Poll Results: Musical Movie Role for Richard Armitage

The results are in for the poll "Which Musical Should Richard Armitage Star In After The Hobbit?"


The Winner is:

My Fair Lady with 58% of the vote

In Second Place:

Kiss Me Kate with 29% of the vote

In Third Place:

Other with 12% of the vote

Suggestions for other musicals for Richard from the Comments:

Phantom of the Opera

The Scarlet Pimpernel 

The Musical 

Les Miserables

The Sound of Music

To read the FanstRA post that led to this poll click HERE.

Thank you so much for votes and for your great suggestions of other musicals for Armitage to star in. Something to look forward to in the future? 

Sean Bean in Los Angeles: Interview and Clip from Mirror, Mirror

Sean Bean Talks Kings, Mirrors and Thrones: MyFoxLA.com

For longtime fans, he really doesn't get asked anything original, but I like what he has to say about his new films, his career, and his life. I've noticed in recent years he's been more open - in Sean's own quiet way - about life in general. Enjoy. 

_____

Remember to vote for Boromir and Thorin in Round Two 
The One Ring Net's Middle-Earth 

March Madness

Click HERE

FanstRA Thanks and Acknowledgments

FanstRAvaganza has come to a close for another year.  I want to thank the organizers for inviting me to participate again this year, and to my fellow bloggers for all your wonderful work. I've learned and laughed so much this week - and I'm still doing so since I haven't caught up with all the posts from this week myself.


Thank you to all my tagteam partners. It was special for me to share all the various threads and themes with you. Hope our conversation continues.


I have a great admiration for all the Organizers and the PR group. Thank you for keeping us all organized and informed and for keeping track of all our posts and for spreading the word far and wide. I don't know how you all did what you did, but you all deserve a standing ovation. Bravo!


I'm privileged to be in your company.  


Thank you to all the core bloggers for being the anchors of this event and keeping track of all the posts every single day. 


Hugs to all who read my posts and visited my blog during this special FanstRA week! I don't always post about Richard Armitage, but I hope you continue to come back and visit once in a while.


To all who commented and who voted on the polls -Thank You from the bottom of my heart. I so enjoyed all your comments and our dialog. I also hope it continues. 


(Remember one of the polls is still open for the rest of this week - see the right hand sidebar)


Thank you to my RA friend Zibeline for partnering on one of the posts for this year's event with me. I so enjoyed working together.


Thank you to RichardArmitageNet.com, Richard Armitage Online, Richard Armitage Central, Google Images, YouTube, for all the "raw materials" I used for my posts.  


A special thank you to Richard Crispin Armitage for being the inspiration for this wonderful week. 

See You Again Next Year!

Thorin Rules

If you're like me and are still catching up with FanstRAvaganza remember that the posts will not go away and you can find a list of all of them and a link to all the blogs at the link below:

http://fanstravaganza.rgcwp.com/ 

   

He Sings: Movie Musical Revivals Starring Richard Armitage

We’re in Day Six of  FanstRAvaganza 3 in THE FREEFORM tagteam chain! see my partner’s posts at C.S. Winchester and Something About Love (A).

From the moment I saw the first trailer for The Hobbit and heard Richard Armitage sing I've had a burning desire to see him in a movie musical. 


Hollywood hasn't been doing too well with film musicals in the last few decades, I think one of the few successful ones was the Academy Award winning Chicago (2002).  But maybe now after the success of the new American television series SMASH the movie public will be yearning for the days of the film musicals to return.

Is this Richard Armitage?

Is this Richard Armitage in CATS? I'm not sure if it is him, from the Richard Armitage Board.

Who better to star in the revival of the film musical than Richard Armitage. For those that may not know, Armitage started his career on the musical stage, including 42nd Street (1990-1991) and CATS (1993-1995).  Of course, a new musical written just for him, including a few scenes of him dancing the tango, would be ideal. In the meantime there are a few musicals out there that could use a film revival and that would be perfect for Richard Armitage. 


Try to imagine him in the role as you view the clips below.

Kiss Me Kate

A Cole Porter musical based on "The Taming of the Shrew" by William Shakespeare.  The story follows a troop of actors behind-the-scenes and on stage rehearsing a musical production of Shakespeare's play.  The actors that play Petruchio and Katherine used to be married but are now feuding on stage and off. Of course, being a musical, the fighting between the two actors can only mean that they are still in love. In this film clip from the 1948 movie we see Howard Keel, who plays Petruchio/Frederick sings "Where is the Life that Late I Led?" and I can certainly see Richard Armitage in this comedic leading man role.

