I think casting Mona in drag would ruin the piece. Beyond some of the campy moments, the relationship between Mona and Ed Earl is often quite touching. The show works best when the characters are played completely honestly. I think the show runs into trouble when it tries to depict Mona as anything other than a no nonsense, salt of the earth, businesswoman.
The Dolly Parton depiction in the film is actually nothing like how the character was written for the stage production. Heck, the real Miss Mona, Edna Milton, was in the ensemble of the OBC, and she was anything but sequins and feather boas. The film producers' first choice, Shirley Maclaine would actually have been a better choice.
Busch would actually make a fun Melvin P. Thorpe.
Updated On: 8/3/06 at 02:11 AM