This is one stunt-casting move I'm happy isn't on Broadway... good luck London... Zac Efron

[defyinggravity42694]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 10:38pm

https://www.broadwayworld.com/viewcolumn.cfm?colid=32041


I guess it's only a matter of time until we seem him on the Great White Way now...

[The Ghost of Kringas]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 10:50pm

Is it stunt casting when the actor can sing and dance?

[defyinggravity42694]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 10:55pm

He has a huge name.

You are aware he was lip-singing the all The High School Musical's, right?

[The Ghost of Kringas]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 10:56pm

And he very good in a hugely successful movie musical.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 10:57pm

Stunt casting simply implies when a performer with no previous Broadway or any professional stage experience is given a leading role in a Broadway or major theatrical production somewhere in the world (West End, Australia, etc.).

Example: Jennifer Lopez can sing and dance but has never appeared in any major production of anything therefore if she were to join the Broadway cast of CHICAGO, that would be considered 'stunt casting'.

[bwaybri2]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 10:58pm

he lip synced the 1st one but sang the 2nd and 3rd

[The Ghost of Kringas]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 11:03pm

I guess, but I always thought stunt casting was more when someone (of dubious qualification) was brought in to save a sinking ship.

Was Natasha Richardson - having no experience singing on stage before - stunt casting in Cabaret?

I thought he only lip-synced in the first (and maybe second HSMs). I've never seen them and I don't know.

He could suck in this, but it's Joseph, for God's sake. It's not like it's Sweeney Todd.

[chrysler99]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 11:17pm

you are correct, he only was only lip-syncing in the 1st HSM. he did all his own singing in the other two and in Hairspray.

seeing as he has no stage experience, I would call it stunt casting as well.

[BNN]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 11:20pm

He has community stage experience where he grew up I believe.

Also, isn't Joseph a tenor role? I'm pretty sure Zac Efron's voice is baritone but I may be wrong.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 11:22pm

FYI -- Sally Bowles is a third-rate singer working in a seedy cabaret in Berlin. The casting of the role in the recent Sam Mendes re-invention revival stayed true to form and cast actresses who were not singers -- Jennifer Jason Leigh, Brooke Shields, Jane Leeves, Molly Ringwald, Lea Thompson, etc. Singing wasn't a requirement for the role and several actresses who were trained singers had keys raised or lowered in order to 'ruin' their singing (Susan Egan stated this in many interviews).

The original 1966 Broadway Sally Bowles, Jill Haworth, was cast this way as well (actress who didn't sing). Liza Minnelli was actually miscast since her voice gave her Sally too much credibility as a singer. Bob Fosse tried to overlook this small detail by having Sally sing/perform all her songs in the empty Kit Kat Klub (implying that only in her head is she the great singer she thinks she is), but unfortunately... this detail was overlooked by everyone.

[puppet]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 11:30pm

Lip Sync is a common film practice. The sound track is recorded prior to the filming and then the actors "lip sync" to the prerecorded track.
The question should be did he lip sync to his own track or to another singers voice.

[defyinggravity42694]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 11:41pm

The hole Hairspray cast lip-synced.

read puupet's post.

In HSM1 he was dubbed with someone, drawing a blank on the name. In HSM2 everyone lip-synced, like they do in all Disney musical movies... camp rock, the cheetah girls trilogy etc. Can't imagine HSM3 will be different.

The cast does record the soundtrack but no doubt they use a box while recording.

[TooDarnHot]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 11:42pm

it was revealed that he DID lipsync to another singer's voice.... that's why he didn't do the HSM Live! Concert. He couldn't sing the music -- his range isn't high enough.

[elphiesmagic]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 11:48pm

"Singing wasn't a requirement for the role and several actresses who were trained singers had keys raised or lowered in order to 'ruin' their singing (Susan Egan stated this in many interviews)."

Apparently they forgot to do that with Joely Fisher, because she sounded more first-rate than third-.

[mormonophobic]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 11:48pm

BrodyFosse123, thank you so much for posting that. I actually never realized this about Sally, especially since the film incarnation really portrays her as being a good singer. Thank you for the history lesson.

[Kad]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 11:53pm

....every movie musical lip syncs the songs during shooting, regardless of who is in it. It's standard practice. You can't accuse someone of not being qualified enough because they lip synced to their own vocals in a movie musical.

It's still Efron's voice (except the first HSM) and still his dancing. So I don't see what the issue is.

[SporkGoddess]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 11:53pm

Yikes, I have a feeling that he is going to butcher that score. I know better singers than him who couldn't hit those high notes in "Close Every Door."

[NGD2225]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 11:57pm

When ever he gets sad, he gets the face of a flat faced cat. I couldn't stop from laughing if he did it in Joseph.

[popular_elphie]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 11:59pm

Everyone sings along with the track when they are filming the movie. It isn't live singing.

In the first movie, all Zac's singing was done by Andrew Seeley (who went on the HSM Concert tour). For HSM2 and HSM3 as well as Hairspray, Zac did all his own singing.

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 9/19/08 at 12:07am

Considering the long, long list of pop stars who have played Joseph in the past I'm not getting the shock value here. I just wish someone would finally record the show in its entirety for posterity sake.

[TooDarnHot]

Posted: 9/19/08 at 12:11am

"It's still Efron's voice (except the first HSM) and still his dancing. So I don't see what the issue is."

Reread the first few words, starting at "It's" and ending at "HSM". That's the issue.

They hired a vocalist to do it because he couldn't hit the higher notes. If he can't do HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL, how can he do JOSEPH?? You gotta be kidding me, Kad.

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 9/19/08 at 12:16am

I would imagine Efron's interest has the producers seeing $$$ having them not really care if he sings some alternate notes.

[The Ghost of Kringas]

Posted: 9/19/08 at 12:25am

But he can sing. And keys can be lowered or raised to suit a singer. Is Joseph really that sacrosanct?

What about Julia Roberts in Three Days of Rain? Was that stunt casting?

[The Ghost of Kringas]

Posted: 9/19/08 at 12:26am

Is there some big secret I'm missing? Can he not sing live or something? I really couldn't care less about the dude, but I don't get what is so startling about this.

[TimesSquareRegular]

Posted: 9/19/08 at 12:27am

Maybe it's only "stunt casting" if it's someone you don't like ....