Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

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Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/21/06 at 11:50pm

Hopefully, this will be an interesting look at the stars on Broadway before they were such. Post your stories.

For example, I saw John Lithgow in the summer of 1976 in a San Francisco performance of Same Time, Next Year years before he became a star.

Also that same week in SF I went to Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope which had future famer Nell Carter.

In Toronto (or Vancouver, I forget which), I saw the road company of The Mystery of Edwin Drood, with Paige O'Hara, who would later be the speaking and singing voice of Belle in Walt Disney's Beauty amd the Beast.

Updated On: 8/21/06 at 11:50 PM

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 12:01am

Sutton Foster as Eponine on the Les Miz tour seven (!) years ago.

Kelli O'Hara on the Jekyll & Hyde tour around the same time.

"This thread reads like a series of White House memos." — Mister Matt

Updated On: 8/22/06 at 12:01 AM

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 1:20am

Nathan Lane in "Merlin" and "Wind In The Willows."

Christian Slater, also in "Merlin."

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 2:16am

Stephanie J. Block as Belle in Beauty and the Beast at Disneyland 14 years ago. Then in Grease (Santa Barbara CLO) 9 years ago. Then Triumph of Love (Santa Barbara CLO) about that long ago too.

Susan Egan in Singing in the Rain (SBCLO) 16 years ago

Laura Marie Duncan in Joseph... in '94 (SBCLO)

Troy Britton Johnson as the Prince in Cinderella, 1997 (SBCLO)

Darcie Roberts at age 16 as Lily St. Regis in Annie (SBCLO)

Jennifer Naimo as Sally in YAGMCB, 2000 (SBCLO)

What is your dream role? My dream role would be to be myself. To be performing at the Hollywood Bowl and to have an audience there just to see me, as Stephanie. They are there because they like what I do as a singer, an artist and a person (the last being the most important). I enjoy escaping and portraying other characters, but to be accepted and wanted as yourself... that's amazing! --Stephanie J. Block Just one of the many reasons I admire and respect Stephanie!!

Updated On: 8/22/06 at 02:16 AM

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 2:28am

I know I have seen more but the only ones that come to mind are:

Marla Schaffel in West Side Story at Westchester Broadway Theatre

Sarah Uriarte Berry in The Sound of Music at Helen Hayes in Nyack, NY

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 2:40am

Well, it wasn't me, but my grandparent's friends used to see Audra McDonald in plays all the time when she was around 12 in Fresno. Apparently, she used to come into the store they owned with her friends to buy candy and she was always really talkative and she would tell them about the plays that she was doing and invite them, so they'd go. I found this out when I got into a conversation with them once at my grandparent's house. It came up that I love all things Broadway and they said, "We knew this little girl who was an amazing singer. . . ." and they explained the story. Then they said, "I believe she won a couple of Tony Awards." and I said "Who is it? Audra McDonald" kind of teasingly and Pat said "That's it! That was her name. Audra." My mouth hit the floor!!

So, it wasn't me, but a cool story nonetheless, I think.

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 2:55am

that is really cool, janelle...

"The only way we live beyond our lives is to connect and carve ourselves into the souls of those we love." -Little Fish

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 3:04am

Bebe Neuwirth in A Chorus Line during the road show in Vancouver

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 6:52am

Cheyenne Jackson in Thouroughly Modern Millie

"But I relish every brillant inspired moment. This is who I'm determined to be- an actor/singer/dancer-no, I take that back, this is who I am. These people are my tribe, my destiny. I know it. -How I Paid for College; A story of sex, theft, friendship and musical theater.

#10

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 8:58am

Lilias White... in the chorus of "The Wiz" (national tour) about 30 years ago.

George Hearn in the first national tour of 1776 (as Dickenson), about 35 years ago.

"Jaws is the Citizen Kane of movies."

blocked: logan2, Diamonds3, Hamilton22

Updated On: 8/22/06 at 08:58 AM

#11

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 9:24am

Phylicia Ayers-Allen nee Rashad in chorus of THE WIZ, and also as the "Deena" understudy in the OBC of DREAMGIRLS.

#12

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 9:31am

Manoel in Bklyn.

"You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view - until you climb into his skin and walk around in it."
To Kill A Mockingbird

#13

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 10:32am

Gavin Creel as Hero in FORUM at Sacramento Music Circus in 2000(with Gary Beach as Pseudolus).

#14

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 10:41am

The first time I saw Kristen Chenelworth was in Epic Proportions which I think lasted all of five weeks. Then she went on to the revival of You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown which oddly I missed.

