pop-stars,,,ick!!!- Page 2

[xluckystar2107x]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 5:55pm

ok this thread was about POP STARS. never did i say that hollywood actors dont measure up. i said crossovers arent always successful but many many many hollywood actors start on the stage and thats how they are different from pop-stars....they know how to act.

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 5:55pm

NoDayButToday2 - You hit the nail on the head there. My problem is, did producers really think Mel B would be THE BEST CHOICE to play Mimi? No. Once producers forget about the integrity of the show, then it becomes doomed. I realize that it is a business and they want to make money, but I'm not sure casting someone who cannot perform the role well is the way to do it. Did Joey Fatone save Little Shop? Did Deborah Cox save Aida? Maybe they boosted sales for a short period, but ultimately, their names are simply not enough to keep a show open. Sure, some fans will come just to see their idol on stage, but I do believe that the majority of audiences really do want to see the show performed well. In the case of Rent and Aida, it was the unknowns that made the roles memorable, not celebrities.

After having seen Rent in July, I can understand the decline in sales. It is no longer what it once was. Little attention has been paid in the actual performances outside of knowing their songs and their blocking/choreography. In many cases, the personas of the characters have been completely changed and there was more than one self-indulgent performance. Had the show opened in that condition, it would never have been the award winning success that it is. They really need a director to come in and clean it up.

[Plum]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 5:59pm

Luckystar, Hugh Jackman wasn't a star of anything when he was cast in his first musical. By the time he got to BFO he had 3 big-time productions behind him.

What I meant to point out was that even people who don't have training in a certain area can do well in it. Actors can turn out to be unexpectedly good singers, and singers can turn out to be pretty decent actors. There are no hard and fast rules in this game.

[NoDayButToday2]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 6:00pm

wicked phantom--"why does everyone automatically believe that anyone who is a popstar can't be on broadway! what if their awesome performers!"

If they are awesome performers that got into a show through a FAIR audition, meaning they actually sang/read for someone and were deemed the BEST choice for the role then yes, let them come to breadway by all means! but im pretty sure the portion of pop stars on broadway did not get into the shows like i described. Im sorry i really dont share your opinon of joey though...

[xluckystar2107x]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 6:01pm

i agree about rent. i mean even the typical images of the characters are now distorted. i mean maureen...blonde and wasnt there an asian mimi? idk w/e thats not the point. the point is is that the hype is down but the way to boost it isnt to add a pop-star.

[NoDayButToday2]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 6:02pm

"After having seen Rent in July, I can understand the decline in sales. It is no longer what it once was. Little attention has been paid in the actual performances outside of knowing their songs and their blocking/choreography. In many cases, the personas of the characters have been completely changed and there was more than one self-indulgent performance. Had the show opened in that condition, it would never have been the award winning success that it is. They really need a director to come in and clean it up. "


AMEN TO THAT!!!

how can i become the director???

[xluckystar2107x]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 6:02pm

plum i was referring to marquise's post....i think?? idk i thought i had just seen smthing about hollywood crossovers...my bad. :\ Updated On: 9/13/04 at 06:02 PM

[Unknown User]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 6:06pm

norbert has a good voice..but i'm not believing he's in college for a MINUTE! the guy is just too old! he's balding!

[xluckystar2107x]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 6:07pm

??? what does that have to do with anything?...lol

[Plum]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 6:07pm

And Rent is just a show that's been running for a long, long time. A strong clean-up of the production might raise the buzz for a while, but let's face it- most people who want to see Rent have seen it already in some way, shape, or form. And not everyone likes to watch the same show over and over. Pop stars are basically the show's last little hope (though who knows if they're actually working.)

[Unknown User]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 6:16pm

I saw David Bowie do The Elephant Man, and I thought he was phenomenal.

[NoDayButToday2]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 6:21pm

"And not everyone likes to watch the same show over and over. Pop stars are basically the show's last little hope (though who knows if they're actually working.)"

actually, though this probably wasnt the intent, rent may be getting a decent sized audience because all the RENTheads have heard how horrible the pop stars are and want to see/hear for themselves... so basically the whole show has been turned into a joke.

