Posted by AnythingGoes23 2012-12-29 18:48:10
Just listening to the cast recording, this show must return to Broadway soon! Long overdue...
Who would be a good Mame both artistically and commercially do you think?Mame needs a revival!
Posted by Jordan Catalano 2012-12-29 18:53:53
It's a BIG show so you need a BIG name. Lots of people would be great but for a MAME revival to be at all successful, you'll need a Queen Latifah or a Dolly Parton or someone who could on name alone sell out an entire run.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by Knowitall 2012-12-29 19:53:04
Glenn Close, Meryl Streep, Catherine Zeta-Jones
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by GavestonPS 2012-12-29 20:07:29
Catherine Zeta-Jones couldn't sing MAME if her life depended on it. Maybe she could do the ballet.
Personally, I don't think Glenn Close would fare much better, but she could probably hit most of the notes. I must admit I've never been a fan of her singing; I know others disagree.
Meryl Streep would make it work, but doesn't she always?
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by random person 112 2012-12-29 20:13:13
I really want Cher to play Mame. Sure she's a little old but she's so perfect for it.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by ljay889 2012-12-29 20:16:17
CZJ has more singing ability than Close and Streep.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by PitPro2004 2012-12-29 20:17:08
Beth Leavel as Vera Charles if not the lead.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by henrikegerman 2012-12-29 20:17:39
Mame was not a huge success because Lansbury was a megastar. She was a star but not a BIG star (which is why she didn't get the movie). It was a huge success because people loved her in it. Neither Dolly Parton nor Queen Latifah are the first woman who come to mind when I think of sophisticated madcap comedy. Both are much more Dolly than Mame.
Ann-Margret should have played it years ago. I've said this on many other threads before but Toni Collette is hands down the best choice for Mame right now. Kristen Johnston should be her Vera.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by Jordan Catalano 2012-12-29 20:36:02
Right but Broadway is a bit different now than it was in '66. And I just picked two names that I'd heard before when casting comes up, to show the star power that they'd need to have a financially successful run.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by JoeKv99 2012-12-29 20:45:06
If we're talking pie-in-the-sky, don't worry about being realistic, I could see Bette Midler killing it. Mame has a light touch I can't see CZJ or Latifah pulling off and as much as I love Dolly- well, sorry, no way.
I do think you need a name. A star. And Mame ranges over 30 years or so, so age doesn't really matter.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by Jordan Catalano 2012-12-29 20:53:06
Just to be clear, I wasn't saying Latifah or Dolly should do it, just that teyre the type of stars you'd need. Midler would be my first pick if I could choose anyone.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by GavestonPS 2012-12-29 20:55:10
CZJ has more singing ability than Close and Streep.
Actually, no. Close and Streep have sung leads in Broadway musicals, CZJ has danced in them and sang two-and-a-half songs written for non-singer Glynnis Johns.
I have it on good authority that they had to put together CZJ's tracks for CHICAGO one line at a time.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by GavestonPS 2012-12-29 21:08:23
I can't imagine Bette Midler wants to work that hard when she can make more money in Vegas. But I understand the point is that she could sell the revival.
I'm not a huge fan of Toni Collette's singing voice, but, damn, the woman can play anything! I don't know whether she's a big enough draw. (I'm not saying she isn't; I really don't know. She would be for me personally, but I never miss the MURIEL'S WEDDING girls if I can help it.)
henrik is right that MAME made Lansbury a star more than Lansbury's name alone made the show a hit. (If the show had a star in the beginning, it was Jerry Herman.) But that was almost 50 years ago. I don't know a revival without a star would run; it's really the opposite of an ensemble show.
What the role does require is a sort of larger-than-life Hollywood glamour and I'm not sure THAT exists any more. (Except for Cher and Streep and a few others who are actually 20 years too old for the part.)
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by After Eight 2012-12-29 22:01:12
"It was a huge success because people loved her in it."
It was a huge success because it was a wonderful show with a great score, and it continued to run long after Angela Lansbury departed the cast.
And of course, Angela Lansbury was wonderful in it.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by Brave Sir Robin2 2012-12-29 22:01:16
Didn't CZJ star as Peggy Sawyer in the West End production of 42ND STREET in the 1980's?
