[catlike-tread]

Which do you think is the better part in Brigadoon, Tommy Albright or Jeff Douglas? Tommy's got great songs (Almost Like Being in Love, From this Day On, etc) but Jeff has the best lines. I might be biased because I played Jeff, but I think he's a blast to play.

[melbageek]

If I were to choose between the two, I would choose to be jeff. Like you said, he does have the better lines. I would hate to play the old cliche of falling in love and then deciding you leave, but oh wait, I'm back because I truly love you kind of thing. Jeff has awesome lines, and he's a drunk.. what's not to love. Personally, I like to be the comedic character in shows, but it's nice to portray a dramatic character aswell. It depends upon the person.

[ShadowInTheWings]

I wa watching a rehearsal yesterday, and some of Tommy and Fiona's scenes (especially the last ones) had me close to tears, but it seemed everytime Jeff opened his mouth, I would burst out laughing. I hadn't expected so much humor in the show, so it was a pleasant surprise.

[Cazzy Mcsnazzy]

Oh god i dont know! Thats a hard 1! If jeff had a song then i would probs say him but he doesnt sing anything! I love all Tommys songs but my favourite part of the show is when jeff is answering his own questions in the bar, its sssooo funny. Not so funny when your trying to keep a straight face during the reprises! lol I cant decide. xxx

[catlike-tread]

When I was in the show, they made "Go Home With Bonnie Jean" like the movie version, the actor playing Tommy and I sang parts of one of the verses and then went into a duet soft-shoe. The audience loved it, but looking back, I wished that the director hadn't added it in since IMO the reason Jeff has no songs is that he refuses to believe that Brigadoon exists and that includes participating in singing and dancing.

All the musical numbers are in Brigadoon except when Tommy is singing the reprises in the bar and he is back in Brigadoon for a second there I like to think. I then made a decision that people only break into song in the town of Brigadoon, adding to the surreal effect. Therefore, Tommy quickly takes to singing because he believes in the town while Jeff never sings for the opposite reason.

[ShadowInTheWings]

[Salome]

Jeff. hands down. one of the best written roles in musical comedy. its a tour de force for any actor.

[Jennyanydots]

[ShadowInTheWings]

"Villian qualities"?! Wow, if he's as dark as you make him seem, then the movie must have absolutely butchered the stage version. Jeff is far from villianous; I think his charm lies in how laid back he is. He really doen't care about anything at all, just kind of goes with the flow of whatever's going on. He's cute, and he's charming, without any darkness in him at all (that I can see).
He almost seems like a write off throughout the show, he is litterally just the side-kick, who gets plenty of laughs.

[eberts]

I think Jeff is a fascinating character not because of what he does in the play, but the darker prospects of what will happen to him after it. Jeff is a confirmed alcoholic and an avowed bachelor. He is anti-social and curmudgeonly with Tommy perhaps being is only true friend. He stumbles upon Brigadoon and inadvertently kills a man. This drives him to believe it is all a fantasy and convinces Tommy the same.
At the end of the play Brigadoon reappears. Tommy leaves for it, but Jeff cannot. This leaves him alone with the realization that he did actually kill a man. Additionally, he lost his only friend and a possible love. All that he is left with is despair and alcohol. So what will become of him.

It's a very sad fate if you think about it. In the 50's when this play was written, alcoholism was laughed off as comical. Fifty years later we know a little better. I took the role for the very last moment, when Jeff is alone watching Tommy leave. Every fiber of his being tells him to follow, but he cannot. He laughs at the end and waves goodbye, but it is hollow at best. He will live out his life wondering if he made the right choice.

I know I'm reading a lot into this but as I said, I did play the role and did my work on it. The director and I talked a great deal on the fate of Jeff and how that last moment should be played. We certainly didn't want to end the play on a sour note, but we split the difference between 1950 and 2000 and made it a bittersweet moment. The audience still loved Jeff and found him hysterical, but maybe thought about him later on in a different context.

