Acts, dances and sings a little

Variety announced last week that Clay Aiken will return to Broadway in September, once again playing Sir Robin in Monty Python’s Spamalot. The article noted that the show had seen a great uptick in sales during his run and an appreciable decline when he left. Clay impressed the critics as well as the box office with two members of the New York Drama Critics giving him highly favorable reviews.

Clay has referred to himself as entertainer a lot this year and his new official biography notes this as well. While I am impatient to hear his latest album (On My Way Here) in concert, where a great voice will be intertwined with his enviable spontaneous wit, I can also see this as a good move.

So, what’s next? Are we going to see Clay on TV while he’s in New York? I sure hope so. A number of shows are filmed in New York from Law and Order to 30Rock. I once asked him (through a friend who won a Meet and Greet) if he wanted to play a small part in a movie or a 3-4 episode arc in a TV drama. He chose the TV drama if he could play a villain. Are you listening, NBC?

Then there is Saturday Night Live. How I would love to see him hosting that show, the quick costume changes and different characters of Spamalot have to be harder than anything the SNL writers could throw at him. I do believe the night he was the musical guest in 2003, that his show had the highest or one of the highest ratings for the SNL season.

Perhaps he’s looking at movie scripts, since he has impressed the very talented, very discerning Mike Nichols. There hasn’t been any more word on the movie version of Spamalot since 2006, but I’d love it if Eric Idle decided to follow through and bring that to the big screen. As talented as David Hyde Pierce is, I think he’s too old for the part.

Other musicals rumored to be in development include Jesus Christ Superstar and My Fair Lady. I can’t even think about Clay in Jesus Christ Superstar because I think he’s too perfect for it and I would be highly disappointed if he didn’t at least get a shot. Yes, there are some screaming rocker parts but he proved here in 2004, that he can scream it out with the best of them. Check it out at around 2:20 of this video.



The part of Freddy in My Fair Lady would be OK, he’s proven he can do a credible British accent but I find the music a little too corny for my taste, especially On The Street Where You Live.

I think he would do well starting off in a small movie role and working his way up to a larger one. And since I want it all, naturally he should sing the main songs from the album on the Soundtrack. Maybe they could remake The Bodyguard with a guy instead of Whitney Houston and a female bodyguard. After all, his new son Parker’s Uncle David produced that Soundtrack album.

I know that some fans are feeling uncertain about his continuing to do some acting before another tour. I think it is smart on his part for now. The music industry is in disarray, RCA is going through many changes both as a division with a change at the top and as a corporation as Sony bought back its shares from BMG. Those singers who can only sing have limited career opportunities. The fact that Clay has proven to be very adept at comedic acting and can put “butts in seats” makes this a wise and I hope, inspired move.

To read Clay’s successful and varied biography, visit his official fanclub site here.

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