I wonder how Noah Weisberg could do in this role. I think he has the acting ability, and I do like his voice.
As much as I love Lindsey Mendez, she certainly doesn't seem "Irish Catholic."
What about Christy Altomare? She was Sue in Carrie and is Sophie in Mamma Mia right now. I absolutely loved her Sue and thought she had a fantastic voice.
The actors in THE LAST FIVE YEARS have to be believable as having lived major, life-altering events over the course of the story. They're young when they first meet, but they've navigated huge emotional events that age them significantly by the time their relationship ends.
Christy Altomare is a really interesting performer, but wide eyed ingenues like her don't read nearly "knowing" enough for a show as emotionally complex as this one. Altomare also still looks 16, and I'd go as far as to argue that she's exactly the type of "younger and thinner" girls Cathy sings about having to compete against in "Climbing Uphill." The same goes for someone like Laura Osnes. This role is far from that of your typical leading lady. The most appropriate choices are character actresses with a darker edge, which is why Sherie Rene Scott was so perfect in the original.
The true merits of her voice are still somewhat a mystery, but in terms of type, Lauren Ambrose is exactly what I think is required. I'd be fascinated to see her take on a character as complex and multifaceted as Cathy.
I like Noah Weisberg a lot, but I almost think he reads too "nice" for Jamie? As someone said earlier, Norbert Leo Butz was so utterly charming that he made the character read as significantly more sympathetic than he is on the page, but at heart, Jamie's very much a pompous jerk, and his selfishness and personal ambition are critical aspects of his personal identity. I don't know if I get all that from Weisberg, but he sure is talented. Christian Borle (who Weisberg has understudied) would have been the ideal choice years ago.
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 assuming that was aimed at Benanti, who is actually only 33. Though I do agree that she's always read far more older, in a good way, than she actually is.
You're right about Altomare, a tad young, but Weisberg could easily play a charming a-hole, (though he really is a nice guy) There's an old Law and Order where he plays an obnoxious guy and he's great. It will be interesting to see who JRB casts as himself.
Actually I think Missy B reads younger on stage, but on TV she's a bit hard faced (but still beautiful), IMO she's all wrong for this. I'm kinda stuck on a blonde-type for Cathy. The Daisy Mae reference and all.
Yes, i know ljay but she has all the physical characteristics one would associate with a Jewish woman. She looks like the kind of Jewish girl Jamie would have dated before he meet Cathy, the kind he he talks about having dinner with in Shiska Goddess. She wouldn't seem like the huge 'break through' in the dating scene Jamie sees her as. She would seem like more of the same. Secondly, an actress does not have to BE a nationality or certain ethnicity to play that nationality or ethnicity, as long as it is within reason. For example i doubt anyone had a problem with Morgan Freeman playing Nelson Mandela despite the fact Freeman was not south African. Patti LuPone performing as Evita is much the same. Third, there are many Jewish actresses who don't look Jewish i.e Elizabeth Banks or Anneliese Van der Pol who though they are Jewish do not look like the typical Jewish woman one mit imagine. While other Jewish actresses look very Jewish, i.e Idina Menzel and Lea Michele, it just the way things work.
I only suggested Altomare because the breakdown listed her as 26-31 and I was trying to think of someone who fit the younger side, not just older characters who will have to play down in age. But, she really is very youthful.
I had wondered about Allison Case as an option but she also seems to read so, so young, and I'm not sure she would do the darker side of Cathy as well.
I'm incredibly partial but I think Julie Reiber would be excellent. She played Cathy up in the Berkshires a couple summers ago and was fantastic. Paul Anthony Stewart was her Jamie and he was pretty good.
What about Jennifer Laura Thompson? Could she still read 26 by the end of the show? Her voice is great and I personally think she would be wonderful in so many songs.
Patti Murin would be perfect. She's the right age, she can sing it easily, right type, and she could also handle both the comedy and the drama of the role.
And I still think Santino would be the right choice for this, but unfortunately he won't be available. So I'm out of ideas for that half of it.