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by Jordan Catalano 2012-12-29 22:16:05
Yes.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by GavestonPS 2012-12-29 22:16:47
^^^^Sounds familiar, though I don't keep track of the West End. CZJ certainly has a background in musical theater. I have recordings of her singing a small role in two productions of STREET SCENE.
But I am told by someone who would know that she can't really sustain a demanding vocal number.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by PalJoey 2012-12-29 23:10:46
Catherine Jones lacks the charm to play anyone's Auntie Mame.
She's better suited to Gloria Upson.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by Borstalboy 2012-12-29 23:20:37
No.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by chewy5000 2012-12-30 02:30:51
Lady GaGa
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by AnythingGoes23 2012-12-30 07:06:10
Beth Level as Vera is a must, I agree ...!
Give it a few years and Kristin Chenoworth?
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by henrikegerman 2012-12-30 10:33:31
"It was a huge success because it was a wonderful show with a great score, and it continued to run long after Angela Lansbury departed the cast."
If the show is that good, then it doesn't need a star. In my opinion,
the show might have merit, might be solid, but it is heavily dependent on the right casting. What I was referring to is casting someone who's right for it and not nec. a megastar is what's required. Was it Ann Miller and Celeste Holm who took over for Lansbury?
Having said that, few would argue Lansbury's contribution to making Mame a smash.
Martin Gottfried (*) wrote: "It was at the Winter Garden Theatre, where Mame was playing previews, that Angela finally got to have a star dressing room on Broadway.".
This shows how Mame brings fame to Angela: it was the great musical for the GREATEST actress!
She conquered Broadway in the part of a great, vivacious force of nature: this is one of the classic tales of show business, and Gottfried recounts its drama in rich detail.
***
Jordan, I didn't quite understand your point about Parton and Latifah, obviously, but I do now.
Still I have to question this notion of Broadway's current status being all that different in terms of BIG star-need than it is now. Some of the most successful musicals have not needed huge stars to be successes. Including revivals. Chicago is still running without BIG stars in it and it opened with leads who were knowns but not BIG stars. Once is a hit without big stars. Of course it's always a plus to have a huge star who is right for the role. But the necessity of it is overstated. My point is that casting the right person in a good show can make the show a smash, get the reviews, make the show's star a star, or that star a bigger star, as it did with Lansbury.
If a revival of Mame could be as successful as the revival of South Pacific it would be a huge success. O'Hara and Szot made that show work and got the reviews, as did Lupone and Benanti in Gypsy. These are not household names.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by After Eight 2012-12-30 10:46:37
"In my opinion, the show might have merit, might be solid, "
"Might?"
No "might " about it. Of course Angela Lansbury was wonderful. Of course she contibuted to its success, just like Mary Martin contributed to the success of South Pacific and Sound of Music.
Yet all of these shows were still good with other people in the roles.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by Far From Home 2012-12-30 10:52:42
^
Janice Paige was Lansbury's replacement.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by henrikegerman 2012-12-30 11:19:27
After Eight, you may be unqualified in your love of MAME, but not everyone is. Look no further than the fact it lost the tony for best musical to, of all things, MAN OF LA MANCHA. A show which depends even more keenly to work on having a great star, meaning a star who is magically cast, not a household name, a show which like MAME gave Broadway one of its most legendary star turns from a great performer who was not a superstar.
My point is that somewhere between the notion that the show would need a superstar to work and the show is so solid it doesn't need a superb choice for its leading lady, is the truth.
The show is not such a draw that it is casting-proof. Nor is it a show that couldn't thrive in large part due to the quality of its casting (assuming good direction, design, etc.) rather than the name-recognition and megapopularity of its star.
If it's good, people will want to see it. And for it to be good requires a Mame who is a fabulous actress, a deft comedienne, a woman who knows how to sell a song, with an engaging warmth, and a sense of madness mixed with an eccentric and imperfect maternal quality. As good as Lady Gaga - whom Lansbury has proposed - might be in the role, the woman who takes Mame on need not be that kind of automatic draw for the show to succeed.
