Faces to watch

[Talissa]

Since there’ve been a few names mentioned recently that have raised the question of “Who?”, I thought I’d start a thread on up-and-coming young actors you think are worth a look. I think I’ve probably gone a little overboard here, but I kept thinking of people. But I know there are more. There are a couple more I can think of, but haven’t actually seen them perform properly yet, so left them for someone else, and I know there are plenty I haven’t named, so now it’s your turn. Who are some young actors worth keeping an eye on, where have you seen them, and what’s so good about them?

Benjamin J. McHugh – Most notably seen in The Producers as the lead tenor in Springtime for Hitler, and arguably about the best thing in that show. Another memorable appearance was his opening song of Beautiful Girls at Melbourne’s Hats Off last year. He’s got a gorgeous strong dramatic tenor voice, and classic good looks.
James Millar – A 2003 WAAPA graduate. Last seen in Eureka as the fiery German, Frederick Vern, but doing quite well for himself in the cabaret scene. He’s a strong actor with a good dramatic range.
Sophie Carter – Another 2003 WAAPA graduate, and quite frequently seen since then. First handpicked by Simon Phillips for Urinetown, then appearing in TPC’s High Society, and seen (though not by me) as the Witch in MTOL’s Into The Wood. About to appear as Jan in Grease. She caught my attention in Urinetown, though, with her incredibly strong voice over a large range, and her strong character acting. Oh, and she’s tall. ;-)
Verity Hunt-Ballard – Yep, another 2003 WAAPA grad. (Good batch that year!) She appeared in Eureka, and has also been active on the cabaret scene. I haven’t heard quite enough of her, but she has a strong voice, and good acting.
Matthew Robinson – Yet another WAAPA grad. Most memorably seen kissing Marina Prior in TPC’s Annie Get Your Gun, and winning the Pratt Prize last year. He has a gorgeous, sweet lyric tenor voice, and lovely acting, but what really stands out is his writing talent. I’ve heard plenty of his music, and love it all. Bring on Metro Street.
Andrew Koblar – Seen in TPC’s Bye Bye Birdie, High Society and Carousel, MTC’s Urinetown, and singing the wonderful All I Need is the Girl in both Melbourne’s and Sydney’s Hats Off. So young, but an excellent actor and singer, and even better dancer.
Damian Humbley – Another WAAPA graduate. Has appeared in Urinetown, Passion, All Roads Lead to Home and McCubbin. Now this is a boy with a voice. He had about the smallest part in Urinetown, but even there caught my attention, so I saw him in Passion, and wow. Then I saw him in McCubbin and saw that he can act. He seems so sweet and boyish normally, but he quite convincingly played Fred McCubbin’s father. Oh, and who can forget him as the Cuban Transvestite during All Roads Lead to Home.
Trisha Crowe – Bridie O’Malley, the female lead, in Eureka, and look at the impression she made. Everyone I’ve spoken to has mentioned her and how wonderful she was. She has about the best high soprano voice I’ve heard in a young actor, and enough spunk in her acting to be a wonderful candidate for any one of the ‘ingenue’ roles, because I’m sure she’d make it her own and something more than the standard.
Alex Rathgeber – Most notably seen in Melbourne’s Hats Off, singing Giants in the Sky and, with Matt Robinson, Agony. A beautiful strong baritone voice. Oh, and another 2003 WAAPA grad.
Renee Burleigh – I’ve only seen her as Winnie Tate in Annie Get Your Gun, but she was beautiful in that role. Pure sunshine.
Ranjeet Starr – Again, only known from AGYG, but he put so much energy into the role he’s definitely worth a mention. A gorgeous actor.
Erin Cornell – Now, this is a tricky one. She’s a VCA girl, and drawing quite a bit of attention to herself in the industry, but I need to see her sing something that really suits her voice. I saw her sing Another Hundred People at Malbourne’s Hats Off, and could sense real power and strength in the voice, but it wasn’t the best song to show that off.
Irene Dios – I first saw Irene in Tick, Tick… BOOM!, and wasn’t impressed, but that show wasn’t exactly known for its perfect casting. Three brilliant actors, but only one was absolutely right for the role. Anyway, then she turned up in Urinetown, and was wonderful. She’s a brilliant comic actress, with real character.

[jackjackjack]

The real shame of that list of course is that it's too big. Not half of those people will be able to entertain us half as much as they should be able to. That makes no sense but hopefully you know what I mean.

James

[SarahB]

Two other very important names to watch are Lucy Durack and Ben Lewis- don't forget them!

[Talissa]

I wanted to include Lucy, but hadn't seen enough of her, so couldn't justift it. Don't worry, I hadn't forgotten her.

And James, the point isn't that every one of those actors will be taking all the lead roles in shows to come. Some, I would like to see them in a fair number, but a lot of the names I mentioned aren't the right style for the lead roles, so will be doing their part in supporting roles or ensemble, since an interesting ensemble's just as important as good leads. The main reason I don't like the big dance shows like The Producers is that the ensemble tends to be a set of clones, so the life on stage stops at the leads. Meanwhile in something like Les Mis, each actor on stage has to be an individual character for every moment of every scene, so there's always something to watch, especially when you have good actors on the stage.

And of course, there are always cabarets and small-scale productions. A lot of the time people only bother with those if they're names they recognise, so I meant this as a list of names worth checking out if you see them places.

And then there are those who'll become our writers, choreographers and directors. So even if some leave the stage, hopefully most will still be around in some way or another.