Adele Dazeem the 21st Century Broadway Star- Page 3

[blaxx]

Posted: 3/18/14 at 10:23pm

I think it's safe to say Idina is feeling the benefits of having sung "Defying Gravity" more than Chenoweth is.

I hope so, because Chenoweth didn't sing that at all in the show.

[veronicamae]

Posted: 3/18/14 at 10:35pm

Idina's akin to a designated hitter - she doesn't step up to the plate often, but when she does, it's a grand slam. With a chipped foul ball now and then (cuz, hey, it happens).

RENT - first Broadway show, auditioned for the hell of it, and it BLEW UP BEYOND EXPECTATION
Wicked - she actually blew her audition by cracking (and then cursing) - and that's what landed her the role, and it BLEW UP BEYOND EXPECTATION
Glee - she and Lea Michele resemble one another and someone said, hey let's put her on the show! Her episodes are among the highest rated of the series.
Frozen - she auditioned for it and wanted it badly and got it and it BLEW UP BEYOND EXPECTATION

She's managed to capture a young adult/teen audience 4 times in 3 decades - the 90s, 00s, and 10s. This has given her a HUGE fan base, all of which are not rabid fans of course, but many of whom remain interested in her career. Interest in one project spills over into the next, and so on.

So yes, Frozen and Let It Go's immense success have had a great impact on her career, if you want to break it down to #'s - her Facebook fans went up about 200K since the Oscars til now. That's almost doubling in 3 weeks as it took to gain in 5 years. 40M+ people saw her on the Oscars. Her Oscar photo tweets were among the most viral moments of the night. Millions more heard about her in the news after because of Adele Dazeem.

There's no doubt she had a surge of publicity and audience growth in the last month, but the people that came on board in the last month don't make up the majority of those running to NYC to If/Then. It's those that have been around before Frozen.

p.s. To the person that said she did what Kristin tried SO HARD to do and failed...marry me?





Updated On: 3/18/14 at 10:35 PM

[yankeefan7]

Posted: 3/18/14 at 10:35pm

"Chenoweth (who was also on GLEE, as has Lupone) and McDonald have not really been involved with projects that have had that youth appeal. All that said, I think Disney and the Oscar mishap are really what has lent some "juice" to her name cachet this season. I'm not sure how much it will sustain IF/THEN through its run. "

Ms. Menzel played a role that was more important in the plot of the "Glee" story than Ms. Chenowith so I think she got a bit more exposure from the show IMO.

[Liza's Headband]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 8:41am

Much of this has to do with luck, as well.

[yankeefan7]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 9:40am

"Idina's akin to a designated hitter - she doesn't step up to the plate often, but when she does, it's a grand slam. With a chipped foul ball now and then (cuz, hey, it happens). "

I understood your point and I agree but a DH (designated hitter) bats regularly in the game just like a positioned player. I think the term you were looking for was pinch hitter.

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 10:32am

I personally do not believe in luck. Luck has nothing to do with it. Idina is an immensely talented and gifted woman.

[Owen22]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 10:34am

"Menzel has a more mainstream friendly voice."

Well, that's just wrong. Menzel had a complete Broadway belt sound, as Broadway as either Chen or Audra. You forget, Idina tried to have a pop career right after Rent and even with that backing, that endeavor was a complete failure. Probably somewhat due to the sound of that Broadway-type voice.

Now, along with how wonderfully extraordinary it is for Idina to have a Top 10 song on the Billboard charts, what is equally wonderful is that "Let It Go", which, despite being from a film, is totally Broadway(and she sounds totally Broadway singing it.) yet people are making it a pop hit.



Updated On: 3/19/14 at 10:34 AM

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 10:42am

Owen, Idina never intended to have a theater career. Her intention was to be a rock singer. She hesitantly auditioned for RENT and she was cast - - - being in that show and the recognition she received from it diverted her career path.

She didn't "try" to have a pop career after RENT. She was merely picking up where she left off and after her success in the show it made it easier for her to do that.

That the album wasn't as successful as she had hoped it would be is another matter entirely.

[LYLS3637]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 10:49am

"Much of this has to do with luck, as well."

What a hilariously ridiculous statement.

[Brick]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 10:51am

Luck has a lot to do with her, or any person's, career. She is certainly talented, but also has been quite lucky.

