Any old dreamer won’t do

Published Monday 14 May 2007 at 19:15

It seems that not a week can go by without there being published within your pages some letter or other complaining about the casting of “amateurs off the streets” in the BBC’s shows How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria? and Any Dream Will Do. How ill-informed and unwarranted. Do we really still need reminding that Maria winner Connie Fisher has had as much training as anyone else within the profession with her time at Mountview and is more than adequately qualified to play a leading role?

I hardly think the staff and students of Mountview would take kindly to one of their most successful alumni being described as an “amateur off the streets”. And as to complaints about her vocal problems and the use of an alternate Maria, none of these same complainers had any issue with seasoned professional Elena Roger having an alternate for the equally challenging role of Evita.

Many of last year’s Maria finalists were fully trained, as indeed are many of this year’s potential Josephs. Not only that, the rigorous audition processes for these shows helps to ensure that the finalists are all up to the task at hand. Besides which, they are hardly the only West End shows to have cast through the process of open auditions. So enough of this bickering, please.

Dan Smith

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