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• • In 2005, Joe Franklin enjoyed seeing scenes from Courting Mae West — — and this month he had a chance to get acquainted with the current cast when he popped in on a performance at the Kaufman Theatre [123 East 24th Street] on Monday 21 July 2008.
• • Before coming to the play, Joe Franklin plugged the show during the "Potpourri" section of his broadcast on Bloomberg Radio.
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• • An expert on vaudeville and a member of a prestigious sheet music society, Joe Franklin is no stranger to the lawless decade — — the Prohibition Era — — when Courting Mae West takes place.
• • According to Joe Franklin, what he enjoys about this serious-minded comedy is the sense that what happens in Act I and Act II is spontaneous and yet inevitable. And he enjoys the characters: the ambitious women and the complex, lovable scoundrels around them.
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• • "She's a high-wattage actress," said Franklin. "She has the skill to keep her performance as acting and not an impersonation of Mae West."
• • A lifelong theatre buff, Joe Franklin has seen many performers try to portray Mae and fail. "I feel that, ultimately, you have to love the individual you are playing. You have to have a certain feeling. You have to have passion for the person. I can see that Yvonne Sayers is the type who prepared for the part by trying to understand why Mae did what she did, defending it, and getting behind it."
• • According to Joe Franklin, Yvonne Sayers is destined for stardom. "She's got what it takes — — just like Mae."
• • Come up and see Mae every day online: http://MaeWest.blogspot.com/
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Source:http://maewest.blogspot.com/atom.xml
Mae West
• • Photo: • • Mae West cast • • Yvonne Sayers illustration • •
• • Photo: • • Mae West • • author of "Courting Mae West" with Joe Franklin and Mae • •
NYC
Mae West.
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