Hollywood Domination Chapter 49: Anne Benson

"Velma's actor changed? The victim of the Broadway rising star storm." Jenny threw the magazine on the dining table, "Congratulations, my first national magazine is actually "U.S. Weekly."

"Yes, I have to admit, you've been surprising me." Judy said on the other end of the phone. Get a spot on the local gossip paper in New York. The New York Daily News, the New York Post gossip page, whatever, didn't expect Us Weekly to pay attention to you, I guess they noticed something unusual about Broadway The box office boom, and the comments about you on the Internet.”

Indeed, in the past month, the popularity of Jennifer Jefferson's IMDB actor has risen rapidly, and her discussion board has more posts than some big-name stars, and her users are more active. The role of mystic propaganda tactics. So far, the official information that has been released is only Jenny's full name, and the name Jennifer Jane Jefferson has also brought Jenny her first semi-official nickname: J.J.J. CV, education, family life and even age are all unsolved mysteries.

If it was the 1980s, without the Internet, her fans might be able to digest this kind of love for *J after a few days of depression with enthusiasm that no one can understand , continue to live as usual. But now it is 2002, and the Internet has entered thousands of households on both sides of the United States. Cultures that used to be niche can now find their bases on the Internet.

For example, musicals, compared with film and television dramas, are undoubtedly niche. The way of live performance determines that the entry threshold for most fans is very high. Some fans living in small cities often have little chance to find To communicate with friends, of course there is no need to say more about the annual tour. It is a situation where there is no choice for what to see, but when they go to Broadway to watch a play, when they have a choice, they can only buy tickets dubiously through the review. .

But now with the Internet, everything is different. Through social networking, fans have established a virtual friendship that is no less than a real relationship. Love, and more conveniently create an atmosphere akin to fanaticism. Driven by herd mentality, many people will generously donate money for DVDs and peripherals that they did not intend to buy, so the Internet is good news for niche art. Relying on the Internet, the Matthew effect of "the more the more, the less the less" no longer exists, and their fan base can expand steadily for a long time, and will not slowly disappear due to the scarcity of the number.

And J.J.J is a kind of niche art. Her fans are now composed of "CSI" audiences who have seen the musical performance as the backbone, and New York musical lovers as the wings. Although the number is small, they are closely connected with each other. Closely, even spontaneously formed a drama watching activity. Every night, someone would post their impressions of tonight’s drama watching on the forum, and even compare the performances that the audience has seen before and after. There are differences in performance details between scenes and scenes.

This kind of close and fanatical fan culture, which is almost cult-like, and the (increasing) crowd waiting in line at the old Schubert Theater at midnight every day, will of course attract the attention of the media, in order to implement the previously set hunger Marketing, Jenny’s PR Judy Ackerman has contacted some major gossip magazines in New York, hoping that they will not report the story of Jenny’s life experience—because there is actually no special news point about Jenny’s life experience, it is just for marketing strategy needs , and she herself is not the kind of big star whose every move causes troubles in all directions, she is just an eye-catching newcomer, and Judy's public relations have not encountered any difficulties. Everything was under control, only this report by "U.S. Weekly" was a surprise to them.

"Fortunately, "The Weekly" is not interested in you enough for them to send a reporter to conduct an exclusive investigation." Judy's voice came from the phone flipping through the magazine. "This is basically a reprint of those newspapers in New York, and it also describes the craze you caused. The pictures are also very good, and there is no deliberate ugliness. This is beneficial to your popularity."

Indeed, perhaps considering that most of the audience of "U.S. Weekly" are from non-New York areas, this report of "U.S. Weekly" uses the incident of Dietrich's unemployment caused by Jenny's ascension to expose the fierce and cruel competition on Broadway, If anyone is the buffoon in this story, it's the executives at the Old Schubert Theatre. The report analyzed the reasons for Dietrich's unemployment in a subtly ironic tone, and recalled the remarks of some leaders of the Schubert organization: "On Broadway, only the best survive." A competition of survival of the fittest to satisfy the audience's curiosity.

The report itself selected two pictures, one is Dietrich Street, depressed and frowning, smoking a cigarette, and the other is Jenny smiling and waving to the paparazzi. Dietrich's phrasing is: Poor silent loser, and Jenny's phrasing is: Now the winner, how long can I win?

