I have such a big crush on Susan Egan, and I’ve never even seen her in person. I always liked her in the OBC recording of Beauty and the Beast, but I think I was first fully awaken to her charms when I saw her doing promotion for the Disney film Hercules. Her interviews with Leonard Maltin were so funny, and she was perfect in the role of Meg. Not only was she sassy and funny, but she got to sing that wonderful Alan Menken/David Zippel song “I Won’t Say (I’m in Love).”
The Triumph of Love CD was one of the first Broadway CDs I bought without seeing the show, and it was because I saw that Susan Egan was on it in a spot on CNN. I love that CD. Yes, it had an embarrassment of rich performances, but I love imagining Susan Egan’s performance as she attempts to come up with quick lies and stories to explain her ever-changing existence.
People often mention her unique voice, and I think that is one of the great appeals to her talent. She’s not the traditional soprano, which gives her not only depth but character. It sets her apart in a positive way. In hearing her voice, you can already see her vivid interpretation of characters like Miss Adelaide, Babe Williams, or Charity Hope Valentine.
I consider it a great travesty that I missed her performance in Thoroughly Modern Millie, though I did make up for it by seeing 13 Going on 30. Yes, I saw that dumb movie solely for her, even though I knew she didn’t have a speaking role. I always thought Susan Egan would make a great lead for a romantic comedy, so that was the closest I’ve gotten to that vision.
I love her album So Far, which is one of those great theatre albums where the star sings each song as if they were cast in the show. If you are a Beauty and the Beast fan, you must have it because it has her rendition of “A Change in Me,” even though she never actually sang the song on stage. After you’ve gotten the CD for that song, you can enjoy many other great performances on it. She has a second album which includes a song cut from Hercules, which I can’t wait to get the next time I’m in New York.
Website: http://www.susanegan.net/
Broadway Mouth
July 13, 2007
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment