Tamayra Gray/RENT/Last night- Page 3

[ElFantasma14]

Posted: 5/31/07 at 7:26pm

Yes, her thinness would make sense for this role, but I'm assuming she's no actually shooting heroin, so it can't be healthy for Tamyra. I hope she doesn't have an eating disorder.

[Craww]

Posted: 5/31/07 at 7:43pm

Tamyra was always scrawny. She looks wiry, I wouldn't worry too much about her. I will admit to probably caring too much about the hair thing, though. At this point in its run, Rent is more pastiche than ever before, and subtly iconoclastic visual choices aren't enough to return it to something organic.

When so often it becomes a caricature of itself (see the Over The Moon argument, or Caplan and what he wrought), I think the best they can struggle for right now is to become an icon of itself. I think that's why the hair thing is important to some people.

I hope she's good, because then it won't matter. I'm glad to hear she's not pulling an Antonique on the score, just because her voice can go to places beyond Mimi's range.

[theaterdude87]

Posted: 5/31/07 at 11:35pm

oh thats for pointing that out lizzie... i always eff those kind of things up...they should both be too...i was just so caught up in her new costume :)

[muscle23ftl]

Posted: 5/31/07 at 11:46pm

"Yes, her thinness would make sense for this role, but I'm assuming she's no actually shooting heroin, so it can't be healthy for Tamyra. I hope she doesn't have an eating disorder"

Oh my...she has been always very thin, leave her alone, and research before saying those things, there is footage of her on American Idol on youtube, she was very thin when she was in Bombay Dreams, it's her frame. Some people are thin, some others aren't, something called "genetics"

[Carl Magnum]

Posted: 6/1/07 at 12:07am

Ok so I know this isn't a tamyra question, but is Nicolette Hart still playing Maureen?

[orangeskittles]

Posted: 6/1/07 at 12:22am

Some people are thin, some others aren't, something called "genetics"
I swear, this exact phrase was made into an LJ secret the other day. Except it ended with the comment "Stop being jealous fatties!"

[atlsuperstar]

Posted: 6/1/07 at 12:33am

yes Nicolette contract is up in September I believe. Tracy from the tour is suppose to come in..who is amazing as well! But back to the topic..Tamyra was overall pretty good! I forgot how good she could sing! I see her getting really good by the middle of the summer. Also Maia(Seasons of Love) who is also one of the original church ladies in "Color Purple" gave hands down one of the best versions of the song I have heard! That girl has a voice on her as well! Pretty good cast right now! They should have thought about Tamyra long time ago..this is a really good role for her!

[theaterdude87]

Posted: 6/1/07 at 12:47am

that is good to know. i am glad when people that may be unsure of are really good.

[Shadowlands75]

Posted: 6/1/07 at 1:17am

Better than Rosario? Now THAT is saying something :P

[Mealz1042]

Posted: 6/1/07 at 1:34am

im guessing (hoping) that was sarcasm.

[muscle23ftl]

Posted: 6/1/07 at 3:24am

Im sure it was sarcasm

Updated On: 6/1/07 at 03:24 AM

[Ant254]

Posted: 6/1/07 at 11:32am

I Saw Tamyra Gray Last Night And I Have To Say That They Did A Great Job With The Casting. She Is So Great In The Role Of Mimi.Her Voice Is So Powerful And Her Acting Was Great. It Was Only Her Second Night. But It Seemed Like She Was Doing It For Months. Definitly Worth A Trip To The Netherlander Theater To See Rent If You Have Not Seen It In A While. The Whole Cast Was Good.

[avab802]

Posted: 6/1/07 at 12:20pm

I will admit, I wish she had the long curly hair. It's a Mimi "trademark" and I enjoy it. I'm not going to say she sucks and she's ruining the show because her hair is wrong, but yeah. You all know what I mean.

Regarding Maureen, I never saw Idina in the role (except for on a grainy thing-that-cannot-be-named-here) so I've never judged the character based on how she played it. My favorite Maureens are Tamara Podemski and Maggie Benjamin. Tamara played it a little more subtle, so she was probably closer to Idina's original interpretation. Maggie is an over-the-top goofball, but I can't help loving her. I will also fully admit that my opinion of her is biased due to her extreme hotness and her outgoing personality. Even if she has a bad night and sounds like crap (which I have seen) I still love her. I would love to see Haven as Maureen. In all the times I've seen her in the show in both the Benny tour and on Broadway, I have never seen her go on as Maureen. And I've heard she's really good.

Honestly, I think it's difficult for me to judge RENT objectively because of my history with and attachment to the show. That show and certain cast members (some of whom are still hanging around) were a big part of my life for several years, so it's difficult for me to judge them based solely on their performances. I have too much "prior knowledge" of them both as performers and as people to look at them with a critic's eye.

