Hooray! I have been PRAYING Eden would get the role on Broadway. She's incredible. I hope I can afford to see it again before she leaves, lol. I just saw it with Shosh so I'm not disappointed but I'd REALLY like to see Eden.
I am pleased to see the new cast changes. Eden is fantastic and Derrick, while not the best Fiyero, is certainly a huge markup from Jared Botz who I was dreading would take over. Carol Kane does a great job too. Still, I will miss Shoshana, David, and Michelle (no announcement yet of her replacement? strange) and I hope they move on to better things. Rue, well...she did okay.
wow, my sister will die (in a very good way!) when she wrote eden she said she should go back to wicked, and now poof!...ill never here the end of this!!!!! now we'll definitely be seeing wicked soon...
With the amount of talented people in NYC, I am appalled that Derrick Williams is the best new Fiyero they could find. I saw him on tour and he was dreadful. Garbled the song lyrics and CAN NOT ACT. He had none of Norbert's humor or charm. He swings in and shouts "Let the green girl go!" like he's Moses demanding that Pharaoh release the Israelites. Can somebody please tell him he's in a musical comedy? He's an energy sucker and brought every scene he was in to a grinding halt and poor Stephanie Block had to keep saving his sorry ass. Appalling. I know there are talented musical performers on these very boards, and I have no doubt any one of you guys would make a MUCH better Fiyero than Derrick Williams. And for those of you who think I am being harsh, please tell me what I missed and "he's a hottie" is not enough. I will admit he's a nice dancer, but that means he belongs in the chorus, not in the male lead.
totally expected, totally deserved, congrats eden. saw her when idina stopped halfway through the show cause she had a cold or something, they announced at intermission she wouldnt be continuing through the show. my friend and i were so disappointed cause we were really enjoying her performance, but eden also blew us away. also saw her in brooklyn. bad show. good eden. yay eden.
you may know what you need but to get what you want better see that you keep what you have
I agree about Derrick. Man, the guy made me cringe when he started to sing. He won me over by the end (which says a lot - he started out pretty shady), but I guess I just cannot see what other people see. I don't know if I'd go so far as to say he was dreadful, but he definitely did not fill the role and I have no idea how he can be going to Broadway. He's almost as much of an upset as Britney Spears taking over...which says A LOT.
"Art is always in crisis: you must work fast to write in the breath on the window."
-Edward Bond
"I never had theatre producers run after me. Some people want to make more Broadway shows out of movies. But Elliot and I aren't going to do Batman: The Musical." - Julie Taymor 1999
I saw Jenna as Elphaba, and I wanted to DIE. I want Saycon to take over the role. A woman of color would be amazing and fresh for either Elphaba or Glinda, and would draw a much larger attraction to the show, not like the nonsense doesn't have enough unnecessary attention already. I saw Ana in Chicago, that was the best Elphaba I've seen (and yes I did see OBC), that was my third time seeing the show, and I felt like I had seen in for the first time when I saw it with Ana.
So, will Derrick and Carol be with the tour up until that date, or will they leave early? Just wondering because I'm supposed to see the tour in DC on both the 6th and the 12th. It would be cool if I could see 2 different sets of actors in those roles a week apart.
Like a firework unexploded
Wanting life but never
knowing how
there's no doubt it's true. i'm excited for eden. i really wish jenna would get to be michelle's replacement.
i'm probably going to get shot for this, but i can not stand saycon as elphaba. brandi, the understudy, would be perfect for the role, though. i have to say, i'm relieved they didn't give it to saycon.
I am friends with Saycon, and talked to her the other night online. She is currently in negotiations to stay past January with "Wicked." However, judging by a few other things she said, I wouldn't expect her to stay past another contract. She seems itnerested in film and television (she has been working the rounds.. she auditioned for Lorell in the "Dreamgirls" movie and Joanne and the "Life Support" girls in the "Rent" movie.)
In regards to Jenna.. She said on a fansite she is leaving the tour in March and hopes to take some time off and concentrate on other things, so don't expect her to make the jump to Broadway (anytime soon that is.)
Tonya Pinkins: Then we had a "Lot's Wife" last June that was my personal favorite. I'm still trying to get them to let me sing it at some performance where we get to sing an excerpt that's gone.
Tony Kushner: You can sing it at my funeral.