[mywonderwa11]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 6:31pm

okay, all of y'all just need to suck it up and get over it. just because someone is titled as a "pop star" doesn't mean they aren't capable of doing broadway. OBVIOUSLY pop stars can sing. HELLO! they're SINGERS. so, don't say they can't sing. and as far as acting goes...i'd rather watch a not-so-good actor and a good singer than a bad singer and an amazing actor. vanessa williams was WONDERFUL in spider-woman and in Into the Woods. Reba McIntyre was awesome in Annie Get Your Gun. and Deborah Cox was a wonderful Aida. so, although there are those pop stars who aren't AS talented as professional broadway actors, they still have stage presence and are able to keep themselves together while doing a show every night. it is TOTALLY out of their realm and i applaud them for going the distance and taking on something that is difficult to master. so, all of y'all who are hating on the pop stars just need to pipe down. none of y'all can put in your opinion unless you get cast as the lead in a broadway show and know exactly what it takes. and being a broadway know it all isn't knowing what it takes.

Updated On: 9/13/04 at 06:31 PM

[zepka102]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 6:33pm

wow wonderwa11... nice!

[Al Dente]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 6:34pm

Let me let you in on a little *secret*, while I agree that most of the stunt casting done nowadays, is simply embarrassing, MOST of the people you all so desperately worship, started out wanting desperately to BE popstars. The list is long and includes varying deegrees of success, from absolutely none, to platinum status. Adam Pascal, Idina Menzel, Daphne Rubin Vega, Orfeh, Maya Days,Stacy Francis, many OBC of smokey Joe's, just to name a few, all started out in the music business, in groups, solo, duo's etc... And some even had full length major label releases before stepping foot on a Broadway stage. Even later with Cox, or Taylor Dayne, we're talking multi-plantinum acts, without any theater on their resume'. Again, I agree that the talent pool gets more and more shabby, everyday, but you have to lay the blame where it belongs, with whomever is casting the Drew Lachey's and Scary Spice's of the world. It works sometimes, like was the case with the some of the people mentioned earlier and it fails miserably, more often than not. The ones that did work, ironically never became really well known popstars and some even failed completely, so maybe that's the secret.

[xluckystar2107x]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 6:45pm

al dente - idina fell into broadway but she never wanted to be a pop-star. she was a wedding singer and a college student who needed work in January when she had less classes and then she tried out for rent and BAM. a star was born. just to clear that up. but. this whole thread was meant to be about how it truly isnt fair that pop-stars and their mediocre talent get the jobs that truly talented professionals pine for.

[mywonderwa11]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 6:51pm

actually, luckystar, you're wrong. idina was in a band and her big dream WAS to become a pop star. true, she was a wedding singer for money, but she wanted to be known for her singing and get a record deal. i've read several interviews on this subject. maybe you should really do your research before you post.

[NoDayButToday2]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 7:00pm

okay maybe this should be worded differently. i dont personally care for people who have names behind them that suddenly get leads in their first broadway show. honestly, did anyone know who idina was before she was in RENT? probably not. did we know who mel b was before she came to rent? most likely. i dont mind these ex-pop singers if they earn their role with talent and not name.

[MaTakeALookAtMe]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 7:00pm

C'mon...a lot of us weren't born into loving Broadway. We got interested when we heard Vanessa Williams or Reba McEntire or Joey Fatone was in a show. Then we liked what we saw and heard and eventually even got to appreciate the differences in skill and talent needed in the different mediums. At least give them credit for exposing more people to the theater! And when they're no good we all know it! Remember Kris Kattan?

[Al Dente]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 7:03pm

Really XLuckystar? Are you positive about that because I remember,quite clearly, many labels receiving demos from her and this was back in the early 90's. She just couldn't get a record deal until after she gained some notoriety in Rent.

[xluckystar2107x]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 7:05pm

no no im POSITIVE she went to NYU and needed money...her record which was a FOLK record not a pop record...came out AFTER rent... :)

[xluckystar2107x]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 7:07pm

but w/e that has nothing to do with it so i just surrender cause i dont want a fight

[Al Dente]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 7:09pm

Trust me on this, you're way off base. Her real *dream* was to be a pop star.

[bwaykid]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 7:17pm

i find it ashame when these "popstars" come to broadway, because they've done it before and were good but then when they come back they arn't that great...or as great...

i actually have a school friend who wants to do broadway and then become a christian singer (hm), I hope she makes it. but it's tougher in the "real world".

[xluckystar2107x]

Posted: 9/13/04 at 7:18pm

ok but ive ALWAYS heard she just planned on going to college anyway and then got RENT....plus she sings folk style so she wanted to be a singer but she wasnt into the "pop" genre anyway. thats the point but i said i didnt want to discuss it so i dont know why i am i just felt i had to defend my stance. im not stupid. f/y/i