Per the City Center website and new show marketing materials, Ciara Renee and Kimiko Glenn will no longer participate in the City Center production of THE WILD PARTY (presumably due to conflicts with their respective TV shows). Joaquina Kalukango replaces Renee as Kate and Talene Monahon replaces Glenn as Mae.
I'm not familiar with Monahon but Kalukango is a dynamite talent. I'm excited to see her get such a big break.
Tonya Pinkins: Then we had a "Lot's Wife" last June that was my personal favorite. I'm still trying to get them to let me sing it at some performance where we get to sing an excerpt that's gone.
Tony Kushner: You can sing it at my funeral.
I'm surprised that City Center hasn't issued a press release or made a formal announcement, considering that (in both cases) the switches were made within two or three days of the initial announcement. They've simply scrubbed their names off the website as if they were never announced. Anyway, I doubt many people were buying tickets specifically to see either performer.
Not familiar with Talene Monahan either, but Joaquina Kalukango is fierce. Her voice is big and she's a very skilled actress.I think I'm more excited to see her now then Ciara Renee.
If Sutton were indeed to drop out -- and let's hope she doesn't, although she's been battling this laryngitis for over a month -- I hope they replace her with someone of equal stature. It would be great if they could get Julia Murney to reprise the role. But I am hoping that Sutton is well enough to perform.
The show doesn't start for more than two weeks, that's plenty of time for her to recuperate. It's pretty cool Steven Pasquale is in this, this show was his New York theater debut 15 years ago.
That would be amazing if Julia Murney could do it! And since Taye is in town, why not have him step in for Black. Stephen Pasquale is the real reason to see this show anyway. Sorry Sutton, we still love you.
Pasquale is a weird but interesting choice for this show, since he seems one of the most stalwart, classic leading men working nowadays. I was expecting one of the scarier, quirkier, "uglier" leading character men in the role instead. Norbert Leo Butz, for instance, screams "mad clown" the way Brian D'Arcy James did, in a way Pasquale doesn't necessarily.
I'm super stoked for Pasquale. His "What is it About Her" is gonna be awesome. I'm stoked to see Foster if she can make it. I wonder why they both dropped out?
Lest we forget that Steven Pasquale was the understudy for Burrs in the original production at MTC.
Tonya Pinkins: Then we had a "Lot's Wife" last June that was my personal favorite. I'm still trying to get them to let me sing it at some performance where we get to sing an excerpt that's gone.
Tony Kushner: You can sing it at my funeral.
I guess I understand if people have prior commitments/schedule conflicts with other better paying jobs, but it does seem weird that they're peeling off so slowly. Shouldn't they have known before now?
And no, LightsOut. You are not entitled to anything.