Posted: 7/30/16 at 9:20pm
Agreed, it's def a beast, but so are any number of other roles. The people in rock of ages make belting those As look pretty easy. Maybe his voice isn't suited for it. I hope they stop trying to cast within the Jack Black mold and go with people who can sing and act the crap out of it.
Posted: 7/30/16 at 10:15pm
But does the cast of Rock of Ages have to do all of the jumping around that Dewey does? And are they on stage as much as he is? I've only seen the movie, so I can't comment on the stage show.
Posted: 7/31/16 at 12:43am
^Wow, that is commitment, bravo Alex.
Posted: 7/31/16 at 12:44am
I saw him last year and it's definitely not a different interpretation. It's Jack Black. And since when did jumping around and playing guitar = strenuous exercise? Guitar is pretty chill. Sure, playing a cocained-out Jack Black type does sound tiring, but so does playing a dancing, singing Cat or the lead in The Color Purple.
Posted: 8/1/16 at 4:56pm
PThespian, John Gallagher Jr. did 8 shows a week of American Idiot. That's not really an excuse.
Posted: 8/1/16 at 5:12pm
I didn't say you had to tell him, I'm just saying that's it's possible to do a very physical show, sing difficult rock music, play guitar, and do it 8x a week. Because Dewey is not the first role to demand that.
Posted: 8/1/16 at 5:29pm
Oh my god. Guys, yes, Dewey is a hard role. Yes, some people argue that he doesn't need an alternate. No, the producers have not been transparent about this. But Will Blum is now doing 3 shows a week and Alex Brightman is doing 5, whether you like it or not.
Arguing over any of these things isn't going to change the policy in place nor whether someone thinks the role is hard or not.
Posted: 8/1/16 at 6:09pm
Liz is always the voice of reason...and he requires links. I'm down with that because when you guys post new info and don't link the source of the info that really burns my butt.
Posted: 8/1/16 at 6:19pm
You can choose to call it whatever, but it's a Jack Black impression.
i wish they had gone the way of the School of Rock Disney channel tv show because they cast a surfer type dude. Nice to see they didn't just want a copy of the movie.
Posted: 8/1/16 at 6:23pm
I'm a huge fan of the original film and I have to disagree that Brightman is doing a Jack Black impression, because IMO he is not.
Posted: 8/1/16 at 7:18pm
Going off of what Lizzie said, I think many people truly don't understand the demands of being in a broadway show. It's not easy--it's physically and mentally exhausting for many people. It's not just going onstage and singing 2.5 hours a day. Vocal damage from overuse is a scary thing (and it doesn't happen only if you have poor technique. Sometimes, it just happens!), as is dancing with a stress fracture or a sprained knee ligament.
We're all different. Everyone's body is different. Some are more resilient then others. The demands of a show can be harder on one person then another, even if they're both doing the show "correctly." I can also appreciate a production that tells a performer that they won't let themselves wreck themselves over the show, so they're going to reel you in one or two days a week for recovery and have someone else go on.
And in the end, clearly the production and management team are happy and comfortable with the way Alex (and now Will, as well) has been performing, including the number of shows a week he was doing. If the powers that be have said it's okay, I have no say. I'm just a person seeing the show.
(Note that I'm not say or insinuating that Alex Brighten has ANY of the above issues).
Posted: 8/1/16 at 10:01pm
Because he gained weight to look disheveled, grew his hair out to mimick his hair, and has the same inflection in his voice most of the time, and the same manic energy.
Posted: 8/1/16 at 10:09pm
1. Aw, Carlos. You're nice.
2. No show needs white knight fans. Though I know you mean well, PThespian. And you're cool.
Posted: 8/1/16 at 10:33pm
I've gotta say that Alex B is incredible in that show and has an infectious energy you feel regardless of where you are in that theater. This is coming from someone who is not such a big fan of the movie. The show (especially with Brghtman in it) is significantly better. He really seems to
put SO much into it.
Posted: 8/1/16 at 10:44pm
I'm not dissing his performance, but it's def. a Jack Black impression. Or Jack Black "inspired." It's the same damn thing he did in the movie. Sure he puts his spin on it because he's not Jack Black, but he's def. doing the shame shtick that was in the movie. I don't get why you're so angry about it? Watch the movie again, and then go see the show. I saw the show the day before it opened. It shouldn't have changed that much since then because that would make him a horrible actor if he's drastically changed his performance since opening. And sure he's lost weight, but, when the critics came, which is when it mattered, he was looking like Jack Black.