Company

Considered one of the first musicals to deal with adult themes, this 1970 musical by Stephen Sondheim and George Furth revolves around the birthday party of single man Bobby and his group of married friends. Instead of a linear plot the musical is a series of vignettes revolving around different themes about relationships. One good thing about making a film with Richard Armitage as Bobby is that I believe Company has never been made into a film. The nature of this musical calls for an imaginative director along with an imaginative actor (Armitage) to make this work on film.  Below is a clip with Dean Jones as Bobby signing "Being Alive" in the original 1970 cast album. 

The Fantasticks 

One of the longest running musicals ever by Harvey Schmidt and Tom Jones (not the one you're thinking of!) this 1960 musical was based on Edmond Rostand's play "Les Romanesques".  In a small town two fathers hire a traveling company of actors, led by El Gallo, to trick their children, Matt and Louisa, into falling in love. 
The musical was made into an unsuccessful film in 1995 (released in 2000) so there is lots of room for improvement with the right director and with Armitage as El Gallo. The name El Gallo means The Rooster in Spanish and you really need a man who embodies those "gallo" qualities, and no one will do that better than Richard. Below is a clip with British actor Jonathon Morris as El Gallo from the film:

My Fair Lady

Who is that man on the left? Jeremy Brett

The 1958 musical by Alan Lerner and Frederick Loewe is based on George Bernard Shaw's "Pygmalion" and was made into a film in 1964. It is the story of  Cockney flower girl Eliza Doolittle and misogynistic phoneticist  Prof. Henry Higgins.This would be the musical on my list that I would be reluctant to remake. Why tamper with a perfect and much loved film with performances by Audrey Hepburn and Rex Harrison? Because the only contemporary actor that I believe could rival Rex Harrison in playing a charming curmudgeon in this comedy/romance is Richard Armitage. We can also add that Harrison really was not as handsome. Below a clip of Rex Harrison singing "I've Grown Accustomed to her Face": 

You can also download and watch at link below.

http://www.badongo.com/vid/2029241

Please vote on the POLL in the right hand sidebar and select which one of the musicals profiled above you think Richard Armitage should star in. You can also select Other and write your selection in the comments section of this post. 

I will post the results of the poll a week after FanstRAvaganza 3 and also update this post with the results.

For more of THE FREEFORM tagteam in FanstRA 3, see my partner’s post at C.S. Winchester and  Something About Love (A).  Tomorrow The FREEFORM tagteam continues at La Loba,  Me, My Thoughts, and Who Knows,  and I Want To Be A Pin- Up . All previous The FREEFORM posts and All F3 links can be found here.

This is my last post for FanstRAvaganza 3.  It has been incredible fun and a privilege to be part of this special week to celebrate Richard Armitage and his wonderful fans, my fellow fans. Thank you all so much for reading, viewing, and commenting. Looking forward to next year's FanstRA.

The Eyes Have It: Armitage Eyelash Fetish

We’re in Day Four of  the FanstRAvaganza 3 in THE FANDOM tagteam chain!  Also in Day Four check out my  partner's post at Crispin's Eclipse, If you missed the previous days on The Fandom check out the posts at  Feminema, Plylly's Faves,  Something About Love (A),  An Obsessed Fanatic,  The Armitage Effect.. 

By

Faboamanto and Zibeline

One of the wonderful things about being a Richard Armitage fan is getting to know fellow fans. Zibeline, who lives in Europe, and I, who live in the United States, would never have met and become friends if not for our mutual interest in Richard Armitage.  I hope you enjoy our joint post about those amazing Armitage  eyes and lashes.

John Thornton by Zibeline:

In this particular scene, due to the etiquette and the presence of the other characters, nothing can be said between John and Margaret, no gesture can be made. The only way for Mr. Thornton to express his feelings is through his eyes.


“Eyes are the window of the soul”, and we see here its exact illustration, even more when personifying a character from the Victorian era, where the body was the jailer of expressed feelings.


Still today, after so many views of this particular scene, the feelings that Mr. Armitage expresses only through his eyes give me goosebumps  and heartache. 


“So you are leaving, and never to come back”.

… expressing all tenderness and sorrow towards Margaret, feeling all the possibilities that her very being represents. 

… voicing the acknowledgment of her departure – and that he will be craving physically her presence...

