THE WIZ casting rumours

#1

THE WIZ casting rumours

Posted: 6/25/06 at 10:11pm

From the ATC board: rumoured to be early casting offers for La Jolla - I hope to God this is not right:

Dorothy: Shoshana Bean
Evilene: Marty Testa
The Lion: Titus Burgess

Awful choices if true (except for Burgess who is wonderful), but lets keep in mind that the La Jolla production is NOT yet Broadway bound.

EDIT: I'm revising the title, no use to be negative as most of the casting that is coming to fruition is pretty good. Still hate the idea of Mary Testa, but we'll focus on the positive.

Updated On: 7/17/06 at 10:11 PM

#2

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 10:13pm

Besides the obvious reasons why she would not be good, Bean looks like she's 35.

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Have I ever shown you my Shattered Dreams box? It's in my Disappointment Closet. - Marge Simpson

#3

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 10:18pm

I'd love to see Shoshana learn to pronounce her vowels correctly when she sings. *Sigh*

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"Y'all have a GRAND day now"

#4

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 10:18pm

Maybe Des is making her a 35 year old school teacher like in that awful movie.

This has come up before in other threads but I'll say it again. There is NO NEED to update the WIZ. It is a 1970s black R&B/Funk/Gospel musicalization of the story.

THE WIZARD OF OZ is in public domain, and if La Jolla wants to do a modern take on it, they should just hire a composing team to write their own hip hop/rap multi-ethnic version of the Baum novel.

I don't get it.

#5

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 10:18pm

well the up to shoshana being Dorothy is that she has a very soulful voice....make-up? masks? paper bags? Shoshana does look a lot older than Dorothy. Though I wouldn't exactly detest Mary Testa in here...

#6

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 10:23pm

Isn't Shoshana contracted for the Wicked Tour during that time period?

And as much as I love Shoshana's soulful voice, I really would rather see it cast "traditionally". My opinion.

#7

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 10:24pm

Nikki M. James as Dorothy!

#8

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 10:30pm

wicked_chitown good point! She'll be w/Wicked from September 6th-November 26th. "The Wiz" plays La Jolla September 26th-November 12th.

#9

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 10:33pm

Mary Bond Davis needs to be in this.
So does Felicia P Fields.
I am so excited about the WIZ.

#10

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 10:33pm

mb. i'm sure you can think of worse people than mary testa to be involved in this project.

#11

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 10:34pm

Mary Bond Davis as Evilene!

#12

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 10:35pm

aw, can we do better than casting ex-Elphabas in EVERY role? Geez...

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"Are you sorry for civilization? I am sorry for it too." ~Coast of Utopia: Shipwreck

#13

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 10:35pm

BEN LOVES SHOSHANA.

(that is all.)

#14

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 10:37pm

Shoshanna?
For the Wiz?
LOL!

#15

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 10:38pm

Shoshana? Riiiight

Nikki James IS Dorothy

Updated On: 6/25/06 at 10:38 PM

#16

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 11:00pm

I doubt very highly Shoshana will be cast, unless she is not doing the Wicked tour anymore.

Plus, I mean come on....Shoshana in THE WIZ??

Updated On: 6/25/06 at 11:00 PM

#17

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 11:03pm

if this is true, this production sounds like it's going to be BIZARRE.

#18

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 11:03pm

MB,
Chill. It is all good.

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HUSSY POWER! ------ HUSSY POWER!

#19

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 11:04pm

Brenda Braxton as Glinda please.. Thank you.

#20

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 11:06pm

Mary Testa!?

*is perplexed*

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"Picture "The View," with the wisecracking, sympathetic sweethearts of that ABC television show replaced by a panel of embittered, suffering or enraged Arab women" -the Times review of Black Eyed

#21

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 11:09pm

What's it matter that she's an Ex-Elphaba? It's a tough role to sing and it's in a big major Broadway hit. I don't get why people bash someone for playing the part.

But anyways, Nikki M. James! Please!

#22

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 11:10pm

I could care less that she's an ex-Elphaba. There are other, more obvious reasons why her being cast in this would, to say the least, odd.

#23

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 11:12pm

a rumor is a rumor. let's wait for an anouncement!

#24

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 11:15pm

Whatever happened to the updated ethnic version of the Wizard of Oz with Patti Labelle as the Wicked Witch and Queen Latifah as Glinda, along with Monica as Dorothy?

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I don't WANT to live in what they call "a certain way." In the first place I'd be no good at it and besides that I don't want to be identified with any one class of people. I want to live every whichway, among all kinds---and know them---and understand them---and love them---THAT's what I want! - Philip Barry (Holiday)

#25

re: THE WIZ casting rumours (not good)

Posted: 6/25/06 at 11:15pm

Wasn't Anika noni Rose supposed to do it at some point? I acutally wouldn't mind Mary Testa. She's def got a presence for it. Also FYI they're changing the whole thing up. It's much more modern using Hip hop and a lot of urban sounds. It's being reorchestrated. The choreography in the audition was sort of African and REDICULOUSLY hard. A Couple of people just walked outta the room. It'll be interesting how they update it.