In other words, if Mame premiered today with someone as perfect for the role and with the same degree of box office power as Lansbury had then, it would be a success. The same goes for a revival.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by JoeKv99 2012-12-30 12:42:14
At the time Lansbury was not so universally beloved. Patrick Dennis, who created the character, lambasted her performance and many reviews compared her to the "original" Mame, Roz Russell and found Lansbury wanting. But I guess there will ALWAYS be those who insist on comparing what's on stage right now to their hallowed memories of what once was.
And the show was the star- Hello Dolly was such a monster hit and Auntie Mame was such a beloved character that the pre-sale was huge.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by darquegk 2012-12-30 12:50:54
That point JoeKv just made is a valid one- Auntie Mame and Patrick Dennis were cultural names at the time of the original premiere, characters who generated buzz and awareness. (It is telling that neither the 1982 nor the 1998 revisals of Little Me included Patrick Dennis as character/co-narrator.)
My question is how old SHOULD our Mame be? The tradition is to cast a "great dame" of the theatre in the role, a sort of post-menopausal Dolly Levi figure. Yet Mame ages from early thirties to late fifties in the role, so is it necessary for Mame and Vera to set the bottom line for casting age at the top of Mame and Vera's age arc?
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by ComingUpRoses2 2012-12-30 13:48:39
Ideally for Mame, I'd like to have an actress in her mid 30's and then just changes wigs and costumes throughout to age them. It's so much easier to age someone than make a 70 year old look mid-30's. Still, if there's someone who could pull it off, age shouldn't be much of a concern especially on stage.
Mame is a really hard part to cast, possibly even harder than Dolly or Rose, IMO. There needs to be a certain spark that's hard to describe. An actress needs to be stylish, chic, and regal yet warm, which is surprisingly hard to do. I'm not sure why, but usually when a Mame fails, it's due to her being too cold.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by Jon 2012-12-30 13:53:35
Jane Krakowski, maybe?
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by Caring Soul 2012-12-30 14:46:37
Word on the street is that the former producers of "On a Clear Day" will be going full-bore drag queen in the role of Mame by bringing in either Charles Busch or Rudy Giuliani.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by GavestonPS 2012-12-30 15:17:21
In other words, if Mame premiered today with someone as perfect for the role and with the same degree of box office power as Lansbury had then, it would be a success. The same goes for a revival.
Except that musically and dramatically, MAME was very much of its time. Although musical theater fans may cherish the score, none of its songs really became standards, not even the title number.
And Auntie Mame is in every scene after the Prologue.
I'm not sure you revive MAN OF LA MANCHA without a well-known lead, but I certainly don't see a starless MAME.
Celeste Holm (vacation), Jane Morgan, Ann Miller, Janis Paige and Sheila Smith (vacation) all played Mame on Broadway. The Ann Miller tour did particularly well and business picked up when she came to New York; alas, her run there ended when somebody dropped a sand-bag on her head. (She recovered.)
I don't know why we're talking about Lady Gaga. For what? The 2030 revival?
It may seem easier to age somebody on stage, but it rarely works for extended musical roles. Mame's big dance number ("That's How Young I Feel") comes when she is in her 50s. Are you going to tell your 35-year-old actress to limp a little?
(I assume it's obvious I'm responding to several different posts here and not just to henrik.)
BTW, I don't know if they offered the role at Goodspeed to any true stars last year; but when they got down to the final choices, they were all 50ish women whom theater people would know but who were not stars on the level of Cher or Streep.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by Outoftowner2 2012-12-30 15:30:40
I'd love to see Mame on Broadway. Lots of great music. There was talk several years ago of a TV movie version. IMDB even had it listed as pre-production or something with Cher as Mame. I think they had even cast a few other roles. It was around the same time those other TV musicals were made, Music Man, South Pacific.. Anybody know what happened?
Anyway, it's a great show...bring it back!
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by lupone76 2012-12-30 16:05:38
Bring it back by all means, but Lady GaGa??? Whoever suggested that GaGa play Mame must be on a pretty severe CRACK high. For starters, Gaga is no where near the appropiate age for Auntie Mame(way too young at 26). Secondly, theres absolutely nothing remotely classy or sophisticated about her. Finally, I doubt at this stage in her career that she would be looking to do Broadway. If they were gonna go into the pop diva superstar category then Madonna would actually be a much more appropiate choice.
