Idina Menzel's Tony performance

[haterobics]

You could tell she was thinking 'don't say f*ck, don't say f*ck' for the first few lines, but after she screwed her way past that, it was fine.

[FindingNamo]

I'm not saying you're projecting but you can see how much the separation from Taye has taken its toll.

[TFMH18]

"you can see how much the separation from Taye has taken its toll."

Even though it is projection, I agree. Even in her interviews leading up to this, you can sense that she's had her heart broken and the loss is palpable. I do also think it's reflected in her performance, in the best possible way.

[AngusN]

In the usual Idina way, there is far too much shouting and not enough singing for my liking. It really wasn't pleasant to listen to.

[Elfuhbuh]

Best I have heard from her in ages. That performance made me all the more excited to see the show next week!

[fingerlakessinger]

Sorry. I really did not hear any "shouting." I definitely heard some rasp, but the power in her voice was palpable.

[broadwaytbay]

my fiancee walked into the room during her performance and asked if there was an Excorcist musical. I told him no, that just her face when she sings.

[Auggie27]

Whoever above mentioned the staggering demands of this role 8 times a week, I heartily concur. When I saw it in April, on a Sunday afternoon, I couldn't believe how much music she has to put over in 2 1/2 hours. And since it's all written for Menzel, it makes the most of her money notes, and what she does so persuasively. Last night, she came off 8 performances and it sounded effortless and fresh; to my ears, not even a glimmer of vocal fatigue. The part strikes me as a beast to concur on matinee days (though I'm not a singer; would love to hear someone weigh in). I found the song's cuts -- we lost about a minute and a half -- marred its build slightly, but mostly it worked. I agree that the camera should not have been in her face. It's a big performance, pitched to the Rodgers, and this number is the one in which she takes the roof off. Money well spent last night by Stone and the "If/Then" folk. As long as she's in this show, people will come. What last night suggested: if you go, you will get returns on your buck.

[OlBlueEyes]

She sound wonderful last night, especially compared to the way she sounded from the balcony at the intimate Richard Rogers, where her voice was so over-amplified and distorted.that you would have thought she was performing in an aircraft hanger.

I'll bet that these days they would mike Ethel Merman.

[getlucky2]

"Sorry. I really did not hear any "shouting." I definitely heard some rasp, but the power in her voice was palpable."

I don't understand what people mean when they say "shouting". She was singing, and she was singing loudly. is that considered shouting? *scratches head*

She sounded great and hit every note. And this is coming from someone who thinks she tends to be pretty unreliable live. Her technique has never been better.

[mstar13]

as a singer who is going through both classical and musical theatre training in college, I have to say that I am not the biggest fan of Idina. I am not really a fan of belting in general, which is just my opinion. To me it seems like a pony trick, and can be very dangerous to the singer if not done well. We are trained to sing with good technique, breathing and vowel structure, which I feel unfortunately Idina lacks. I also don't agree with the way that most musicals are written now; way too high for anyone to be able to humanly sing. I think that Idina has been set up to fail a lot, and I have heard that she has been ducking out of performances because her voice can't handle eight shows. From a singer's perspective, she looks uncomfortable, and scared, and I do know the difference between acting and worrying about your technique onstage. That being said, she is very talented, and I hope that she can get someone to help her coach through these high belting songs.

[haterobics]

"I have heard that she has been ducking out of performances because her voice can't handle eight shows."

Err, she got sick once during the run, but otherwise I haven't heard of her missing any shows.

[uncageg]

Saw the show last month and was floored when she sang this. It was incredible. It was just as incredible last night. I noticed a few cool little vocal changes but I suspect she just does that. The passion with which she sang it last night was off the charts though. JMO

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

I thought her performance was great, but I really didn't like that song. It sounded like a bad self-help book. Nothing like the NEXT TO NORMAL Tony performance, which was one of the most electric performances I've seen at the Tonys. The one performance that made me want to run see the show was GENTLEMAN'S GUIDE's number, it looks like such a delightful musical, the staging was fantastic.

[TFMH18]

"I have heard that she has been ducking out of performances because her voice can't handle eight shows."

