Josephs: Where are they now?
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I came across this interesting blog which gives a little overview of what the Joseph finalists have been up to since Any Dream Will Do:
http://soliloquyblog.wordpress.com/2010/04/05/any-dream-will-do-contestants-where-are-they-now/
Good to see that many of them have been busy!
http://soliloquyblog.wordpress.com/2010/04/05/any-dream-will-do-contestants-where-are-they-now/
Good to see that many of them have been busy!
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http://www.ticket.com/blog/bbc-west-end-talent-search-1097/
Not entirely accurate as I think Jodie played Elsie Tanner in Coronation Street the Musical, not in her current play One Man, Two Guv'nors!
A bit silly really in its ratings - partly due to poor research. Misses Connie's touring as Maria, and what she''s done this year in Wonderful Town. Thats not really comparable to being the Lady of the Lake in Spamalot complaining you have nothing to do, or Dolly in 1 man 2 governors. Is Elsie Tanner someone's joke reference to who she sounds like or yet more confusion? I don't see Lee as doing more than Connie or Danielle either. Fiyero and Emmett are not enormous roles, neither has a massive song, and Lee didn't play either that long.Completely missed the biggest point - how successful some other people on the shows have been.
The article does miss out on a lot of the runners-up and their successes since the shows, but at this point I think they might be too numerous to list. From what I can tell, the top five most successful on each show looks like this (in rough order after the winners).:
Maria--Connie, Siobhan, Aoife, Helena, Abi
Joseph--Lee, Daniel, Ben, Keith, Chris B.
Nancy--Jodie, Sam, Rachel, Sarah, Niamh
Dorothy--Danielle, Lauren, Sophie, Steph, Stephanie
I think after the Les MIs movie opens, Sam will be the most well-known internationally.
I have the winners listed first, but in terms of measurable success and name recognition, the only winners that I would rank first since their shows would be Danielle and possibly Connie and Lee, although it could be argued that Stephanie Davis has more name recognition of the Dorothys because of Hollyoaks. If it's just consistent work in musical theatre being measured, then I think Siobhan would be first of the Marias, Sam of the Nancys and Daniel or Lee of the Josephs. It would still be Danielle of the Dorothys, with Lauren a very close second (she has actually done more roles than Danielle but most not as high-profile and Danielle is more well-known to the general public).
Others from all the shows have worked as well. Overall, i think these shows have had a fairly decent track record for discovering musical theatre talent. I'm curious to see how the Superstar runners-up will do.
Too early to tell with Dorothies. Jenny had a bigger role in WWRY than any Steph has had so far . Its a case of watch for these two in the next few months.. As you say, Stephanie is doing well in another field . Lauren is getting the biggest MT roles in Grease and WWRY - lets see what she does after her return to WWRY. We don't know what Sophie's future will be (she's done nearly as much as Dorothy as Danielle) , and you still have 3 Dorothies in drama school.
What Siobhan does next will be interesting. Aoife is having a second baby (must post that in the Maria thread) Helena just needs to get the right WE leading role - I think South Pacific would have been much better with her.
Sam and Rachel are impossible to compare. Sam got the film amd the 25th anniversary DVD. Rachel has played two bigger MT roles (two of the biggest around) brilliantly. Jessie has done some really big concerts. Jodie has played smaller roles but done some TV. Francesca has also done a lot - although I can't find what she's doing now.
This thread is about the Josephs. There is a similar thread on the Marias and forums for the Nancies and Dorothies, so discussion on them is probably best kept in the appropriate threads/forums.
Incidentally, there's no need to start comparing roles as if the Marias, Josephs, Nancies and Dorothies are in competition with each other. It just comes across as petty, it's impossible to gauge accurately anyway. I'm pretty sure that if someone wandered into the Maria thread or the Nancy/Dorothy forums and started making comments about how the roles Maria A/Nancy B/Dorothy C played haven't been as demanding as those of Joseph D, the people who post there would object, and rightly so.
We should be celebrating the achievements of all these contestants, not making snide comments about the size of roles or how many songs are sung.
Lee Mead
After playing Fiyero in Wicked and Emmett in Legally Blonde, he released his third album (Love Songs), did a tour of the album and appeared in a number of one-off concerts (including recording a Friday Night Is Music Night concert, to be broadcast in September). Has also had roles in episodes of Casualty (playing teaching assistant Harry Timms) and Bedlam (playing Scott). Is off to LA in August for 10 weeks of castings and meetings. Will be playing Jack in Jack & The Beanstalk this Christmas.
Keith Jack
Was narrator and most recently played Joseph in the touring production of Joseph. Has also been doing some one-off concerts. Will be going back to the role after the Summer for 12 weeks. Over the summer, he's running a theatre school in Scotland, called Gie It Laldy. He will be doing a panto in Whitley Bay.