Generally speaking, paparazzi photos do not intentionally make celebrities beautiful. If you see a paparazzi photo that looks like a fashion blockbuster, it must be a posed photo that you contacted in advance. Moreover, the difference between posing and snapping is so obvious that gossip passers-by can tell it at a glance, and only fans will point to the posing and shout, "So even the snap is so beautiful" and so on. This photo of Jenny is obviously a snapshot, but she is young and beautiful, with a slim figure and good taste in clothing. Even if it is a snapshot, she looks very fashionable, and she is still full of eye-catching and star-like. Judy's comment on this is, "Most people will understand why Dietrich has to go out after seeing these two pictures."

Except for this report, which is generally favorable to Jenny, the whole casting incident did not cause any drama. and interviewed Dietrich, but Dietrich claimed that this was a normal job change, her contract had expired, and based on 'personal considerations', she decided not to renew her contract with the theater.

The theater side also showed a tacit attitude towards this, indicating that it had started to select a new Verma a few months ago, but it was only because the interested candidate was found in Europe and the contract was not signed, so it has not been announced.

'So, what do you think about Jennifer Jane Jefferson? ’

Almost every report has such a question with ulterior motives, and the intention to sow discord is obvious at a glance, but Dietrich did not make a negative comment on Jenny, and even hinted that there is something unknown about reporter Jenny Bad temper, but unexpectedly gave a pretty good evaluation. "She's a wonderful, hardworking girl, very simple, I mean, it's hard to hate her, even if there are many reasons, but you just can't. I believe she and everyone in the troupe are good friends."

This is a very sincere answer, and no one can pick out any unfavorable factors for Jenny from this sentence. Of course, as a very rare "collaborator's evaluation" at present, it was quickly posted on the discussion board, which inspired a series of emotions and praises. Now Jenny's public image is very positive, and she is known for being kind and friendly to fans. Dietrich's evaluation has added an aura of friendliness and hard work to her.

"It's not surprising," Cesare commented over lunch with her, "Everything Dietrich did to you was driven by the fear of losing your job, and now that the fear has come true, you seem to be ' Nothing to do with it', just plain 'stupid luck'."

He put two double quotation marks next to his ears, "Then after accepting the fact that she is unemployed, she feels that she owes you something, and it is reasonable to make up for her previous behavior. "

"It doesn't sound like you think Dietrich is a bad person." Jenny took a bite of pasta, today is her cereal day, Jenny allowed herself to eat a bowl of pasta, of course, the sauce was still missing, just Season with salt, pepper, etc., and serve with boiled vegetables and chicken as companions.

"Do you think she is a bad person?" Cesare asked back.

"No, I just think she is very desperate," Jenny said, "and can't help feeling worried about the future-if in this circle, the competition at the bottom is so fierce, and the mentality of the competitors is so desperate, then Do high-level competitions often kill people?"

"I'm not saying the competition at the top won't be tougher, but the reason Dietrich would try to ruin your life for a chance to continue acting is because once she loses the role, she loses everything in the blink of an eye. Cesare took a bite of his veal steak, "When you enter the 20 million club, things will be different. Of course, you still have to step on each other's blood in essence, but this kind of competition will be eliminated." Putting on the veil of tenderness, you and your competitors may even develop a friendship of sympathy. After all, for the 20 million club, a job offer has little impact on them, only two consecutive failed selections Only then will their status be shaken."

Jenny couldn't help laughing, "Are you encouraging me or trying to scare me—even the 20 million club can only afford two failed selections, so to speak, below the 20 million club, the star Isn't there no chance of making mistakes?"

"This is not a brave new world, everyone deserves a second chance." Cesare wiped his mouth with a napkin and changed the subject. "Tonight will be the first time the new Velma will be on stage?"

"Yes, are you going to come and see?" Jenny asked, "Which friend will you bring this time?"

After she performed "Chicago" on Broadway, she had more opportunities to meet Cesare. Whenever he came to New York on business, he would definitely come to the Shubert Theater to support him. Of course, he was always around. Accompanying, in most cases, well-known actors, directors, and even producers, Cesare has been promoting her, and Jeanne knows this, and she has often stayed in the theater after performances for the past month, and Cesare's Say hello to friends, sometimes even go to the bar to sit together. She also made some friends in the industry because of this, but so far, he hasn't mentioned new audition opportunities to her—maybe it's because the timing is not enough, maybe the schedule is wrong, and Jenny didn't ask why.