If you ask me I actually think that a more realistic choice would be Bernadette Peters. I really think she has been miscast in cerain roles but would make a wonderful Auntie Mame. As much as I love Patti LuPone I dont see her as a Mame at all.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by henrikegerman 2012-12-30 16:18:14
It was Lansbury who suggested Lady Gaga.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by Will42 2012-12-30 16:53:14
I think Megan Mullally would have been great in the role.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by After Eight 2012-12-30 19:59:14
"Look no further than the fact it lost the tony for best musical to, of all things, MAN OF LA MANCHA. "
?!?!?!?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
West Side Story? Why, look no further than the fact that it lost the Tony for best musical to, of all things, The Music Man!
Gypsy? Why, look no further than the fact that it lost the Tony for best musical to, of all things, Fiorello and The Sound of Music!
She Loves Me? Why, look no further than the fact that it lost the Tony for best musical to, of all things, Hello, Dolly!
Sunday in the Park With George? Why, look no further than the fact that it lost the Tony for best musical to, of all things, La Cage aux Folles!
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by After Eight 2012-12-30 20:02:23
"Although musical theater fans may cherish the score, none of its songs really became standards,"
I only heard "We Need a Little Christmas" like a thousand times this holiday season.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by JoeKv99 2012-12-30 20:08:57
No wonder you're so cranky. You need an I-Pod.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by fashionguru_23 2012-12-30 20:09:28
I would have loved if Judy Garland was able to go through as a replacement Mame in the 1960's.
But, I've always said that Liza Minnelli should play Mame. I'd totally see Cher play it too.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by goldenboy 2012-12-30 20:09:48
How bout Bette Midler as Mame? She has the rapid machine gun delivery of Rosaland Russel and the vocal belt of Merman. If she does some acting homework and not just play herself ( as she did in Gypsy_ --- that could be spectacular.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by broadwayboy222 2012-12-30 21:38:30
I thought Christine Baranski and Christine Ebersole were perfect on the Jerry Herman tribute on the Kennedy Center honors!
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by GavestonPS 2012-12-31 01:47:32
I only heard "We Need a Little Christmas" like a thousand times this holiday season.
Good point, After Eight. I forgot about that song. I don't think it's a draw in and of itself, but you are absolutely right: it has become a standard.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by GavestonPS 2012-12-31 01:49:17
I think Megan Mullally would have been great in the role.
I adore Mullally, but I have never seen her as warm. I agree with the poster above who says Mame needs warmth as well as glamour. (In other words, maybe Mullally would be brilliant, but I haven't seen the necessary qualities in her.)
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by somethingwicked 2012-12-31 01:58:03
Megan Mullally would be a much more appropriate Vera, though it would certainly be another Karen Walker-esque role for her. As the Kennedy Center production proved, the balance of the show is thrown off wildly if you don't have two very clearly defined "types" opposite each other as Mame and Vera. Christine Baranski and Harriet Harris were both too close to being right for both roles, and the result felt very odd, though they each certainly had some lovely moments.
Of the current crop of Broadway stars, I'm most surprised Donna Murphy has never played Mame. She seems the most natural fit of the many people who are constantly suggested on this board whenever the show comes up. Jan Maxwell also strikes me as someone who would be pretty dynamite in the role.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by carolineorchange21 2012-12-31 02:15:54
You beat me to it broadwayboy. Christine Ebersole would be divine. Perfect height - perfect look - perfect voice. And I would love to hear her sing 'It's Today'
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by somethingwicked 2012-12-31 02:20:48
Christine Ebersole's already done the show, in a production that wasn't well received at the the Paper Mill Playhouse in 1999.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by Will42 2012-12-31 11:10:48
I also haven't seen Mullally in a dramatic role, but she's such a great performer, I'm sure she can deliver given a chance.
Other actresses that could be good in the role:
Donna Murphy
Jan Maxwell
Toni Collette
Bebe Neuwirth
Oh, and Allison Janney could be awesome as Vera.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by Will42 2012-12-31 11:13:28
Oh, if only there was a time machine.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by madbrian 2012-12-31 11:20:41
I can attest to Ebersole being lackluster as Mame at the Papermill. Only Kelly Bishop as her Vera saved that production.