Um, no. She got sick one time last month, missed a total of four and a half performances and had not missed any prior nor has she missed any since.

[BroadwayGirl107]

"as a singer who is going through both classical and musical theatre training in college....We are trained to sing with good technique, breathing and vowel structure, which I feel unfortunately Idina lacks."


If you are in fact normal college age, Idina has been training as a singer for what I can only guess is longer than you've been alive. She might know what she's doing. Nothing against the techniques you are probably learning, but she has a different one, and it has gotten her very far.

[fingerlakessinger]

mstar13, if you actually went and saw Idina perform IN THE SHOW, then you would see that she hardly ever looks "scared" while singing. Many points in the show, she is having a ball on stage. So I'm not sure where you get that she looks "scared most of the time." I definitely saw her look hesitant and dramatic...but considering those are some of the emotions that the song is meant to portray, I think we can write that off as her just acting.
And as pretty much everyone already said. She missed a handful of shows one week due to an illness (that has been plaguing many actors recently) but has never missed due to vocal fatigue. I would also like to point out that she has an amazing track record when it comes to attendance. I believe in WICKED she didn't miss a single show for five months, and while touring across America, she never cancelled a concert.

[haterobics]

Not to mention, if this show was so vocally taxing, one imagines she wouldn't have decided to do a sold out concert at Radio City Music Hall on her one day off.

[mstar13]

I had seen in a previous thread that she had been ducking out of the second act, allowing her understudy to finish the show, and that she had also done this in Wicked. May be just a rumor, I'll try and find the thread I had seen this in. I do wish that I could see the show, because I would like to have a better judgement on it. I was just pointing out that while everyone does have different technique, often times I was taken out of the performance because I was worried about her technique.

[fingerlakessinger]

She did miss the second act. To one performance. When she was ill lol
I'm not gonna argue Idina's vocal technique though. She has stated many times that she works hard to maintain her voice and is always working with her vocal coach to guide her voice to being as healthy as possible. I've seen her live, and her voice when its not under the pressure of live television, is immense. Her critics can certainly have their opinion. Idina's voice is very dividing (some love it, some hate it) but seeing her do these songs live is something else. I truly believe that you can't judge her based off of television performances because her biggest fault it seems is tripping herself up. She seems to get incredibly nervous before huge events (like the '04 Tony Awards, the Oscars, etc.) but last night she sounded amazing.

[Mr Roxy]

Wonder how smart it is to be doing a concert @ RCMH while she does 8 a week .

The concert will put an added strain on her voice. It should be interesting to see if it affects her attendance @ If afterwards. Time will tell.

[haterobics]

I think she only ducked out of the second act the show once before she was off sick for a few days.

[jnb9872]

I don't understand what people mean when they say "shouting". She was singing, and she was singing loudly. is that considered shouting? *scratches head*

I consider her shouting because I perceive her to be mistaking volume for emotional intensity. Her performance was very, very bombastic, but not at all moving. So "shouting" is a substitution of "sing louder!" instead of "tell more story!" She is an incredible singer, and a very underwhelming actor.

[EMeraldNYC2]

I don't understand why people are hung up on Idina's singing technique. Isn't that up to her to worry about how her voice will hold up? I think it's admirable that she still has the dedication and love for her craft to keep performing at such a consistently high level. I think it's more enjoyable to just watch the performances actresses give rather than critiquing their personal training.

Her performance last night was truly breathtaking. I believe it was mentioned in a spot for If/Then, but I think it describes her performances well: there's a moment when a star becomes a legend. This year is Idina's moment, and she shined last night. I'm proud to be a fan.

[fingerlakessinger]

For a performance that wasn't moving...a lot of people seemed to have been moved by it lol

[YouWantitWhen????]

I watched it again and thought she was fantastic. I do think this musical ended up hitting a wee bit to close to home, and I can imagine some nights these songs are better than therapy. I just hope she is enjoying all of the accolades (I didn't expect her to win, but wanted her to nail the performance, which she did) and takes it all in. I also hope she is able to move on from Taye and find someone new. If the rumors are true, she deserves better.