This is a weekly feature on BroadwayLiving.com.
It’s just like the game “Six Degrees of
Kevin Bacon”. You know how it goes…someone
throws out an actor’s name and you have to try
to connect them to Kevin Bacon in six steps or less.
I thought it might be fun to do the same thing with
the theater’s luminaries. I will be trying to
connect them to the longest running show in Broadway
history, The Phantom of the Opera and its very first “Phantom”,
Michael Crawford.
Happy Birthday to Jonathan Pryce, who is 60 years young
today. Jonathan studied acting at the Royal Academy
of Dramatic Art in London. In the 1970’s he established
himself on the London stage in several productions
of Shakespeare’s works and other plays. He made
the leap to Broadway in 1977 in Comedians. His performance
earned him his first Tony Award. Mr. Pryce earned his
second Tony Award amidst a maelstrom of racial controversy
concerning his playing of ‘The Engineer’,
a half-Vietnamese/half-French pimp, in Miss Saigon.
Pryce created the role in the original London production
and despite the debate reprised the role on Broadway.
In addition to his numerous appearances on the stage
Jonathan has also enjoyed a vigorous career in the
movies. Notable appearances include: Sam Lowry in Brazil
(1985), Juan Peron in Evita (1996) and, most recently,
Governor Wetherby Swann in the Pirates of the Caribbean
trilogy.
1) Jonathan Pryce did Miss Saigon with Eric Chan
2) Eric Chan was in Shogun, The Musical with John Herrera
3) John Herrera did The Mystery of Edwin Drood with
Patti Cohenour
4) Patti Cohenour was the original Christine alternate
in The Phantom of the Opera with Michael Crawford.
“
What’s that I smell in the air?
The American Dream.”
… The Engineer in Miss Saigon
So that’s the game. Join me each week as I try to come up with new ways
of connecting Michael Crawford to the entire theater community.
