Redgrave & Jones Open DRIVING MISS DAISY at John Golden Theatre on Broadway Oct. 7, 2010- Page 2

[munkustrap178]

Posted: 6/30/10 at 12:52am

I think Chuck Cooper is far too aggressive, grating, and "large" to do justice to the piece.

[iluvtheatertrash]

Posted: 6/30/10 at 1:32am

That's interesting. Yes, physically large, of course. But I find him to be a very meek, loving, kind guy. I always just wanna hug him.

I personally think Jones and Redgrave are dreadfully miscast. But... hey. To each his own?

[munkustrap178]

Posted: 6/30/10 at 1:40am

I agree that Jones is embarrassingly miscast, but I disagree that Redgrave is. She's so brilliant, I'd trust her with anything.

[best12bars]

Posted: 6/30/10 at 7:34am

I don't think this is good casting, but I'm sure it'll sell out. And that's what producers are worried about. So I'm sure THEY think it's great casting.

Vanessa is a wonderful actress, but she's so very British. She's a stalwart, graceful "tree," with quiet beauty and elegance. Not an American firecracker like Daisy. And I doubt she'll convince anyone that she's southern for one minute, let alone Jewish and southern.

She's not a character actress. She's Vanessa Redgrave. An aging leading lady. Her sister Lynn was the character actress.

James Earl Jones is too old for Hoke. The play spans several decades. It's fine if Daisy starts out in her early 70s and ends up in her mid 90s, because she's the one being driven around.

Hoke should be younger. Around 50 to begin with. So he's not ready for the nursing home with her at the end of the play.

He's also too powerful for Hoke. I can't see him putting on his "Yassum" and "Noumm" and bowing and scraping for Daisy Werthan. He'll look like a bull in a China shop.

Maybe they will prove me wrong. They're both excellent actors, no question about that. But they are wrong for these roles, so they will have their work cut out for them. I just hope they show up to the theatre ready to work and work hard. If not, this will be a disappointing sold-out production.

Updated On: 6/30/10 at 07:34 AM

[americanboy99]

Posted: 6/30/10 at 12:15pm

In response to wonkit's earlier post-

I was thinking maybe Terrence Howard, Don Cheadle, Jamie Fox, Denzel Washington or even- God forbid- Usher. Someone in that vein.

[keithp]

Posted: 6/30/10 at 12:32pm

Vanessa is a wonderful actress, but she's so very British. She's a stalwart, graceful "tree," with quiet beauty and elegance?
That description could be applied I think to another English actress - Jessica Tandy.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 6/30/10 at 1:14pm

I've always assumed Hoke s/b around Miss Daisy's age. Miss Daisy isn't in a nursing home strictly because of her AGE, but because she cannot take care of herself. Hoke CAN. Not all old people NEED a nursing home.

Acting-wise I think this CAN work; but I'm more than a little troubled with an anti-semite playing the role of a Jewish woman. (And I'll go on record to say that because of it, they will not get my money.)

[Q]

Posted: 6/30/10 at 1:17pm

I assume in this discussion, as in others I've seen, 'anti-semite' and 'anti-Israel' are the same thing?

[juliethejarhead]

Posted: 6/30/10 at 1:49pm

I'd love to see Miss Redgrave on stage, but I'll wait until a perf when the understudy goes on for Mr. Jones.

[MrMidwest]

Posted: 6/30/10 at 3:24pm

COSTAS: Last thing about politics. When you accepted the Academy Award, oddly enough for "Best Supporting Actress" in a title role. You were Julia and somehow you got "Best Supporting Actress." You made what you view as a distinction between Israeli people, Jewish people and Zionism. You spoke out about the importance to - and opposing anti-Semitism. But you spoke of Zionist thugs, as you put it then. There was quite an uproar. Now we're more than - almost 30 years down the road. Again, let's clarify.

Regardless of distinctions about policy, do you support Israel's right to exist.

REDGRAVE: Yes, I do. I was in Israel and in Palestine last summer.

COSTAS: Do you accept the notion that even though the settlements and other aspects of Israeli policy are subject to dispute, those policies were undertaken in response to Arab and Palestinian aggression and terrorism, and if the Israelis could be sure that would go away, they would roll it back to pretty much the pre-'67 borders.

REDGRAVE: We have seen quite clearly, let alone what my Israeli friends who lead the fight for human rights for the Palestinians and in Israel, we have seen that the Israeli people want peace and they have voted many times that the Palestinians should have their rights and land and we know that the Palestinians have a right to that.

I think we have to look at some of the very important judgments that the Israeli high court and international high courts have made on the question of this wall and so on. Hopefully a number of politicians are going to try and make sure and the media can help in that, of course, by helping publicize the efforts and the actual words of people who are striving for peace.

I hope very much that both the Israelis and the Palestinians will have their rights and will have peace, but again, you have to have the rule of law.

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0506/18/lkl.01.html

[Q]

Posted: 6/30/10 at 3:42pm

Thanks for that, MrMidwest.

[best12bars]

Posted: 6/30/10 at 6:00pm

"That description could be applied I think to another English actress - Jessica Tandy."

Not at all. Miss Tandy played southern several times to great success. Blanche in Streetcar. Then Daisy and Fried Green Tomatoes.

Some Brits can do it, and some can't. Redgrave can't, and she's tried to play non-Brit roles before. Still, I wish her luck.

As far as Hoke's age, it's very much a part of the story. He is definitely younger than Daisy, but not by all that much. He has grown children of his own, and he's not remotely young or youngish. It's getting harder and harder for him to find work at his age, which is why he takes the job driving Miss D.

I couldn't see casting anyone under 45 for that role. But 70-ish is a bit old.

[munkustrap178]

Posted: 6/30/10 at 6:48pm

Redgrave did LONG DAY'S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT with astounding success.

[best12bars]

Posted: 6/30/10 at 7:25pm

Yes, Long Day's Journey. I remember seeing clips from the revival when it was reviewed, and she was playing Vanessa Redgrave. I understand she was brilliant in it, so even if she can't camouflage herself the way a character actress would, maybe it doesn't matter.

I'm sure people will flock to see this Daisy revival, either way.

[munkustrap178]

Posted: 6/30/10 at 7:34pm

I would rather see Marian Seldes in the role, though.