The boy from oz: McKenny or Jackman
Sat, 22 May 2004, 07:50 pmWalter Plinge7 posts in thread
The boy from oz: McKenny or Jackman
Sat, 22 May 2004, 07:50 pmI was out raged when Todd McKenny was no longer the principal lead in "The Boy From Oz" and was replaced with Hugh Jackman when the show hit the US. Could someone please fill me in on how this happened and if you agree or disagree.
Re: The boy from oz: McKenny or Jackman
Wed, 9 June 2004, 05:28 pmWalter Plinge
Paul Treasure wrote:
>
> This may be due to Martin ShermanÂ’s changes to Nick EnrightÂ’s
> script, but that is something we will NEVER be able to know
> for sure (although all anecdotal reports I have heard have
> been that the changes are VERY noticeable to someone who
> knows the original). But there was a reason they changed the
> script as well. Never overestimate an American audienceÂ’s
> intelligence.
*looks around*
I've seen the New York production..... *whispers*....on video and its DREADFUL! And Hugh Jackman is dreadful in it.
The new "script" is just plain bad. There is absolutely no heart in the show anymore, which is a very big shame. All the heartfelt numbers (eg, Quiet Please, there's a lady on the stage and Don't Cry Out Loud) become these huge American Broadway dance numbers. And I Still Call Australia Home becomes a casual conversation with his mum at her kitchen table, not the huge anthem we know it as.
Hugh Jackman, although I like him as an actor, was really ordinary. He was a typical straight man attempting to be gay - which doesn't work, and the scenes with him and his lover were laughable. I'm pleased that he got a Tony, especially being an Aussie in an Aussie musical, but he doesn't deserve it. Todd McKenny was FAR more convincing, but as we all know, there was no way the show would survive with him being an unknown in America. At least now it will run for another few months, until the rumoured Russell Crowe is taking over - which is a complete joke.
Yes the show has been rewritten for American audiences to its detriment I believe. I have heard that Nick Enright wasn't particularly happy about what they did to it either. I'm sick of American's needing every product (eg, The Castle, Harry Potter, etc.) being changed for them to understand it.
"Never underestimate an American audience's intelligence"? Pfft... what intelligence?
>
> This may be due to Martin ShermanÂ’s changes to Nick EnrightÂ’s
> script, but that is something we will NEVER be able to know
> for sure (although all anecdotal reports I have heard have
> been that the changes are VERY noticeable to someone who
> knows the original). But there was a reason they changed the
> script as well. Never overestimate an American audienceÂ’s
> intelligence.
*looks around*
I've seen the New York production..... *whispers*....on video and its DREADFUL! And Hugh Jackman is dreadful in it.
The new "script" is just plain bad. There is absolutely no heart in the show anymore, which is a very big shame. All the heartfelt numbers (eg, Quiet Please, there's a lady on the stage and Don't Cry Out Loud) become these huge American Broadway dance numbers. And I Still Call Australia Home becomes a casual conversation with his mum at her kitchen table, not the huge anthem we know it as.
Hugh Jackman, although I like him as an actor, was really ordinary. He was a typical straight man attempting to be gay - which doesn't work, and the scenes with him and his lover were laughable. I'm pleased that he got a Tony, especially being an Aussie in an Aussie musical, but he doesn't deserve it. Todd McKenny was FAR more convincing, but as we all know, there was no way the show would survive with him being an unknown in America. At least now it will run for another few months, until the rumoured Russell Crowe is taking over - which is a complete joke.
Yes the show has been rewritten for American audiences to its detriment I believe. I have heard that Nick Enright wasn't particularly happy about what they did to it either. I'm sick of American's needing every product (eg, The Castle, Harry Potter, etc.) being changed for them to understand it.
"Never underestimate an American audience's intelligence"? Pfft... what intelligence?