Keep the drama out of Drama

Hello everyone, I've returned yet again, with another blog post, this one being about all that's been going on in the Broadway community lately, mainly being in the show, Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812.

Mandy Patinkin, Oak Oanadowan

On July 26, 2017, it was announced that Broadway superstar, Mandy Patinkin would take over the role of Pierre making Okieriete "Oak" Oanodowan, the current Pierre, finish his run a few weeks short. Then, a few days later on July 28, 2017, Mandy Patinkin announced in a statement to The New York Times that he had withdrawn from the show. That statement being, 
“My understanding of the show’s request that I step into the show is not as it has been portrayed and I would never accept a role knowing it would harm another actor,” Mr. Patinkin said. “I hear what members of the community have said and I agree with them. I am a huge fan of Oak and I will, therefore, not be appearing in the show.” Oak also stated in an Instagram post, that he would not be returning to the show.

When it was announced that Mandy Patinkin was replacing Oak, outrage throughout the Broadway community spread like wildfire. Many said that Oak was fired, many accused it of being racism, and I personally, think it was neither of those accusations. What I think was the case of this, is that the show was on the brink of closing, which was actually said on Twitter by the show's creator,

Dave Malloy. So I think, while they were doing what doing what was best for their show, I think Oak should've finished his run before Mandy was put into the show, it's only fair, but they tried to do what they could to save their show. Many people were sending Mandy rude tweets and messages, which I think was rude and uncalled for. Nobody deserves that. 

On August 8, 2017, it was announced that the show would close on September 3, 2017. I saw this coming. The show wasn't selling well, and as Dave Malloy, said, they were in the brink of closing. I think that if some people weren't rude to Mandy, the show would be fine, and it be running successfully. I guess that's all I have to say, just a PSA: Please, don't be rude to others if things don't go the way that YOU

wanted them to, you have no idea how they could make someone feel, and what could come of it. Thank You.

My opinions on Hello, Dolly!

Hello everyone, I've returned with yet, another blog post, this one about Hello, Dolly!

On the official Playbill website, the synopsis reads, "A meddlesome matchmaker brings together the young clerk of a wealthy Yonkers merchant and his assistant with a widowed milliner and her assistant, while making sure she herself gets to marry the merchant, in Jerry Herman and Michael Stewart's musical adaptation of Thornton Wilder's The Matchmaker."

Hello, Dolly! Playbill

This revival of Hello, Dolly! stars Bette Midler as the title character, Dolly Gallagher Levi, which her performance earned her a Best Lead Actress in a Musical Tony Award for. Other Tony Award nominees are David Hyde Pierce (Best Leading Actor in a Musical nomination for his performance as Horace Vandergelder), Gavin Creel (Best Featured Actor in a Musical win for his performance as Cornelius Hackl), and Kate Baldwin (Best Featured Actress in a Musical nomination for her performance as Irene Malloy).

While, I have not seen the revival live, I have seen the revival live, I have seen the original 1969 film with Barbra Streisand and I have watched the bootleg of the revival. I 
thought the production was phenomenal. The set, the music, the costumes, and the atmosphere and vibes that I were getting from the show just put me in a good mood. The cast had so much energy and enthusiasm, and you could really tell that they all enjoyed performing with each other.

Taylor Trensch, Bette Midler, Gavin Creel

There is a lot of controversy surrounding the show, mostly due to the Tony Awards, and I'm going to give my opinions on that. Many people are saying that it did not deserve to win Best Revival of a Musical. I have only seen two of the nominees, Falsettos and Hello, Dolly!, so I cannot speak for Miss Saigon. I've heard many people saying that Hello, Dolly! did not deserve any Tony Awards, but that is their opinion, so I'm not going to bash it. But what really bothers me, is when

people will pick on the people who won the awards when someone who they wanted to win, didn't win. They have no control of winning, it's all up to the Tony voters. Now, for the infamous Bette Midler speech, I don't have a problem with it. If anything, I think it was very nice of her to go overtime. She was showing her appreciation for all the people who helped bring Hello, Dolly! back to life. When she had a longer speech than everyone else, did it affect anyone negatively? I think not, so I'd stop complaining and bashing Bette Midler. I personally think that Hello, Dolly deserved every Tony Award that it got, it's a spectacular show and I love everything about it. 

Well, that's it for now, I just wanted to get some of my feelings out haha! Thank you so much for reading, keep conquering the stage!

~ Evan