Faves of the Week!

Hi, since I found out about Sierra Boggess joining the Les Mis London cast (which I'm so excited about!!) I'm revealing my top 5 best & worst Christines in Phantom (which I'm a hardcore fan of!)
Top 5 Best Christines

1) Las Vegas Christine, 25th Anniversary Christine & original Love Never Dies Christine Sierra Boggess. She just blows me away & fits the whole package for the character:a beautiful voice which comes with a pretty face & has amazing acting skills. I just thought she was perfect at the concert at the Royal Albert Hall which I went to & she was definietly a highlight for me, especially her phenomenal redition of Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again which left me in tears, & I can't wait to see her in Les Mis as Fantine & I really, really, REALLY want to meet her!!!  I also got an autograph from her when she was in LND which I mailed & she gave me not just the picture, but 2 other signed photos which just shows how kind she is to her fans. I'll be showing all the autographs I've collected in my gallery page which will be coming very soon.

2) Phantom veteran & current Glinda in Wicked in London, Gina Beck. She just has a beautiful voice with an amazing quality to it & she just brings so much emotion into the character which I haven't seen in any other actresses who have played her. Also, I must say, she's one of the most prettiest Christines I've seen in comparison to some others (i.e. Ana Marina).

3) Current Christine in the UK Tour & Cosette in Les Mis, Katie Hall. I just think she has a sweetness which is  required for the role of a young singer like Christine, being only 17 when she got the part when she was an alternate in London previously. It's just shown how much she's matured to make Christine a beautiful strong woman, just like her through playing her. I also think her voice for some bizarre reason, has an angel-like quality within it, which makes Christine sound youthful, innocent & sweet, especially during Angel of Music & Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again.

4) Current Christine & Portuguese actress Sofia Escobar. Her voice is a pretty one, with her Portuguese accent sort of enhancing Christine & showing she's foreign (despite the fact she's supposed to be Swedish, not Portuguese) Vocally, she is definately a better Christine than some others & her pretty looks also show her sweetness within her character.

5)Original London alternate Christine & original Ellen in Miss Saigon, Claire Moore. Her voice had a beautifully angel-like quality which made her be worth so much more than an alternate & unlike the original principal, Sarah Brightman, she could actually sing & her acting was so amazing & personally, I think the casting should have been the other way around, since she was actually a classically trained singer & bless her when she had to quickly fill in for Christine in the previews & wear Sarah Brightman's tiny costumes





Top 5 Worst Christines (with 1 being the person I least hate & 5 being who I most hate)

1) Christine in the 2004 film, Emmy Rossum. Her voice just doesn't suit the role (she's a mezzo-soprano & Christine's a soprano) & she doesn't have power in the voice that theatrical Christines have. With all due respect, she was only 16 which is why she's the Christine I least hate & her performance wasn't that bad in that I wanted to strangle myself while wacthing the her, it was just the style of the film & low quality singing which affected her in it.

2) Sandra Joseph, who played Christine for 10 years on Broadway & US tour. Her voice just wants me to hang myself & it doesn't suit Christine at all, in fact I think she sounded like a cat screeching when it got trapped in a cat door during the cadenza of  Think Of Me & her performance I watched on YouTube didn't do any justice with her singing & acting skills.

3) Christine alternate Marni Raab. She just rushes through the songs & therefore lacks emotion while she sings, it's almost as if she wanted to get the performance over & done with & she's not exactly the prettiest or most youthful Christine I've seen.

4) Australian Christine Ana Marina. To me, she's just awful because: she looks too old to be Christine, she's one of the shortest Christines I've ever seen (either that or the Phantoms in Australia are really tall!). Also, her voice just sounds way too shrilly & mature for an innocent & youthful role & to be honest, I don't like her portrayal at all.

