Reviews For FANTASIA in COLOR PURPLE — Page 3

Don't think so.

Unless Riedel mentions the box office boost, he won't go out of his way to mention Fantasia - unless he has friends (or he himself) that have seen her and think she's BRILLIANT.

Rudetsky, maybe- but I think it's a bit soon for industry types to be rushing out to see her on her first night.

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Gee, all these posters, and no one actually saw her in it last night? Well, I was there, and here's what I think...

She was astonishing. Her acting is crude at times, especially early in the show, but over all, she's a miracle. She gets all her laughs, and the emotional moments were electrifying. All this stuff about her "not deserving to be in a Broadway show because she hasn't earned it" is silly. She's earned the right just be being brilliantly talented.

We've all seen many incidents of famous personalities being slapped into shows to sell tickets. This is not one of those times. Overall, one of the most exciting nights I've seen on Broadway in a long time. And the audience went nuts.

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Yes, she's scheduled to do 8 shows a week.

Thank you, leefowler, for representing the entire Broadwayworld board. lol

Updated On: 4/11/07 at 09:55 AM

"She was astonishing. Her acting is crude at times, especially early in the show, but over all, she's a miracle. She gets all her laughs, and the emotional moments were electrifying. "


I am so happy to hear that, not only because I love this show but because I think she embodies what a modern day "Celie" would be. Now it will be interesting to see if she can keep the emotions running at that level for 6 months.

1) Casting Fantasia IS a marketing device for the show. It doesn't matter how she got the part, her name is a marketable name and why wouldn't they use it to boost ticket sales? You think they're gonna keep her a secret?

2) Unless you know Fantasia personally, you have no right to judge Fantasia's "worthiness" to "be on Broadway." You may not like her, you might not think she is talented, but what does that have to do with her deserving to perform? If you want to show producers that you don't like her or "stunt casting" then don't buy a ticket. Just know that in many cases, your not buying a ticket won't matter overall. The public and fanbase will come anyway.

3) "Stunt casting" can be a blessing. It has a negative attachment to it because of it's history - many times the big names that come have never even showed an interest in the theatre. We've had Usher, Jacob Young, Julia Roberts, Denzel Washington, Toni Braxton, Tara Conner (almost), and all these American Idol folk - plus the dozens of others I am blanking out on.

One can only hope that they are RIGHT for the part and can act FOR THE STAGE (which is different than film/TV). If the producers can use a name to raise ticket sales, then hopefully it's for a show that is still alive and hasn't had its day. If stunt casting could have saved CAROLINE OR CHANGE, power to them. If stunt casting is being used for a show such as PHANTOM, then I say let it go.

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My question is, does she cry when the mail man delivers her mail each day? "Oh thank you so much for the mail SOB SOB SOB, so sweet of you" Or how about when someone holds open a door for her? "Oh you're so kind SOB SOB"


"15 Minutes to places 'Tasia" "OH GOD BLESS YOU STAGE MANAGER SOB SOB SOB"

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What does learning to read have to do with it? There is really no excuse for that in this day and age. She had to be in school at some point, most of us get that tricky reading thing outta the way by 1st grade at least.

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Crying is the easiest natural physical emotion that we, as humans are capable of - it's actually easier than laughing, and this is proven in numerous medical reports. We should not judge her, based on her life experiences - some people are simply naturally emotional, and cry very easily. That is not to say that they are weak, or unstable, or that we should make fun of them. Whatever has happened in her life, she is obviously someone who gets easily moved by her emotions. So instead of mocking that (Carl Magnum), let's allow her to be where she is.

She is thrilled to be doing this show, and it is obvious. With so many performers just going through the motions these days, how refreshing to see someone that lives and breathes something rich into their character, because they themselves have been through something that they can relate to within that particular role.

I am not a big fan of Fantasia, but there is NO deniying that she has talent. I understand that many Broadway actors have honed their talents for years and paid their dues, but perhaps Fantasia just took a different road to where she is now. And if luck was simply on her side, then so be it! You go girl! I am going to get a ticket and have a great time seeing the show again.

I think she means she can't read well not that she can't read at all, unless she actually said that. I'm with you that it boggles my mind too, but it's actually a problem that is more common than you think. Maybe it's that working in a bookstore just exaggerates it.

Who knows, maybe it is an image that she and her people are perpetuating or maybe she just needed a bit more work than most in that respect and it was just a failure in her educational system that let her slip through the cracks.

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Updated On: 4/11/07 at 12:39 PM

I hope they are not going to play this "she had a terrible life" card. Because she did not. She had a caring, loving family. Was not abused as a child. She dropped out of HS, got pregnant, went on welfare and then spent her time watching TV at home and braiding her daughter's hair (that's what she said). She never even had a job prior to AI. I don't classify that as a terrible life and I wish she would just drop it. The illiteracy thing - she said so many conflicting things about it, that who knows what is true. I tend to think it's a PR ploy to sell her biography - because that sure got her the media attention.

That said, she is very talented and I have no doubt she will ace the role.

Updated On: 4/11/07 at 12:55 PM

These Fantasia groupies crack me up. They ONLY come around when there's threads about Fantasia. When she rumored for Dreamgirls they were here, when her TV movie aired - they were here, and now they're here again.

They don't come here to post about Broadway, they're here to stick up for Fantasia.