A Plea to the Casting Directors

When I was little, my dream was to be in musicals. To relive the same story, night after night, without anything changing, singing songs about love, feelings and so much emotion, just sounded like my idea of perfection. Bursting into song at every possible opportunity, having overly-flexible friends who know every step to the random dance routine that would commence in the middle of the street. 

To you, that might sound a little hellish, but to me, it's exactly what I've always wanted. Jazz hands, harmonies... It's just a wonderful world to be part of! 

Obviously though, there isn't room on the West End for everyone. If there was, there would be more theatres than people in London. For every Star on the West End and Broadway, there are thousands of people watching, listening, admiring and hoping they'll get there too. 

But, this isn't another one of my annoying 'Dog Eat Dog' posts. (Thank goodness) 

This is a plea to the industry. 

You notice that they always cast big stars or well known names into the main parts in musicals all the time. You'll see 'so and so is playing The Phantom this season' and think... Well, what about the thousands of young men who are perfectly capable of playing that part who are only in the ensemble, or haven't even made it that far? 

Surely it's not fair to give the part to someone who will perform a mediocre performance just because their name will bring in a huge crowd. They did it with the original performance of 'Phantom', they cast Michael Crawford as the original Phantom because he was so big at the time as part of a comedy series, so they knew people would want to see him singing in a serious role...  But he wasn't the greatest. Don't get me wrong, he was wonderful, but when you look at other phantoms, such as Colm Wilkinson (Who took on the role when it moved to Canada) and the MARVELLOUS Ramin Karimloo, Crawford doesn't look quite as good anymore. Obviously, they couldn't have cast Ramin in the original performances of 'Phantom', but when you think of the fact that he is one of the only people to have played most of the strongest male characters in the West End, including  the Phantom and Raoul in The Phantom of the Opera; and Jean Valjean, Enjolras and Marius in Les Misérables, it seemed fitting that they cast him as the Phantom in the original performances of 'Love Never Dies'. He wasn't the biggest name they could have chosen, instead they went with talent and, as a result, created a star. 

The way it should be on the West End.  

If you are worried about not being able to make it on the West End stage, follow Ramin's example. Start small, work up some experience, make a name for yourself and work your way to the top. Don't bring yourself down because you didn't get the part. It's not always because you're not talented enough, just keep working and get yourself noticed. You'll get there eventually.