Lewis Bradley
Since understudying the role of Fiyero in Wicked, he's done some one-off concerts, done a stint on the cruise ship Azura as a principal singer appeared in panto and added another string to his bow by qualifying as a hairdresser.
Ben Ellis (aka Ben James-Ellis)
Most recently played Norman in Dreamboats and Petticoats. Has also played Link Larkin in Hairspray, presented segments of the TV show Hairspray: The High School Musical, and appeared in the touring production Brother Love's Travelling Salvation Show.
Craig Chalmers
Another Joseph touring production alumni. Since leaving that show, he's appeared in several pantos, done one-off concerts, sung with the group G*Mania and, this year, appeared in the play Guilty Pleasures. Will be appearing in panto in Dunfermline (playing Prince Charming in Cinderella).
Daniel Boys
Most recently played Algernon Moncrieff in a musical version of The Importance Of Being Ernest. Is doing concerts in the far east later this year. Will be playing Prince Charming in panto in Redhill this Christmas.
Rob McVeigh
Has done several pantos and concert appearances. Played Bundles/Bert Healey/Howe in the touring production of Annie.
Chris B
Most recently in the Coronation Street musical, but prior to that was Rolf in the Sound Of Music tour. Will be doing a six month stint as a lead singer on cruise ship Celebrity Equinox.
Seamus Cullen
Played Che in the touring production of Evita. Has been doing some vocal coaching. Most recently, got through to the final 20 in Superstar (the TV search for someone to play Jesus in Jesus Christ Superstar).
Antony Hansen
Appeared in Les Miserables as u/s Marius and appeared in the ensemble of the 25th Anniversary concert performance. Was u/s Fiyero in Wicked and alternate Charles in A Tale Of Two Cities.
Johndeep More
Has done a couple of Pantos, appeared in a Radio 4 play (The Private Patient) and done some one-off concert appearances (most recently in last year's Sondheim prom concert and as a member of the choir at the classical Brit Awards).
Chris C
Appeared in touring productions of Half a Sixpence and All The Fun Of The Fair.
On the lother hand, some of the girls are having a great time.
First, there is no place on this forum to talk about all of the ALW shows together and the article posted was about all four winners, so that was what was being addressed. Also, comparisons of the different shows do and have happened on the other forums. Since there isn't one general "ALW casting" forum, some talk of the other shows is bound to turn up in the forums for the individual shows.
I can't speak for anyone else, but when I do these comparisons it is not my intention to be snide or petty in the least. It annoys me when people elsewhere have tried to act like there's still a contest going on or suggest that any of the winners shouldn't have won because one (or more) of the runners-up has has worked more since the TV show. I never said or even suggested that any of the contestants are better because they've had more consistent or higher profile work (nothing was ever said about size of roles or how many songs they had either). I only like to do this kind of thing because it's fun to see how far everyone has come since the shows. It's to celebrate everyone's success, not pit them against each other. Noting which ones seem to have had the most measurable success so far is just that, an observation. That fact can likely change in the future as these contestants continue in their careers, and I don't really care about all that except in a fairly clinical sense. It's just fun to see how far everyone has come in their careers.
The biggest point of what I posted is best reflected in the last part of my previous post: "Others from all the shows have worked as well. Overall, i think these shows have had a fairly decent track record for discovering musical theatre talent." That was my point. It was to show the successes of the contestants and not to even slightly suggest that the ones who have had more measurable success are somehow "better" than the ones who haven't.
The only reason I made it a "top five" in each show was because I didn't want to make the post too long by talking about each and every ALW casting contestant. Also, the "top five" is fairly arbitrary, and I knew there would be ones I forgot about, like Jenny from OTR. What I most wanted to do was highlight the achievements of all of the contestants rather than make it an "A is better than B" exercise, since really that is pointless because an individual's decision on who is "better" is subjective and depends a lot more on the kind of performer they are than how many roles they've had.
Thenetworkbabe, you have made some great points, btw. All these lists (at least on my part) are arbitrary anyway. I did forget about Jenny. She's done very well for herself since Dorothy as well. Also, I tend to forget about We Will Rock You for admittedly biased reasons--I generally don't like jukebox musicals and the show doesn't appeal to me at all, but it is a popular show and it's great that both Lauren and Jenny have had such success with it.
As for the Josephs, it's great that they are all continuing to work. As I wrote before, it's great to see how much talent these programs have discovered.
OK, I'm done now. If this isn't the best place to talk about contestants from all of the casting shows, can someone suggest where we can do that if we want?
