Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading
Broadway Star Joined: 5/7/03
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading#1
Posted: 12/20/11 at 2:57pmHas anyone heard anything about a recent reading? Just heard something from a 'friend of a friend' about it.
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading #2
Posted: 12/20/11 at 3:48pmI'd say good for her. She's made a career of doing the worst possible shows she can find. This is as close to anything legit I've heard since Les Miz.
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading #2
Posted: 12/20/11 at 5:10pmDear God. One of the worst musicals of all time. Who is it that keeps trying to give it a "revisal"? It's just not worth it.
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading #3
Posted: 12/20/11 at 5:19pmI believe it's Dick Scanlan, the man behind Thoroughly Modern Millie.
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/15/03
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading #4
Posted: 12/20/11 at 5:23pmMOLLY BROWN just might work if Cathy Rigby was playing Molly and maybe Brent Barrett as Johnny.
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading #5
Posted: 12/20/11 at 5:43pmYawn. WHY does Bway need a revival of this? What a waste of money.
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/17/03
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading #6
Posted: 12/20/11 at 6:00pmWould love to hear the entire score sung on Broadway instead of the hatchet job version in the movie.
Broadway Star Joined: 10/7/05
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading #8
Posted: 12/20/11 at 7:09pm
"Would love to hear the entire score sung on Broadway instead of the hatchet job version in the movie."
I share your sentiment, Mr. Roxy. But from the article it seems as though they are truncating the score here, too. Huh?!?
Broadway Legend Joined: 4/29/05
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading #9
Posted: 12/20/11 at 7:19pm
(with apologies to Messieurs Boulbil and Schonberg)
WHY GOD WHY?
Why does Sutton want to do this show?
When she's already been so long at sea?
I'm treading water now but all I think
Is that Miss Foster is about to sink... as
MOLLY BROWN?????!!!!????
You don't give answers, do you pet?
But I'll keep asking and "I ain't down yet!"
Why God? Why this show?
After Millie, Reno, Jo?
There's nothing in it we won't miss!
Why must she take a role like this?
A lady sings loud of her "Own Brass Bed"
A tragic crossing and some social-climbs
A lady sings proud of a "House that's Red"
A "featured" tony - hah! - for Tammy Grimes!
MOLLY BROWN????!!!!????
Look I mean Sutton no offense
But why does nothing here make sense?
Why God? Show your hand
Why can't Sutton understand?
She seemed a gal who knew much more
I never felt confused before
Why Marc? What's your plan?
You can't help her, no one can
At least I'm sure you'll do quite well
At least as well as Harve Presnell!
WHY GOD????!!!!!???
What utter rot!
A grating score! A dated plot!
'Til now dear Molly had three fates!
Tammy! Debbie! Kathy Bates!
I liked my Mollies as they were
But now she'll be SUTTON FOSTER!!!!
QUEL HOR-REUR!!!
Updated On: 12/21/11 at 07:19 PM
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading #10
Posted: 12/20/11 at 7:30pm
This really is a bore of a show. We must be going through the crappy musical revival phase right now.
Godspell, On A Clear Day, and now Molly Brown.
I'm waiting for an announcement of Here's Love next.
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading #11
Posted: 12/20/11 at 7:31pmWhat a witty ditty! from RC in Austin, Texas
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading #12
Posted: 12/20/11 at 8:24pmI thought the revival was being groomed for Reba. Is this no longer the case?
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading #13
Posted: 12/20/11 at 8:39pm
Reba is too old. Sutton is too bland. The show is too [fill in the blank].
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading #14
Posted: 12/20/11 at 8:59pm
Henrik, what a fantastic parody! Well done, sir.
But yeah, I did this show in summer stock a few years ago and it was like being in some sort of musical theater hell. Even if the stupid, cheesey, obnoxious, dated book were completely rewritten, you'd still have two other major problems: a) the score is equally cheesey and obnoxious and b) NO ONE GIVES A #&@$ ABOUT MOLLY BROWN. Except maybe a few old people in Colorado.
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/11/06
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading #15
Posted: 12/20/11 at 9:07pm
Such venom.
I really liked the movie - but have never seen the stage show. It was one of the earliest movie musicals I saw and and my mother played the record quite a bit.
