Lucie in San Francisco August

[Neil]

.....you left out "Private Lives"....

 

Note Lucie's credits.  They do not mention her biggest Broadway show "They're Playing Our Song" nor in TV: her Top 10 co-starring role.

 

http://www.richmondermet.org/reaf10.1/Help20.htm

[Neil]

It seems Lucie has bowed out of this show, which happens this coming Sunday. I don't know if she had signed on for "Pippin" when she agreed to do this, but when the producers called her subsequently she probably sang into the phone 'I've got JUST "NO TIME AT ALL"'.

 

Even though by chronological age, she's appropriate, Lucie seems way too young to do the grandmother role in Pippin. Didn't she do an old lady coming into the Unique office to fool Harry about something? I wonder if she'll adopt that character. Maybe she'll dig into Lucy's trunk for her Florabele make up. When a clip of "Stone Pillow" was shown on some talk show, they came back to Lucy who said "You didn't think I did it without make up, did you?". Well, yes I thought she did.

 

I stumbled across this youtube clip which I hadn't seen before. If anyone ever wants to do a "period piece" circa 1979, copy Lucie's look here. It captures 1979 more than anything. I'm not familiar with TPOS, but there's no doubt that the title tune is catchy. What a break for Lucie being cast in this role.

According to the youtube blurb, this is the only footage that exists from the 1979 Tony Awards show.

 

[Luvsbway]

Apparently for this run of Pippin this role is being cast with women in their 60s. Andrea Martin who originated this can clearly play older but check her out in the opening number from Pippin done on the Tony Awards in 2013 and you can see she is not done up to look like a grandma. FYI she also won a Tony for it.

[HarryCarter]

I think the Luckinbills have bowed out of the show because Larry's brother passed away yesterday.

 

The character is in Pippin is 66. Andrea Martin was 66 when she started playing the role last year. Priscilla Lopez is now doing it on Broadway and is also 66. Annie Potts did the role before Lopez and she's only 61 - younger than Lucie. I figured Lucie would be completely unbelievable on stage as a 66 year old grandmother to an adult, but Lucie has said something that made sense: Pippin is a show within a show. All of the characters are players playing there's characters in Pippin's life. So Lucie is portraying someone is who is playing Pippin's grandmother. There are several references in the show where it is said the actress playing Catherine, Pippin's love interest, is too old for the part.

 

With the physicality required for this production, I don't think they want to hire actresses who are the Irene Ryan type.

[Neil]

Apparently for this run of Pippin this role is being cast with women in their 60s. Andrea Martin who originated this can clearly play older but check her out in the opening number from Pippin done on the Tony Awards in 2013 and you can see she is not done up to look like a grandma. FYI she also won a Tony for it.

I've written of this elsewhere, but what a wonderful career capper for Irene Ryan, Tony nominated (but no win). She had no family and left all her considerable Beverly Hillbillies earnings to a foundation for theater student scholarships. Don't know if it's still in existence.

The story goes that after her rousing "No Time at All", she stood just offstage in the wings to listen to the applause (which from the recording of the show I have went on forever. Probably the longest I've ever heard). The stage manager told her she couldn't stand there because she'd be in the way of the preparation for the next scene. But "Granny" stood her ground. "I don't have to do this. I'm 3000 miles away from my comfortable home and retirement and I'm going to listen to every bit of it."