I expect some here will object to the comment I'm about to make, but I think a major reason why many people reacted so favorably to Michael Hayden's performance in CAROUSEL was his sex appeal, which was palpable and which is, indeed, a very important part of Billy Bigelow's character. I do think Hayden's acting was excellent as well, and I thought it really added a lot to the character that he played Billy as clearly a New Yorker in terms of his speech. (The script tells us that Billy came up to New England from Coney Island.) That said, I don't think it was the acting that was revelatory so much as the sex appeal.
Thoughts? |
