#for Phantoms Killian Donnelly for Christines Amelia Milo for Raouls Bradley Jaden or maybe Joe Griffiths Brown

[glassprism]

I hope this question doesn't come off as cynical, but in recent years has there ever been a Christine that people didn't like? What I mean is, it seems like everyone is always praising the current/recent christines, whereas less recent christines face more criticism online. Is it that there has been better casting recently, or because people are less ready to criticize when they know there's more of a chance the actors could see it with such a connection between platforms these days? I just know that I've had some less than fantastic thoughts on some of the recent christines (nothing terrible, but disliking prominent aspects enough to expect other people to maybe acknowledge it) and I can't tell if its just me being too harsh towards great performers or if other people are just not as vocal about their opinions anymore

If you want to know my honest answer? COVID-19. Go one and a half years or more without theater and suddenly everyone and everything will look good to you, or you're at least willing to give things more leeway knowing that actors have to deal with various restrictions.

And yes, the quarantine is now a good couple years away, but we're still seeing the ramifications today. (Seriously, take it from a teacher - boy are there ramifications.) Heck, it's led to at least one major change in the Phantom status quo: the closing of the Broadway production. One of the flagship productions is just gone, one that I think many of us took for granted and always expected to be around, and I do think that's the kind of thing that will create a seismic shift in conversation: again, sometimes we're just so dang grateful that other productions are around, we're willing to spare them criticism that we might have given in previous years.

That's not to say that's that the only reason why criticism seems less prevalent or vocal; I do think that there are other reasons, some of which you mentioned. Social media is certainly one thing, especially as the productions cast younger and younger (or we get older and older), which means more and more actors that are active on the Internet. That can lead to more muted criticism, partially out of fear of them finding it, yes, but I think also because people start to conflate the actors' real life personalities with their acting, e.g. maybe this Phantom isn't that great but he's so lovable on Instagram and TikTok that it's difficult to critique him as severely as others. More inclusive casting could also be a factor: maybe so-and-so productions isn't great or maybe that's a piss poor piece of direction, but damn it, we have a black Christine and a black Raoul after literal decades of lily white casting and we're just so grateful for that crumb that we'll bite our tongues.

And also, maybe sometimes people just genuinely think those people are great, and they tend to be more vocal than others! Maybe these people are great! (Well, you never know. I've personally liked almost all of the casts I've seen so far.) Maybe you just have a difference of opinion with the majority, that happens too! Maybe you're not looking in the right spots! (I've definitely seen criticisms of multiple Phantoms, Christines, and Raouls, from a variety of productions, in various parts of the Internet.) Maybe some of us are just tired. (That's me right now - critiquing is hard, saying negative things, even if truthful, can be hard, and sometimes I just want to say, "Good voice, good acting, got the job done, leave me alone").

But even when I look at these things, you know what still stands out as the dividing line to me? COVID-19. So that's going to be my answer for now... but ask me again in two years and we'll see what's happened then.

#GP gets asks #anonymous #also completely forgot to answer your first question about casts people have disliked and I wouldn't say the following are disliked but - #for Phantoms Killian Donnelly for Christines Amelia Milo for Raouls Bradley Jaden or maybe Joe Griffiths Brown