Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf Original Cast Album Help

Posted: 1/29/09 at 8:01am

I have a used vinyl copy of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf's 4 LP original cast album (the whole play recorded by the orgiinal cast), but need it for a project I'm doing right now and don't have access to a record player. Can anyone help me find a CD or mp3 copy of this please?
Updated On: 1/29/09 at 08:01 AM

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 1/29/09 at 8:47am

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 1/29/09 at 8:49am

He asked for the audio, Brody, not the artwork.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 1/29/09 at 9:01am

That's been taken care of, mon ami.

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 1/29/09 at 9:03am

*curtsies to sista BF123*

[BobbyBubby]

Posted: 1/29/09 at 9:09am

NM
Updated On: 1/29/09 at 09:09 AM

[philcrosby]

Posted: 1/29/09 at 11:24am

I had that LP set years ago ... a brilliant recording of a brilliant cast in a brilliant play.

[PiraguaGuy2]

Posted: 1/29/09 at 11:25am

Sucks for Melinda Dillon to be the only castmember below the title.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 1/29/09 at 12:38pm

"Sucks for Melinda Dillon to be the only castmember below the title."

It was her first Broadway credit. All the others had several Broadway credits under their belt. And she probably didn't think is sucked at all. To be 1 of only 4 castmembers in an astounding play got her major attention.

[morosco]

Posted: 1/29/09 at 12:45pm

I remember having the original cast recording of THE REAL THING. Probably one of the last Broadway plays recorded in its entirety solely as audio.

[The Distinctive Baritone]

Posted: 1/29/09 at 1:07pm

Dillon got nominated for a Tony too, I think. Although of course she was replaced for the film by Sandy Dennis, who won an Oscar...I bet Uta Hagan wasn't thrilled about the film casting either. Albee famously hated the casting of Richard Burton and Liz Taylor, although IMO they were amazing.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 1/29/09 at 1:13pm

"I bet Uta Hagan wasn't thrilled about the film casting either."

Nobody knew who Uta Hagen was at that time. I think the film had to go to already established movie stars.

[Reginald Tresilian]

Posted: 1/29/09 at 1:31pm

I always thought Judy Garland would have been great in the film.

[Parks]

Posted: 1/29/09 at 1:32pm

We're reading WAOVW in my Writing class this semester I found out today--I'm so excited! I'm not really familiar with it, but it sounds interesting!

[Brick]

Posted: 1/29/09 at 1:33pm

I've always wanted this! I saw the LP once, but didn't buy it for the same reason as your question: I'd want it on CD or mp3 or something...

[Ed_Mottershead]

Posted: 1/29/09 at 1:38pm

I believe this has already been addressed here. I'm pretty sure it was never released on CD -- it's one of the few vinyls I've kept through the years. I've seen subsequent productions of Woolf, but all I had to do was play the Hagen version to know how that role should be done. I'm not knocking Dewhurst (probably my favorite actress of all time) or Kathleen Turner (who I thought was really superb in the 3rd act), but Hagen really had that role down to the nth degree. I don't have the technical savvy to convert my LP to CD format and I'm loathe to lend it out, so I guess I'll still be using my old record player.

[Reginald Tresilian]

Posted: 1/29/09 at 2:45pm

I wish I'd seen this handy-dandy (and affordable) gizmo before I got rid of the last of my LPs.

http://www.restorationhardware.com/rh/catalog/product/product.jsp?productId=prod1531221&navAction=jump

Posted: 1/29/09 at 9:35pm

Thanks so much to all of you!

I do still have my vinyl but where I am for the next month and a bit doesn't have a record player--at home I have a great Dual with pitch control, new needles etc... (I need it since after Broadway one of my great loves is obscure 70s disco albums lol--I was so born in the wrong decade). This helps immeasurably.

So while we're on the subject--what other *plays* got this kind of cast album treatment? I wonder why it was done for Woolf.

E

[BigFatBlonde]

Posted: 1/29/09 at 9:46pm

At one time I had

BOYS IN THE BAND

THE REAL THING

MA RAINY'S BLACK BOTTOM

DEATH OF SALESMAN

THE ZOO STORY

And a TONS of Cademon recordings of classic plays on LP.

JUNO AND THE PAY COCK

THE CHERRY ORCHARD w/ Jessica Tandy.

STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE w/ Rosemary Harris (I heard that is coming out on cd soon.

Tons more. There were lots of plays recorded to LP that are just never going to get transferred to cd.

Pity.

Updated On: 1/29/09 at 09:46 PM

[morosco]

Posted: 1/29/09 at 10:21pm

Now might be a good time to mention L.A. Theatre Works. Though not Broadway they offer many MANY complete audio recordings of plays. All available for purchase on CD. I recently listened to their recording of PROOF and found it to be really well done. (They also had a live broadcast of FALSETTOS with most of the original cast. That broadcast however is not available for purchase.)
L.A. Theatre Works

[BigFatBlonde]

Posted: 1/29/09 at 10:34pm

I wish I could stand behind L.A. Theatre works, but their productions are SO uninspired. They use some of the dullest actors and tamper with the text too much.

I listen to them and buy their recordings because they are the only game in town. But they are so bland... and for the most part not very listener friendly. How many times have they NOT described where the scene is taking place? How many times have the tweaked the text to cover up a visual stage action? Leaving the listener perplexed.

I'm sorry to rant, but they could fix these problems with a designated narrator describing the setting and stage directions.

And don't tamper with the text!

That said, I think THE HEIRESS is their best recording. I also like their MRS. WARREN'S PROFESSION.

*steps off soapbox*

Can you tell I have a thing for recorded plays?

Updated On: 1/29/09 at 10:34 PM

[Reginald Tresilian]

Posted: 1/30/09 at 12:16am

I believe there's a recording of Michael Frayn's "Copenhagen," but I'm not sure which cast it is. Maybe London? (As you can tell, I'm too lazy to search.)

[bk]

Posted: 1/30/09 at 12:38am

"I remember having the original cast recording of THE REAL THING. Probably one of the last Broadway plays recorded in its entirety solely as audio."

Not quite - as Reginald correctly points out, I recorded Copenhagen during its Broadway run (not London). At that time, I had plans to try and bring back plays on discs because I loved them when I was growing up. I tried to do The Play About The Baby, but Albee was too weird to ultimately deal with. I did do a studio recording of Beyond Therapy, but then other things happened and that was the end of that.

I was also going to reissue Virginia Woolf on CD, but the royalty structure was completely outrageous due to the fact of how many LPs it was. At that time, Sony wanted a guarantee of 5000 units, which means you paid for those whether you sold that many or not. There was just no way for it be be financially viable. I'm not sure if Sony still has the 5000 unit guarantee or not. I also loved Luv on LP.

[ggersten]

Posted: 1/30/09 at 10:42am

My parents used to have records of "Julius Caesar" by Orson Welles and the Mercury Theatre and Don Juan in Hell

[Brick]

Posted: 1/30/09 at 12:19pm

I cherish my MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM, and now WOOLF!!!