Scared About Daphne Rubin Vega as Fantine? — Page 5

I was surprised when I saw Daphne in the video of the rehearsal on Broadway.com and I just WOW out loud. She just gave out a totally different style of Fantine and it's positive. With Gary Beach in the show, I think Les Mis is reborn in glamour!

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You can always wait----she's scheduled to be out -- for like 7 weeks later this year----you wouldn't have to see her.

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Updated On: 10/27/06 at 05:08 PM

It is the fourth preview!! Calm down.

I went to see Les Miz tonight with my roommate who is slowly becoming a Broadway person- this was only the third show she'd ever seen on Broadway, (she's seen Chicago once, and Wicked once), she has never seen any touring company of Les Miz, she knew none of the music- she'd never even heard "On My Own" until tonight (nope, not even the awful Katie Holmes/Dawson's Creek rendition). She's pretty much as much of a Les Miz newcomer as you could get.

So during intermission the conversation went a little something like this:
Me- "So...what do you think?"
Her- "So, um, Fantine? I mean, she's not good. What's with the whole breathy thing? And the voice. Has she done other shows before? Why does she sound like that, is that supposed to be her having street cred or something? But everyone else is so good, yay! But the Fantine- I wish I could've seen it with a good Fantine."

And I felt pretty much the same way- I mean, except for the 'has she done other shows before' question.

I've been reading this thread over the past few days, thinking that there's no way this is going to be as bad as some are saying it is, that maybe since I've 'only' seen Les Miz on stage five times, all of them on various tours, that I won't notice and be as critical of the Fantine performance as someone who saw it more often than that on Broadway, etc. But it was really bad- honestly I felt that her Fantine was distracting enough that I have already, within the space of just the past two hours, told people I know to wait until she's taking those weeks off before going to see Les Miz.

Everything else tonight was brilliant- I almost cried during "On My Own" and "Bring Him Home," I did cry during the Finale. I loved seeing Les Miz on stage again, and finally being able to see it on Broadway. I just wish it had been with a good Fantine.

As they say, your mileage may vary.



eta: my roommate borrowed my iPod on the ride home to listen to "I Dreamed a Dream" from the OBCR, which is when Fantine finally got an "oh, ok- I like it!"

Updated On: 10/28/06 at 01:20 AM

I think Daphne has an incessantly irritating voice, but she's got some pretty good acting chops. If Gary Beach likes her, then so will I.

I saw it last night and I liked her acting, but I didn't care for the singing voice.

I know she is supposed to sound like shes suffering and dying, but I did not care for her voice. Just my opinion here.

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daphne is incredible. she can touch emotion and is a fearless performer. i'm extremely excited to see her fantine. it wouldn't matter if she had no voice at all, because she is a true singer-ACTOR. thank god that she is brining a fresh, new take on this role and giving people something to talk about.

"I also saw the video of the rehearsal and I thought her voice was awful in that--I cna't imagine they're worse in person----so I'm choosing not to see Les Miz---I want to remember the vocals the way they were----(just my opinion, tho')"

Are you choosing to not see Les Mis just because of Daphne's voice? Because if so you are making a huge mistake. Les Mis isn't all about Fantine...overall from what I saw in the video the cast seems extremely talented. I really wished they showcased more of Celia as Eponine!

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Oh, good god. Just go during her scheduled absence, then, if it hurts your soul that much.

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Poor Mimi! Getting raked across the coal must burn like gonorrhea.

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Updated On: 10/28/06 at 09:35 PM

Updated On: 10/29/06 at 06:44 PM

IveGottaBeME: I agree with you completely. She knows how to act a song, which is so different from just singing it. Maybe some people don't like her portrayal, maybe some just don't like her voice, but I for one am very excited to see her in this, and any role. Since I haven't seen the show before and haven't listened to the obcr yet, I don't know if her voice works for the role or not, but someone must have thought so since they cast her! Just two more weeks til I get to see her! :)

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Yes, it's only 20 minutes on stage or whatever, but it is a *long* 20 minutes-
People sitting around you should not be going 'ugh' and 'oh my God- again??' when Fantine appears onstage again during the finale.
My roommate, who has never seen/heard any of the show beforehand, should not be asking "I mean, is she supposed to sound like Bjork?" and saying "I just wished I'd seen it with a good Fantine" after the show- she's never seen the show before, how does she know that she didn't see it with 'a good Fantine?' Because it really was that bad.

Mybe Fantine's not a big part, but I never realized how big of a part it actually is until I had to watch every second of Daphne onstage.