My thoughts exactly.

I have no crystal ball, but I assume they saw Beanie as sweet and likable and someone who could grow into the singing. And Lea was a singer who really lacks that "charming" factor.

@@paprgl well, she is charming and she can sing. Feldstein is just a Disney princess, so there you go and no she couldn’t get in to the singing, ever, ever.

@kimberly reeves beanies father was a producer. So there’s that factor.

@@RT-dk7yv yeah the factor that no one wants to touch with a 39 1/2 foot pole because heaven forbid the trueth be spoken.

Don't insult highschoolers!

High school theater club has way more talent than her

@@Max-my6rk I totally agree with you. I was in the theater club In high school and even though I took the Male lead 3 years in a row ("Pajama Game", "Guy's and Dolls" and "Bye, Bye Birdie") I certainly wasn't Broadway ready !.

@@Max-my6rk heck, I know girls that I went to high school with that are better than her.

Imagine sitting in that audience expecting that last note 😢

Yeah, what the HELL was that about???

@@amberli5769 it’s like watching Elphaba not singing the last “DOOOOWWWWNNN” part of Defying Gravity

@@CountryCowboy008 You mean the “ aaAAAaAA” battle cry

@@jockboy simple, she couldn’t do it, so they took it out there by pretty much killing the song but then she’s killed all the songs oh, and by the way, they actually have a full bootleg of Beenie destroying this musical on KZfaq but yet there’s no full bootleg of Lee I should know I’ve looked.

And PHYSICLY!! She ACTUALLY! LOOKS !!! Like The CHARACTER !!! She IS Supposed!. To Be ! FANNY BRICE !! Was Not AN Overwheight !! Short WOMAN !!!🙄

@@rayyanez3527 her weight and height is irrevant. Lea is short too. I have no idea how tall Fanny Brice was and it doesn't matter.

@@jac6698 wholeheartedly agreed. Funny Girl is not a documentary.

@@rayyanez3527 exactly!

@@jac6698 OH ! But ! YES!!! It Does !!!! Flo ZIGFELD!! Of The ZIGFELD FOLLIES!! FAME!!!! Inspired! By The French Folies Bergere! ! In París! Would ! Had NEVER Hired ! Fanny BRICE!! .iNo MATTER ,!! How TALENTED!!! She Might Had Been !. Had She Been ! AN Obese ! WOMAN !! ( She Was Not Tall ! But Prided! Herself !.. Of Having a svelte Figure!!!!!!.. NOT For His SHOWS!!!. wich Prided The Tradition Of SHOWGIRLS!!!! Glorifying !! THE BEUTY ! OF THE AMERICAN BEUTY!!!... It's Called!..HISTORYCALY CORRECT!!!!!

Exactly thank you beanie gave me snow white vibes to some degree and that’s not what you want for funny girl.

Beanie was so good as Monica Lewinsky in A H S Watergate. ! that was the perfect role for her !

@@TheJerbolt2 American Crime Story, not Horror Story

@@krazykittymatt Flopstein being cast as Fanny Brice was a horror story alright

@@TheJerbolt2 You mean ACS Impeachment. Watergate is Nixon

@@krazykittymatt yes you are correct , it was during Bill Clinton's reign

Lol, my thoughts exactly

It's that _lie down for a bit_ part for me... 😂😂😂😂😂

@@helloxonsfan so it’s not wicked of me to think that that was amazingly funny because I laughed. I couldn’t help it.

@@Leamichellefan2244 ... Exactly... (lol) I can imagine that line being done in a New York Yiddish accent... like Fanny Brice... & oy vey ... I dead already... 🤣 😂 🤣

@@helloxonsfan is it wrong that I would want Lee to be the one to deliver sideline?

Exactly

Beanie and Julie are too slapstick for modern times. I never like slapstick even as a child.

@@toniharris2143 I prefer classic over what Julie and Feldstein do and Lee is classic. She’s funny but doesn’t overdo it, she has the voice of an angel, she can make you cry, she can do it all.

Let's not get ahead of ourselves : Lea is good enough. Feldstein was not just horrible, she was an amateurish triple disaster. But no one will ever be as great as Barbra. Barbra is great without trying. She is naturally funny, without trying. She has vulnerability, strength, intelligence, etc. She is a genius, a natural talent like we have never seen. She is a historical figure. Her talent is beyond this world. I don't think that Funny Girl should have been revived. But if they had to, Lea was the obvious choice. Maybe too obvious. Sometimes, people want too desperately to think outside of the box. And then, they gloriously and almost consciously make the wrong choice, as they did here. Thinking outside of the box is not always a good thing. Sometimes, look into the box and see the diamond that is there.

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I am honestly curious- where did you think Beanie's voice was pleasant? I was cringing listening to it, extremely off key and unpleasant to my ear.

