THE BEAST

The beast has gone awry. James Barbour a seasoned musical theatre vet has fallen onto some hard times. Known for his role as "The Beast" in Disney's Beauty and the Beast, Barbour has been placed under arrest for charges of sex abuse and sodomy. Typically I keep away from posting anything overly gossipy about the Broadway world on my blog, but this one is weird and shocked even me. Even more bizarre, read the thread about this on BroadwayWorld.com -- it gets even crazier and out of control (with particular mention about Scientology). I know, I know, I'm feeding into this gossip frenzy but calling attention to it...

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Actor In Sex Arrest

April 6, 2006 -- A 19-year-old aspiring actress has accused a veteran Broadway actor of luring her into performing sex acts offstage when she was just a star-struck kid visiting the Great White Way.

The 40-year-old actor, James Barbour, who appeared in the Broadway musical "Assassins" three years ago, was arrested yesterday by Los Angeles police on a New York warrant charging sex abuse and sodomy, sources here said.

The unidentified woman came forward in February and told NYPD cops she first met Barbour through her high-school drama coach in 2001 when she was 15.

She met the handsome hoofer again that year on a trip with her parents.

Barbour, who was appearing in the Tony-Award winning "Jane Eyre" at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre, promised the star-struck out-of-towner a personal backstage tour.

Instead, she claims, Barbour took her to his dressing room where they had a sexual encounter.

A few weeks later, on July 21, the awe-struck teenager returned, this time without her parents, and met Barbour again.

Later, the woman said she went to his Upper West Side apartment where they had a sexual encounter. It was not clear why the woman, now an aspiring actress, waited so long to come forward.

An L.A. judge ordered Barbour to surrender in New York on April 17.

SORRY/GRATEFUL

So as I was saying (badly) the other day about the current state of musical theatre...

I should be happy when anybody is exposed to musical theatre and maybe shouldn't even spend the time discussing why I am not a fan of predictable, big Disney-fied shows. After all, it took seeing The Phantom of the Opera in high school for me to rediscover my love of musicals. I guess after the resurgence of theatre in my life, I discovered what it was that really struck a chord with me and what fueled my fire.

I am not a big fan of the over-produced/in-your-face Broadway musical that tells you what to feel and when to feel it. While I understand what producers/backers/creative types are doing when putting together commercial successful shows like The Lion King and Mama Mia! I prefer shows like Jason Robert Brown's The Last Five Years and Sondheim's Passion which are more intimate and have layers of emotion and depth. I have been listening to The Last Five Years for over a year on and off (or...more...) and each time, I still discover new things with each listen.

I love discovering the layers of the show and it's characters after listening to the cast recording and coming to a genuine understanding of the story. I am fascinated by what drives these characters and how they become who they are. There is so much to learn...and I find more of a sense of discovery in these more complex shows.

So in conclusion...only because I feel like this soapbox I'm standing on requires a conclusion (and I think I've rambled on enough for today)...I am a theatre snob. I admit it...I cringe at the thought of a Disney musical and wouldn't be caught dead seeing We Will Rock You in Las Veags nor will I ever see Beauty and the Beast...again. However I support the idea of what these shows represent if it means a show will give exposure to the art form. Shall I begin my thoughts on arts education? Maybe I'll save that for another day. :)

In case it wasn't clear enough...I am obsessed with Broadway...it is what I am passionate about and it is what drives me. These are thoughts I've had for too long so I thought I'd finally post an abbreviated form here...in cyberspace for everyone and no one to see.