I'm Schmergo, a seventeen year old girl who absolutely loves musical theatre. For some reason, I desperately want to play Edna Turnblad, despite the fact that I'm actually female and don't fit the part in any possible way. The same goes for my strange desire to play Sir Percy Blakeney or Mr. Thenardier.
I've been in 26 (amateur!) productions, most recently as Mrs. Darbus in "High School Musical," which was loads of fun... other favourite roles? Miss Hannigan, Bert in "Mary Poppins" (I was in an awkward stage... I played Thomas Edison the same year), the Wicked Witch of the West, one of Cinderella's evil stepsisters, First Witch in the Scottish Play, the Mother Swan AND the Turkey in Honk, Lydia Bennet, Mad Hatter in Alice In Wonderland, a female version of Arvide in "Guys and Dolls," etc.
You may notice from my posts that I love Michael Ball just a little bit too much. Also... NORM LEWIS. What else can I say?
Official Signature Theater Appreciation Thread :-) Aug 4
2010, 03:55:25 PM
I love Signature. I rarely get to see professional shows, but I've seen three at Signature (Les Miserables, Sweeney Todd, and First You Dream), and each one has been superb in production and performances.
Worst wigs in a production Aug 2
2010, 12:43:20 PM
In the filmed production of Sweeney Todd with George Hearn and Angela Lansbury, Johanna's wig was disgusting! Then again, she was kind of outrageously bizarre in general.
Worst wigs in a production Jul 29
2010, 10:57:15 AM
This isn't Broadway, but the Signature Theatre's Les Mis was a great show, but half the wigs looked like they pulled them off of troll dolls. Poor Marius' hair looked like a wet Tarzan.
I like to listen to cast recordings instead of most pop music because I like singers who can actually sing. But I don't like how SO many people on Broadway now have to nasally belt or scream everything, even roles that are traditionally sung in a legit voice.
However, I feel like most singers from old musicals DO sing more 'like real people,' because in many cases, their voices weren't nearly as polished. Listening to the OBC of Hello Dolly, it was obvious t
Understudies that should have played the role full time Jul 28
2010, 01:13:05 AM
Claire Moore as Sarah Brightman's understudy as Christine in Phantom of the Opera. It's actually kind of hilarious how closely it mirrored the plot of the show, with Sarah Brightman unable to perform the first preview and Claire Moore singing like an angel.
I actually liked Cicily Daniels more than Sherie Rene Scott in the role of Ursula in The Little Mermaid.
Everyone Admit Your Age on Broadwayworld Jul 27
2010, 12:12:35 AM
I'm eighteen, and I've loved musicals from the time I was basically in the womb. When I was in elementary school, my favorites were Fiddler on the Roof, My Fair Lady, Annie, Brigadoon, and 1776. In fifth grade, my friend showed me the DVD of CATS, and we both became completely obsessed and performed it on the playground every single day, but I still stuck to mostly classic musicals.
While I still love all of those (yes, even CATS, I'm afraid to admit), and Fiddler on the Roof will alway
I have met Norm Lewis, who I adore, twice, once extremely briefly after Little Mermaid, and once for a good several minutes after First You Dream (a Kander and Ebb concert). The first time, there was a huge crowd and he was the first person out of the door. I told the guy in front of me, "When Norm Lewis comes out, could you please let me in front, because I'm a really big fan of his." And surprise surpri
Musicals You Could Do in a Black Box Theatre Jul 26
2010, 11:56:27 PM
Bwaylvsong, Signature Theatre did Les Mis in a black box with minimalist sets... it was wonderful. They also did a great Sweeney Todd.
I secretly have always wanted to see a black box production of Phantom of the Opera. Maybe with a troupe of like, traveling gypsies or something acting out the story and each one playing multiple roles and using very sparse sets, ahahaha.
Characters That Are Really Only In One Act Jul 25
2010, 05:55:07 PM
I've noticed that lately, I've played a bunch of characters who feature prominently in Act One and then don't do much of anything later on. It's surprising how many there are.
The ones that immediately spring to mind for me are Fantine in Les Mis, Mufasa in The Lion King, and the Wolf in Into the Woods (I know on Broadway, it's the same actor[s] playing the prince[s], but in both amateur productions I've seen, they've been different actors).
All female 1776 Jul 21
2010, 11:35:25 PM
Well... I am mindbogglingly excited about this. I am so glad there's now precedent, since this has been my dream for as long as I can remember. I've never wanted to live in Missouri before!
Do 'theater fans' want to like the show? Jul 17
2010, 11:32:04 PM
Well, I guess it's something similar to when two people are married and suddenly start finding each other's habits annoying.
Do 'theater fans' want to like the show? Jul 17
2010, 03:28:18 PM
I think part of it is because most people don't have enough experience seeing Broadway-quality productions to find fault in them. People who have seen a lot of shows can say 'this was a good Broadway show, this one, while better than a community theatre production, is NOT as good as many shows I've seen." Most would just say, "Wow, EVERYONE in this show can sing and act well, and the sets look great! This is so different from the production of Beauty and the Beast I saw last year with a cardboar