"It should be with Agata and Rob." Cesare replied, "maybe there will be a few friends of Agata. As far as I know, the critics in New York and Los Angeles also called Come to ask for tickets, they are very curious about whether this new Velma can match up with you."

"It seems that the focus of the audience tonight will be on Ann." Jenny and Ann Benson get along well. They don't hit each other very well, but they maintain a friendly relationship. For the past week she has been doing duet rehearsals with Ann, working on the choral piece. "I think they will be satisfied. Ann's professional quality is indeed better than that of Dietrich."

"So, tonight you will become Dietrich." Cesare waved his hand to check out, "Believe me, if you are suppressed by New Velma tonight, you will be criticized by every column tomorrow, those Although the theater critics are full of praise for you, it is only because you have no choice. On Broadway, you are a wild girl who came to disrupt the situation, and you are destined not to stay for long, while Ann Benson is a professional, well-known and decent. In your struggle with her, drama critics will not be a fair referee. You can only get a relatively objective evaluation if you do your best, so good that they can’t ignore it.”

"You really boost morale," Jenny said half-jokingly as she walked out of the restaurant with him, "will you provide me with a flavored cigarette next, and let me lower Ann's competitiveness?"

"Now, Dietrich's mood is not so difficult to understand, is it?" Cesare asked back, and he asked again, "But do you have confidence in your performance tonight?"

"Looks like someone has lost faith in me," Jenny commented.

"I know that Ann Benson is very good. She is famous in the West District. Even though you are talented, you have only undergone short-term training." Cesare briefly explained, his brows were slightly raised, "Of course I know you are excellent, otherwise I would not have signed you."

——His tone suggested that Jenny's excellence is a topic that needs no further discussion. If Jenny actually asks for a little compliment, then she is too pampered. "But even you have a limit. In your co-starring with Dietrich, Dietrich's weakness may make you more dazzling, but Ann Benson is the chief Velma of the West End. The use of attention may be more handy."

"In short, you just don't have confidence in me?" Jenny confirmed, she pretended to be hurt and said, "Oh, Baby, I thought we agreed to trust each other."

"What I'm asking now is whether you have confidence in yourself." Cesare's mood was a little unhappy, and Jenny could see it from the change in his tone and the angle of his eyebrows. Over the past month or so, they have met enough times for her to learn more about him, and found that Cesare is actually not the 'machine' she thought. One of his little problems is that he doesn't like people avoiding his questions again and again.

"Anyway, you are always coming to see it tonight." Mary drove her car, and Jenny opened the door, and turned to Cesare and said, "After reading it, you will know the answer?"

Cesare's eyebrows frowned even tighter, and Jenny closed the door, resisting the urge to blow him a victory kiss—for Lilian's sake, she had always avoided suspicion of him and cut down all misunderstandings. move.

But even so, she couldn't help but waved goodbye to him with a smile, her heart full of unspeakable joy of victory: this was the first time she had a point in the conversation with Cesare during this period of time upper hand.

#

"This is the most exciting night of the month," Ben Brantley thought as he sat down in his seat, but then corrected himself, "No, it should be The most exciting afternoon."

Because all the box offices were sold out half a month ago, it was impossible to squeeze out a large number of free tickets, and there were quite a few theater critics who expressed interest in the premiere of Ann Benson's "Chicago", so the theater troupe simply opened it on Monday afternoon An extra show was arranged, and after satisfying the demands of all theater critics and advertisers for free tickets, there were only a few hundred seats left for sale, and the view was generally not very good, but even so, the seats were still available for several hours. Sold out within.

"This is simply a preview of the Tony Awards." His old friend Patric took a seat next to Brantley, and he looked around the venue dissatisfied, "Hmph, look, Dick Scanlan, Janey .Tessoni... no wonder the seats we got are farther away than last time."

Because it was in the afternoon, in addition to drama critics and business people holding tickets from advertisers, there were also many famous Broadway actors who had been famous for "Chicago" for a long time, but because of work Due to the overlap of time, there is no chance to come to watch the drama in groups. They naturally occupied the most central first-class seat, and Brantley and Patrik could only sit in the slightly remote back row area, but they were still within the range of the first-class seat, which was already reserved for New Yorkers. With preferential treatment, many drama critics in Los Angeles were placed in a lower position.

