Fingers crossed that we don't get another Lee Mead.
Hope we don't get another Connie Fisher either. Bleurgh!
Why? Both of them were far and away the best performers in their respective competitions! Both have made the step to WE Lead status (with literally only a few weeks of rehearsal after winning their roles) and been a huge success in their roles!
I think a lot of people are getting swept up in sentimentality here. Whilst (in theory) it would be lovely for someone with little or no previous experience to win the role of Nancy, in reality, it would be a disaster! The winner needs to be someone who has previous experience of performing in front of audiences, knows their way around a stage and has the stamina to do six (or eight) shows a week!
To get an idea of what the winners of HDYSAPLM and ADWD had to be capable of, I suggest a viewing of Connie's and/or Lee's Winner's Story documentaries! After watching Lee's (at Christmas), I came away with the opinion that he was the only one of the Joseph contestants (with the possible exception of Daniel) who could have coped with the five week 'rehearsal' period and intense media interest!
Basically, what is needed IS another person of the calibre of Connie and Lee!
Incidentally, I loved Nancy Nancy and was sad that she didn't get through - but she's gone on to secure a plum WE role, so there's no need to get upset for her!
A final point - criticise the IDA judges all you want, but remember, we have only seen snippets of what the Nancys did in auditions/Nancy School. The judges will have spent hours watching and listening to the girls. They will have made decisions based on what they saw, using criteria such as 'Can this girl perform well under pressure?' and 'Is this girl consistant in her performances?' Therefore, I think there must have been a valid reason why Nancy didn't make it to the final 18!
Whilst the idea of a total unknown gaining a lead role may seem unrealistic, these shows are becoming very predictable when it comes to the obvious pointers given to who is likely to be the winner.
It's just an exercise in Saturday night entertaiment with ALW and his team getting the performer they want at the end of the series. It has little or nothing to do with what the public want. They know how to orchestrate the show and performers to their own advantage.
This is why I find the whole charade a waste of time for me at least
Why? Both of them were far and away the best performers in their respective competitions! Both have made the step to WE Lead status (with literally only a few weeks of rehearsal after winning their roles) and been a huge success in their roles!
I think a lot of people are getting swept up in sentimentality here. Whilst (in theory) it would be lovely for someone with little or no previous experience to win the role of Nancy, in reality, it would be a disaster! The winner needs to be someone who has previous experience of performing in front of audiences, knows their way around a stage and has the stamina to do six (or eight) shows a week!
To get an idea of what the winners of HDYSAPLM and ADWD had to be capable of, I suggest a viewing of Connie's and/or Lee's Winner's Story documentaries! After watching Lee's (at Christmas), I came away with the opinion that he was the only one of the Joseph contestants (with the possible exception of Daniel) who could have coped with the five week 'rehearsal' period and intense media interest!
Basically, what is needed IS another person of the calibre of Connie and Lee!
Incidentally, I loved Nancy Nancy and was sad that she didn't get through - but she's gone on to secure a plum WE role, so there's no need to get upset for her!
A final point - criticise the IDA judges all you want, but remember, we have only seen snippets of what the Nancys did in auditions/Nancy School. The judges will have spent hours watching and listening to the girls. They will have made decisions based on what they saw, using criteria such as 'Can this girl perform well under pressure?' and 'Is this girl consistant in her performances?' Therefore, I think there must have been a valid reason why Nancy didn't make it to the final 18!
The feature of the first two shows was that they both ended up with people who didn't fit the job description written at the beginning. Something new, tomboy Maria ended up as Julie Andrews revisted. Boyband Joseph ended up as maturer experienced Joseph who was among the least like a boyband singer.
Its arguable with Joseph that as you say the younger Joseph's needed more experience (and ability) but even then it was pretty odd how Lee's competition Daniel vanished leaving a clash of experience versus none.
With the Maria's too the competition didn't make the final. Sioban was too inexperienced and has gone on to gain the experience. Helena probably would have been a too unusual Maria (as she now says herself) - though she mostly has had great reviews since for what she has done. Helena though was never going to build up enough votes in the last two weeks to move from bottom to top of the vote.She was in that sense the perfect guard for Connie.
The opposition (and the people who matched the job description) went out in the SF when tomboy Maria and the other person who could act her were taken out. Abi surprisingly moved from being safe the week before with a much criticised performance of a bizarre song selection to last in the vote with a strong one and Aoife the other good actress went out because ALW saved Sioban. That was all pretty dubious given jammed voting lines late in the show but also runs contrary to everything that came after. The reasons given on the show for not taking either of those two look pretty absurd given that Aoife has performed the role very successfully and Abi managed to sing two leading lady roles afterwards to good reviews and without any of the problems doing 7 shows a weeks and touring on top. Connie did a good job but there's nothing to suggest she was the only Maria in the SF - indeed Aoife's success suggested that there was at least one who would have been different, more like the job spec and arguably more interesting.
Given those results I wouldn't be at all surprised if someone who wasn't on the short list to win but might win anyway was taken out before the show went on air.There's always some subjective reason you can use or you can claim to know something you can't possibly know from a couple of songs like whether the person is going to be consistent over 150-300 performances. Its pretty clear from the first two series that they go for the safest choice they can so it wouldn't be surprising if we get another winner who looks nothing like an Amy Winehouse or someone at all raw.
Nancy Nancy would never have hacked it being the lead role as Nancy. The judges spent many many hours with these girls and we have only seen but a few minutes of the footage.
It isnt just a good singing part there is much much more to it than that. As ALW says you need to be able to handle the critics and pressures that come with such a demanding role.
Nancy has some good come out of this so now lets move on and get down to picking the right girl of the remaining 12 to play this important part. One has to go next week !!!!!!!!!
I find it strange some on here are claiming she was not right for it when they did not even see her performance last week which was gut wrenchingly good
judges are fallible human beings, not demigods and
I'm a big fan of Never Forget (Nancy played the female lead in the last tour of it!) and we have a forum for it and Nancy came by to tell us the good news a couple of days ago !
So pleased for her!
xxx
I'm so glad you mentioned that!! I knew I recognised her but couldn't think where I'd seen her before. Now I know it was in Never Forget.
Nancy Nancy was great. She was open, honest and truthful without any of the blustering loudness of some of the others. She will be a wonderful Eponine and I hope she gets to read this thread herself, never mind her mum telling her about it. What she has is pretty rare, which is why it struck some of us so quickly.
Nancy Nancy was great. She was open, honest and truthful without any of the blustering loudness of some of the others. She will be a wonderful Eponine and I hope she gets to read this thread herself, never mind her mum telling her about it. What she has is pretty rare, which is why it struck some of us so quickly.
Nancy graduated from London School of Musical Theatre in 2004. Since graduation she has worked in theatre, film and television.
Nancy is currently appearing as Chloe in the Take That musical Never Forget.
Her theatre credits include: Nicola in Hitting Town, Little Becky in the UK premiere workshop of Urinetown, Cinderella in Cinderella, and most recently she played the principle role of Jenny in Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice's musical The Likes of Us at the Sydmonton Festival, and subsequently reprised the role in concert for BBC Radio 2 and on the Original Cast Recording.
Theatre and film credits include: Holly in Keepsake, and most recently the role of Lisa for the new series of ITV's Footballer's Wives.
And a bit of her performance as Chloe in the tour of the Never Forget Musical.
Good for her, if that's true.
I hope she agreed to withdraw from IDA as she was clearly good enough to go through.
No she didn't agree to withdraw and I can tell you for a fact she was mightily pissed off and extremely upset after cameras stopped rolling that she hadn't gone through and rightly so. Some of the people that were kept on, shouldn't have been because they were never going to make the final 12, so what was the point.??????
I will certainly pass on everyone's feelings about her to Nancy Nancy's mum. She is actually quite ok about the whole thing, especially as she now has the Les Mis job. I think we are more upset on her behalf!
I think as much as any of the girls would have loved the part, it is also true that you would much prefer to get a role in the West End, the traditional way and by auditioning under normal circumstances and not being paraded around on TV.
Somebody suited to Eponine is not right for Nancy in a million years. I missed the first show but what I saw of Nancy last night didn't impress me at all - not for that particular role anyway.
I will admit she wasn't featured enough for me to make a real decision but I didn't think she was a stand-out performer at all.
