The Victor/Victoria/Julie Andrew story? (Tony & losing voice) — Page 2

That was one of the first things that struck me too, Hanna. When you watch the movie she's singing Le Jazz Hot in F# and now on stage it's in D?? A major third down?? I definitely thought that took a lot away from the number but kinda understood. Even when you see a singer in concert, if they are not syncing with a track, they will do their numbers down a step or two since they're singing night after night. But a major third is a lot. On the other hand, it does make her sound more like a man!

And according to John Riccucci, the wardrobe god at Goodspeed, she truly is every bit the gracious lady she seems to be! He's ALWAYS talking about Julie, Julie, Julie. It is nice to hear that someone is as they appear.

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Updated On: 2/26/09 at 03:59 PM

Well, honestly the "recorded" note isn't even as high as what she did in the movie. I KNOW that's not the point . . . . shattering glass has more to do with the frequency of the sound and not how high the note is or how well it's sung. Nevertheless, it was a shame what had happened to Julie's voice PRIOR to the surgery, much less after it. I'm sure a lot has to do with improper singing throughout her career which caused the nodes. She did a LOT of talk-singing even EARLY in her career. In retrospect, I listen to her in some movies and her her do certain things and think "hmm, that doesn't sound like it would be good for the vocal cords."

Don't know what anyone else thinks, but I can't help but focus on that when I hear her performances.

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I don't know . . . . she was a child prodigy. Her early singing is PRETTY amazing. I get a sense that she was told by "the system" that she needed to ACT the music better and not just sing it beautifully. IMHO I think that's were some of the bad technique came into play.

No matter what the cause, it's a crime to have lost that magical voice!

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She's a class act, but she should have just accepted the nomination. She would have won. It would have been her first Tony (though she richly deserved it for Fair Lady and Camelot, I'm sure) and it would have been a nice moment.

In her memoir, "Home," Julie says she was having vocal problems doing "My Fair Lady" 8 times a week for 2 years. Even Maria Callas came backstage and marveled at her stamina and ability and god-given talent. I think ANY human being would have some problems after a run that long singing a score that challenging.

Julie was talked into the Broadway production of "Victor/Victoria" by her husband who wrote and directed it; she had earlier stated that she didn't want to do it without Robert Preston, and he had died a few years earlier. She declined the Tony nomination because she felt that at the very least, the show should have been nominated for Best Musical.

Now, considering the fact that they did not give her a Tony Award for "The Boy Friend" (not even nominated), "My Fair Lady" or "Camelot" (nor, btw, was she given the parts in the subsequent films) and the fact that plenty of really crappy shows have been nominated over the years for Best Musical, I think she was, as always, perfectly correct. She is a peerless talent and a class act, and she called out the Phony Awards for what they really are. Julie Andrews was fabulous in "Victor/Victoria," both on stage and on film, and I'm very fortunate that I got to see her.

I think what also added insult to injury was that year at the Tonys "Big-The Musical" was nominated in several categories. Also "Swinging on a Star" was nominated for Best Musical. While "SOAS" was a nice show, it was nothing more than a songbook musical, just Johnny Burke songs strung together.

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It was on Broadway.

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Her voice had deteriorated between the Broadway My Fair Lady recording and the London one. The last note of "I Could Have Danced All Night" is really flat on the London recording. One of the many things that makes the Broadway recording superior, stereo sound notwithstanding.

Who got the Tony over her for Camelot? It wasn't Chita. It wasn't Tammy Grimes (She was in Featured...bizarre Tony rules). She should have gotten SOME consolation prize for losing for Fair Lady, which is undoutably a very challenging role I can't picture anyone perfecting except Dame Julie.

The standard line on this show was "Julie great, show bad."

I found the reverse to be true. Julie talk-sang her numbers (definitely no pre-recording) and was just okay, while the show was a lot of fun - a light piece of fluff, exactly what you wanted from a Broadway version of this movie.

That made it even more ironic to me that she was the only one nominated.

I had the pleasure of seeing V/V out of town in Chicago and thought she was wonderful. For a few years prior, she had become more deliberate in her singing. It felt less natural, more careful and placed. This was true of her performance in V/V, though her mid/low range was really wonderful.

The "I Couldn't Hit That Note" in Forbidden Bway was mostly in reference to when Julie hosted the Tony awards and sang a big medley of her shows in the middle. It was quite obvious that she was vocally having problems holding pitch and the final high note was quite flat. She also spoke-sang alot (which she is a master).

Let's just be thankful that we have her albums and movies from her glory days and that she's still with us sharing her wonderful talent and stories. A class act.