Pleasant? Every high note is nasal, and she has no power at all. I don't even think she's good enough for high school.

I pray you won’t hate me, but I prefer Lee because she could be pleasant but she can also be powerful but thank you for not sitting here and treating Feldstein with kid gloves. I am so sick of that. i’m sorry I don’t find beanies voice pleasant at all I mean if you do more power to you but I just I can’t deal with it.

@@jenm9099 my thoughts exactly thank you.

@@jockboy I agree with you I absolutely do, but at least this person isn’t just sitting here and treating beanie with kid gloves and saying oh this isn’t fair. Thank God she’s not doing that at least.

Sometimes … I feel like…they really “springtime for hitler”Ed us with casting beanie …

@@oliviabb73849 lol they probably did but the tantrums are still hilarious.

@@Leamichellefan2244 agree lol

Lea is better, but really you don’t need to make multiple comments about how much better she is. People know. People knew the first time you said it too.

@@emfishr I can make as many comments calling out beanies nonsense as I like.

I mean the tony's sealed that deal. What can you do? And Lea needed a good PR moment which this does it works both ways and honestly I like it because now all her co-stars are also getting mentioned more, they did Good Morning America, they basically have the entire performance online and it's pushing ticket sales. She saved them from going bankrupt and it's so funny people are mad since Beanie's own dad had to basically fire her. It's just too bad Lea won't be able to extend her time for longer on this production than the contract is permitting and she'll probably go on to other jobs, but damn I wish I could get over to see this.

@@kgal1298 me too!

@@kgal1298 I wish I could too, but hey if they do a cast recording, I’ll be happy and yeah I have a feeling she’ll be doing way more after this.

@@Leamichellefan2244 The cast recording is out now, I bought it as soon as it dropped.

@@kgal1298 if Beany were still in the show, there would be no cast album and they wouldn’t be kicking off the thanks giving day parade in NYC because the show would be closed, I think they are extending the run of the show until either march or may, not sure.

That's such an odd argument - Funny Girl HAS to be about the singing! The book is really pretty weak and only works if we believe Fanny is this remarkable show-stopping talent that can belt out all those iconic numbers. But yes I agree, if they were trying to make the show abt the singing not mattering as much (in a musical? ok), they should have done new arrangements. It all just served to point out where she struggled.

@@lorencappelson6475 I agree with you, but if you ask me, they should’ve just waited until Liam. Michelle was ready to go on and not wasted six months because that robbed the entire cast of a telly award and that still makes me mad.

You’re absolutely right, she shouldn’t of been doing this and yes, daddy‘s money bought her the role. That’s the only reason she was even in this show.

No, that is a lie made up by internet haters who have repeated it ad nauseum and never offered a shred of proof.

is this true?

@@tiffanycesarin5151 yes and it can be verified with a simple google search.

@@Leamichellefan2244 I'm watching the Lea Michele videos and wow, just wow. (I"m trying to learn the song The Music That Makes Me Dance) yea, Beanie has a beaufitul voice, but then Lea comes up....One cannot deny. But that's somewhat embarrassing to have your parents buy a production so you can be in it..

Beanies version didn’t sing the last note. For obvious reasons.

@@amberli5769 🤣

Also the instrumentals for the ending changed which makes me wonder if Beanie leaving it out was a directorial choice or if Beanie couldn’t sing it. Maybe both. And maybe they changed it for Lea because they knew she had a stronger voice?

@@redfirefixfox9611 I think it’s both. Beanie couldn’t sing that last part as it’s supposed to be sung, so the director changed it so that it wouldn’t be very obvious that she skipped that part.

I’m reading to these comments and people are still making excuses for Feld Stein and these excuses are running like water in a river it’s just pathetic.

Stop saying this lie.

@@nicoletrudell2065 What Lie ??

@@rayyanez3527 PREACH SIS

How so? What are the connections?

@@deborahmulkey1627 her father was one of the producers, i believe

Too bad, you need way more than just a “pleasant voice” in taking on a Broadway stage musical role.

I didn't know pleasant equals nasally as hell?

@@Pastadudde it doesn’t this is just another person who is scared to death to speak the truth about floptstine because god forbid they offend some little snowflake.

@@CountryCowboy008 yeah but that’s just it, her voice isn’t even pleasant. It’s excruciating on top of everything else.

It's not Beanie's vocal type that might be the issue tbh. It's more her lack of technique. She's frequently out of breath, pitchy etc.

Am I the only one that feels as if Lea might be too experienced for the role? Don’t get me wrong, she kills grown confident woman Fanny Brice as easily as breathing, but comparing her “I’m the Greatest Star” to Julie Benko’s, I much prefer the latter. I think Lea’s star shines too brightly over the role at the beginning and it throws me off a bit. Still, she performs the whole musical wonderfully, as expected.

