Vanessa Williams in Wicked???

[muscle23ftl]

Posted: 9/5/05 at 2:43am

Someone told me that Vanessa was going to be the original Elphaba....and he swore he saw her in rehersals, he also mentioned Roseanne Barr was going to play Morrible...is he a liar???

[ShuQ]

Posted: 9/5/05 at 2:45am

YES

[WickedJerseyGirl]

Posted: 9/5/05 at 2:49am

God, I hope so.

[Popular]

Posted: 9/5/05 at 2:51am

Even though I'm not certain your question is to be taken seriously I'll humor you by answering..everyone should know by now that Stephen Schwartz personally called up Stephanie to be the original Elphaba. No broadway credits = bring in Idina. Some have even even been rumored to say that Stephen himself wasn't exactly pleased by that but you have to keep your investors happy.

[muscle23ftl]

Posted: 9/5/05 at 3:27am

anyone knows if she happened to rehears for the show at all?

[WickedJerseyGirl]

Posted: 9/5/05 at 3:28am

Not that I have ever heard or read

[YouWantitWhen????]

Posted: 9/5/05 at 3:49am

Sure you're not getting the witch from Into the Woods confused with one of the witches in Wicked?
Updated On: 9/5/05 at 03:49 AM

[Sant]

Posted: 9/5/05 at 4:04am

Well as much as I think Vanessa Williams has a great voice, I have to say that even if she had played Elphaba in some very early workshop well before Defying Gravity or The Wizard And I (I know, that was brought in very late... replaced another song) were written, there's no way she could pull it off now. It's just out of her range. She can sing alright - and well - but the part just requires a stronger voice and a wider range.

[Patronus]

Posted: 9/5/05 at 9:56am

Yeah, unless the songs were written much lower, I don't see how Vanessa Williams could even give an adequate performance of Wicked in the shower.

I love some of her pop music and she was decent enough in Into The Woods, but there is no way she could sing some of those Elphaba songs.

Now, Roseanne could probably pull of Morrible, but I don't see why she'd do it and I don't see why producers would cast her because up to this point in her career she hasn't shown the ability to be subtle. I still maintain that Bea Arthur would be a perfect Morrible and might even convince me to pay to see the show again. Updated On: 9/5/05 at 09:56 AM

[The Distinctive Baritone]

Posted: 9/5/05 at 3:56pm

Stephanie Block was Elphaba in the workshop before the investors demoted her to standby. I doubt Vanessa Williams was ever involved, or if she was, got as far as rehearsal.

[RockabyeHamlet]

Posted: 9/5/05 at 4:07pm

That has to be a joke... I cnnot... no, it Must be joke!

[Marquise]

Posted: 9/5/05 at 4:19pm

as much as i love vanessa, she is not right for elphaba in "wicked".
i'm sure this is just idle gossip.

[Pgenre]

Posted: 9/5/05 at 5:06pm

The person may have gotten Williams' replacement in rehearsal story in re: THE WILD PARTY. She was cast, workshopped and began early rehearsals for the Broadway THE WILD PARTY, but had to withdraw when the show was pushed further back in the season so that LaChiusa could give MARIE CHRISTINE more attention (he had 2 shows premiere within one season on Broadway, just like he will have 2 shows premiere off-Broadway this season... but I wouldn't be suprised to see SEE WHAT I WANNA SEE transfer if the season ends up with a bunch of turkeys). Anyway, Williams learned she was pregnant during this period and would have begun to show by the time the show opened, so it was mutually agreed she would withdraw from the production. If the show had lasted longer (and by God it deserved to) she would have made an excellent replacement for Toni Collette, who was absolutely brilliant in every way in the role. The premise of an African American Queenie is a brilliant one, and gives whole new meaning to the "her face was a tinted mask of snow" line... plus, there were many racially charged elements ("Golden Boy" being the most obvious, especially in the original previews version), as is Wolfe's wont, but wholly justified by the source material.

THE WILD PARTY is my favorite show, btw. Someday the world will recognize its brilliance. If you don't own the cast recording, GET IT! (even though all the "fu*k"'s have been censored for some reason, amateur group viability perhaps?)

A Good Nightmare Comes So Rarely,
P genre

[zepka102]

Posted: 9/5/05 at 5:22pm

roseanne as morrible... HAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHA

[broadwaybelter]

Posted: 9/5/05 at 5:57pm

Vanessa Williams has never EVER been part of WICKED

[WickedGeek28]

Posted: 9/5/05 at 8:07pm

I love the idea of Bea Arthur!

[LA2NYC]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 12:36am

The story goes as such.
Idina was not part of the workshop because of prior commitments. However she was always in mind to play the role. In fact Stephen wrote defying gravity with her voice in mind. I saw a night of songs wiht stephen a few years back. At the end he said he wanted to play this song he was working on for a new show based on the gregory Mcguire novel. he then introduced Idina Menzel and said that she would be in the show to sing this power ballad if it was the last thing he did. It was as amazing then as it is today. With only a piano to back her up, idina sang the crap outta it.

[itsmeeeee]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 12:51am

i do beleive i have a recording of that...

[elphaba610]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 1:49am

Vanessa Williams should never play Elphaba. She cant sing and she sure doesnt look the part.

[AngusN]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 3:35pm

Now that's a ridiculous statement elphaba610 'she can't sing'. Oh, so she has had a successful career as a recording artist and has played the lead roles in several Broadway musicals. You may not like Vanessa Williams, but no-one can be that successful in the music and musical theatre industry and not be able to sing.

[bjivie2]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 3:39pm

Vanessa Williams as Queenie? I can't see it.

[uncageg]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 4:19pm

If I am not mistaken, Vanessa is classically trained. I remember she sang, I think, part of an aria at the Miss America pageant.

[bjivie2]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 4:38pm

She has a musical theatre degree from somewhere. Michigan? I can't recall.

[kate2]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 5:59pm

thats kinda funny! has vanessa williams even seen wicked, nevermind being part of it!!

[best12bars]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 8:25pm

Vanessa sang "Happy Days Are Here Again" at the Miss America Pageant, not an aria. She was teriff, however.