Suppressing all expression of his feelings and holding it tight inside by lowering his eyes.

… creating a “lead curtain” through his gaze, when willingly looking down at Margaret not as his potential happiness, but at the loss of it already; recessing inside of himself with the flicker of an eyelash.

Lucas North and Guy of Gisborne by Fabo


I am fascinated by Richard Armitage's eyelashes - long flirtatious eye-fans one minute, human curtains that hide a multitude of emotions the next.  I really can't get enough of looking at those luscious eyelashes.


He's a master at using the movement of his eyelashes to convey pain, disappointment, anger or disdain. There are two characters that stand out for me for his use of eyelash acting: Guy of Gisborne and Lucas North. 

In this scene from Spooks the dialog and the voice are expressing explosive anger but if we look at the movement of his eyelashes in the clip below we can feel pain, disappointment and betrayal when Lucas discovers his lover Sarah was secretly going to bug his apartment for her CIA bosses.  

Armitage used the full sexual allure of those long fan-like eyelashes in his role of Guy of Gisborne in Robin Hood.  One of the scenes that for me best illustrates this is one between the Sheriff and Guy. In this scene Vasey is humiliating Guy over his love for Marian. He tells Guy what he refuses to believe, that Marian doesn't love him and is just using him. 

Armitage's lashes never stop moving during this scene conveying Guy's discomfort at Vasey's invasion of his personal space. So much is conveyed by a flicker of a lash, humiliation at Marian's failure to return his love, and disgust at the Sheriff's power over him. But the flirtatious nature of those eyelashes makes us wish, like the Sheriff, for a kiss.  

So what is your favorite Armitage eyelash acting moment?






For more of THE FANDOM today in FanstRA 3 see Crispin's Eclipse . Tomorrow Th FANDOM tagteam continues at Funky Blue Dandelion. All F3 links can be found here.

Armitage as Richard III: Who Should Play Queen Anne

We’re in Day Three of the FanstRAvaganza 3 in THE KING RICHARD ARMITAGE tagteam chain! If you missed Day One and Day Two check out the posts at Fly High and Crispin's Eclipse.

Stained Glass - York Minster

If a series or film based on the historical Richard III of England with the king played by Richard Armitage becomes a reality, then who would be cast to play his wife Anne Neville? 
 (Note: Scroll down to the bottom of the post for poll results- 3/18/12)

Anne Neville (1456 – 1485) was first married to Edward of Westminster and was Princess of Wales and later Queen of England as wife of King Richard III. She had just one son, Edward (1474?-1484), with Richard III who died as a child. Anne died only a few months before her husband was defeated at the Battle of Bosworth (1485).


Anne was a member of the powerful northern English Neville family. Her father was Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick.  She knew Richard, then Duke of Gloucester, when they were both children and was briefly betrothed to him when she was 14 until her father changed sides and married her to Edward to secure the alliance with his mother, Margaret of Anjou. The history of Anne and Richard is long and complicated by politics and war and you can read more about it in the King Richard Armitage website HERE.

Anne Neville was buried in Westminster Abbey and on the wall is a memorial erected by the Richard III Society in 1960 with this description:

“In person she was seemly, amiable and beauteous…And according to the interpretation of her name Anne full gracious” REQUIESCAT IN PACE.

(Source: Onthetudortrail.com)

Anne Neville

From what I’ve been able to research there is no accurate portrait or detailed physical description of Anne Neville. In most romanticized versions of her she’s portrayed as being a brunette, though one of the portraits below has her as a redhead. But in those days artists would portray royal personages without ever having seen them.  

Richard III and Queen Anne

Richard III and Queen Anne

Detail from image above - Cardiff Castle Wales

Thinking about who should be cast as Anne Neville to Richard Armitage's Richard III I thought of actors that would be a good match for him in age range, screen presence, and ability. Below is my top three list to play Queen Anne:

Paloma Baeza 

Richard Armitage fans know Baeza for playing Lucas North's Russian ex-wife Elizaveta Starkova.  Of the three women that played love interests to Lucas North in Spooks to me she had the best chemistry with Richard on screen.  She is a graduate of English and Performing Arts from Bristol University and has had roles in several period and historical films and series including playing Bathsheba in Far from the Madding Crowd (1998) and  Kitty in Anna Karenina (2000). It would be great to see Baeza and Armitage together again on screen.

