On Broadway, Bumpy Ride for Some Stars

Gina Gershon and John Stamos, 'Bye Bye Birdie,' 2009
What works on the small and big screen, doesn't always translate to the stage. Gina Gershon and John Stamos, both dynamic on the screen, got a helping of constructive criticism from the theatre world. Stamos was dubbed "bland" and "low-key" by the Associated Press, which also declared that he can't really sing or dance. (Ouch). Gershon didn't fare much bettter. Writes the NYTimes: "Bringing to mind the physical ripeness of Ava Gardner at her peak, Ms. Gershon also seems to share the lack of confidence in her part that Gardner often projected on screen."



Katie Holmes, 'All My Sons,' 2008
Though the other Mrs. Cruise, Nicole Kidman, used a turn on Broadway as a chance to show her stuff and elevate her profile in 'The Blue Room' in 1998, it remains to be seen if the newest Mrs. Cruise, Katie Holmes, will be able to translate her Broadway performance into more serious film acting roles. While New York magazine praised her as "the best thing about this bombastic" play, USA Today wasn't so hot on her performance, dubbing it "one-note."

Jeremy Piven, 'Speed-The-Plow,' 2008
Ah, yes. The year of the "mercury made me sick," debacle. While you might think that the Entourage star and multiple Emmy winner is just another Hollywood hack, Piven's got a long theatre background, ever since he started studying the craft in Chicago. His performance in the play was unfortunately overshadowed by the gossips wagging about his abrupt departure due to mercury poisoning. The L.A. Times reported that long before we focused on sushi-as-sickness, Piven was getting rave reviews from nearly everyone. The New York Times said he executed his role with "uncanny grace and intelligence," and Variety praised him for his ""tightly wound physicality and easy command of rapid-fire, hectoring dialogue make him a natural fit for Mamet."

Julia Roberts, 'Three Days of Rain,' 2006
At $35,000 a week, the Pretty Woman took a substantial paycut from her usual $20 million salary to do the Richard Greenberg drama. But the gamble to get patrons through the door paid off, with the 12-week run selling out. The reviews were politely bad. Roberts doesn't invite the kind of schadenfreude inspired by someone like Madonna. You don't root for her to do badly; you want her to do well, and apologize on her behalf when she doesn't. Her performance was regarded as milquetoast by the Times: who wrote of her blinding superstardom, yet underwhelming stage presence: "if you must know, she's stiff with self-consciousness (especially in the first act), only glancingly acquainted with the two characters she plays and so deeply, disturbingly beautiful that you don't want to let her out of your sight. "


Sean 'P. Diddy' Combs, 'A Raisin in the Sun,' 2004
The rapper-turned-mogul-turned-actor had been training with acting guru Susan Batson for some time and took his newfound craft seriously. Still, he was up against two powerhouses, Audra McDonald and Phylicia Rashad, in the production of 'A Raisin in the Sun,' and had to overcome the long shadow cast by the actor who originated his role, Sydney Poiter. His performance was likened to another star flexing her chops on Broadway: Madonna. Wrote The New York Times: "Mr. Combs is not the wholesale embarrassment that connoisseurs of schadenfreude were hoping for. The Donald Trump-like confidence that has made him the success he is keeps him from dissolving into a spotlighted puddle. But he comes across as smaller than you might expect, as Madonna did when she made her Broadway debut in 'Speed the Plow.'

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