The documentary will premiere at the Seattle International Film Festival in July
The documentary tells the stories of Merwin Foard, standby for star Nathan Lane in the now-closed “The Addams Family”; Ben Crawford, standby and eventual replacement for Brian d’Arcy James as the green ogre in “Shrek The Musical”; and Aléna Watters, who briefly was standby for the role of Anita in the recent revival of “West Side Story” and was a swing for Bette Midler’s backup singers in her Las Vegas show.
The film depicts their highs and lows as they win and lose jobs as well as their interactions with family, friends and “significant others.”
There also are interviews with performers such as David Hyde Pierce, Bebe Neuwirth, Cheyenne Jackson and Jonathan Groff, who share their memories of working as standbys or understudys.
Foard, who also was a standby in “Sweeney Todd” and “Kiss Me Kate” and has performed in 10 other Broadway shows, said standbys must do 99% of their preparation on their own.
The film shows him rehearsing lines with his young daughter and follows him on a Sunday when he learns that he would be playing the lead role in “The Addams Family” on Broadway that afternoon. “The Standbys” includes interviews with audience members outside the theater before and after that performance.
During the panel discussion, Foard described a nine-hour crash course that he received from stage managers and others before he replaced Lane, sick with bronchitis, for three performances during previews of the pre-Broadway run in Chicago. Before that, he had watched Lane perform the role, which required 10 songs as well as tango dancing and fencing, but had not participated in any rehearsals.
Watters said she learned the role of Anita in one week and said she was grateful to get a Broadway credit though she was a standby for only 2½ weeks. The performer, who has been in “Sister Act” on Broadway for the past year, said she decided not to accept standby or understudy jobs after Midler’s show.
Crawford, who has been performing in regional theaters since “Shrek” closed in January 2010, recalled forgetting all his lines one time during that Disney musical. He has never done that again, he added.
Watters called it an honor “to be able to share the behind-the-scenes story” of Broadway in the documentary. She hopes it may change theatergoers’ attitudes when they see a small white piece of paper in their program announcing a standby will be going on for a star at that performance.
I’ve replaced two old sets in the gallery with HQ versions – a photoshoot Jonathan did back in 2006 with his Spring Awakening co-stars John Gallagher Jr and Lea Michele, and stills of Jonathan on The Seven last year.
Playwrights Horizons has announced details for its online auction, to be held in conjunction with its annual spring gala, entitled The Highest Standard, at 583 Park Avenue on Monday, June 11 beginning at 6:45pm. As previously reported, the event will honor James Lapine, Bruce Norris, Stephen Sondheim, Alfred Uhry, Wendy Wasserstein and Doug Wright.
Bids will start being accepted beginning Sunday, April 29 at 10am online.
For a full list of auction items including some one-of-a-kind experiences and various stage and screen memorabilia, and to make a bid, visit www.biddingforgood.com/playwrightshorizons.
Jonathan Groff, the star of Broadway’s “Spring Awakening” and more recently a recurring cast member on Fox’s “Glee,” will appear opposite Alfred Molina in the L.A. premiere of John Logan’s two-person play “Red” at the Mark Taper Forum beginning in August.
Groff will play the role of Ken, a young assistant to modernist painter Mark Rothko. The role of Ken was originated in Britain and on Broadway by Eddie Redmayne, who won a Tony Award. Molina played Rothko in the previous productions.
“Red,” which is set to open at the Taper on Aug. 12, will be staged by Michael Grandage, who originally directed the play for the Donmar Warehouse. The drama deals with the sometimes contentious relationship between Rothko and his assistant as they work on a commission for the Four Seasons.
Logan won a best-play Tony for “Red” when it debuted in New York in 2010. The stage and screenwriter received an Oscar nomination this year for his screenplay for “Hugo,” adapted from the Brian Selznick book. His other recent screenplays include “Rango” and “Coriolanus.”
Groff appeared in the Public Theater’s revival of the musical “Hair” in Central Park in 2008. He also starred in a 2010 London revival of Ira Levin’s play “Deathtrap.”
The 27-year-old actor has been working in film and television recently, with appearances on the CBS series “The Good Wife” and the movie “Taking Woodstock.”
“Red” is scheduled to begin previews Aug. 1 and run through Sept. 9.
Stage and screen star David Hyde Pierce will receive the Lifetime Leadership Award at the Alzheimer’s Association, New York City Chapter gala, Forget-Me-Not, to be held at The Pierre on Monday, June 4.
Stage and screen Victor Garber will emcee the event, which will feature a performance by Tony Award nominee Jonathan Groff. Matthew Broderick is expected to be one of the celebrity attendees.
Pierce is being honored for his work as a tireless advocate in the Alzheimer’s community and with the New York City Chapter. He serves on the Board of the National Alzheimer’s Association and as a national spokesperson. His father and grandfather died from the disease.
The actor won a Tony Award for Curtains and has also appeared on Broadway in Monty Python’s Spamalot, La Bete and Accent on Youth. He is best known for his Emmy Award-winning work as Niles Crane on TV’s Frasier.
The highly anticipated Spring Awakening movie, to be directed by McG (Charlie’s Angels), “is looking good,” Sater says. “We are hoping to go into pre-production at the start of 2013 and shoot in the spring of 2013.” Sater is mum about casting, declining to confirm reports that Glee’s Lea Michele will again play Wendla. “Nothing is decided,” he says, noting of the 2006 original stage cast, “It’s tricky, because we’ve all grown up and moved on. But it’s something we all talk about—I’m very close with that cast, as you would imagine. We went through our ‘spring awakening’ together, and it changed all of our lives. I was just hanging out with Jonathan Groff [Melchior] and Lauren Pritchard [Ilse]; Lea couldn’t join us because she had to shoot late.”
Jonathan Groff is a multi-talented star of the stage and screen. Best knowing for his Tony-nominated portrayal of Melchior Gabor in the award winning Spring Awakening, he has also appeared on Glee, One Life to Live and in the movie Taking Woodstock. Next up is Boss.
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Glee (Season Three, 2012) Role: Jesse St James Status: Filming Episodes: Unknown Official Site / IMDb / Photos
Glee (Season Three, 2012)