Michelle Dockery

Seems like the entire world knows Michelle Dockery as Lady Mary in the very popular TV series Downton Abbey.  Though there is more of an age difference between Dockery and Armitage than there was between Richard III and Anne Neville they are both strong actors and would make the relationship believable on screen. She is a graduate of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London.  She and Armitage have a connection since she's played Erminia Whythe in the TV series Cranford and he of course was John Thornton in North and South, both series based on the novels by Elizabeth Gaskell. 

Hattie Morahan

American audiences probably know her best for playing Elinor Dashwood in the 2008 version of Jane Austen's Sense & Sensibility.  Morahan graduated from Cambridge University and has an extensive career on the stage and British television, beginning with her role in The Peacock Spring (1996) at sixteen, directed by her father. I liked her portrayal of Elinor Dashwood and have since seen her in several other UK television series. Her naturalness on screen is very similar to Armitage's own and I think they would be a good match. 

The Poll

So what do you think about the three choices above?  Look at the right hand sidebar and vote on the poll for your favorite of the three, or vote "other" and make your suggestion through the comments below.

I will update this post with post results on March 18.


Update - March 18


Results of Poll - Who should play Anne Neville?


The Winner is:  

Other with 34% of the vote

Suggestions from the comments:

Natalie Portman (Bccmee)

Julianne Moore (Gratiana)

Lucy Griffiths (Anonymous)

Kate Winslet (Anonymous)

Runner Up:

 Hattie Morahan with 30% of the vote

Third Place:

A  tie for Paloma Baeza and Michelle Dockery with 17% each

Thank you to everyone who voted

For more of THE KING RICHARD ARMITAGE In FanstRA 3 see Fly High and Crispin's Eclipse . Tomorrow The KR tagteam continues at Me + Richard Armitage. All F3 links can be found here.

Please support Richard Armitage’s effort by signing this petition and encouraging potential financiers and production investors to support the “Richard III” project - see link below.


http://kingrichardarmitage.rgcwp.com/petition-for-richard-iii/ 

Richard Armitage Talks About His Fans

We’re in Day Two of the FanstRAvaganza 3 in THE FANDOM tagteam chain! If you missed Day One, check out the posts at Phylly's Faves and Feminema . Also in Day Two, see my partner’s post at Something About Love (A).

What is a fan?  

Fan, sometimes also called aficionado or supporter, is a person with a liking and enthusiasm for something. (Wikipedia)


Aficionado:  An ardent supporter or devotee. From Spanish, past participle of aficionar, to inspire affection,(Ask.Define.com)

Supporter: A person who contributes to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose. (Ask.Define.com)

 ...our community of 'friends' ... (Richard Armitage, Message to his fans, December 24, 2011, Richard Armitage Online)

Ever since the media became aware after North and South that Richard Armitage has a growing fan base he is almost always asked about his fans during interviews. Below is a video compilation of what Armitage has been asked and what he has said about his fans in various television and radio interviews over the past several years. 

For more of THE FANDOM In FanstRA 3 see my partner’s post at Something About Love (A).  Yesterday's posts are at Phylly's Faves and Feminema . Tomorrow The FANDOM tagteam continues at An Obsessed Fanatic and The Armitage Effect. All F3 links can be found here.

Armitage Academy of American Accents

We’re in Day One of  FanstRAvaganza 3 in THE FREEFORM tagteam chain! see my partner’s posts at A is for Armitage and Funky Blue Dandelion.

Don't let this American accent happen to Richard

I’m sure everyone on both sides of the pond and beyond have noticed how many British actors are now starring in US television series and films, and most of the time they’re playing Americans.  Richard Armitage is bound to be in demand for an American role after The Hobbit. 


He mentioned in an interview that when auditioning in the US for a part in a series some years ago his American accent was found, lets say, questionable. Maybe better to quote him for the full effect:

“And, as with all promising British actors, Tinseltown beckons. He's been to a Los Angeles audition for a role as a CIA agent in a television pilot. Armitage tells a story about his casting session that just about sums up this man's pleasing blend of confidence and modesty. "I'd practiced my American accent really hard so I could get the part just right. When I finished reading, the casting people said, 'Wow! That was great... Now would you mind doing it again with an American accent?'"

But now help for Richard Armitage is here!

