Angela Lansbury
Angela Lansbury
#1Angela Lansbury
Posted: 11/24/08 at 10:54pmWhy does Angela Lansbury talk in that fake US accent all the time? (At least from what I've seen of her Tony award presentations/award acceptance etc..).
"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
#2re: Angela Lansbury
Posted: 11/24/08 at 10:55pmbecause Angela Lansbury can do whatever the hell she wants.
When I see the phrase "the ____ estate", I imagine a vast mansion in the country full of monocled men and high-collared women receiving letters about productions across the country and doing spit-takes at whatever they contain.
-Kad
#2re: Angela Lansbury
Posted: 11/24/08 at 10:56pm
Whenever I've heard her speak, she sounds British.
She's been in the U.S. for a very long time now, so maybe her British accent has simply faded over time. It happens.
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There is no future, there is no past. I live this moment as my last. ~ Rent
"He's a tramp, but I love him."
Everything in life is only for now. ~ Avenue Q
There is no future, there is no past. I live this moment as my last. ~ Rent
#3re: Angela Lansbury
Posted: 11/24/08 at 10:59pm
She is putting it on deliberately, I think. See a few videos on YouTube
"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
Updated On: 11/24/08 at 10:59 PM
#4re: Angela Lansbury
Posted: 11/24/08 at 11:04pm
I think it's what Yero said. she always sounds at least a touch British to me, and it's entirely possible that her accent has faded over time.
but why does it matter?
When I see the phrase "the ____ estate", I imagine a vast mansion in the country full of monocled men and high-collared women receiving letters about productions across the country and doing spit-takes at whatever they contain.
-Kad
#5re: Angela Lansbury
Posted: 11/24/08 at 11:11pmAnother pointless thread meant to work the nerves using a beloved icon. Move on!
"Broadway...I'll lick you yet!"
#6re: Angela Lansbury
Posted: 11/24/08 at 11:30pm
It matters to me, because I think it's strange she feels for popularity reasons or the likes she must talk that way in the US. (But maybe there is a genuine reason, hence the reason I asked)
See her introduction of starmites (lol)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eEenp3n7T6g
"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
#7re: Angela Lansbury
Posted: 11/24/08 at 11:37pm
Check her out here... she sounds southern!!!
Go to 00:50 and listen to when she says, "best revival of a musical"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QOitlNlKOtQ&feature=related
Mekroth
Broadway Star Joined: 2/23/08
#9re: Angela Lansbury
Posted: 11/24/08 at 11:39pm
"best RRRReeeevaaaiiival of a Musical" and her pitch going down... sounds slightly southern, but def. not british to me
Updated On: 11/24/08 at 11:39 PM
#10re: Angela Lansbury
Posted: 11/24/08 at 11:41pm^ Exactly.
"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
LadyRosecoe
Broadway Star Joined: 8/4/07
#11re: Angela Lansbury
Posted: 11/25/08 at 12:07amI live with a Brit and it isn't utterly unimaginable to hear him pronounce it that way. I really doubt this is much cause to debate over, she has a unique voice and I doubt she's putting on airs.
#12re: Angela Lansbury
Posted: 11/25/08 at 10:22am
-- "because Angela Lansbury can do whatever the hell she wants."
That was amazing, givesmevoice! Also: word. =)
And to the point, I hear her English origins clearly whenever she speaks, but her accent does seem to have faded some over time. That's normal, as she's lived in the United States for so many years.
#14re: Angela Lansbury
Posted: 11/25/08 at 11:46amShe has a very dignified way of speaking, but I wouldn't call it a fake British accent or any type of British accent. I would just call it a very classy accent.
Brick
Broadway Legend Joined: 11/21/06
#15re: Angela Lansbury
Posted: 11/25/08 at 12:04pm
UM, in that Starmites introduction clip, she does not sound American.
She sounds like a Brit who has lived in the US for some time. Which she is.
#16re: Angela Lansbury
Posted: 11/25/08 at 1:38pmShe's been in the US since the early 1940s that's why her "accent" is a mishmash. Can we just say she has a distinctive way of speaking?
#17re: Angela Lansbury
Posted: 11/25/08 at 2:48pm... or maybe it's simply that she speaks with correct grammar and enunciates. That's more than enough to sound foreign to most Americans.
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LuPonatic
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/12/06
#18re: Angela Lansbury
Posted: 11/25/08 at 2:51pm
Maybe she just likes speaking with tall, round vowels and perfect grammar. I appreciate it!
Updated On: 11/25/08 at 02:51 PM
RockabyeHamlet
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/1/05
#19re: Angela Lansbury
Posted: 11/25/08 at 3:08pm*shakes head* is this what we call the bottom of the barrel? Criticizing a Tony Award winning household name? Seriously.
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EganFan2
Broadway Star Joined: 9/8/04
#20re: Angela Lansbury
Posted: 11/25/08 at 3:08pmI always thought she sounded British. Not Julie Andrews British, but I could tell she wasn't American born. Even on "Murder She Wrote".
#22re: Angela Lansbury
Posted: 11/25/08 at 5:13pmTo my British ear there are definitely American intonations in her accent, but her mannerisms and demeanour remain very British.
#23re: Angela Lansbury
Posted: 11/25/08 at 5:24pm
"... or maybe it's simply that she speaks with correct grammar and enunciates. That's more than enough to sound foreign to most Americans."
Or maybe certain Americans who have good grammar criticize others, while others with good grammar don't.
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Updated On: 11/25/08 at 05:24 PM
#24re: Angela Lansbury
Posted: 11/25/08 at 5:44pmMaybe its because the average American ear doesn't always clearly understand the various dialects. It takes me a moment to fully process any English spoken with a British/European dialect or accent. She might have adjusted her natural accent early on to compensate for the American ear since this is where she was making a living.
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