Threaded Order Chronological Order
| the Paige Norma | |
| Posted by: Delvino 07:38 am EDT 08/25/19 | |
| In reply to: re: Was Diahann Carroll ever offered Sunset Blvd. on Broadway? - MattPhilly 08:18 am EDT 08/24/19 | |
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| Was my second favorite. She sang it wonderfully, and to my ears she was the only Norma to borrow baldly from Swanson. Though at first it threw me -- we were close to a Burnett caricature -- it paid off. The diminutive star found a way to fold in the famous line readings now and then and yet still make the arias all hers. I thought it was an entirely winning interpretation. | |
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| re: the Paige Norma | |
| Posted by: GabbyGerard 03:14 pm EDT 08/26/19 | |
| In reply to: the Paige Norma - Delvino 07:38 am EDT 08/25/19 | |
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| Back in the 90s, when I saw Paige during her Broadway run, I thought she was terrific. As you pointed out, she was the production's first (perhaps the only) Norma to channel Swanson, which--odd as this may sound--seemed somewhat "fresh" since others seemed to have been so intentionally avoiding any Swanson-isms. I would also say she was Broadway's most consistently well-sung Norma. When Buckley was in good voice, which was about 75% of the time, her vocals were outstanding...but when she got tired, she would sound noticeably hoarse and raspy, go flat on the money notes (an unfortunate pattern that has been repeated frequently in her run as Dolly), and alter the melody of The Perfect Year to avoid its high notes. Paige always sounded strong-voiced and healthy--maybe because her attendance was not as good as Buckley's or Close's? Over the years, though, Paige's interpretation has dimmed in my esteem. Maybe it's because she relied so heavily on Swanson's body language, cadences, and facial expressions. She did not imprint on my brain as indelibly as others because, well, she didn't have to...I could go back to the movie and see the original, more authentic version of her Norma. To use actor-speak, one could argue that Paige was taking an outside-in approach, but, ultimately, I've felt that she didn't go deep enough in to create a lasting emotional impact. |
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| re: the Paige Norma | |
| Posted by: bway1430 02:00 am EDT 08/28/19 | |
| In reply to: re: the Paige Norma - GabbyGerard 03:14 pm EDT 08/26/19 | |
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| I thought the same about Paige's mirroring of Swanson but had to bear in mind, she only had a very short time (I think 2 weeks) to learn the role in full. She was an emergency replacement when Buckley got ill in London and required surgery shortly after the Lupone version crashed then reopened. Rather than dig deep she may have just locked in that performance which won her a lot of acclaim....and absolutely no one to tops Paige's "As If We Never Said Goodbye". Magic. | |
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| re: the Paige Norma | |
| Posted by: JereNYC (JereNYC@aol.com) 10:24 am EDT 08/28/19 | |
| In reply to: re: the Paige Norma - bway1430 02:00 am EDT 08/28/19 | |
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| I saw the Paige Norma in New York and thought she was spectacular. I was seated in the second or third row and thought I was going to exit the theatre with my hair slicked back like in a cartoon. I recall it being said at the time that Paige was the best "all around" Norma, considering both the acting performance and the big voice. It's interesting to me that Paige doesn't even seem to have been considered for the role until an emergency replacement for Buckley was required. She had to have been on the creatives' short list from the beginning, right? I mean, she originated two of ALW's most famous roles and would, in every way, have been considered perfect for the part. At that point, she was probably the first phone call, since they knew from CATS that she could come in as an emergency replacement and learn it and get on stage. Of course, Norma is a bit of a different thing than Grizabella, but skills are skills. The only other name stars who probably could have done it at that point were LuPone (and fat chance of THAT happening) or Close, who was either already performing in New York or preparing for New York at the time. I wonder if there was a reason that the creatives either didn't want her at first or she didn't want to do it. Even if ALW et al had their hearts set on LuPone to open the show, I'd have thought Paige would have gotten the replacement call before Buckley, at least for London, where she's such a big star. |
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| re: the Paige Norma | |
| Posted by: JereNYC (JereNYC@aol.com) 09:29 pm EDT 08/28/19 | |
| In reply to: re: the Paige Norma - JereNYC 10:24 am EDT 08/28/19 | |
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| I did a little research and found an article in PLAYBILL from a few years back about the various Normas in major productions of the show, focusing mostly on LuPone, Close, Buckley, and Paige. In that article, it was written that Andrew Lloyd Webber was unsure that Paige could be effective in the role of an American. If that is true and that's what kept Paige from playing the role earlier than she did, it makes no sense at all. Paige had already had great success in two ALW shows playing an Argentinian and...well...a cat. And she'd also had a great success just a few years prior to SUNSET BOULEVARD playing Reno Sweeney, a much more aggressively American character than Norma, in the original London production of the Lincoln Center ANYTHING GOES revision. But, if it's true, it does go a long way to explaining why the first three Normas were American. In fact, I don't think there's anything in the text of SUNSET BOULEVARD, the movie or the musical, that specifically identifies Norma as an American. There's no reason at all that she couldn't be an expatriate Brit in Hollywood. In any case, I don't recall Paige having any issue playing the role as an American. |
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| re: It may have been PIAF.... | |
| Posted by: bway1430 01:42 am EDT 08/29/19 | |
| In reply to: re: the Paige Norma - JereNYC 09:29 pm EDT 08/28/19 | |
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| Elaine had been touring PIAF before SUNSET opened in London and eventually brought the show into the West End that same season....but they had to close it after she was suffering vocal damage. SUNSET was her first show back after PIAF closed. In any event the PIAF plans may have taken her off the table for consideration when they were doing initial casting. |
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