5) Original London & Broadway Christine & 'opera' singer Sarah Brightman. I hate her for a number of reasons: she only got the part because she was married to the composer of the show Andrew Lloyd Webber, her portrayal was annoying & her voice wasn't operatic & sounded horrible & her stare just scared the hell out of me. To me, she's the antithesis of what Christine should be & she didn't have any power at all & her appearance at the 25th anniversary concert didn't benefit anything either, considering she was clearly lip-synching (trust me, I was there, with my seat close to the stage & she was not singing at all). Also, I couldn't believe she ended up playing Christine on Broadway, considering she wasn't even famous in America  also, randomly, her wig just looked like a horrible perm & the curls in the wig at the moment are much better than that rat/dog of a wig.


Hi, this week I've decided to show my top 5 best & worst Eponines in Les Miserables in preparation for the film version coming out at Christmas (which I'll be seeing!)

My Top 5 Best Eponines!

1) The latest Eponine in the film world of Les Miz, Samantha Barks! The 'I'd Do Anything!' runner-up  fits the whole package, with her amazing singing & acting skills creating the sympathetic Eponine we all know & love! I saw her in the London production a year ago & watched her in the 25th Anniversary Concert on DVD & I thought she was just fantastique! I also met her twice while she was in the show & she's just lovely!

2) The Filipino Broadway star & Disney Princess Lea Salonga! Her exquisite voice is just to die for, as I watched her in the 10th Anniversary Concert of Les Miz on DVD, as well as watching her in Miss Saigon as Kim on YouTube & the Les Miz 25th Anniversary Concert as Fantine, also proving to us she's not just an amazing Eponine, but an equally as amazing Fantine! Also, as a child watching her be the singing voices of my 2 favorite Disney Princesses, Jasmine & Mulan, this just made me bloody love her even more, as I grew up listening to her sing without even realising!

3) Glee & Broadway star Lea Michele AKA Rachel Berry/Wendla! The Spring Awakening star performed in the Hollywood Bowl production as Eponine which I watched on Youtube & she blew me away with her pretty voice, especially when she sang 'On My Own' which I also loved when she sang it in the Pilot episode of Glee as Rachel's audition!

4) Current  voice actress for Barbie & final Broadway Eponine before the revival Diana Kaarina! Her version of 'On My Own' which I watched on Youtube was amazing, especially when she hit the C note for an awfully long time! Also, when she sang 'A Little Fall of Rain' I was just in tears when she kissed Marius!

5)The current Eponine in London, whose to leave so soon, Alexia Khadime! Previously Elphaba in the London production of Wicked & Nala in The Lion King, her vocals are to die for, which definitely make up for her acting & is by far one of the best Eponines I've heard vocally.






My Top 5 Worst Eponines (with 1 being the one I hate the least & 5 being who I hate the most!)

1) Sabrina Aloueche. She just doesn't have a powerful enough voice for Eponine, especially during 'On My Own.'

2) I'd Do Anything contestant, leading lady in that musical with Take That songs which I don't remember the name of cos it didn't go so well & extra in the upcoming film adaptation of Les Miz Nancy Sullivan. While she has a pretty voice & a pretty face, I just think it sounded too sweet & naive to play the sympathetic & impoverished Eponine.

3) Rosalind James from the UK tour of the 25th Anniversary production of Les Miz. While she certainly can sing, I just think her voice sounds too pop for a classic production like Les Miz, even making 'On My Own' sound like a pop song. I also thought she was a bit too angry while singing, which doesn't really help with Eponine supposed to be sympathetic & upset over the loss of Marius.

4) Celia Keenan-Bolger AKA Johanna from Sondheim musical Sweeney Todd mainly cos her voice just isn't right for Eponine & I don't like her voice in general & every time I hear her sing 'On My Own' I just feel like shooting myself. Also, I don't think she looks right for the part. Sorry Celia, I think you should just stick to being Johanna!

5) The original London & Broadway Eponine, 'the most fabulous whore' in the upcoming film version of Les Miz & mother to singer Eliza Doolittle, Frances Rufelle. Her voice & looks don't suit Eponine at all & I'm not exactly a huge fan of her acting skills either. Also, I just think her voice is awful & nowhere near as powerful to sing 'On My Own' like other actresses such as Lea Salonga or Samantha Barks.