theTHEATREaddict here with my thoughts on GREASE: YOU’RE THE ONE THAT I WANT
We finally got to see some real talent and a little more focus on the would-be finalists. Reed Prescott who got eliminated in the last round looked so familiar to me. It then occurred to me he starred in Oedipus for Kids at NYMF 2006 which he was very good in. So scout NYMF for future contestants.
I think every one of those 12 finalists should be insanely talented. It should be a challenge to choose which of the 12 should be Danny & Sandy. This was a very controlled audition process and I feel no personal struggle or strong attachment to most of them.
My choice for Sandy is Denise Van Outen. I forgot she is the consoler er..co-host. My only choice out of the 6 women is Kate Rockwell. She is innocently sexy and has the most powerful and captivating voice. She was the only woman on camera to have the confidence to make a connection.
As for the guys, there is no doubt Austin Miller is the most polished but he too pretty to play Danny. Matt Nolan unfortunately got eliminated which is too bad because it would have been exciting to see if this amateur could have been whipped in to shape. I guess they didn’t want to take that risk as America may have voted for him. So out of this lot it leaves former Altar Boy, Jason Celaya with the edge. It amazed me that none of the finalists could be credited as actors except for Austin who was “Former Days of Our Lives Actor”.
Next week we are into the live shows and at the end of last night’s show we heard from the “voice” that there may not be just 12 finalists. I initially assumed that a lot of trained performers did not go near this reality show. I also assumed that professionals were turned off being subjected to a very public audition process, however, my hunch is the producers aren’t as stupid as we think and the Broadway “ringers” are about to be thrown into the mix. There has to be a reason for this level of talent and the lack of credit to professional performers in the final group. I think the live shows will be billed as Broadway vs. the average Joes & Janes. Stay tuned. 