Fate is just an excuse used by men who have no destiny.

#15

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 10:48am

She's more of a TV star, but I saw Christy Carlson Romano in a touring production of The Sound of Music when she was younger.

#16

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 10:52am

Kristen Chenelworth? haha, wow.
Anyways...
Elena Shaddow in West Side Story in 2003.
My mom and my sister saw Sebastian Arcelus in The Full Monty...
ummmmmm, I think I may have seen Nikki Renee Daniels in Beauty and the Beast, but I can't remember if I actually saw the show or not, lol. I also saw Sarah Stiles in The Wizard of Oz.

"I have this mental image of Patti barreling down the street and pushing tourists out of her way." -colleen_lee

#17

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 11:13am

Waiting tables at Beefsteak Charlies back in the day.

"I've lost everything! Luis, Marty, my baby with Chris, Chris himself, James. All I ever wanted was love." --Sheridan Crane "Passions" ------- "Housework is like bad sex. Every time I do it, I swear I'll never do it again til the next time company comes."--"Lulu" from "Can't Stop The Music" ----- "When the right doors didn't open for him, he went through the wrong ones" - "Sweet Bird of Youth" ------------ --------- "Passions" is uncancelled! See NBC.com for more info.

#18

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 11:25am

Stephanie J. Block as the Narator in "Joseph.." 8 years ago.

Mindy Paige Davis in the National Tour of B&TB w/ her future husband Patrick Page. I met them both at the stage door, and they were extremely nice.

Shuler Hensly in Les Mis

"If this is going to be a Christian nation that doesn't help the poor, either we have to pretend that Jesus was just as selfish as we are, or we've got to acknowledge that He commanded us to love the poor and serve the needy without condition and then admit that we just don't want to do it." -Stephen Colbert

#19

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 11:46am

It wasn't me, but my sister's boyfriend lived across the street from Alice Ripley. I guess her parents used to give him advice and stuff, and she used to hang out with him "the way adults hang out with 7th graders." He nearly had a heart attack when he realized she was on my iPod.

And then there was my own personal heart attack when my grandma finds out I'm into theatre and goes "Have you heard of Jamie Lapine?" "Jamie Lapine? You mean James Lapine?" "Yes, but I remember him as little Jamie Lapine, the rosy-cheeked boy from Jewish Sunday School." I guess my aunt had a huge crush on his brother before they moved away. Ahahah. So close and yet so far from famous people.

#20

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 11:53am

Hugh Panaro, 23 years ago, both of us in dinner theater (we were babies!)

He did everything from Joe in Most Happy Fella to J Pierpont Finch in H$Succeed and even Mary Sunshine in Chicago!

#21

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 12:06pm

Brian d'Arcy James as Enjolras in a Les Miserables tour ages ago...late 80s or early 90s.

#22

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 12:08pm

Jimmy Smitts worked for about 3 seasons at The Hangar Theatre in Ithaca when he was a Cornell Univeristy student. He performed in The Rainmaker, Loose Ends and the musical Ernest in Love.

Other Hangar Theatre alumni who eventually made it Broadway were Billy Crudup, who I saw as Marchbanks in Shaw's Candide, Doug Tompos went from playing Young Joe Hardy to a featured role in City of Angels on Broadway, Matthew Bennett did several seasons at The Hangar, including playing Macheath in The Three Penny Opera, and then opened in NYC in Titanic as the purser, later replacing Michael Cerveris as Andrews, the architect. Another Hangar alumnus, Alma Cuervo,who played Shirley Valentine at The Hangar, also went into Titanic.

Another Ithaca performer, while he was a student at Ithaca College was Matt Cavenaugh. I saw him in John and Jen at The Kitchen Theatre in Ithaca. Matt later opened on Broadway in Urban Cowbot and Off-Broadway in Grey Gardens, among others.

#23

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 12:35pm

Sarah Uriarte and Patrick Wilson in Carousel

#24

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 12:42pm

Interesting to know about Matt Cavenaugh. I was at IC when Kitchen was doing John and Jen and remember giving away tickets to it on WICB's Bway radio show. They offered us radio hosts free tickets to see it but I was never able to get down to Kitchen to see this production.

#25

re: Where did you first see them before they were Stars?

Posted: 8/22/06 at 12:59pm

I saw Rod Serling (host of the original "Twilight Zone") at IC when I went to check out the school a year or two before I enrolled. Also, I sat next to Bruce Beck now on WNBC Sports.

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