Abigail Breslin and the Celebrity Casting Debacle

The casting of Abigail Breslin as Helen Keller in the upcoming Broadway production of The Miracle Worker has ruffled feathers far beyond the expected anti-celeb theater gossips. An advocacy group called Alliance for Inclusion in the Arts has strongly opposed the casting choice, on the grounds of "human and artistic issues" that trump the economic realities of needing a star to succeed on Broadway. Meanwhile, lead producer David Richenthal says it would be "financially irresponsible to approach a major revival without making a serious effort to get a star." His comment is sadly hard to argue with, with plays like A Steady Rain, Hamlet, Equus, and God of Carnage making major bank while Brighton Beach Memoirs, Oleanna, Superior Donuts and Reasons to be Pretty don't sell. If you take on Broadway without an A-list star, are you embracing economic failure with arms open wide for the sake of artistic integrity? Or, is it a game of risk, and better to just cast a star and hope that their gifts translate to the stage (a la Daniel Radcliffe), with the added insurance that even if they suck, tickets will still sell based on name alone. Then you have productions like the Roundabout's Bye Bye Birdie, with stars who are not starry enough to guarantee sales, who also happen to flatline onstage (to my previously-noted delight). The alternative seems to be hiring theater stalwarts, or just-pretty-famous actors who you know will kick ass (like Laurie Metcalf), and hoping they turn in a performance so staggeringly astonishing that it creates the kind of buzz that makes the out-of-towners actually take note. And August Osage County ain't an easy thing to achieve, folks.

To get back to the point of the "human and artistic issues", it would certainly be exciting to see a young hearing-impaired/visually-impaired actress take on Keller. It would be an incredible challenge, and if they pulled it off, it might actually make me interested in seeing the freakin Miracle Worker. But maybe such a challenge is too risky for Broadway these days.

The casting of A Behanding in Spokane, Martin McDonough's next Broadway venture, seems to be a fun alternative to the usual ickiness of stunt casting. Having read it, I have very little doubt that Chris Rock will be absolutely terrific, and I would watch Sam Rockwell and Zoe Kazan every day if I could. It's a ridiculous, scary and fun play, and absolute vintage McDonough. Get excited.

Meet Eugene Jerome

Here's an utterly adorable video of Noah Robbins, who will star in Brighton Beach Memoirs on Broadway this fall. How cute is he?!?

oh my

Chace Crawford will star in the Footloose remake.

Psst...

I hear that Julia Stiles is doing a very hush-hush screenplay reading of Sylvia Plath's THE BELL JAR today. Among the participants are Lauren Ambrose and Christine Lahti! Christine Lahti! Now that's good casting.

Brighton Beach possibly not as somnolent as expected

Rumor has it that Laurie Metcalf will be seen on Broadway in the upcoming revivals of Brighton Beach Memoirs and Broadway Bound. Not only does this casting tidbit make perfect sense, it actually makes me a bit excited to see yet another production of Brighton Beach, a play that is typically the NyQuil of theater.

there's good casting, and then there's....

Sometimes you read a script, and it's really good. So good, in fact, that you know someone will find a way to screw it up, usually by casting a Pussycat Doll or some such nonsense. Fortunately, this is not the case with what insiders have dubbed the best pilot this season, HBO's The Wonderful Maladys. It was announced today that Nate Corddry and Molly Parker will join Sarah Michelle Gellar as the three fucked-up-but-high-functioning siblings who lost their parents at a young age. Good stuff all around, looking forward to this one.

On the other hand, sometimes the greatest of projects gets mismanaged into the strangest of casting choices. For example, why is Phylicia Rashad playing August: Osage County's racist matriarch? Colorblind casting, okay, but really? really?

I gotta hand it to the 24 casting directors - in addition to Cherry Jones' phenomenal, ferocious turn as President Allison Taylor, we get to enjoy Janeane Garofalo and Rhys Coiro (aka Entourage's nutty director Billy Walsh) nerding out as potentially-crooked FBI agents. This week's episode also featured a heart-wrenching guest star performance from Tom Irwin of My So-Called Life. This season might not be a return to the nerve-jangling storylines of the 24's early years, but spotty writing aside, they sure do get the casting just right.

Obama: the Casting Director's Pick

I'm no political blogger, but I think Obama is going to win the presidency. Know why? Because it's good casting.

Okay, that sounds naiive. But think about it - if you were auditioning for the role of the American President, who would be the most compelling in the role? This exercise isn't about policy, politics, experience, or who is "best" for the job. But sheerly in terms of who you would cast in the role of Great American President, admit it - it's Obama. Edwards is too pretty, too soft, not grounded and solid enough. Clinton isn't quite right - she's powerful, but doesn't inspire the right kind of confidence. You might want to love her, but it's not easy or natural. The republicans all look like washed up jerks, not inspiring leaders. If the presidency was a casting project, Obama would get the first offer.

The thing is, policy, issues, experience, of course they matter. But I think that Americans look at politics through the prism of the entertainment industry, and American Idol is where we live now. And as optimistic as I'd like to be about the American public, I think the judgement of who to vote for is a lot more about that first snap judgement (the casting decision) than we'd like to believe. Do I trust this person? Do they seem ready to lead? I'm betting these questions have waaay more weight in the rest of the country than we oh-so-informed New Yorkers want to believe.

Not to mention, the guy's got Oprah on his side, and that really never fails.

Recent Casting Developments

Jeanne Tripplehorn is going to play Jackie O in the upcoming Grey Gardens film. I'm still nowhere near over the casting of Drew Barrymore as Little Edie, but I freakin love Jeanne Tripplehorn, and look forward to seeing her in this. Beyond the fact that she so strikingly resembles Jackie O, my favorite part of her performances in Big Love is how she manages to remain composed and poised even when she's totally losing it, which seems like it would translate well to playing a first lady. Hey, remember when she was in The Firm opposite Tom Cruise, and she almost went all the way with sleazy Gene Hackman? Good times.

Winona Ryder is playing Spock's mom in the Star Trek movies that they're apparently still making. [Insert joke about Ryder's career here.] Heroes star Zachary Quinto will play Spock. Wait, don't those two only look about 5-7 years different in age?

And Mayor Bloomberg recently shot a cameo in the Sex and the City movie. Huh. Remember when Ed Koch was in the SATC fashion show episode? More good times.

More Shrek Casting Revelations

Playbill "has learned" (I love it when they get all insidery) that comic Stephen Kramer Glickman is playing Shrek in the today's workshop, with Robert L. Daye Jr. as Donkey, Celia Keenan-Bolger as Princess Fiona, and Christopher Sieber as Lord Farquaad. Again, good casting, especially Celia and The Seiber.