Another Jennifer tidbit - Greg Braxton of The Los Angeles Times (reprinted in the Kansas City Star) interviews Ms. Holliday, who says:
Instead of being swept up in the hoopla over the new film adaptation of “Dreamgirls,” Holliday is being swept aside.
“Why is it necessary for them to wipe out my existence in order for them to have their success? It’s scary that they can be so cruel.” [said Holliday]
Well, I don’t think they thought about you at all, actually. Which may not be nice, but when studios produce a $75 million dollar movie, they usually aren’t that concerned with being nice. I don’t think the movie will do any damage to Holliday’s legacy, although admittedly future generations may see Hudson’s version as ‘definitive’, which it isn’t. Then again, this show business, and actors, especially stage actors, always get shafted (see also: Kathleen Chalfant not getting to play her role in Wit for just one glaring example).
As much as we do feel that Holliday is a little over the top in her criticism, this seemed unnecessary:
After weeks of suffering privately with the constant “Dreamgirls” onslaught — particularly the raves surrounding the other Jennifer — she said the final crushing blow came the night before her Ars Nova stint when she watched Hudson on “Entertainment Tonight” as Holliday’s version of “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going” from the original cast recording played during the segment.
“When I saw that, I just gave up,” she said. “I thought, ‘This is a hopeless situation. I am being canceled out as an artist.’ ”
Memo to Dreamgirls the movie’s producers: play the new version of the song. If not that’s just mean.
With the Dreamgirls movie opening this week, and everyone going gaga for Jennifer Hudson who plays Effie, we thought we’d show you a clip of the original Effie, Jennifer Holliday, as she blows the roof off of the 1982 Tony Awards with “I’m Telling You I’m Not Going.”
You also get to see the late, great Tony Randall, who was the host that year.
Flavorpill now has multiple sites in its ‘network’, focusing on Art, Music, Fashion, World News, and Books, with this review of a new book about thirtysomethings in New York, including one who works at the Village Voice (now that’s specific). FP started a looong time ago, it’s nice to see them grow and become more important.
BTW Flavorpill folk: need a theater site? (Hint, hint.)
The Scarlett O’Hara Complex Review by Caroline M. Sun
The Scarlett O’Hara Complex is a southern-fried comedy about a group of close-knit, middle-aged women who suspect “murder” when one of them catches her husband in a compromising position. A cross between Nancy Drew and The Golden Girls, these chatty, catty amateur sleuths set about trying to discover and thwart the plot of their wounded friend. In the process, the looming shadow of gentility cast over southern women by the movie Gone with the Wind is juxtaposed against the real-life violence of southern belles like Blanche Taylor Moore and Lorena Bobbitt. (more…)
Flavorpill LA has an item about - no joke - Machomer, a show by Rick Miller that “eimagines the Bard’s infamous tragedy amidst the hustle and bustle of modern-day Springfield, twisting and mangling the tale to delightful extremes.”
Rick’s other shows include Bigger Than Jesus, and ‘Machomer’ has been touring for 10 years. Must be doing something right. This is kind of in the same vein as Oblivious to Everyone, although this one is of course about fictional characters (Paris Hilton is sort of fictional as well, but, sadly, she exists and Homer Simpson does not, proving that there is no justice in this world). Gotta have a gimmick, and if it’s a good one, more power to ya.
Irvine Barclay Theatre in Cali, Fri 11.24 - Sun 11.26 if you’re out there and want to check it out. If you do, feel free to email us a review. You know us, if it’s even vaguely coherent, we’ll post it.
Photo by Robbie Renfrow
We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: make a show about a dumb celebrity, then just sit back and count your money.
OK, it’s not quite that easy, and presumably Oblivious To Everyone is pretty good or it wouldn’t be extending. That said, if this were a one-woman show about, say, Florence Kling Harding (she was President Harding’s wife! Come on, you knew that!), odds are it wouldn’t have captured the public’s imagination in quite the same way.
We begrudge no one their success - and we say again, may it run ten years.
Press release follows. Enjoy.
OBLIVIOUS TO EVERYONE,
A ONE-WOMAN PLAY ABOUT THE MEDIA’S FIERCE IMPACT ON WOMEN,
EXTENDS ON NYC’S THEATRE ROW (more…)
There’s nothing we like better than a funny show with a kickin’ theme song. (Well, OK, we’d like an enormous pile of money more than that.) The Riant Theatre’s new show WHO’S GOT GAME? has both. Funny improv, cash prizes for the performers AND the audience, and a theme song that’s way better than anything this guy ever came up with. Actually, it’s much better than that. Give it a listen, and check out the show. Big opening night this Sunday at 6pm, show continues on Sundays through December 17th. Press release after the jump.
The Riant Theatre
Presents a Dynamic New Improv Show
WHO’S GOT GAME?
At Times Square Arts Center, 300 West 43rd Street, Roy Arias Theatre, 5th Floor
Sundays at 6PM - Now through December 17th (more…)
A second opinion on Constantine Maroulis, the American Idol castoff who has now KILLED OUR FAVORITE BROADWAY MUSICAL! (We’re only kidding, dude, we don’t blame you. Show just ain’t selling tickets. Whatcha gonna do? Simon Cowell, that’s whose fault it is!)
We’re kind of sad to see The Wedding Singer close (we’ve mentioned it before, y’know). While not exactly a great piece of theatrical art, it was fun and mindless entertainment with numerous 80’s references. Does this mean “Teen Wolf: The Musical” is now DOA? Gosh, we hope not. (We kid. At least, we’re hoping we kid.)
Details of the closing (it ends December 31) are below, along with the holiday schedule.
You can also read this this bizarre article in the Village Voice titled, This Is Constantine Maroulis. He Wishes You Knew That. -
In which an American Idol runner-up tops it all by blow-drying his chest. Well all righty then.