I think it's definitely safe to say she is one of the stars of her generation. And because of the success of WICKED and it's cast album, she is one of the few who is famous from her stage work. Although many know Audra to be a great singer and a Broadway actress, those many people know her from television and follow her to discover her stage talent. Few know Menzel for anything other than WICKED, RENT, and GLEE.

I would argue she is her generation's Patti LuPone. I know many disagree with me, but next to Patti, and even Kristin and Audra, she is certainly the weakest actress of the bunch.

[bwaydude22089]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 3:33pm

I find it interesting that no one has mentioned her performance in See What I Wanna See. It was off-Broadway and during an awkward transition point in her career. It was after her huge success in Wicked but also the failure of the Rent movie. I think, next to her performance in Wicked, it was her best acting work. A very unique performance. I think she was actually better in that than she is in If/Then (and I've seen the show already twice). Idina is an interesting performer. Her process is very predictable. I noticed it in Wicked. Her vocals are incredible early in her run. Then, over time, they start fading but her acting becomes much stronger. It takes her a little bit of time to get comfortable on stage with her acting. If people are already loving her performance, I'm sure her acting will only become more solid. I'm also hoping that her voice will stay in top shape. She seems to be taking better care of it this time around. Not to mention the fact that this score seems a little more singer friendly than Wicked. Idina was with that show for a very long time. I think a year and a half and then 5 months in London. Her acting performance in London was incredible. So raw and passionate. Even her Tony performance for Wicked was on fire. Vocally stellar? Not so much. But was she giving it her all and living the character? Absolutely. Those Idina eyes! So expressive. We all know 'em.

Updated On: 3/19/14 at 03:33 PM

[east side story]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 3:40pm

See What I Wanna See was shortly before the Rent film opened. I remember thinking the show was a snoozefest when I saw it.

[darquegk]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 3:46pm

Menze's voice has grown more Broadway-conventional over time. Her beginnings and her roots are very much in the 90's girl-rocker genre. Her vocals, especially solo and in Rent, are extremely close to the Alanis or Sheryl Crow style so prevalent in that decade.

[veronicamae]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 3:50pm

"I understood your point and I agree but a DH (designated hitter) bats regularly in the game just like a positioned player. I think the term you were looking for was pinch hitter."

Of course "yankeefan" would be the one to call out my baseball terminology error lol - as I am not a baseball fan, I didn't realize the difference. But yes that is what I meant, thank you.

Updated On: 3/19/14 at 03:50 PM

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 3:56pm

I remember after SEE WHAT I WANNA SEE, my friend and I were waiting for Marc Kudisch and saw Idina coming out. There was nobody really waiting for her and we ended up chatting for a couple minutes about the show. She seemed very down to earth and was very sweet. I'm just shocked she draws a Hugh Jackman sized post-show crowd now.

[Owen22]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 4:04pm

"She didn't "try" to have a pop career after RENT. She was merely picking up where she left off and after her success in the show it made it easier for her to do that.

That the album wasn't as successful as she had hoped it would be is another matter entirely."

Potato/Potahto. Don't be disingenuous in your argument.

"Owen, Idina never intended to have a theater career. Her intention was to be a rock singer."

The degree she was pursuing at NYU was a THEATRE degree. She may have also wanted a singing career (I'm sure a lot of theatre students do) but one doesn't spend the money to go chase an NYU Tisch Acting degree if you ONLY want a singing career. As for going back to singing, she got cast in RENT soon after graduating. There was no singing career to "pick up where she left off" to pick back up from!




Updated On: 3/19/14 at 04:04 PM

[veronicamae]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 4:18pm

"The degree she was pursuing at NYU was a THEATRE degree. She may have also wanted a singing career (I'm sure a lot of theatre students do) but one doesn't spend the money to go chase an NYU Tisch Acting degree if you ONLY want a singing career. As for going back to singing, she got cast in RENT soon after graduating. There was no singing career to "pick up where she left off" to pick back up from!"

