@@gracekeddy Sadly, it's not likely to happen. Too much time has passed. I finally saw Mr. Garber onstage around 2005-ish in the Encores! production of 'Follies' as Ben Stone. Maybe he was having an off-night, but all the higher notes were slightly flat. Hurts to say that, I've always been a big fan. Still enjoyed it and am grateful to have seen him, but the singing was just not what it used to be.
What I love about this show is how it’s able to, through music, make us feel sympathy for someone otherwise no one could feel sympathy for. Maybe it’s just me, but through his portrayal in Assassins, I find it hard not to like Booth just a little. I think it does this without giving us an inauthentic portrayal of who he was: we still hear the dirtiness of his character when his racism comes out; but his points aren’t muddled and I get the sense that he had a very genuine passion and belief in his cause.
It's not just you who finds themselves empathizing with the assassins. When they sing that everyone has the right to their dreams, they sound so sincere and innocent it makes me forget how they plan on attaining them.
Incredible!! Outstanding, both of them. The best version bar none. Garber's gorgeous tonal quality just blows everything away. Bravo!! Great digital sound to boot.
Every time I hear Victor’s voice, I INSTANTLY MELT!!! Even when he’s not singing and just speaking, I melt! Victor was my very first celebrity crush when I watched Godspell! He still is and I would love to meet him one day when the pandemic is over, and I can thank him and tell him how much his talent means to me as a woman with a developmental disability!
While I usually prefer Michael Cerveris in this role vocal-wise (purely as a matter of personal preference - they're both brilliant), when it comes to acting Victor Garber really knows how to twist an audience's sympathy in exactly the way Sondheim intended for this piece. He makes you feel for the character and then BAM, smacks you in the face with the reality of who this guy was, spitting out slurs with such malice that it's genuinely uncomfortable to listen to. I don't think any other Booth can play that switch so perfectly and jarringly.
When I played Booth, I emulated Garber's performance COMPLETELY. I loved his portrayal. I've listened to the OOBCR MILLIONS of times (well, that's how it feels) -- and it's DEFINITELY the best cast out of all the Assassins productions for sure.
@@SarahB1863 I just found out that he is a singer too. I searched for "Diamonds Are Forever", and quite coincidence, I found Mr. Andrew as well. I'm amazed. Really!
I feel like he doesn't hit it enough. That the Balladeer has the dual role of also being a fellow assassin and still has to go through the entire show being damn everybody else, I feel like NPH is able to portray that seriously WTF while also getting to express humanity against the actor he's playing against in the scene. Cassidy is almost laughable. He's like Damn you, Booth like he's saying you silly goose. Doesn't hit that line hard enough.
Went to a Community Theatre production a few years back. It was well done and the actors were talented, except for Booth who COULD NOT SING. Sorry, you're going to do Assassins with a John Wilkes Booth who is tone deaf??!?!?! Um...no!
Sure did. I have mixed feelings around it being used it the musical. On one hand, it’s a slur and it’s jarring. On the other hand, it’s a slur and it’s jarring. You start to feel the tiniest bit of compassion for him and then he’s all “did you all forget i am a racist asshole? SURPRISE!”
Funnily enough this is the one score of Sondheims that he himself considered perfect. I really recommend listening to the rest of the soundtrack as well as watching the videos about the composition of this show. Genuinely amazing
He did. And the shocking language is the point. Booth espoused all those high-flown, noble-sounding "Lost Cause" ideals - but when you got down to it, the true motivation behind his motivation was the same shabby, despicable cause as the whole Confederacy: Slavery. And the God-Given Right of a well-born few to wear the white suit, sit on the porch between the big white pillars, sip the mint julep, and listen to the whips cracking in the distance.
