Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
#2Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/27/14 at 8:17pmWell aren't you on a roll tonight...
#2Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/27/14 at 9:50pm
I saw her in:
The Bridges of Madison County
Far From Heaven
Nice Work If You Can Get It
Bells Are Ringing
South Pacific
The Pajama Game
The Light In the Piazza
My favorite Kelli performances were Clara in Piazza and Francesca in Bridges.
A Favorite Kelli performance
#3Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/27/14 at 10:01pm
Believe it or not, I had actually written to Kelli O'Hara once while she was in 'South Pacific' for an auction a friend of mine was doing to raise money for a wheelchair lift to be added to our local community theatre...
And she wrote back with some memorabilia!
Updated On: 9/27/14 at 10:01 PM
#4Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/27/14 at 10:06pmKelli O'Hara is wonderful. I saw her in Nice Work and Bridges, and I watched the South Pacific telecast. I really hope she wins the Tony for The King and I this year.
"The city seen from the Queensboro Bridge is always the city seen for the first time, in its first wild promise of all the mystery and the beauty in the world." - F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby
FishermanBob
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/9/12
#5Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/27/14 at 10:09pm
"Believe it or not, I had actually written to Kelli O'Hara once while she was in 'South Pacific' for an auction a friend of mine was doing to raise money for a wheelchair lift to be added to our local community theatre."
And?
#6Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/27/14 at 10:47pm
Melissa25, I love that performance of hers so much.
I have been listening to "To Build a Home" practically on repeat since the cast recording was released and it has become one of my most favourite, most listened to musical songs of all time. I know this is a cliche, but if there ever was an example of a song that was a mini-play, it would be that one.
"You can't overrate Bernadette Peters. She is such a genius. There's a moment in "Too Many Mornings" and Bernadette doing 'I wore green the last time' - It's a voice that is just already given up - it is so sorrowful. Tragic. You can see from that moment the show is going to be headed into such dark territory and it hinges on this tiny throwaway moment of the voice." - Ben Brantley (2022)
"Bernadette's whole, stunning performance [as Rose in Gypsy] galvanized the actors capable of letting loose with her. Bernadette's Rose did take its rightful place, but too late, and unseen by too many who should have seen it" Arthur Laurents (2009)
"Sondheim's own favorite star performances? [Bernadette] Peters in ''Sunday in the Park,'' Lansbury in ''Sweeney Todd'' and ''obviously, Ethel was thrilling in 'Gypsy.'' Nytimes, 2000
#7Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/28/14 at 12:15amShe is my absolute favorite Broadway performer, but I have only been able to see her live in South Pacific. I cannot wait to see The King and I and desperately hope she wins the Tony this year.
broadwayguy2
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/18/03
#8Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/28/14 at 12:31am
Really?
We are already subjected to a chorus of "she deserves to win the Tony this year" for a role where she hasn't sat to memorize her dialogue yet?
dramamama611
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/4/07
#9Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/28/14 at 12:52am
Oh, please..."they" have been saying that since it was simply a rumor!
While I'm sure she'll be wonderful, why don't we just wait and see what ALL the performances are like for the season.
If we're not having fun, then why are we doing it?
These are DISCUSSION boards, not mutual admiration boards. Discussion only occurs when we are willing to hear what others are thinking, regardless of whether it is alignment to our own thoughts.
broadwayguy2
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/18/03
#10Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/28/14 at 1:00amTo be fair, we all know exactly what her performance will be like, within a narrow margin. If O'Hara is anything, she is a soprano and consistent. Nevertheless, much like a certain Cassie in A Chorus Line, that paper erect casting could result in abomination. At least let her flip through her script before you shower her with palm fronds and gold coins.
#11Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/28/14 at 1:43amI am already swaying the palm fronds and my gold coins are stacked, ready to go!
FishermanBob
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/9/12
#12Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/28/14 at 1:51am
If you go back and actually read what people in this thread said, I don't think people were saying she deserves to win, merely that they HOPED she would win because they really like her. I don't see anything wrong with pulling for a favorite actress without saying they already decided she's won it.