To be honest from the footage that was shown on Saturday Night, it was clear that her final performance was not stand out compared to some of the other girls, but that also just backs up my opinion on the whole Francesca situation, if Nancy Nancy could unexpectedly not deliver what they thought she would on that final performance at Nancy School, who is to say Francesca would have, and yet she still went through, supposedly on the strength or lack of in other peoples performances, unfair I feel.
I agree, she was far & away the best there. Others I loved also went out. It does look like a stitch-up to me, sadly.
Well from what I gathered they only showed those who's stories they had followed in the previous show, which does make sense, but what about some of the other fantastic, amazing girls that went out, that you never got to see, not thier BBC auditions or any of their Nancy School bits. By not showing them, it also edits our ability as an audience to criticise too much who they put through out of the 42 because we were only shown bits of those who got through and 2 who didnt, how is that giving us a fair view of everyone at NANCY school. We havent really heard most of the final 12 sing yet, to be honest, not a full solo anyway, some of them we know nothing about, unless you have gone on the website.
When she sang her song on the first show, I immediately had her as the winner. And all through the second show I kept my eye out for her (but couldn't really remember what she looked like) and when she went out and Graham Norton said something to her I realised who it was and was so shocked. Some of the women in the final 12 were so much more worse than her
When she sang her song on the first show, I immediately had her as the winner. And all through the second show I kept my eye out for her (but couldn't really remember what she looked like) and when she went out and Graham Norton said something to her I realised who it was and was so shocked. Some of the women in the final 12 were so much more worse than her
I really believe that the choice of winner has already been made as far as ALW and Co are concerned. It's just a bit of tweaking with regard to who they have put through to ensure they end up with the Nancy they want.
BUT Nancy in Oliver is not a big part. It will not require the skills of Joseph or Maria. Perhaps the panel also saw how brilliant Nancy Nancy was and thought her better suited to better parts which by the sounds of it she has in Epione in Les Mis. Or perhaps Graham couldn't get any mileage out of Nancy Nancy jokes
BUT Nancy in Oliver is not a big part. It will not require the skills of Joseph or Maria. Perhaps the panel also saw how brilliant Nancy Nancy was and thought her better suited to better parts which by the sounds of it she has in Epione in Les Mis. Or perhaps Graham couldn't get any mileage out of Nancy Nancy jokes
What Nancy is an essential part in Oliver, she provides the humanity the pathos. They need a real strong actress for the part.
It won't look good on ALW if another character from another West End production wins.
I may sound hypocritical as I think Lee is/was fantastic but we don't need another support/co-star(?) to win just to get the musical advertised via a tv show.
I really don't understand why it should go against her. If anything it goes in her favour (as far as I am concerned anyway). I want to know that the person I'm voting for will have the stamina and professionalism to do 8 shows a week (or 6 if they decide to go with an alternate).
Personally I want the 'best' Nancy to win. Not the 'best undiscovered talent'. Looking at the biogs on the BBC website so many of them have trained at drama schools and worked before. Far more than on Maria or Joseph.
BUT Nancy in Oliver is not a big part. It will not require the skills of Joseph or Maria. Perhaps the panel also saw how brilliant Nancy Nancy was and thought her better suited to better parts which by the sounds of it she has in Epione in Les Mis. Or perhaps Graham couldn't get any mileage out of Nancy Nancy jokes
Possibly no coincidence that Cameron Macintosh has a say in the casting of Les Miz!
I ask because the current american Eponine is heading over to London for three months soon to take on the role.
And
A friend of mine has told me that her old drama school friend has just signed contracts to play her as well (admitingly that is a bit of a stretch for others to believe but i say it cos i have been told it but again have no other fact other than her word) starting once the american leaved.
So what i am asing for is a start date for Nancy Nancy as Eponine because on this reckoning she wont actually be playing Eponine for at least 6 months.
I ask because the current american Eponine is heading over to London for three months soon to take on the role.
And
A friend of mine has told me that her old drama school friend has just signed contracts to play her as well (admitingly that is a bit of a stretch for others to believe but i say it cos i have been told it but again have no other fact other than her word) starting once the american leaved.
So what i am asing for is a start date for Nancy Nancy as Eponine because on this reckoning she wont actually be playing Eponine for at least 6 months.
