Taylor Dayne in Aida

[AC126748]

Posted: 7/5/21 at 4:17pm

Okay, so this is going back a ways, but did anyone on here see Taylor Dayne when she briefly took over for Sherie Rene Scott in Aida? Any memories of her performance?

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 7/5/21 at 6:15pm

I did! I was a huge fan and remember liking but not loving her in it. She sang the hell out of it but I don’t think actressing is her thing. She’s never done anything after that, has she?

[ArtMan]

Posted: 7/5/21 at 6:27pm

Love her.  Didn't know she was in this.  I'm not sure she would have been any good.  Years and years ago, we had Taylor Dayne, Sylvester and David Copperfield all performing at various venues the same Saturday night.  They ended up at the bar I was working.   I witnessed Taylor and Sylvester snub Copperfield who out of those three was acting like the biggest diva. It was hilarious to watch.  I've only had the opportunity to see her perform only once.  Kind of small venue, but in upper balcony (free ticket)  Have always wanted to see her again, up close.  She's touring with Lisa Lisa and was suppose to perform in South Florida on July 4, but could never get any information to confirm.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 7/5/21 at 7:12pm

Also forgotten is that she was slated to star in a 1993 Broadway revival of FUNNY GIRL.

https://ew.com/article/1993/08/06/taylor-dayne-hits-broadway/

[PipingHotPiccolo]

Posted: 7/5/21 at 7:54pm

i thought she sang it a hell of alot better than Sherie Renee Scott did, but she was being directed to mimic so much of Scott's kinda unique humor/style, she sorta fell apart in the book scenes.

I thought Menzel was better than both of them though. 

[LarryD2]

Posted: 7/5/21 at 8:49pm

Elton loved Taylor's performance and really wanted her to extend her run. She declined because she was expecting a baby (by surrogacy) at the time. But her run wasn't really all that brief--she was in the show for seven months, longer than Idina Menzel, who replaced her. She was also very well liked by the company and regarded as a total pro.

I saw her about halfway through her run. Sherie was the first principal to leave, so much of the original cast was still in the show--although Adam Pascal was understudied (by Will Chase) at the performance I attended. Heather was on and sang the crap out of it, but she walked through her scenes--she was pretty checked out by that point.

I went in with low expectations, but Taylor impressed me a lot. She really sang the score. This wasn't the case of a pop singer coming in and just doing her thing. She wasn't the greatest actor, but she was very committed and present. If you didn't know who she was, you could easily think that she was a bona fide Broadway performer.

Anyway, if you want to judge for yourself, there's plenty of evidence of her performance on YouTube.

Updated On: 7/5/21 at 08:49 PM

[trentsketch]

Posted: 7/5/21 at 9:16pm

Taylor sounded wonderful on the score. Her acting wasn't as good, but you could forgive it with how wonderfully she sang. 

[Bettyboy72]

Posted: 7/5/21 at 9:31pm

She’s very talented and I’ve seen her perform many times. She is a pro. Old school talent. Shows up and does the work. Has the voice too. I don’t think the New York theatre peeps will knocking on her door after she played maskless at Maralago on NYE 2020.

It was a dumb move on her part knowing how her bread is buttered. As a long time fan her current listed live dates are anemic and there are no gay or pride appearances now or in the near future. I think she burned her bridge with gay promoters too.

Like Rashad, she needed to use some common sense before acting on something. She didn’t and it’s gonna hurt her career. She also never addressed any of her fans or LGBTQ community who wanted her to address it. She turned off her social media comments for a few weeks and now scrubs comments and acts like nothing happened.

[LarryD2]

Posted: 7/5/21 at 9:35pm

I don't know if Taylor identifies as a lesbian, but it's common knowledge she's had romantic relationships with women in the past. At least it was in New York 20+ years ago. That certainly made the Mar-A-Lago stunt hard to fathom, along with the fact that she has always had a strong gay fanbase. Oh well. People are complicated.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 7/5/21 at 10:11pm

 

[PipingHotPiccolo]

Posted: 7/6/21 at 1:52am

Bettyboy72 said: "I don’t think the New York theatre peeps will knocking on her door after she played maskless at Maralago on NYE 2020."

OOF. I did not know this and am so disappointed to read it, Not that I'm a huge Taylor Dayne fan or anything but always upsetting to learn of someone's moral depravity, you know?