Ideally, I think Mame should be cast as a woman in her 40s. She should be believable as the aunt of a twelve year old as well as a guy in his early 20s. It's only in the closing scene that Mame is around ten years older than that.
Let's not forget how demanding the role is. Lucille Ball was in her early 60s in the movie, and I think casting actresses in their 60s would be a huge mistake.
Having said all that, of the names mentioned in this thread, I think Jane Krakowski makes the most sense.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by henrikegerman 2012-12-31 11:40:26
After Eigh, you got me. That was not my best argument. I still contend that this is not, at least now, a show that sells itself and that it seriously needs a great and very thoughtfully cast star to succeed. The fact that Ebersol, whom one would think on paper would at least be an adequate choice, apparently didn't fulfill expectations, might attest better to this.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by darquegk 2012-12-31 11:43:01
Andrea Martin might have been right for the role a while ago. At sixty-six she is probably too old to play it ideally now, though heaven knows she still looks great and sings well.
What Mame also probably needs in today's casting tradition is a tour-de-force supporting male lead appearing as the episodic and mostly comedic male roles. Someone who can have his one moment as Beau, but also fill the Babcock et al. type roles.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by GavestonPS 2012-12-31 18:48:49
Is that how MAME is done now? As if it were LITTLE ME?
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by darquegk 2012-12-31 20:02:45
More akin to the way SWEET CHARITY is done in the west end.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by Owen22 2013-01-01 13:48:36
The hard part about casting Mame is that the character is both utterly pretentious and magnificently warm. That is very hard to do. Roz did it, I'm guessing Angela did it. Lucy wasn't even close. When I saw the Kennedy Center production within half an hour I was shocked. Christine Baranski and Harriet Harris were playing the wrong roles! Baranski on paper sounds good, but she had little heart in the part. But Harris would have gotten that Roz thing down perfectly (and Christine an excellent Vera). I'm thinking Harris is a wee bit too old now, maybe, but I'd still love to see her take a shot at the role. Cher? No. Doesn't have it. Mullally? Her go at it would probably lean toward caricature... Star-wise, if she could sing, and we were going with star casting, Julia Louis-Dreyfus would be a wonderfully unique Mame, different than Harris or Roz, but still maintaining that air Mame needs. I agree, that of the current crop of typical Mames, Donna Murphy would be the choice.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by somethingwicked 2013-01-01 13:54:16
Owen, Harriett Harris (who I agree is much too old) may be an interesting idea for Mame in terms of type, but she could never sing it in a million years, now or earlier.
If her performance in the Barrington Stage production of SWEENEY TODD a few summers ago proved anything, it's that her voice really is limited strictly to character roles. Anything approaching real sustained singing is beyond her vocal capabilities, let alone something as brassy and demanding as Mame.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by Owen22 2013-01-01 13:56:38
That's a shame...but again, she is too old and reads her age on stage...
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by ACL2006 2013-01-01 14:27:18
Andrea McArdle is slated to play Mame at The Media Theater/Bucks County Playhouse starting in April. Not that she's a name, but thoughts on how she'll do in the role??
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by ComingUpRoses2 2013-01-01 14:38:42
Andrea will sing the crap out of that score, but she has absolutely no warmth. I've always found her to be a wonderful, but cold performer. She just has a really bad case of "bitch face" most of the time.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by somethingwicked 2013-01-01 14:51:23
I agree that Andrea McArdle will sing the score beautifully, but I also agree that I don't think she has any of the star quality required for such an enigmatic character.
I know this has been debated on this board ad nauseum, but her acting ability (for me) is pretty non-existent beyond her own persona, and I find her performances to almost always end up stiff and awkward. She tends to be rather blank in the eyes, so while this is far from an ideal vehicle for her, it's nice to see her still working after all these years.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by ComingUpRoses2 2013-01-01 14:54:07
I think so, too. I'm sure her singing will be phenomenal, but she's just too cold for me.
Mame needs a revival!
Posted by GavestonPS 2013-01-01 19:03:21
"She tends to be rather blank in the eyes...."
Was this an intentional joke about the first girl to play Little Orphan Annie in a musical?