If you want the thread where everyone has already awarded her the Tony, you'll have to go to the initial thread that confirmed the staging of The King and I for that.
Updated On: 9/28/14 at 01:51 AM
#13Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/28/14 at 1:54amIt's also unfair to say that her performance will be predictable. She blew me away in BRIDGES with the depth of her acting. She's certainly capable of delivering more than a "predictable" and generic Anna.
mjohnson2
Broadway Star Joined: 11/2/13
#14Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/28/14 at 1:58amI also found that she gives better performances in worse musicals (FAR FROM HEAVEN, BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY, etc.), but that may just be because being the highlight of a bad show is better than blending in with a great musical.
Anything regarding shows stated by this account is an attempt to convey opinion and not fact.
#15Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/28/14 at 3:33amIn that performance that you linked, it is an testament to her skill because I did not realize she had no accompanist until halfway through. Thats how "musical" she is and how she is as an interpreter.
"I think lying to children is really important, it sets them off on the right track" -Sherie Rene Scott-
broadwayguy2
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/18/03
#16Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/28/14 at 7:28am
She blew me away in BRIDGES as well. With her choice to play an Italian woman as thoroughly Irish.
The ONLY time O'Hara has not appearances absolutely generic was when she delivered a RIVETING Julie Jordan in the NYPhil's Carousel, which is far and away her best work.
And I have read this thread.. And the other as well. They are trying to engrave that agony now.
#17Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/28/14 at 9:39am
Don't agonize b'guy. Just help me carry my gold coins, palm fronds and the pearls I'll be clutching at The Met on January 17th when I see Kelli perform Valencienne in "The Merry Widow."
How generic of her to even consider operetta.
#18Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/28/14 at 12:08pm
I love her. I saw her in Bridges for the first time and she is the first Broadway actor that I've ever been star struck to see at the stage door! Luckily going back to NYC to see her in The King and I.
I also just recently saw her with Joshua Bell at the Kennedy Center at the National Symphony Orchestra Season Opener Ball. She was magnificent and gorgeous as always.
TheaterGal3
Understudy Joined: 5/17/14
#19Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/28/14 at 1:55pm
Melissa25 Clara and Francesca are favorites of mine, too. I recently saw Kelli sing The Light in The Piazza at Williamstown and the emotion she poured into her delivery left me sitting in awe of her talent. I wish I could've seen her in that role. Hopefully one day they will do the show again and she can play Margaret.
I'm looking forward to The King and I.
#20Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/28/14 at 9:33pmTheaterGal, I'd love to see Kelli play Margaret. Wouldn't that be something? I treasure my memory of seeing the LCT Piazza. Those voices! Those sets and costumes! My only regret is that I was never able to get back to see it again before it closed.
#21Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/28/14 at 9:37pmKelli O'Hara. Words can not even begin to describe how much I love this woman.
"There’s nothing quite like the power and the passion of Broadway music. "
#22Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/29/14 at 1:55am
Kelli will be at Carnegie Hall on December 19th and 20th to perform a holiday show with Mathew Morrison and the New York Pops.
I wonder if they'll work in their "Tonight" duet?
Updated On: 9/29/14 at 01:55 AM
#23Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/29/14 at 3:02am
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9q9RTtuDZEM
Dracula. It's a guilty pleasure of mine.
MusicAndPassion
Broadway Star Joined: 9/14/05
#24Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/29/14 at 1:00pmIt pains me that she has yet to win a major New York theatre award. No Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critic... My favorite Broadway performer, hands down!
#25Unofficial Kelli O'Hara appreciation thread
Posted: 9/30/14 at 12:36pm
Not sure if you all have seen this yet, but Kelli helped to kick off the "I need stories by women on stage because..." Twitter initiative this week. The Interval is giving away five free tickets to people under 35 for an upcoming benefit for the Leah Ryan Fund for Emerging Writers. If you're interested in going, you should tweet a photo like Kelli's @TheIntervalNY using hashtag #LeahRyanFund.
Details here: http://the-interval.com/events/lrfc/
