. They were all frickin' asian!" -Zoran912

#18

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/12/05 at 10:13am

Joey Fatone wasn't nearly half as annoying as Matt Caplan was in my opinion. At least he tried and he can sing (so can Matt but it's hard to tell as he cannot be bothered to open his mouth). QM

#19

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/12/05 at 11:12am

I'm seeing Matt on the 17th. Obviously, I have heard some not great things about him- but I am just SO happy not to be seeing Drew that I couldn't care less who I see. And maybe him not doing it for a little while would be a good thing.

"This table, he is over one hundred years old. If I could, I would take an old gramophone needle and run it along the surface of the wood. To hear the music of the voices. All that was said." - Doug Wright, I Am My Own Wife

#20

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/12/05 at 11:20am

Ashley, just one question, have you seen Drew? QM

#21

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/12/05 at 11:22am

Munk and QM took the words right out of my mouth.

He was the first Mark I have seen and I left the theatre just in awe of the show. However, it was just because I was able to finally see the show after so many years. I went back about a month later and I left severely disappointed. I really think that because he played this role for so long, slowly adding "Matt-isms" into the part, he lost sight of what the character is all about.

I find it impossible to feel any sympathy for Mark when played by him. We are SUPPOSED to fee bad for him people! Do you actually feel bad for Mark when its Matt on stage? He cracks so many jokes and breaks character so many times there isn't time to see how lonely he is supposed to be.

Updated On: 3/12/05 at 11:22 AM

#22

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/12/05 at 11:34am

QM- no, I have not seen Drew. But I have heard nothing good about him. I mean, I guess that's not exactly the best way to think- or judge him before having seen him- I'm just going by what I have heard.

#23

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/12/05 at 11:50am

pros to matt: he writes good music. cons: he has terrible musical theatre singing technique (actually he probably has no technique at all) and he breaks character like nobody's business.

#24

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/12/05 at 12:25pm

Ashley, at least you know that it's just completely ridiculous to make statements like 'I am just SO happy not to be seeing Drew that I couldn't care less who I see' when you actually haven't see Drew. It's just a pet peeve of mine...

And according to quite a few people you might not be better off seeing Matt. Then again, Matt would have only been on for a few days when you see him, so you might be lucky. I guess he'll get all unprofessional again in a few months' time.

QM

Updated On: 3/12/05 at 12:25 PM

#25

re: Pros and Cons of Matt Caplan

Posted: 3/12/05 at 1:06pm

I've seen Matt as Mark 3 times now. The first time, I thought he was absolutely brill. There were some ways he said some of the lines in act 2 that made me have a whole bunch of realizations about the character. I don't even know what it made me feel, but for example, after Mark's monologue I just went "Oh, God that's good."

Now the second 2 times I did feel that he was getting really bored; like talking with different accents in completely random places to get laughs. BUT, and that's a big but, who's to say that is not what Mark would do? Maybe his Mark does all those crazy things to get attention, and not feel so alone. He's not an introverted nerd. If he was, then why would he be dancing on the table in The Life Cafe? I've always thought that Matt see's him as more of a dork than a nerd. One that is kind of the class clown, but the goofy one that people like to make fun of. Those crazy "Mattisms" as you say, might be ways MARK would draw attention to himself.

I can't say that's the way I view the character, but I would never say that's not what Mark would do and that he's breaking character.

Updated On: 3/12/05 at 01:06 PM

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