Don't look at the drama critics who seem to be dedicated to artistry. They have no interest in the star's glamorous appearance and extraordinary wealth. When they criticize their acting skills, they use sharp words and show no mercy. But in fact, it’s not something they don’t care about. The seating arrangement is something that can greatly affect the mood of film critics. There is no need to mention the sourness. If it was the past, Brantley would definitely gossip with Patrik about the proper seating arrangement of several famous drama critics, but now he has no such thoughts at all, and all his energy is focused on anticipating the performance five minutes later. ——He has heard of Ann Benson, a top student at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, who has been in the West End for four years—but he has never seen her performance. On the one hand, he hopes that Ann Benson, an orthodox graduate Pai can suppress *J and satisfy Brantley's hope of maintaining the traditional culture of musicals. Guys rein in their inexplicably confident attitude and stop looking down on Broadway artistry.

He especially looked at the direction on the left - there were a few unfamiliar faces sitting there who kept talking in low voices. Judging from their accents, they should be critics from London who came to watch the play. It is conceivable that in this afternoon's performance, they will definitely focus on discovering Benson's bright spots, and turn a blind eye to Jennifer's brilliant performance. They may even seize on her weak resume and her weakness of being too beautiful, and make a lot of hints The shallowness of Broadway in talent selection.

The conflict between loyalty to Broadway promotion culture and patriotism left Brantley undecided whether he wanted Jennifer to continue to overwhelm Ann Benson, or the opposite. He doesn't even have an idea of ​​how to conceive tomorrow's drama review column. As the saying goes, 'There is no comment without a position', and Brantley just can't find his position right now.

Amidst his panic, the lights in the theater went dark. Accompanied by the familiar opening music, the first act began, and Ann Benson also completed her leisurely first act during the conversation between her and the theater manager. One appearance.

"Where's your sister?"

"I'm on my own tonight."

The low, slow dialogue has a strong sense of rhythm between the cadences, and just the first sentence makes Brantley feel bad: her lines are very strong, and Velma's pronunciation has no trace of London , speaking with a pure American accent, which is not easy for a newcomer to the UK. Judging from these words alone, Ann Benson is a professional actor that should not be underestimated.

Soon, with Verma's first appearance, Brantley affirmed his opinion that Ann Benson's professional level is also one of the best on Broadway.

Dietrich performed very well in her first solo dance. She is an excellent dancer. Although her appearance is mediocre and her voice is not very good among blacks, she is better than her dance moves and singing. Generous and powerful, her Velma is full of power, and it is enough to deter the audience in an era without Jennifer, making them ignore Velma's looks and acting skills.

But Ann Benson is a performer with a completely different style. Her Velma is as full of force. During the whole dance, her eyes are always looking at the audience, her expression is full of confidence, showing a This kind of "beautiful leopard" has a sense of initiative to choose and eat, but compared with Dietrich, first, Ann is more beautiful, and second, her Velma is more charming.

The angle and gesture of the hand touching the body, the wink at the audience, the angle of opening the mouth... Her dancing/suggestive meaning is stronger, under her interpretation, Velma is no longer a strong woman Warrior, but closer to the original character design, more like a popular dancer who is willing to show off, flirt with the audience, sophisticated and capable.

After the first solo dance was over, in the short gap between scenes and lights, Patrik turned sideways and whispered to Brantley, "I have to say, this time, she has met a strong enemy. "

Brantley had read his report and knew that Patrik simply regarded *J as his goddess, and now even he had to admit that Ann Benson had already posed a threat to Jennifer.

"Who is the number one heroine of "Chicago"?" He used the wrong word again - after all, as a drama critic, Brantley hardly watched the drama in the afternoon. But neither he nor Patric cared about this, he swallowed excitedly, "It seems that there will be a good show tonight."

The author has something to say: Note: 1 The gossip magazines mentioned in this chapter are all true, the most famous of which is "U.S. Weekly", which is a very popular gossip magazine along with "People" and "Intouch" Information magazines, in 2014 there were TMZ and some gossip blogs, communities, etc., but in 2002, it was still the world of magazines.

2 Ann Benson is a fictional character, and Dick Scanlan and Jane Tersoni are real people, both of whom were Tony Award winners in 2002

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By the way, how do you guess so accurately? Today is a plus change with a profit of a thousand, and it was not full when it was updated yesterday...

Let's see the update in an hour! Then you should be able to rest for a day or two...