Yeah, I now see how much Debbie Reynolds over-acted - but I still find the movie charming and somehow invigorating.
To each his own.
Leading Actor Joined: 11/21/10
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading #16
Posted: 12/20/11 at 9:48pm
I've heard of this show but never have seen it. I'm interested in how it will turn out and if this means another Sutton cast recording, I'm all in 
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading #17
Posted: 12/20/11 at 11:15pmIf they want to revive 50-year-old shows for Sutton, then they should take a look at IRMA LA DOUCE. MOLLY BROWN is a bore.
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading #18
Posted: 12/21/11 at 8:19amNo more revivals PLEASE!
Featured Actor Joined: 9/13/08
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading #19
Posted: 12/21/11 at 9:23amApparently the Meredith Wilson Estate (mainly his widow) have funded the rewrites and have opened the entire Meredith Wilson catalogue to Dick Scanlan in hopes that he can create a new, better show.
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading #20
Posted: 12/21/11 at 9:31amI heard a report that the show in its present state is a better vehicle for Kudisch than Foster - they haven't found a way to utilize her particular talents yet. Makes sense, since Molly wasn't originally written for a singer; it would be difficult to turn a Willson trunk song into a showstopper for Molly Brown, unique character that she is.
Broadway Legend Joined: 4/29/05
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading #20
Posted: 12/21/11 at 10:22am
Actually "NO MORE REVIVALS PLEASE" could be a great name for a new musical. It might begin with a Pirandellian opening night final curtain of CHU CHEM. This a major event for the New York theater. For it's Ang Lee's long-anticipated (by, oh, at least dozens of people) revival, with a new book by Amy Tan, produced by Whoopi Goldberg, and starring Margaret Cho, Jesse Eisenberg and Mel Gibson. Performed in Yiddish, with choreography by Ping Chong.
The curtain call is interrupted by a disgruntled but savvy 12 year old aspiring dramaturg and seasoned theatergoer, our protagonist, Ruthie Reiser (a Brigid Harrington type), who stirs the equally irate audience into a frenzy demanding an end to this lunacy (the title tune begins!) as countless firstnighters and critics join in her crusade. As they take their anger to the streets and OSA (Occupy Shubert Alley) begins, the entire city hears the call and joins the ranks.
At first no one seems to know how to fill the gap for quality musical theater in New York - or any musical theater in New York. But Ruthie's mom, Rita Reiser, a one time tony nominee who gave up the stage years ago to home school Ruthie and teach her everything she knows about musical comedy (calling Jessie Mueller!) remains steadfastly supportive of Ruthie! This is tested with the arrival of big movie star Rafe Page (you guessed it, Harry Connick Jr.) on the Reisers' Hell's Kitchen stoop. Rita - (did I mention Rita's a widow who's yet to have a "Before the Parade Passes By" moment?) - has always had a huge crush on Rafe. Ever since "One Evening at the Paramus Park AMC" (a tender ballad).
Rafe and Rita meet cute because Rafe is in a rage. All his life he had dreamed of singing on Broadway and his dream was just about to come true before Ruthie ruined everything. He had just secured his New York musical theater debut in his dream role, Destry in Destry Rides Again, when "Now thanks to your daughter, Ms. Reiser, no roads lead to Harold Rome!" Of course Rita finds a romantic rival in Rafe's starlet fiancee Demi Sweet (paging Lea Michele), who, as you might have known, was to play Frenchy in the Destry revival.
Updated On: 12/21/11 at 10:22 AM
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading #21
Posted: 12/21/11 at 10:32amOMG, henrik, why aren't you writing for Broadway? "No Roads Lead To Harold Rome?!?" Gorgeous. I would see that (for half-price).
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading #22
Posted: 12/21/11 at 10:51am
I attended the reading a few years ago in Denver. Kudish did that one and Marshall was there.
Dexter, before the reading, they talked about how the estate opened the catalouge. I think it was Scanlan who talked about it. It was a very interesting story.
Sutton Foster / The Unsinkable Molly Brown Reading #23
Posted: 12/21/11 at 12:18pmThey will no doubt alter the focus so a secondary character takes the lead so they can bring in a big time male singer that's comfortable doing ballads about heartache. I mean, it worked so well before, right?
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