I don't think shes dying to get back to Broadway anytime soon (has she done anything remotely theater like since 2002?) but UNLIKE Ms. Rashad, I don't think she has any personal connection to the Donald that would explain her willing to affiliate with him. Yuck.

 

[pmensky]

Posted: 7/6/21 at 3:00am

There was a moment when she was trying to pursue a career in musical theatre. She played Grizabella in a production of “Cats,” and I recall her agent and manager trying to promote her for other shows regionally.

[fashionguru_23]

Posted: 7/6/21 at 8:17am

Back in 2015, she was a part of Dee Snider (of Twisted Sister fame) "Rock and Roll Christmas Tale" in Toronto for the holiday season. I didn't see it, but I heard it was a lot better than many thought.

. https://www.broadwayworld.com/toronto/article/Taylor-Dayne-Joins-Cast-of-Dee-Sniders-ROCK-AND-ROLL-CHRISTMAS-TALE-20151014

[David10086]

Posted: 7/9/21 at 1:24pm

BrodyFosse123 said: "Also forgotten is that she was slated to star in a 1993 Broadway revival of FUNNY GIRL.

https://ew.com/article/1993/08/06/taylor-dayne-hits-broadway/"

I remember this as though it was yesterday. This was reported everywhere- before the days of internet. Wonder what happened? 

[Broadway61004]

Posted: 7/9/21 at 3:09pm

David10086 said: "BrodyFosse123 said: "Also forgotten is that she was slated to star in a 1993 Broadway revival of FUNNY GIRL.

https://ew.com/article/1993/08/06/taylor-dayne-hits-broadway/"

I remember this as though it was yesterday. This was reported everywhere- before the days of internet. Wonder what happened?"

If I recall, she later said in interviews that Jule Styne wanted a very traditional Funny Girl (pretty much not straying from any of the original arrangements) and she wanted to add much more of a 90s vocal flair to it.  So while there was mutual interest and certainly nothing negative between the two of them, they ultimately mutually agreed it just wasn't the right fit.

Regarding Aida, I second pretty much what everyone else said--her acting wasn't tremendous, but she did a good enough job with the score that it definitely made up for it.

[darreyl102]

Posted: 7/9/21 at 4:59pm

JDonaghy4 said: "Bettyboy72 said: "I don’t think the New York theatre peeps will knocking on her door after she played maskless at Maralago on NYE 2020."

OOF. I did not know this and am so disappointed to read it, Not that I'm a huge Taylor Dayne fan or anything but always upsetting to learn of someone's moral depravity, you know?

I don't think shes dying to get back to Broadway anytime soon (has she done anything remotely theater like since 2002?) but UNLIKE Ms. Rashad, I don't think she has any personal connection to the Donald that would explain her willing to affiliate with him. Yuck.

"

And her response to the backlash soo missed the point of why people were upset, especially the LGBT community who are the main reason she stays somewhat relevant these days. 

""I’m saddened by all this ... I try to stay non-political and non-judgmental and not preach. I sing from my heart purely and from Source. I wish for all to be who they need to be ... and find their way."

It wasn't just that she was performing for Trump (who is against so many different people's human rights, particularly LGBT as I pointed out, who help keep her relevant), but the fact that she would be so thoughtless to perform at a maskless event in the middle of a worldwide pandemic. 

That being said 'Tell It To My heart' is such a damn good bop, that it's hard not to listen to it anymore, and every now and then I still do. Lol

[quizking101]

Posted: 7/12/21 at 10:50am

Her voice declined in quality over the years. I saw her perform on Wendy Williams’ birthday show a few years back singing Tell It To My Heart and it sounded like really bad mom karaoke and it was a little cringey 

[Becky]

Posted: 7/13/21 at 12:56pm

I did. Vocally she sounded like Taylor Dayne the pop singer in the role (strong vocals but emotions of the songs were lost), and as far as acting the part - it wasn't her "strongest suit".

[MikeInTheDistrict]

Posted: 7/13/21 at 2:03pm

The best Amneris, IMO, was Kelli Fournier (now Kelli Provart) in the national tour.

 

 

[MannPhan24601]

Posted: 7/14/21 at 12:26pm

I am about the same age as her kids but I loved her on The Masked Singer last year . Shame she's a MAGA