Jon Roybns who is taking over as Marius starts in June - so the new Eponine would be likely to start then.
I've heard rumours that it's Nancy ... but I don't know for sure??
It won't look good on ALW if another character from another West End production wins.
I may sound hypocritical as I think Lee is/was fantastic but we don't need another support/co-star(?) to win just to get the musical advertised via a tv show.
But that's what these shows are about.
They already know who they want to win and that is one of the reasons for "the Lord's decision". Any serious competition to their chosen one is eliminated at the first possible opportunity and those who clearly are not in the same league are saved time and time again under the guise of having "potential yet to be demonstrated".
BUT Nancy in Oliver is not a big part. It will not require the skills of Joseph or Maria. Perhaps the panel also saw how brilliant Nancy Nancy was and thought her better suited to better parts which by the sounds of it she has in Epione in Les Mis. Or perhaps Graham couldn't get any mileage out of Nancy Nancy jokes
What? Have you watched 'Oliver'? Any version of it.
Comments
Why? Both of them were far and away the best performers in their respective competitions! Both have made the step to WE Lead status (with literally only a few weeks of rehearsal after winning their roles) and been a huge success in their roles!
I think a lot of people are getting swept up in sentimentality here. Whilst (in theory) it would be lovely for someone with little or no previous experience to win the role of Nancy, in reality, it would be a disaster! The winner needs to be someone who has previous experience of performing in front of audiences, knows their way around a stage and has the stamina to do six (or eight) shows a week!
To get an idea of what the winners of HDYSAPLM and ADWD had to be capable of, I suggest a viewing of Connie's and/or Lee's Winner's Story documentaries! After watching Lee's (at Christmas), I came away with the opinion that he was the only one of the Joseph contestants (with the possible exception of Daniel) who could have coped with the five week 'rehearsal' period and intense media interest!
Basically, what is needed IS another person of the calibre of Connie and Lee!
Incidentally, I loved Nancy Nancy and was sad that she didn't get through - but she's gone on to secure a plum WE role, so there's no need to get upset for her!
A final point - criticise the IDA judges all you want, but remember, we have only seen snippets of what the Nancys did in auditions/Nancy School. The judges will have spent hours watching and listening to the girls. They will have made decisions based on what they saw, using criteria such as 'Can this girl perform well under pressure?' and 'Is this girl consistant in her performances?' Therefore, I think there must have been a valid reason why Nancy didn't make it to the final 18!
It's just an exercise in Saturday night entertaiment with ALW and his team getting the performer they want at the end of the series. It has little or nothing to do with what the public want. They know how to orchestrate the show and performers to their own advantage.
This is why I find the whole charade a waste of time for me at least
The feature of the first two shows was that they both ended up with people who didn't fit the job description written at the beginning. Something new, tomboy Maria ended up as Julie Andrews revisted. Boyband Joseph ended up as maturer experienced Joseph who was among the least like a boyband singer.
Its arguable with Joseph that as you say the younger Joseph's needed more experience (and ability) but even then it was pretty odd how Lee's competition Daniel vanished leaving a clash of experience versus none.
With the Maria's too the competition didn't make the final. Sioban was too inexperienced and has gone on to gain the experience. Helena probably would have been a too unusual Maria (as she now says herself) - though she mostly has had great reviews since for what she has done. Helena though was never going to build up enough votes in the last two weeks to move from bottom to top of the vote.She was in that sense the perfect guard for Connie.
The opposition (and the people who matched the job description) went out in the SF when tomboy Maria and the other person who could act her were taken out. Abi surprisingly moved from being safe the week before with a much criticised performance of a bizarre song selection to last in the vote with a strong one and Aoife the other good actress went out because ALW saved Sioban. That was all pretty dubious given jammed voting lines late in the show but also runs contrary to everything that came after. The reasons given on the show for not taking either of those two look pretty absurd given that Aoife has performed the role very successfully and Abi managed to sing two leading lady roles afterwards to good reviews and without any of the problems doing 7 shows a weeks and touring on top. Connie did a good job but there's nothing to suggest she was the only Maria in the SF - indeed Aoife's success suggested that there was at least one who would have been different, more like the job spec and arguably more interesting.