The Armitage Academy of American Accents

American Armitage fans felt it was our duty to help him have an accent edge on other UK actors when meeting with US producers and directors. So today we're visiting and doing a little tour of the Armitage Academy of American Accents

 Armitage Academy Village

  

The AAoAA is unique in that we have only one pupil, Richard Armitage, but hundreds of instructors to teach him not only the variety of American accents from Sea to Shining Sea but also the different social and regional cultural basics of being an American.

 In this total immersion program we also want Richard to talk and think like an American when he’s called on to do so. We want him to fit in seamlessly as a Vermonter, Nebraskan, Texan, and New Yorker, to name just a few.

Student Dress code for the AAoAA

To promote a true Total Immersion experience we’ve scouted the nation to find a remote beautiful and peaceful environment to help Richard concentrate exclusively on his studies. 

We've been flooded with applications from around the United States to work as Accent Ambassadors for the Academy and 99% of the applicants have been women.

Our goal is to have a full American accent and culture immersion for Armitage. We have many exciting activities and field trips planned to help us accomplish this and I’ll highlight just a few below:

1. Life is Like High School: One of the rites of passage of any American is High School. We’ve set up a two week full-immersion HS experience for RA. One week he’ll be the school hunk and 

 the second week the school nerd (we’ve managed to secure a loan of some of the wardrobe and wigs he wore as John Strandring). 

Though all of us at the Academy will play his fellow High School students, we've also managed to hire some real High School students for full authenticity.

    2.  Football Time in America:  We’re talking real FOOTBALL here folks, 

   not that soccer game that Armitage thinks is football.  

    We have field trips planned to football games around the country, from High Schools to professional games, with Armitage under full supervision from Accent Ambassadors at all times of course to make sure he's practicing his "American" with the crowd.We want to make sure he doesn't start shouting “GOAL” at some inopportune moment. 

    Of course nothing says culture like food and drink, so we’ll prepare a tailgate party for him during the Super Bowl. 

   We have also secured some genuine football fans for the party to immerse Armitage in the full US Football Fan experience. 

           (It will give him a new perspective on the "Armitage army")

    To get the full cultural immersion and game vocabulary Armitage will have to play football as well.  

  

   We've been having tryouts of our staff and instructors to be part of the teams, though 

I  I’m sorry to say there has been some infighting 

   as to who will be selected to play on 

   Armitage's team 

    

    
    and who and how many will be designated to help dress and undress him in the locker room.  

  Though Richard has had experience with football shoulder pads 

      So we've brought in an outside judge  

     To draw names out of this hat for the teams

       3. What Happens in Vegas: One of the field trips we’re planning is a week to that US magic place of make believe, no, not Disney,  Las Vegas.  In order to make sure our star pupil is always practicing his various American regional accents a select group of instructors representing the different areas of the country will take turns being his Vegas chaperons 24 hours a day every day of his stay.  

    We will have Armitage experience what it’s like to be an Elvis Presley impersonator. 

    Maybe we’ll even add a surprise Vegas wedding in the mix if Armitage is willing. (Don’t worry; we’ve budgeted for extra security for the bride should this happen). 

    We expect this also to be a teaching moment so he can learn the meaning of “what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas”.

     We also have some regular weekly activities for our student:

    Reading Practice Evenings:  In order to assess Armitage’s progress in American Regional accents every Friday we’ll have a Reading Practice Evening. Armitage will read great works of American Literature with different character accents to AAoAA instructors and staff in our intimately designed space. 

   I think we're just in time to listen to one of Armitage's readings. 

    Special Programs: One of the strengths of the US is its diversity and I’ve volunteered to have some frequent one-on-one Spanglish sessions with Armitage. We at AAoAA offer the full cultural immersion curriculum.

    The initial Accent Experience should take several months of total 24 hours a day immersion in our lovely facilities.We're just starting with the basics and as you can observe we have a very productive Accent Immersion day planned for him for today.  

                                                           *Some R&R for RA

    We also understand Armitage will have to travel for work occasionally, so we have American Accent Squads only a phone call away ready to follow him wherever he goes to continue the seamless immersion experience. 

    
   Hope you enjoyed your visit to the Armitage Academy of American Accents.

   

     (Thank you to Ricrar for inspiring the idea for this post during a chat about RA and American accents)

*  *Not RA in this photo
F

     For more of THE FREEFORM tagteam in FanstRA 3, see my partner’s post  A is for Armitage and Funky Blue Dandelion. Tomorrow, THE FREEFORM tagteam continues at Melanie's Musings, An Obssessed Fanatic, and Do I Have a Blog? . All F3 links can be found here.