Audra McDonald's "Mister Snow"
Audra McDonald's "Mister Snow"
#1Audra McDonald's "Mister Snow"
Posted: 9/24/13 at 7:39pm
Lately have not been able to stop listening to Audra McDonald singing "You're a Queer One, Julie Jordan/Mister Snow." It's one of the most beautiful things I've ever heard, she sings it with so much personality, but she hits some incredible notes throughout. Can people share their memories from McDonald in the revival? I can't imagine what it must have been like to see/hear a star of her stature in her big break out role. Maybe I'm biased, but I've been listening to a whole bunch of renditions of the song all day and don't think any can match McDonald's. What are some other favorites? I think Sarah Brightman's version is particularly bad. Barbara Cook's is my second favorite.
CAROUSEL highlights
"Some people can thrive and bloom living life in a living room, that's perfect for some people of one hundred and five. But I at least gotta try, when I think of all the sights that I gotta see, all the places I gotta play, all the things that I gotta be at"
Updated On: 9/24/13 at 07:39 PM
#2Audra McDonald's
Posted: 9/27/13 at 3:11pmTickets for Audra at Queens College Sat 10/5 are now on TDF.
temms
Broadway Star Joined: 7/21/04
#2Audra McDonald's
Posted: 9/27/13 at 3:50pm
I saw it and really liked her. Of course, back then she wasn't "Broadway's Audra McDonald, Winner Of The Most Tony Awards Ever!", she was this new breakout discovery named Audra Ann who was one of the really great things about the amazing "Carousel". There was the excitement about knowing that you were probably going be seeing this girl in other things, but obviously "Ragtime" and "Master Class" and "Marie Christine" and all that were years away.
I remember two distinct things - when she sang the line "Well, Mister Snow, here I am!" she opened her legs very wide for just a brief moment, laughed heartily, then continued on with "Then I'll kiss him". It could have been gratuitous, but she made it work and it was funny and surprising and totally in character for her Carrie.
The other moment is hard to describe, perhaps some others who saw it can help. During "When The Children Are Asleep", when Mr. Snow has his verse about all the kids they'll be having, he took muffins out of a tin one by one representing each child ("The fust year we're married we'll have one little kid, then the second year we'll go and have another little kid"). Meanwhile her face just got deader and deader and more horrified as he went on, and then during his speech after "And so will my figger" she just ignored him and very matter-of-factly put each muffin back into the tin. And when he said the line about "all the kids upstairs in their beds", she just let out a little "Aw HELL no" laugh under breath as she kept putting those muffins back in the tray.
It's hard to describe, but the little utterance she made along with that facial expression was legitimately hysterical. And then Eddie Korbich did something cute and she melted, and it was all just so gosh-darned adorable.
I also happen to think "Mister Snow" might just be the single best song ever written for a musical. I suppose there are some songs that are AS good, but I don't think you can name a better one.
Musicaldudepeter
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/18/10
Gothampc
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/20/03
#4Audra McDonald's
Posted: 9/27/13 at 5:02pm
What was great about Audra's Carrie was that she didn't play her all sweet and air-headed like many others have played Carrie. By Act 2 when the 15+ years passes, Audra became quite shrewish.
For example there's an exchange that goes:
Mister Snow: You'd think a woman with nine children would have more sense.
Carrie Pipperidge: If I had more sense I wouldn't have had nine children.
In all other productions I've worked on or seen, Carrie always delivered it as an air-head and got a laugh. Audra slammed that line down and made the character more realistic in that she didn't think it was funny and regretted having done it.
If anyone ever tells you that you put too much Parmesan cheese on your pasta, stop talking to them. You don't need that kind of negativity in your life.
Musicaldudepeter
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/18/10
#5Audra McDonald's
Posted: 9/27/13 at 6:50pmI think with roles like Carrie Pipperidge, Ado Annie, Miss Adelaide, Audrey (Little Shop), etc., all of these stereotypical blonde 'airhead' type roles... what made later incarnations of these roles so popular and successful (Audra's Carrie, Faith's Adelaide) was that they didn't play them as such, instead they played them almost in the opposite way - knowingly, with a strong sense of direction and a smartness which added new nuances to those 'old' characters that no one had ever seen. Even Leigh Ann Larkin did it with June in 2008's Gypsy.