Sorry to veer off-topic again. I look forward to seeing Tamyra, but I'm waiting until Adam and Anthony are back in because I'd like to see them as well.

[Mealz1042]

Posted: 6/1/07 at 12:33pm

"Definitly Worth A Trip To The Netherlander Theater To See Rent If You Have Not Seen It In A While."

It's the NeDerlander, not the NeTHerlander

[misschung]

Posted: 6/1/07 at 6:36pm

Plus, I'd rather see ANY recycled "Roger" than sit through the current "fresh" Roger they have there now. In all the years of seeing this show, I've never seen a more bizarre/inconsistent performance *ever*.


wait, but hasn't Tim been there for awhile? Or do you mean he was "fresh" when he started the role?

Emcee, I like how you coined The Return.

Is she the first Mimi to have short hair? I always wondered if they would ever change wardrobe/hair - sometimes I think its not necessary for every Roger to have bleached blond hair, but thats just my opinion - and not that big a deal obviously!

[Mealz1042]

Posted: 6/2/07 at 1:54am

my thoughts...
LOVE her Voice
HATE the hair
not sure about the acting.

And no its not because I'm not used to the hair, I think it would look really cute if she had like a little pixie or something but I just found this look to be too much and very distracting.

I'd like to see her again but after she's had more experiance in the role, i definitely think that there's a lot of potential, and as I said before her voice really is incredible (LOVED her out tonight)

[ShuQ]

Posted: 6/2/07 at 2:10am

Just curious...but does anyone know why Maia Nkenge Wilson would go from originating a small supporting role in a new show to this?

[sundaymorning6am]

Posted: 6/2/07 at 2:13am

are there pictures of her anywhere in any of her other costumes?...

[erinrebecca]

Posted: 6/2/07 at 9:00am

misschung, there have been several look/costume changes through the years in the various casts. Also, not every Roger has had bleached blonde hair. A few examples: Christian Mena, Sebastian Arcelus, Ryan Link, Joshua Kobak, Cary Shields, Constantine Maroulis, Bryce Ryness, Dan Rosenbaum, Declan Bennett. :)

[orangeskittles]

Posted: 6/2/07 at 11:36am

Regarding Maureen, I never saw Idina in the role (except for on a grainy thing-that-cannot-be-named-here) so I've never judged the character based on how she played it.

That's how I feel as well. Just because Idina was the first doesn't mean her portrayal is the only one that's "right", and it's ridiculous to judge every other Maureen based on that biased assumption. Imagine if everyone thought that way; there would be no hope for revivals if everyone sat back and said "Well, Alan's not doing the exact same thing as Joel Grey, so therefore he's a horrible Emcee."


Just curious...but does anyone know why Maia Nkenge Wilson would go from originating a small supporting role in a new show to this?

She made her Broadway debut in Rent years ago.

Updated On: 6/2/07 at 11:36 AM

[misschung]

Posted: 6/2/07 at 11:55am

"misschung, there have been several look/costume changes through the years in the various casts. Also, not every Roger has had bleached blonde hair."

thank you! That was bugging me for awhile because I havent seen the show in so long. For some reason I thought they all did have the hair. I know there has been a lot of discussion about tweaks in Mimi's Out Tonight outfits.

Anyway, I'm glad to hear that Tamyra is doing such a great job.

On the subject of Maureen - I loved Tamara Podemski when I saw her. She was very subtle but still funny. I think Maureen should be almost a sympathetic character in a very small way, and she conveyed that, I thought

[Mealz1042]

Posted: 6/2/07 at 12:12pm

i think maia had been in rent before, yes? Maybe she missed it? who knows. She was excellent though.

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 6/2/07 at 12:15pm

Yes, she was: http://www.ibdb.com/person.asp?id=94177

[Mealz1042]

Posted: 6/2/07 at 12:17pm

Someone mentioned this thread to nicolette yesterday before the show, and we were chatting for a bit about how Maureen is meant to be (heh heh) and even though i have ALWAYS loved Nicolette her Over the Moon Last Night was the best I have ever seen it, I think she must have thought - at least a little or subconciously - about what we had said.

[erinrebecca]

Posted: 6/2/07 at 1:06pm

misschung, I agree with you about Tamara's Maureen. She was excellent in the role, one of my favorites. She learned from another excellent Maureen, Jen Aubry, and, although she certainly developed her own take on the role, much of Jen's performance could be seen in Tamara's. Tamara has a very successful singing career now in Canada and is involved in film, too. She's another of the talented Canadian castmembers who have had great success since their Rent days ended, unlike a lot of others who have been in the Broadway and touring casts who have vanished once they left the show. Maggie's Maureen was similar, too, in her early days, having also learned the role from Jen, but, unfortunately, she eventually turned the character into a caricature with her craziness.