@@michellecollinsgalaviz2126 to experience? OK now you’re talking out of your behind, stop pushing julie down our throats, she’s the understudy and not the lead, if they had wanted her to have the lead they wouldn’t have given it to her from the word go but they didn’t so deal with it because lea is funny girl and she’s extraordinary in the role.

@@ToySoldiers thank you freaking thank you.

It's not just what people expect though, you have to keep in mind these songs were written for Barbra so you need a singer who can compare to Barbra, like Lea to sing them! Beanie didn't stand a chance

That's kinda mean..Would u like people writing that about u?

Yeah, it says I never should’ve been cast in this role and the only reason I was because daddy had enough money to give it to me.

I couldn't hear Beanie singing. I hear the music 🎶 which was fine. But you are supposed to hear the singer.

Neither does Lea or Barbra, for that matter. I doubt anyone here would be crazy about Fanny's voice now, although in her day she was much loved. There are audios of her singing My Man and it's nothing like the way you have heard it from Barbra or Lea or any other modern day singer. The sound and recording systems were different, as was the style. As for being her "fault." There was family and friend money involved in the production and she wanted the role.

@@Makeji you’re absolutely right I mean I love miss Bryce‘s voice. I’ve heard it but I still think Lee and Barbara do a good job as far as Feldstein goes. Yeah there was money involved and she threw a tantrum until she got it but when you tell her fans that they look at you like that you’re crazy.

@@Leamichellefan2244 Hollywood is about deals and most productions are about money. On one level, I think they thought they could make it work, but realized very early on - during the previews (rehearsals), they were in trouble. Beanie has a certain charm and charisma, but she had to know she wasn't right for the role. That hurt everyone and may have cause the show to close, which would have been a real shame, because, even with its flaws it's a great show.

@@Makeji I agree with everything you just said, and please forgive me, but I’ve never cared for her never I’m glad they put Lee in.

No

No, only one of them is wonderful, and the other is awful.

@@oliviabb73849 thank you

@@jockboy thank you

Yeah, that ain’t gonna happen but nice try dude Lee’s doing it deal with it and we can still have a conversation with this.

At her age now? Lol

@@ToySoldiers that’s my thoughts, exactly, no offense, but she’s too old.

If u can compare lea's with beanie then Barbara is just banana

But her parents practically bought the role for her, so she wanted it as well. I hope that the overwhelming negative reviews humbled her.

@@CountryCowboy008 the overwhelmingly negative reviews certainly didn’t humble her fans who still continue to blow smoke up her behind and say that the role wasn’t bought for her and that she deserved it and blah blah blah blah blah blah.

I agree. She wasn’t right vocally for the part but I personally think she acted it better. Lea Michelle has a wonderful voice and is a decent actor but she also has her “entitled” qualities that can sometimes be a problem I’m sure. Both of these ladies are talented. And it’s not like Lea Michelle has had a lot to do since Glee that didn’t include Ryan Murphy. She belongs on broadway.

@@donnasens1030 Lea both acted and sang leagues better than Beanie.

@@donnasens1030 you want people to stop attacking beanie then go on to cut down Lea. Also since Scream Queen ( 2017) she did another tv series a tv movie, guest spot on tv show, released 2 album, did tours.

@@ianvera4299 thank you freaking thank you.

@@jac6698 the beanie lovers are amazing hypocrites, they get onto our butts for calling out beanies obvious lack of vocal ability, but then they go and say whatever they want about Lee and then, when you called them out on that, they make up excuse after excuse after excuse, after excuse, it’s pathetic.

It's the same orchestral arrangement, and the only arrangement that changed was the end because Beanie could not belt the final note. And Lea acted this song a whole of a lot better than Beanie ever did. Not only did Beanie sing this weakly, she acted it weakly too. "More him, more him" is one instance where you can hear the pain in Lea's voice but not Beanie's.

You can't compare them because Beanie's version is that of an amateur.

It's bizarre to me when people try to justify how horrible Beanie is by saying she is more focused on the "acting". First of all, this is a musical. Secondly, the thing that is so impressive about Ms. Michelle is how sincerely she expresses the emotion in this number. Her acting here is remarkable and pair that with a voice created for this score and you have what "should have been" a Tony award winning performance. Beanie was terrible at the singing AND the acting. Period.

@@williesullivan3985 Darlings, dont tell me how I have to assess those two versions, and what to like and not like.

No❤

nah, let the Beanie babies EAT CROW.

seems Lea is on par with the acting both comedic and dramatic though.

