The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, thoughts

I'm not sure when this show gets out, but how was "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas" tonight? What about Emily Skinner?
Thanks

I just got back from "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas" and I thought it was fantastic! I had never seen the original show. It was one of those shows that I figured I'd eventually get to (and of course I was 14 at the time so I didn't go in all that much) but it closed suddenly and I never saw it.

Tonight's concert was really well done especially the girls who played Miss Mona's girls. Emily Skinner did a great job and was very well cast. I wish she and Terrence Mann (who was also good but it's a smaller role with only one song) had more time to learn the parts. They were reading the script most of the time but they were cast late. Emily Skinner did a great job on all of her songs, especially the first one ("A Lil' Bitty Pissant Country Place). She was just extremely well suited for the part. She was able to make you like Miss Mona. No mugging, or stagy gimmicks, just did it naturally. Felicia Finley as Angel and Mary Faber as Shy both did a great job. But Jennifer Hudson stopped the show. She has some voice!! She did Twenty Four Hours of Loving and the audience wouldn't stop clapping. I don't know why she didn't come back on stage for an encore. All the girls were motioning her to come back on stage but she didn't. I loved the staging of "the Aggie Song". Harry Groener lost his place somewhere in "The Sidestep" but made it work and I always loved "Hard Candy Christmas". I know people were hoping for Reba to play Miss Mona but Emily Skinner did a great job and because there wasn't a superstar playing the lead, you were able to care more for the other characters.

By the way, the Jersey Boys (not JLY) opened it as the narrators and sang 20 Fans.

Definitely a good night in theater.

I thought it was great. I was unfamiliar with the musical before but there are a lot of crucial roles, which made it fun because so many great people were in the cast. Jennifer Hudson was definitely a showstopper. Terrence Mann's acting was great although I felt his singing wasn't that strong. He looked a lot older than the last time I remember seeing him too. Emily Skinner was really great. She does read older onstage and worked it. Andrea McArdle had a great ballad for that belt of hers. Felicia Finley and Mary Faber were both great and the Jersey Boys opening was so funny! I loved how they managed to add little modern touches (Richard Kind's line about the Aggies being congressional pages and the news broadcast being brought to you by Kristin Chenoweth). Looking forward to other people's opinions!

I forgot to add that the highlight for me was the Aggie dance. That was creative and extremely well-executed. The crowd loved it for sure.

It's ok if they had scripts in their hands...it is astaged-concert...it is not always supposed to be memorized...but fun anyway...

---

Can someone answer the real question here?

Seth WANTED someone other than Emily to play Miss Mona.

This is evidenced by this: He showed up at the Shubert Alley Flea Market, and said "I have someone great playing Miss Mona, I just can't say who."

Then the NY Times Ad came out, and there was NO indication of Mona.

Two weeks later, and only one week before the show opened, Skinner was advertised.

Obviously, he was hoping for some star to come along. This star didn't come along, so he settled for Emily.

Who was it?

(Now, I love Emily Skinner. I'm sure she was probably better than the original star that Seth wanted. But WHO was that star that Seth was holding out for? Inquiring minds want to know.)

Updated On: 10/17/06 at 04:20 AM

How papered was the audience?

You have a show with no stars and an overall mediocre score and story. Once again, Seth and his ego. . .

---

I know Donna McKechnie was there. And Kelli O'Donnell was there. She said Rosie was at a Billie Jean King event with chelsea. And they announced that Carlin Glynn, the original Miss Mona was in the audience. I know the person next to me bought his $250 ticket that afternoon so I have a feeling some of the expensive seats were either comped or bought up by corporations and given to their employees. (years ago, I saw a Linda Ronstadt benefit for the Susan Kolman foundation that way. Time Warner bought a block and gave them out to their employees of which my sister was one)

How was Richard Kind?

---

Well, she's a Broadway celeb. Not nation wide famous but famous to broadway fans.

---

Updated On: 10/17/06 at 03:48 PM

Anyone can be a celebrity these days....game show contestants....Eden what's her name....too many others to list here.

---

how were the cheerleaders... who were they

I thought the show was AMAZING. I was blown away by Emily as Mona. I LOVE Emily and wasn't completely sold on her in this part, but she made you love her from the moment she stepped on stage. Not to mention the fact that I was afraid she'd sound strange singing country. She sounded like she was born a country singer -- and so did Terrance Mann (which surprised me even more). Terry, IMO, doesn't seem like the "hayseed" type, but he certainly played it well. The chemistry (how do you get that for a reading?) between he and Emily was unbelievable.

The Aggie dance was to DIE for. Hot bods, inventive choreography, GREAT harmony. Same for the girls. They looked great, they sounded great (I'm a softie for Hard Candy -- LOL).

Andrea really does have a great voice and also sounded very comfortable beltin' out a country tune. Doatsey Mae has some great "one-liners" and really is a plum supporting role - as long as you can sell that song, which she did.

Jennifer Hudson has a voice that doesn't stop. "Twenty-four hours of lovin'" was something to be experienced. The thing that amazes me (and I saw it on AI, too), is that she seems to have no confidence. She has this voice that doesn't stop, but she has these moments when she looks like she doesn't know why she's up there. In particular, the book scene leading up to "No Lies," she just seemed completely lost. She sang the song beautifully, but she just didn't seem to put any of herself behind it. It breaks my heart, because she's got so much going for her and I wish she had a FRACTION of the confidence to match her talent.

I feel so lucky to have been able to experience this concert. It was a fun evening.

---