If anyone has any complaints, then let them alert the mods. Don't let other DS members tell you what you can and can't do.
You could start a ALW Casting Show thread in Reality TV (where all the Superstar threads are).
We need to try and keep on topic, otherwise it gets confusing and it becomes difficult for those who wish to discuss the topic to do so.
JOHNDEEP
(I think this is him - it's just audio and is from 2009)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHBv0EDTb_0
ANTONY
(Singing Empty Chairs At Empty Tables from Les Mis in 2009)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWinGdxIM9U
SEAMUS
(Firstly, a recent vid of Seamus talking about singing...he's a vocal coach now)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Nmr3Is2i8I
(Secondly, Seamus in Evita, 2008, with Louise Dearman as Eva Peron)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVMh3epDm_s
CHRIS B
(Singing All That's Known from Spring Awakening)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGYMh_e8RYo
ROB
(Singing I Owe It All To You on the 2008 Eurovision selection show - Eurovision: Your Decision)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5TDHleaT55Q
(2010, With the cast of Pop Star: The Musical - a musical about a TV talent show!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8O45TjPc6w0
DANIEL
(Duet with John Barrowman - I Know Him So Well 2008)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9F_j3yHhYEo&feature=fvsr
(Audio recording of the song Out Of Your World from The Inbetween - 2012)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGYNDlGvhoI
CRAIG
(Singing Dream On with Chris C, Chris B, Lewis and Antony - 2008)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zW7_HeaYohc
(Craig with a Rat Pack tribute act called The Flat Pack - 2011)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=auLP43_nKfo
(The Flat Pack intro)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&v=ptUrqEoNDuI&NR=1
BEN
(Singing It Takes Two from Hairspray)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIidROzQ714
(Audio of On The Street Where You Live - 2010)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4j2iHkURZM
LEWIS
(Singing Dancing Through Life from Wicked - 2010)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahZOQxOgry4
(Singing Any Dream Will Do at a concert - 2011
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FyRN--B9d6M
KEITH
(Singing If An Angel Falls From Heaven - 2008)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nFvPH2_Uek
(Singing This Is The Moment at a concert - 2012)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vaxmgN2XbwI
LEE
(Singing Close Every Door during the run of Joseph - 2007 to 2009)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7BWrYjfV-o
(Singing Dancing Through Life from Wicked - 2010)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_-OjaD4hOoo
(Singing Take It Like A Man with the cast of Legally Blonde - 2011)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9YWQjUAoJ0
(Singing Anthem - 2012)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nIQcdDTBO1M
Its pretty inevitable that comparisons between the shows will go into one of the different show's subforums - as you say there's nowhere else. This is a separate thread and its followed directly where its OP's second link took it. There's no point in starting a unique thread in reality TV, as what was a reference link, would have vanished after a day in a busy reality tv forum. You could ask admin to create a new ALW show's subforum under reality TV and then have the different show's as sub-subforums and any general threads like this one under that. That could give the superstar threads a home and could rescue the Marias from the Joseph's basement too - by giving them a subforum. But that may be one layer of forums too many for the system, and many people would probably object. Any such change would make it more difficult to see the subforums or note new posts even if it could be done. Leaving things as is may be preferable - we at least know where things are .
Comparisons are difficult. Its difficult enough weighing roles , subjective assessing performances, risky announcing roles that have leaked before they are official, and it just highlights who isn't that visible. On the other hand, even ALW does it (badly) - mentioning Sam without crediting anyone else doing really well and telling us that the superstars are his most talented finds - after telling us the same about every other show. When he comes up with comments that bad, its probably right and inevitable that someone will post something reminding us how well other people are doing and that he's excluded some very successful and able Josephs while dissing the rest of the male stars of the West End.
http://www.gavinbarkerassociates.co.uk/actors/ben-james-ellis.htm
http://www.bcltd.org/actors/keith-jack/
http://www.spotlight.com/interactive/cv/0755-0161-8093 http://www.colekitchenn.com/pm-actors.htm Daniel Boys
http://www.olivia-bell.co.uk/clients_cv.php?id=30 Johndeep Moore.
http://richardkort.co.uk/cv/43/Rob/McVeigh
Their range is impressive from the biggest shows of recent years to WE musicals to new musicals and concert.
Antony Hansen Les Mis 25th - the sailor.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vguQlDv699I
Daniel Boys Avenue Q
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDY2YWZHEBc&feature=results_video&playnext=1&list=PL4D32C930931FBC34
Keith Jack Only the Brave - with Niamh
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=miUc0zLRgOs
read in Daily Mail here
Shame that he's decided to follow that route as I think he had the talent to continue with a mainstream career. He was my favourite Joseph.