Beanie's acting is not on a par with Lea's. As for the comedy, Fanny was quick with a quip as a person, her "comedy" was on stage and an act. Both Lea and Julie understood this. Off stage, Fanny was not a comedienne. Beanie does what is known as schtick - over doing the comic lines.

@@jac6698 Lee is better if you ask me

@@Makeji exactly

Really…. You think so… more like here you go ❤ dad. Even if Lea did not apply for the audition… Julie Benko would have clearly one out and not be the understudy.

@@mrbroadwaydork I think you're right about the vocal fit, but the same could be said for the acting fit for LM. And, if we're going to make a vocal comparison, it should be with apples to apples recordings to illustrate the actual differences in their voices, not the differences in the audio quality.

@@skilesdutoit1217 No offense meant to Beanie Feldstein but, I'm sorry, a quality, clearer recording of what she did (and didn't do) in that final song would only make the comparison more painful. She can't sing it. I'm not running out to buy tickets to see Lea Michele, either, but she's at least singing.

A quality recording would only make Beanie sound even WORSE. She's lucky the producers had the foresight to never send her out for televised performances or even an appearance at Broadway in Bryant Park.

[Disclaimer: I don't hate anyone involved with this and I don't root for anyone to fail. I'm not stanning anyone.] To be honest, I did think it was telling that there were never any promotional videos of Beanie Feldstein singing. That concerned me as soon as I started getting ads for the show. With Lea Michele, there are official videos of live performances. So it's true that we don't have comparable audio quality, but that's because the _Funny Girl_ marketing team did not _want_ us to have it. Normally there would be a cast album where we would get a professional-quality recording of Beanie Feldstein's performance. Personally, I'd like that-not just because I want to hear it, but for historical purposes. This show has never been revived on Broadway before. Under the circumstances, though, I don't know if that's going to happen. I will say, though, this was definitely not "scream belting." This is just belting. The material was written to sound this way. I'm not saying that it needs to be exactly the way that Lea Michele does it; I get the impression that she's trying to be Barbra Streisand more than she's trying to be Fanny Brice. I believe that Julie Benko was really trying to become Fanny Brice, which is more appropriate for a biography, so I'd be curious to hear what she sounded like. _Funny Girl_ is a classic Broadway musical with music for a Broadway belter. Lea Michele does have a Broadway voice. Even though I think that she should have done more to differentiate herself from Streisand, she is a Broadway singer. It's not that Beanie Feldstein is a "bad" singer. It's simply that her voice does not suit this art form. And that's not just a problem with Feldstein; that's a problem we're seeing in general with Broadway casts these days. There's an attempt to appeal to mainstream audiences by casting singers who sound like music artists in other genres. I don't mean to insult other music, of course. But ultimately, it does a great disservice to an art form when the people producing it lose touch with everything that makes the art form so distinct in the first place.

@@Pastadudde exactly thank you, I hope they do a cast recording with Lee.

Lea has never badmouthed her costars, in theater and tv show, in public. Unlike her costars. They should have told her bad behavior in private or made some intervention without destroying her public name. I mean we arent angels ourselves, we're just smarter to hide our bad side.

guess where is that black girl who accused lea of being rude to her.. still zero career.. blame her failure on being treated bad... that is why she never could have a career.. she is waiting for another BLM then she can milk it again.

you are like day care glee club level Shannon... I already can picture you..

I don't believe Lea is a bad person. She is a professional that has always worked hard on her craft. Samatha was fooling around while she was doing a scene. They has been no one who head her say anywhere about a wig. Samanta was trying to get PR.

Why? Because she's Sephardic and not Ashkanazi (and Ariel can't be black - spare us the racist tropes) or is it because she actually grew up in New York and is a showbiz outsider who fueled by ambition and talent fought her way into a career first in New York on the stage (like Brice) and then on TV (substitute radio and you have another parallel with Brice)? What does a privileged young woman from a wealthy showbiz family like Beanie Feldstein have in common with Fanny Brice? What makers her Fanny more believable? The fact she can't sing the score for the show as it was written and arranged? You're entitled to your opinion but I have eyes and ears. Worst part is you do Beanie a great disservice - I have little doubt that objectively she is the better actress but insisting she is better than Lea Michele as Fanny Brice in this production of Funny Girl is laughable. The evidence to the contrary is everywhere.

In what universe? Do you know anything about Brice?

@@ShellyGold it has been a bit annoying to see many people try to erase Lea's Jewish side.

Lmao, ok….too bad Beanie sucked at singing the songs.

Julie Benko is wonderful. Amazing acting, comic timing and great voice. Much more nuance and character development. She really is Fanny. Not Lea trying to play Barbra playing Fanny.

Thank you! I am no Lea Michelle myself, but I can sing the score much better than Beanie. Too bad my daddy couldn't buy me a leading role, lol. This was a shockingly poor performance, inexcusable.