Not 100% accurate. She was shopping demos as early as 1993 (the year she graduated NYU) - I have one of them (on cassette, handwritten song titles, and dated). She was working on finding a record deal and singing in dives with bands (and being a wedding singer) throughout college - and yes, she did indeed pursue a drama degree, but she has stated many times she wanted to be a rock star and even that she wished she had studied something other than drama in college. Heck, there's a whole segment of her old live show she played during Wicked called "Rock Star Fantasy." She put out another independent EP during Wicked, "Here." Of course, all that doesn't discount the fact that she obviously ALSO wanted to be on Broadway - she begged her parents to let her audition for Annie but they wouldn't allow her to - and instead they put her in singing lessons, and she eventually went on to pursue drama.

So while she didn't land a record deal until AFTER she was cast in RENT - and yes, Still I Can't Be Still flopped - she was indeed working toward that career before zagging into a musical, and that happened to be where she found her footing.

[doodlenyc]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 4:22pm

She better find her footing in this mediocre musical or she wont be nominated for anything.

[binau]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 4:23pm

""Much of this has to do with luck, as well."

What a hilariously ridiculous statement."

As mentioned, luck ALWAYS has something to do with it. Idina is lucky that Jonathan Larson wrote RENT because that was her break and who knows what would have happened if she wasn't cast in RENT.

Idina is also lucky that he died because 1. The publicity would have helped the success of the show and therefore given her exposure, and 2. The Jonathan Larson award or whatever it was came into existence, which was given to Kitt/Yorkey. This might have influenced N2N going to Broadway, which was obviously a factor in IF/THEN coming into being. Idina is lucky that N2N won the Pulitzer prize and that Alice Ripley was cast in N2N so that word of mouth made it a hit. WIthout this, who knows if IF/THEN would have happened.

Idina is lucky that it was John Travolta introducing her at the Oscars and not someone else.

IF these things didn't happen THEN who knows where Idina would be now.

-----

"Well, that's just wrong. Menzel had a complete Broadway belt sound, as Broadway as either Chen or Audra"

Obviously if there was a scale from "pop" to "broadway" Idina is much closer to the "pop" side than either Chenoweth or Audra. I'm sure if Idina went on American Idol someone would say she was "too broadway", but her belt and light vibrato is quite a different sound to Chenoweth and Audra's legit soprano voices. "

Updated On: 3/19/14 at 04:23 PM

[Liza's Headband]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 4:36pm

The fact that someone thinks luck isn't a part of her career, or any performing career for that matter, is MORE ridiculous. Any (sane) performer you speak to will attribute at least part of their success to luck. It is a very real thing, and those in the business know you must have some kind of luck to succeed. All the talent in the world will not land you Broadway hits. Part of that is, in fact, luck. Those who wish to deny it's a real thing in this world are also in denial. In some ways we are all lucky to wake up in the morning. Others are not so lucky. I didn't say that it's all luck, but you cannot deny she has been lucky in the jobs she's landed; RENT, WICKED, and FROZEN are all major hits that have been very lucrative. She alone did not make those properties commercial successes and she was lucky to be a part of those hits.

[BroadwayGirl107]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 4:42pm

Luck luck luck, of course it's luck. Sutton Foster was lucky Erin Dilly got sick and she had to go on. Kristin Chenoweth was lucky Charlie Brown came along at the moment it did, and Audra McDonald was lucky that Master Class came along as well. Luck in a career is very important. Luck is about the right opportunities coming along to suit someone's unique gifts, and that the climate of entertainment at the time allows for that person's uniqueness to hit a stride. Of course it's luck. But it's also talent, drive, charisma, and I think in Idina's case just being DIFFERENT. The existence of Rent and Wicked was luck for her. The fact that she even got in the room to audition for Rent was probably luck. Landing the part was talent.

[yankeefan7]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 6:18pm

"Of course "yankeefan" would be the one to call out my baseball terminology error lol - as I am not a baseball fan, I didn't realize the difference. But yes that is what I meant, thank you."

Your welcome. BTW - I enjoy your posts, very well written and informative.

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 6:22pm

As much as some of you want.to.downplay her success the facts remain.

[Owen22]

Posted: 3/20/14 at 9:25pm

I'm pretty sure none of us on here want to "downplay her success". We love her. But we (I at least) hate lies and exaggerations, which a lot of her defenders are indulging in. Like Fox News, you're entitled to your own opinions...but not your own facts.

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 3/20/14 at 9:35pm

I can only speak for myself to say that everything I have posted in this thread is not an exaggeration and the facts are not my own.