So, my 9 cents into the matter.

Mike

[ShadowInTheWings]

Wow, I never thought about it like that. I always just saw the humor in him, and his references to alcohol are funny, and it's sometimes hard to get past that and see that he really has a problem. Throughout the entire show, he's so easy to laugh at and not take seriously, that I think most people do. The only time he seemed real (to me, at least) was one of his last lines: "It didn't work that way for me. It's so much like a dream to me that I'd have to work hard to convince myself it happened at all." There's something about that line, and how our Jeff played it, that made him seem so human and vulnerable. I think that's the one line that grounds him, that says he's not just the one-dimensional sidekick (which he really is through much of the show). Unfortunately, being backstage, I've never actually seen how that last moment looks onstage, I can only hear the dialogue. Now I can kind of understand what a sad moment it would be for him.
Of course, I alsways find it hard to feel sorry for him; early on in our run a bunch of us decided that after Tommy went to Brigadoon the second time, Jane and Jeff end up together. He needs someone to take care of him, and she needs someone she can boss around. They would complete each other. Then again, they would probably kill each other before too long.

[BroadwayDude34]

The answer is obviously Charlie Dalrymple.

He's got the two best songs in the show - I'll Go Home With Bonnie Jean and Come To Me, Bend To Me.

[Cazzy Mcsnazzy]

[ShadowInTheWings]

He's always been Dalrymple, that's what his name is in the original script.

[*Dark*Solo*Singer*]

I didn't like the Jeff in my school. Too Monotoned. but I like that part in general because he has really funny lines.

[Salome]

wtf production did you see that they changed charlies last name? thats a stupid last name for him. lol

[Reds]

I love the character Jeff if played right. He is so sarcastic which would make him very funny to play. Unfortunetly I would never get to play either Jeff or Tommy unless they do a girls version.

[MsDivaKate]

[Sweeney Hyde]

Jeff is definately funnier, but I don't know if I would consider him a MUSICAL comedy character, as he doesn't sing at all...so i chose Tommy even though the character is a bit weak...

[Salome]

apart from ther songs, Charlie is bornig. Jeff is the best written and meatiest role in the piece.

[Salome]

[Sweeney Hyde]

When I did it in 2002, Charlie's full name was, and I will quote a line in the script, "...Charles MacPherson Dalyrimple..."

[TheRave]

After auditioning for both parts then landing with Jeff in a recent production I think it is definitely a difficult decision.

I think I would have to go with Jeff as his life is changed more during the storyline and his ending is the more complex. This is also alongside the fact that he is a comical character, which everyone loves to play.

When looking at and playing characters I always look deeply into character development both in the form of back-story as well as the transition of the character during and after the scripted story.

From my point of view, the major turning point in Jeff's life is killing someone. Before this he liked his alcohol, but I see him as not being a druken wreck. I see him having friends (even if its only a few) and he gets by in life only taking things he sees and understands.

During the show he's so laid back and sarcastic that he gets laid even without really wanting to. I see him as just letting her "get on with it".

When it comes to the scene where he admits to killing Harry he is confused and is more trying to convince himself that its all a dream than he is Tommy. During this seen all the humour and sarcasm is drawn out from him as he admits the truth. This really shows how much this has affected him.

Then in the bar scene he is described as being a drunkard for the last few months. I don't think before he went to the village he would have regularly got in this state and the drinking is him trying to block out/cover up his experience in Brigadoon. Jane compliments this idea by saying that Jeff "has been particularly difficult" the last couple of months. I see Jane as not totally liking him before the Brigadoon experience but now that Jeff has changed she dislikes him even more.

The whole Brigadoon experience for Jeff is summed up by his last line: "I got lost around here once." - which works on all the levels, geographically, emotionally and physically (drink).

I think that Jeff is definetely the more complex character and due to not being the main lead he has more unknown sub-story.

[Berger]

I like Tommy better

[Salome]