Given those results I wouldn't be at all surprised if someone who wasn't on the short list to win but might win anyway was taken out before the show went on air.There's always some subjective reason you can use or you can claim to know something you can't possibly know from a couple of songs like whether the person is going to be consistent over 150-300 performances. Its pretty clear from the first two series that they go for the safest choice they can so it wouldn't be surprising if we get another winner who looks nothing like an Amy Winehouse or someone at all raw.
It isnt just a good singing part there is much much more to it than that. As ALW says you need to be able to handle the critics and pressures that come with such a demanding role.
Nancy has some good come out of this so now lets move on and get down to picking the right girl of the remaining 12 to play this important part. One has to go next week !!!!!!!!!
I find it strange some on here are claiming she was not right for it when they did not even see her performance last week which was gut wrenchingly good
judges are fallible human beings, not demigods and
they make mistakes too
clearly did here
I'm so glad you mentioned that!! I knew I recognised her but couldn't think where I'd seen her before. Now I know it was in Never Forget.
Go Nancy.
wat they said.:cool:
http://uk.castingcallpro.com/u/92506
http://www.lsmt.co.uk/content.php?section=graduates&graduate_id=18
And a bit of her performance as Chloe in the tour of the Never Forget Musical.
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=rDUp_7btOjI
I like her too, and think she would (could?) have been great, but I'm not overly distraught.
No she didn't agree to withdraw and I can tell you for a fact she was mightily pissed off and extremely upset after cameras stopped rolling that she hadn't gone through and rightly so. Some of the people that were kept on, shouldn't have been because they were never going to make the final 12, so what was the point.??????
I think as much as any of the girls would have loved the part, it is also true that you would much prefer to get a role in the West End, the traditional way and by auditioning under normal circumstances and not being paraded around on TV.
To be honest from the footage that was shown on Saturday Night, it was clear that her final performance was not stand out compared to some of the other girls, but that also just backs up my opinion on the whole Francesca situation, if Nancy Nancy could unexpectedly not deliver what they thought she would on that final performance at Nancy School, who is to say Francesca would have, and yet she still went through, supposedly on the strength or lack of in other peoples performances, unfair I feel.
Well from what I gathered they only showed those who's stories they had followed in the previous show, which does make sense, but what about some of the other fantastic, amazing girls that went out, that you never got to see, not thier BBC auditions or any of their Nancy School bits. By not showing them, it also edits our ability as an audience to criticise too much who they put through out of the 42 because we were only shown bits of those who got through and 2 who didnt, how is that giving us a fair view of everyone at NANCY school. We havent really heard most of the final 12 sing yet, to be honest, not a full solo anyway, some of them we know nothing about, unless you have gone on the website.
I really believe that the choice of winner has already been made as far as ALW and Co are concerned. It's just a bit of tweaking with regard to who they have put through to ensure they end up with the Nancy they want.
I really don't understand why it should go against her. If anything it goes in her favour (as far as I am concerned anyway). I want to know that the person I'm voting for will have the stamina and professionalism to do 8 shows a week (or 6 if they decide to go with an alternate).
Personally I want the 'best' Nancy to win. Not the 'best undiscovered talent'. Looking at the biogs on the BBC website so many of them have trained at drama schools and worked before. Far more than on Maria or Joseph.
Possibly no coincidence that Cameron Macintosh has a say in the casting of Les Miz!
When exactly is this suposed to be happening?
I ask because the current american Eponine is heading over to London for three months soon to take on the role.
And
A friend of mine has told me that her old drama school friend has just signed contracts to play her as well (admitingly that is a bit of a stretch for others to believe but i say it cos i have been told it but again have no other fact other than her word) starting once the american leaved.
So what i am asing for is a start date for Nancy Nancy as Eponine because on this reckoning she wont actually be playing Eponine for at least 6 months.
Jon Roybns who is taking over as Marius starts in June - so the new Eponine would be likely to start then.
I've heard rumours that it's Nancy ... but I don't know for sure??
But that's what these shows are about.
They already know who they want to win and that is one of the reasons for "the Lord's decision". Any serious competition to their chosen one is eliminated at the first possible opportunity and those who clearly are not in the same league are saved time and time again under the guise of having "potential yet to be demonstrated".
What? Have you watched 'Oliver'? Any version of it.