Posted: 8/1/16 at 11:13pm
well, I am an actor, and while minor details might change from here to there because it's live theater and that happens, major character choices shouldn't change. It should be consistent, so the understudy coming into the show knows what to expect, so the stage manager can call the right cues, so the sound technicians know when you're going to raise your voice, etc. I've seen Patti Lupone in GYPSY 6x and I saw the HAIR revival 12 times, the show was the same every time, as it should be. Sure, minor things changed, but if an actor is making grand changes over the course of 6 months, then they're messy.
Posted: 8/2/16 at 12:21am
Unless a performer is directed to emulate their predecessor or in the case of an understudy/standby the person they cover, they are given a decent amount of range to take the character the way they want given the limitations of said character. Different actors bring different things to each role, and no two actors approach things the same. If that's the case then why aren't all those people who can copy Idina Menzel on the Wicked cast album word for word, beat by beat playing Elphaba?
The choices the actor makes is dictated by the director, and if the director doesn't like a choice an actor is making they'll adjust it, but no two actors are alike and their choices can and usually do vary. I've seen three gentlemen play Dewey and neither one of them played it exactly the same - yes, same journey, but different choices of going along that journey. If someone is simply making the same choices over and over in repetition that is when people start phoning it in and it becomes clear there aren't being challenged by the journey of their character nightly.
Posted: 8/2/16 at 12:50am
Totally disagree. I think if you saw Patti Lupone down, she would say, as a smart actress, that she has charted out her character. She knows when the changes happen, the certain gestures might even happen and how they happen. I don't think that's phoning it in. That's giving each paying audience the same show. Because that's your job. Sure, minor details change every night, maybe your infections change here and there, but the intent is the same. So, if his performance is so drastically different then when I saw him in November, then that's bad. Just saying.
Posted: 8/2/16 at 8:29am
I can definitely see your point, but in some cases it does mean someone has charted their character well enough to give a strong and influenced character while others end up feeling the lack of challenge and begin to phone it in. I think in most cases, trying to stay fresh and taking different choices here and there helps people stay committed to their character day after day. Not everyone is Patti LuPone, but really who is? I definitely see where you are coming from, RippedMan, but I feel like that doesn't apply in every case.
Posted: 8/2/16 at 9:03am
It seems like the simple fact is Alex Brightman isn't an actor who can handle the physically strenuous requirements (for him) of a role like this 8-times a week. Perhaps this means he shouldn't have been cast in the part, but clearly his producers are fine with it or else they would have replaced him by now.
Posted: 8/2/16 at 9:06am
also PThespian, the reason Jack Black looked nothing like Alex Brightman when he saw School of Rock on Broadway is because Jack Black looks basically nothing like he did 13 years ago in the movie (beard, more weight). Black from the movie and Brightman when the show opened were definitely very similar.
Updated On: 8/2/16 at 09:06 AM
Posted: 8/2/16 at 9:14am
Some actors lock in their performance and are the postcard of consistency. Ethel Merman was notorious for this, and nobody accused her of phoning it in. Other actors evolve in the role over time. Neither is an indication of a bad actor.
Posted: 8/2/16 at 9:49am
You're projecting a lot on my posts, so take a breather and calm down. All I'm saying is if his performance has drastically changed, as you seem to believe it has, from opening to now, then yeah, I think that's wrong. When the show opens he and the director and all the other creatives have basically decided this is the show. It's set. And again, little changes here and there are bound to happen and so is discovering something new about the character. But a drastic character switch is not good.
Again, you're watching a show 8x a week. I saw the show once. Obviously you're very fond of it. It's not a bad show by any means.
But you're not going to sway me that he's not giving at least a Jack Black influenced performance, which again, isn't a negative. It's a musical based on that movie, audience are expecting certain things, and I'm sure the creatives knew that going in. That's why theirs a gay kid who does the costumes: it was a funny bit from the movie.
Are you an actor because I think you'd understand where I'm coming from if you were. No one says you have to be a robot, but to make drastic changes, as you've said he has made, I think, is not good. What was the rehearsal process for is he's just not sinking into the character a year later? It's not Hamlet.
I enjoyed his performance when I saw it, so no shade given. Just replying to you're remarks.
Posted: 8/2/16 at 12:57pm
Do you really think Jack Black is going to see the show and then comment and say "that's exactly what I did in the movie!" And I'm not saying it's a line by line recreation. He's made the role his own because it's a different medium, so he has to! But it's still "inspired" by Jack Black's performance.
