Steve On Broadway (SOB)

Second Verse, Better Than The First

Second Verse, Better Than The First

Two nights ago, I had a fabulously ridiculous dream.

In it, I was seeing a Broadway show alongside The New York Times' critics Ben Brantley and Charles Isherwood, two men I've never met in person, but have certainly observed. It was a bizarre dream to be sure, especially since much like the rest of last season, I found myself disagreeing with Isherwood's assessment of the show, but agreeing with Brantley's (fortunately in this phantasm, the Gray Lady's senior critic was responsible for writing the review).

Imagine my delight upon waking to find myself agreeing with Isherwood regarding his excellent assessment of replacement casts.

In particular, I could not agree with him more that A Little Night Music constitutes the "must-see" production this summer. It's been positively transformed, largely on the heartstopping performance of Bernadette Peters. So transformative was her rendition of "Send In The Clowns" that you could hear a pin drop as she delivered it.

Having also seen Peters and her replacement Reba McEntire in the most recent Broadway revival of Annie Get Your Gun, I have to admit to concurring with his assessment that McEntire's performance eclipsed that of the tried-and-true Broadway Baby she replaced. I enjoyed Bernadette Peters in the title role, but the scrappy McEntire was born to play Annie Oakley. It is rather ironic that until I saw Peters as Desiree Armfeldt, Reba McEntire was my favorite Broadway replacement I ever had the thrill of seeing.

Additional props to Isherwood not only for discussing how truly disappointing the successors to Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick were in The Producers, but also for mentioning the fine replacements Jonathan Pryce and Estelle Parsons made for John Lithgow (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels) and Deanna Dunagan (August: Osage County), respectively. While I thought Pryce's sophisticated delivery of the con artist Lawrence was an improvement over Lithgow, I'm convinced after beholding Dunagan perform as Violet Weston yet again last week that no one can ever quite match her bravura Tony Award-winning performance.


That goes double, by the way, for Dunagan's co-star Rondi Reed as Mattie Fae Aiken. I've witnessed two other actresses attempt making that delicious role their own. Try as they might, neither could erase my fond memory of the quintessential Mattie Fae. Coincidentally, Reed has also succeeded in winning my heart as the absolute best of the dozen or more Madame Morribles I've ever seen in Wicked.

So, dear readers, who are your favorite replacements? Or if your fabulously ridiculous dreams could come true, whom would you want to see as replacements in a current Broadway show?

This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).


In keeping with the new Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulations that unfairly discriminate against bloggers, who are now required by law to disclose when they have received anything of value they might write about, please note that I have received nothing of value in exchange for this post.

Labels: A Little Night Music, Annie Get Your Gun, August Osage County, Bernadette Peters, Broadway, Charles Isherwood, Deanna Dunagan, Jonathan Pryce, Reba McEntire, Replacements, Rondi Reed, Wicked

posted by Steve On Broadway (SOB) @ Thursday, August 26, 2010 7 comments

SOB's Favorite Shows Of The Noughties: #21 - My Fair Lady

SOB's Favorite Shows Of The Noughties: #21 - My Fair Lady (2001, Drury Lane Theatre Royal, London, UK)

Introduction: Hard as it is to comprehend that we're already 119 months into this "new" millennium, we are fast approaching the end of its first decade. While we have yet to agree on what exactly we should call the '00s, I'll take a cue from the fine folks at The Times of London and the BBC and henceforth refer to them at the Noughties.

With that small introduction, I'm pleased to present my list of plays and musicals that wowed me the most during that time. Out of the hundreds and hundreds of shows I've seen over the last ten years, I give you my countdown of my 25 personal favorite shows of the Noughties.

When director Trevor Nunn teamed up with producer Cameron Mackintosh for a 2001 revival of Alan J. Lerner and Frederick Loewe's masterpiece My Fair Lady in London, right around the corner from the musical's opening scene at Covent Garden, who would have predicted it would be so exhilarating and sublime? Not only did they make beautiful music together, but with Matthew Bourne's innovative choreography that could have danced all night, their incarnation soared.

This revival also marked my first-ever opportunity to see the magnificent Jonathan Pryce on stage. Watching him as Henry Higgins was truly a master class in acting. Teamed with a thoroughly excellent cast, it hardly mattered that understudy Alexandra Jay was performing -- exceptionally, I might add -- in the role of Eliza Doolittle.

While a touring company brought Nunn's My Fair Lady to North American audiences, it failed to materialize as it should have on Broadway. Thankfully, with a little bit of luck, my memories of that London mounting will remain fresh as a flower for years to come.

This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).

In keeping with the new Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulations that unfairly discriminate against bloggers, who are now required by law to disclose when they have received anything of value they might write about, please note that I have received nothing of value in exchange for this post. I paid my own way for this performance.

Labels: Alexandra Jay, Cameron Mackintosh, Jonathan Pryce, London, Matthew Bourne, Musical, My Fair Lady, SOB's Favorite Shows Of The Noughties, Understudy

posted by Steve On Broadway (SOB) @ Monday, December 07, 2009 4 comments

My Fair Philly

Labels: Cameron Mackintosh, First Word On New Show, Jonathan Pryce, London, Musical, My Fair Lady, Olivier Awards, Philadelphia, Revival, Trevor Nunn

posted by Steve On Broadway (SOB) @ Thursday, March 01, 2007 2 comments