Much appreciated, and I must say, this has turned into a lively discussion (see comments below), one reason I enjoy this board.
I would add Julie Andrews' run in "Le Hot Jazz," in VICTOR/VICTORIA yes? Since that was generally known to be on tape, never performed by Andrews on the Marquis stage. We accepted that because it wasn't even a side of Victoria's performance repertoire we ever heard again in the show, if memory serves. From then on, we stuck with Andrews' comfort zone, because it's the character's. And well, we were so glad to have Andrews back on stage, in a role she'd played a decade earlier on film. See? I'm making an exception.
I personally, in light of your thoughtful posts, subjectively, feel there's something different about sweetening sound in, say, FOLLIES or COMPANY, than in employing technology to augment a solo performance with a previously canned note. And in the case of Christine, it's potentially (only to people like me perhaps) egregious because the character is an opera singer, the show is built on her getting a chance to show off her gifts.
But we'll agree to disagree, or to leave it anyway.
I'd rather go back to the context for my digression, the idea of what constitutes "deception." One reason why the SIDE SHOW tape didn't offend me, or strike me as deceiving in any way ultimately, is because it was still the actual number performed in the St. James, uninterrupted, with a live audience. What we see in the number as it's achieved 8 times a week. They didn't close the theater, go in and shoot the twins doing the number with start-stop or other editing techniques. We get the full-through "Who Will Love Me" shot in a live house. It's not a deception, in terms of the artists' work and how they function in the production. The deception is: instead of being piped in, it was put on tape x number of days before. We're still in the St. James with them, they still sing every note without stopping or technological assistance. Unlike, say .... uh oh, there I go again. Sorry. I'll stop.
But yeah, good discussion. Thank you.
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